BJ10A0500 CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATION FOR WORKING LIFE. Lecturer: D. Sc. (Econ.) Hanna Salojärvi Room:

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1 BJ10A0500 CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATION FOR WORKING LIFE Lecturer: D. Sc. (Econ.) Hanna Salojärvi Room:

2 WHY THIS COURSE? Knowledge about cultural differences Framework for understanding ourselves and others Facilitate cross-cultural communication Avoid mistakes in cross-cultural situations (negotiations, management, marketing efforts) Global business (multinational markets, business partners and suppliers from different countries) Impacts the way strategic moves are presented, Influences management, decision making, negotiations Diverse customers (differences in responding to appeals, sensitivity to cultural aspects in products, services) Culture can be a source of new ideas Culture makes international business difficult or easy BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 2

3 COURSE INTRODUCTION Course objectives and contents Practical issues Timetable Evaluation and grading Course project instructions Course literature Lecture I. Introduction to the concept of culture BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 3

4 COURSE OBJECTIVES & CONTENTS Credits 2 Objectives: Upon completion of the course, a student should be able to communicate and work effectively in an international project or team. The course provides an understanding of how culture affects communication and management in an international environment, and equips the students with conceptual tools for dealing with intercultural situations in working environment. Contents: 1. Definitions of culture. 2. Trompenaar s value orientations and Hall s dimensions of culture. 3. Hofstede s dimensions of culture. 4. GLOBE study of culture, leadership and organizations. Cross-cultural issues in international teams. 5. Culture in international marketing management. 6. Country cases of cultural differences (course project reports). 7. Case studies. 4

5 INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES After completing the course the students can: Define and categorize culture Explain the concept of time orientation Explain the concept of value orientations Remember Hofstede s and GLOBE cultural dimensions Analyze the sources of cultural conflicts in international organizations Identify the barriers in intercultural communication Understand the role of cultural factors in managing and leading international teams BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 5

6 COURSE STRUCTURE 5 Lectures (12 h) 3 Exercises (6 h) Course project + Presentations (4 h) BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 6

7 COURSE EVALUATION Final grade of the course Pass/Fail Evaluation 0-30 points (min. 25 points required for passing) Active participation in 3 case exercise sessions + written case memo/each case (3 sessions x 5 points/session = 15 points) If you missed a session due to a force majeure or illness (you have a cerfiricate from a doctor) => you can compensate max 6 points by preparing an article review on a topic agreed with the course instructor. Course project (10 points) deadline April, 21 (23:59) 0-5 satisfactory 5-6 good 7-8 very good 9-10 excellent Course project presentation (5 points) BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 7

8 CASE STUDIES Prior coming to the case exercise session, prepare a two page written memo of each case and answer to the questions proposed by the instructor. Case questions will be available in course noppa page Case texts will be distributed in class during the first two lectures. In case you are not able to attend the lectures, please contact the instructor and make sure you receive the cases. Case memos are written individually but the cases are discussed in small groups in the exercises. BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 8

9 TERM PAPER Effect of culture on communication and management in country X (or in countries X and Y => comparative analysis) Option 1: Country X Choose a country (not your own native country!) Apply the concepts from the lectures and course books to that country: Build an analysis on how the country s culture affects communication and management You may reflect your own experiences or perhaps interview a representative of this country?...but this is additional contents only Length of the report: appr. 10 pages (excluding cover, table of contents and references) BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 9

10 CONTINUES Option 2: Countries X and Y => Comparative analysis If the work is done in pairs, each student writes a basic description of cultural characteristics of the other student s country (2-3 pages) Discuss, compare and analyze the given facts Search for similarities and differences, and also potential sources of conflict Prepare the final term paper together (make sure that the final paper is coherent) Length of the report: appr. 15 pages (excluding cover, table of contents, references) BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 10

11 COURSE PROJECT (continues) Structure of the course project Introduction Cultural characteristics of X (and Y) Hofstede s dimensions of X (compared with Y) + other conceptual frameworks from the course books and lecture slides Implications for management and communication (leadership, negotiations, team work, other business practices, etc.) Conclusions BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 11

12 COURSE PROJECT (continues) Additional instructions Two options for writing: either a one country or comparative analysis Independently or in pairs Use both literature and your own experiences in the analysis of the chosen country or countries Do not be afraid to make interpretations, but pay attention to your own subjectivity due to your own cultural background Avoid ethnocentrism and too strong generalizations and stereotypes! Strong management perspective required; simple country-facts or etiquette instructions derived from wikipedia should not take a big role in the report! Use reliable sources of information, NOT ONLY WIKIPEDIA OR OTHER SIMILAR TYPE OF WEB PAGES..Prefer books and academic articles! Use the Harvard system for referencing (see LUT report guidelines), reference list at the end is not enough, citations have to be in the text as well! Remember that plagiarism is extremely forbidden and will result in F (If you get caught, you will flunk the course), always write in your own words!! BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 12

13 Course policy Cheating and plagiarism is unacceptable. This includes plagiarism in written assignments, cheating in exams or in any other form Academic dishonesty will result in F for the course and may result in additional university level disciplinary actions If plagiarism is detected in assignments, there will be no second changes during this year! BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 13

14 COURSE PROJECT PRESENTATIONS All course projects will be presented in the class (5 points) Presentations on Friday 25th of April, 10-14, student union building, room 204. You will have min to present your work Your course projects are going to be available for other course participants online Familiarize yourself with the projects before the presentation sessions Take part in the constructive discussion: provide comments and ideas for improvement of the projects of your peers BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 14

15 Course literature 1. Browaeys, Marie-Joëlle and Roger Price (2008 or 2011) Understanding Cross-Cultural Management, Prentice Hall 2. Additional reading: Usunier, Jean-Claude (2000) Marketing Across Cultures, Prentice Hall / Usunier, Jean-Claude and Julie Anne Lee (2009) Marketing Across Cultures, Prentice Hall 3. Other course material distributed in the class + Lecture slides BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 15

16 Additional literature that may help you BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 16

17 COURSE SCHEDULE Lectures (Fri) Course practicalities. Introduction to the concept of culture. Exercises (Thu) Case 1. Ameritech in the Philippines (Fri) Dimensions of culture: Trompenaars, Hall (Fri) Case 2. Expatriate in the Middle East (Thu) Dimensions of culture: Hofstede (Thu) Case 3. From regional Star to Global Leader (Thu) Leadership. International teams. Globe study (Fri) Course presentations (Thu) Culture in international marketing management BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 17

18 Lecture 1. Introduction to the concept of culture

19 WHAT IS CULTURE? BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 19

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21 CULTURE AND ITS IMPACT ON BUSINESS Culture is Competitive environment Competitive environment the context STRATEGY in which a company coordination (people) operates! STRUCTURE & SYSTEMS ORG. CULTURE NATIONAL CULTURE * Picture by Gregor Pfajfar, University of Ljubljana BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 21

22 CULTURE IS CONTEXT SPECIFIC What is a grasshopper in your country? USA: Pest CHINA: House pet Thailand: A snack Culture is an important part of international business and marketing. BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 22

23 CULTURE IS Collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one human group from another Includes systems of values; and values are among the building blocks of culture (Hofstede, 1980) A code of attitudes, norms and values, a way of thinking that is learned within a social environment (Browaeys & Price, 2011) Glue that binds groups together. Without cultural patterns, organized system of significant symbols, people would have difficulty living together (De Mooij, 2004) Set of control mechanisms plans, recipes, rules, instructions for governing behavior (Geertz, 1973) And so much more (Kroeber and Kluckhohn 164 definitions of culture) BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 23

24 HOFSTEDE: CULTURE=SOFTWARE person = hardware personality & culture = software BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 24

25 CULTURE IS Learned Shared Transgenerational Symbolic Patterned Adaptive AN INDIVIDUAL DOES NOT HAVE A CULTURE! AN INDIVIDUAL HAS A PERSONALITY! BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 25

26 We often have a stereotyped perception of individual behavior in other countries = imperfect picture of the operation of a cultural group Nation-states could be used to draw the cultural borders, but it is only a convenient way of segmentation (ethnic, language and religious homogenity is not necessarily present in one nation-state) Many nation-states are explicitly multicultural (regions, ethnic groups, languages) Political decisions have imposed the formation of new nationstates without considering the cultural realities BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 26

27 Determinants of culture Layers of culture: operating levels of culture (observable level, norms and values, basic assumptions) Levels of culture: culture from the point of view of a group that shares it (national, regional, organizational, professional) Dimensions of culture: orientations of societies analyzed by social psychologists and anthropologists (e.g. individualists vs. collectivists) * Browaeys and Price, 2011 BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 27

28 Analogies BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 28

29 LAYERS OF CULTURE Core believes Expectations a man should have childen implicit explicit Values Norms Physical objects Heroes Symbols Artifacts Asian values: work, family, harmony BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 29

30 ICEBERG MODEL Above the waterline: what we can see; behaviours that are visible Below the waterline: what we cannot see; behaviours that are not visible or that do not make sense for us * see Schneider & Barsoux (2003) and Cavusgil, Knight, Riesenberger (2012) BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 30

31 CULTURAL PYRAMID (Hofstede) Personality: specific to a person, learned and inherited Culture: specific to a group or category of people, learned, not inherited Human nature: common to all human beings, universal and inherited, not learned PERSONALITY CULTURE HUMAN NATURE BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 31

32 Levels of culture Language Nationality Corporate or organizational culture Social class Sources of culture Education (general) Profession (specialized education) Sex Group (ethnicity) Family Religion BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 32

33 Biases to analyzing culture UNIVERSALISM Americans and northern Europeans think that their values are valid for the whole world and should be shared by all! To generalize from one European country to all of them, e.g. UK representing Europe Problematic to group Europe: Nordic, Latin, Benelux (significant differences between Belgium and the Netherlands!) Basic problem: lack of knowledge on other countries and cultures makes us see more similarities than there actually are Application of Anglo-American marketing theories worldwide, they are not always applicable! BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 33

34 Stereotyping Refers to the use of extreme, exaggerated forms of behavior Finns are shy, French are emotional, Americans are workaholics etc.. It is easier to identify the differences than the sameness People within a culture do not all have identical sets of artifacts, norms, values and assumptions Culture is normally distributed! Indivdidual personality mediates in each cultural system BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 34

35 CULTURE AS A NORMAL DISTRIBUTION Culture A Culture B Stereotypes Stereotypes Source: Gregor Pfajfar, University of Ljubljana Norms & values BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 35

36 Self-reference criterion/ ethnocentrism Self-reference criterion = our unconscious tendency to refer everything to our own cultural values If the foreigner does not share my values, my values are superior Ethnocentrism= the tendency to believe that one's ethnic or cultural group is centrally important, and that all other groups are measured in relation to one's own. The ethnocentric individual will judge other groups relative to their own particular ethnic group or culture, especially with concern to language, behavior, customs, and religion. Basic problem: lack of knowledge on other countries and cultures makes us see more similarities than there actually are! BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 36

37 EFFECT OF ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE POSITIVE Defining boundaries Conveying identity Promoting commitment Controlling behaviour Increasing effectiveness of communication and behavior NEGATIVE Impeding change Inhibiting diversity Promoting group thinking Blocking acquisitions Source: Gregor Pfajfar, University of Ljubljana BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 37

38 IMPACT OF CULTURE ON BUSINESS Business customs and etiquette: Negotiation styles Communication Business protocol Level of formality of arrangements (contracts vs. unwritten agreements) Payment (is bargaining good or bad?) Differences in consumer behavior: Segmentation Positioning Marketing mix (Product, Price, Place, Promotion) Buying habits * Usunier (2000) BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 38

39 Cultural blunders (1) What went wrong with a cologne for men advertised in Islamic countries with a man and his dog? BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 39

40 Cultural blunders (2) What went wrong with the golf balls packaged in fours in Japan? BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 40

41 CULTURAL COMPETENCE Conscious incompetence We know there are some important things that we need to know Unconscious incompetence Don t know what we don t know Level of cultural capabilities Conscious competence We know that cultural differences exist We recognize the differences and adapt our behaviour to match the environment Unconscious competence You are lucky! 41

42 CULTURAL SHOCK (U-Curve) Honeymoon Reentry W Curve theory says that reentry takes the form of a second U curve Crisis Acceptance The perception of culture stabilizes sooner ot later Adjustment * Chaney and Martin (2014) International Business Communication, Pearson Education BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 42

43 STAGES OF THE U-CURVE Honeymoon excitement and facination with the new culture Crisis (Disenchantment) excitement turns to disappointment Adjustment you begin to accept the new culture, see the humor in situations, get interested into understanding things better Acceptance (Adaptation) feel at home in the new culture and become involved in activities of the culture Reentry shock follows one more time all the stages identified earlier: initial euphoria, crisis, adjustment, adaptation. BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 43

44 CHALLENGES RELATED TO CULTURAL SHOCK Nonacceptance of the host culture the person behaves as he/she would in home culture Substitution the person learns the appropriate responses/behaviors in the host culture and substitutes these responses/behaviors for the ones ordinarily used in the home culture Addition the person adds the behavior of the host culture when in the presence of nationals but maintains the home culture behavior with others of the same culture => Synthesis the person integrates and combines elements of the two cultures => Resynthesis the integration of ideas not found in either cultures * Chaney and Martin (2014) International Business Communication, Pearson Education BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 44

45 Cultural globalization A phenomenon by which the experience of everyday life, as influenced by the diffusion of commodities and ideas, reflects a standardization of cultural expressions around the world. Propelled by the efficiency or appeal of wireless communications, electronic commerce, popular culture, and international travel, globalization has been seen as a trend toward homogeneity that will eventually make human experience everywhere essentially the same. (Encyclopedia Britannica) Leads to globalized consumerism and consumption Global consumerism= widespread and unquenchable desire for material possessions BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 45

46 Cultural globalization Proliferation of transnational corporations, global capitalism, global consumerism and global consumption homogenization Levit (1983 argued: Traditional differences in national tastes would eventually disappear, and local preferences and national product standards would become vestiges of the past Consumers worldwide would look for good quality / low-cost products and global producers would seek to standardize their offerings everywhere. BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 46

47 Consumption convergence Evidence on convergence of consumption patterns, for example in EU: The population is aging Size of households is decreasing Proportion of immigrants is increasing Number of working women increasing Environmental awareness is increasing etc. Technology and national wealth have converged in the developed world; certain living standards possible for the majority of those countries Countries are becoming similar with respect to penetration of new technology and certain durable goods Convergence exists on macro level BUT BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 47

48 and divergence Spread of global symbols and products does not necessarily include homogeneity of people s habits or values! Globalization has in fact lead to a revival of local cultural identities, e.g. increased interest in local music and TV programs Thus, although there is a worldwide convergence of technology, media, and financial systems, desires and behaviors of consumers are not converging! Much consumer behavior varies across in the way the discretionary income is used, e.g. value gaps between European and American elites have widened

49 How multicultural are we? Almost any modern society will be more ethnically diverse a generation from now than it is today (Putnam, 2007, Scandinavian Political Studies) Majority of world s population is bilingual (i.e. able to communicate in two (or several=plurilingual) languages independently of the relative level of competence, of the modes and ages of aquisition and of the psycholinguistic relationship between the different languages comprising the preakers repertoire ) (Council of Europe, Language Policy Division, 2003) Around Finnish citizens live abroad ( Finns, if 1st and 2nd generation are taken into account or 1,3 million Finns up to 3rd generation) (Finnish Expatriate Parliament, BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 49

50 But is there truly a global village? 90% of the world s people will never leave the country where they were born 2 % of all telephone calling minutes are international 95 % of the news people get is from domestic sources * (HBR, May 2011) Cultural identity is deeply rooted in our minds. BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 50

51 Critique on globalization NO empirical evidence that global media make consumption and consumer behavior converge across countries! Consumer behavior appears very stable, habits of the past often best explain current and future behavior! Behavior that is considered new is often only a new format of old behavior BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 51

52 So, why does culture matter in international business? - Culture gives people a sense of identity exclusive membership in a group - Knowledge about cultural differences framework for understanding ourselves and others Facilitate cross-cultural communication Analyze effectiveness of processes Avoid mistakes in cross-cultural situations (negotiations, ex-pats, marketing efforts) Global business (multinational markets, business partners from different countries) Diverse customers (differences in responding to appeals, sensitivity to cultural aspects in products, services) Multi-cultural employees (recruitment, retention, teamwork, performance evaluation, promotion) BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 52

53 INTERESTING INFO SOURCES: Global Edge (Country Rankings), MSU: Expat Explorer Survey 2012, HSBC: World largest expat survey (5 000 expats answered the survey in 2012) Expatriate stories: Global cities of the future (Interactive map), McKinsey: A AB52CFC4}&pid={62D8FA41-E792-40A2-A014- D6667C95FB86} BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 53

54 HOW WILL STUDYING CROSS-CULTURAL MANAGEMENT HELP US? Studying CCM you will learn how to: explain the behavior of people in organizations around the world work in organizations with employees and client populations from many different cultures describe organizational behavior within countries and cultures compare organizational behavior across countries and cultures understand and improve the interaction of co-workers, managers, executives, clients, suppliers, and alliance partners from countries and cultures around the world BJ10A0500, Cross-Cultural Communication for Working Life, Hanna Salojärvi 54