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How to communicate with cultural competency in an increasingly diverse business environment. A presentation for the the Ambassadors of the Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce (8/13/13)
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Communicating with Cultural Competency in an increasingly diverse Business Environment
August 13, 2013
International Business is rolling
into Tennessee
So, the Germans, French, Japanese,
Koreans are coming...
...but what does this have to do with me?
Mind the Culture Gap
Do Any Of These Statements Apply to You?
• I work with people of different cultures/countries and sometimes I feel like we aren't fully connecting
• When working with foreigners I am unsure how to make contact and what contacts to make
• Sometimes it seems difficult to get "honest" information from my foreign business contacts
Why Culture matters
• Cultural values impact most relevant behaviors in interpersonal processes
* contacting * introducing * trust building * * communicating *negotiating * conflict management *
• Knowing about cultural behavioral preferences will benefit work performance in diverse teams
Visible & Invisible Parts of CultureVisibles:- what people see, hear, touch, taste, smell- explicitly learned- conscious- easily changed- objective knowledge
Invisibles:- what people believe, value, think, feel- implicitly learned- unconscious- difficult to change- subjective knowledge
Cultural Dimensions• Individualism vs. Collectivism
• Short-term vs. long-term orientation
• Hierarchical vs. participative orientation
• Need for certainty vs. tolerance for ambiguity
• Orientation towards achievement vs. quality of life
1. Individualist ……………………………………....…………………....…................ Group-oriented
2. Egalitarian ………………………….…………………....……......…................………. Hierarchical
3. Task-oriented …………………....………………..………..........................………… Relationship
4. Rules ……………………………....…………………....……..............……... Particular Situations
Building Relationships
US GER AR GER* MEX PER|________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Individualist Communitarian
MEX PER AR GER US|________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Hierarchical Egalitarian
US GER AR PER MEX|________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Task-oriented Relational
MEX PER AR US GER|________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Particular situations Universal rules
1. Implicit ……………………………………....…………………....…........................………..... Explicit
2. Consensual Harmony ………………………….………….................………. Confronting
3. Formal …………………....………………..……………....................................………… Informal
4. Achievement ……………………………....…………………..................……... Balanced Life
Communication
MEX PER AR US GER|________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Implicit Explicit
MEX PER AR US GER|________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Harmony/Consensus-seeking Confrontational
MEX PER GER AR US|________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Formal Informal
GER US AR GER* MEX PER |________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Live to work (achievement) Work to live (balance)
1. Polychronic ………………………....…………….....................................….... Monochronic
2. External Control ………………………….…….....……................………. Internal Control
3. Risk-averse …………………....………………..….....................………..............… Risk-taking
4. Process-orientation …..…………………....…...........….......…... Results-orientation
Time & Decisions
MEX PER AR US GER|________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Polychronic Monochronic
PER MEX AR GER US|________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10External Control Internal Control
PER MEX AR GER US|________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Risk-averse Happy to take risks
GER PER AR MEX US |________|_______|________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Processes matter Results matter
Peaches vs. Coconuts
Peach- extroverted with strangers- open & curious- makes "friends" quickly- talks openly in public- public & private interwoven
Coconut- reserved, needs time to warm up with strangers- private & public strictly separated- social distance determined by status, social role, profession- close, very intimate sharing of experiences with friends
ze German use of ze Englisch language
• most Germans speak English
• many know English only on an academic/school level
• most schools teach mainly British English
• => misunderstandings (esp. with Americans)
• difficulties in understanding nuances, reading between the lines
• native speech is full of "would", "could", "please", "thank you", "might"
• Germans use "should", "must", "have to", "yes" and "no"
Working across
Cultures
• Be patient when building trust and establishing relationships
• Use simple English - Avoid idiomatic language
• Watch for nonverbal interaction cues
• Be aware of the gap between your home culture and the culture of your counterpart
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