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Cross cultural experiences
The role of culture in communication
Cross cultural challenges in international Business
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Recommended: Cross cultural experiences
1. Introduction
Almost everyone in business these days is working in some type of multi-cultural environment - at the office or with customers & colleagues around the world. Dealing in a multi-cultural environment requires proper understanding of basic etiquette at work, communication processes and behavioral aspects.
All communication is cultural. It draws on ways we have learned to speak and give nonverbal messages. We do not always communicate the same way from day to day, since factors like context, individual personality, and mood interact with the variety of cultural influences we have internalized that influence our choices.
The challenge is that even with all the good will in the world, miscommunication is likely to happen, especially when there are significant cultural differences between communicators. Miscommunication may lead to conflict, or aggravate conflict that already exists. The cost to a company when communications breakdown is difficult to calculate but the cost of preparation for understanding new culture is minor by comparison.
To enhance an organization, its members must be able to apply understanding of the other culture in their assignments, and be able to observe and make the appropriate behavioral adjustments when cross cultural issues become important to their productivity or the effectiveness of the organization as a whole.
The following is a transcript of interview of Mr. Nityanand who has worked in Middle East Asia for over a year. In this interview he reveals interesting insights of work environment of a Multi-National Company working from Kuwait.
2. Interview
Question 1: What according to you is the most significant difference in work environment between India and Kuwait?
The significant difference was the lack of trust between the management and engineers and workers. I was an engineer in a production site. I wanted to come back to India finally to pursue my career goals but I was afraid to let it known to the management lest they should put brakes on my plans.
Lack of trust is very prevalent attitude at work place and living space. You can't be very open with your plans because you never know who is going to veto them. As migrants, we always had to be on our guard.
Question 2: How was the relationship between you and the management?
Cordial. This may sound contradictory to what I said earlier but the fact is that as long as both parties do not have any issues, the relationship stays cordial.
I have enjoyed my work at Kuwait more than I enjoyed it in India because I was paid three times more for one third of the work that I did in India and in addition to it I could spend valuable time with my family.
Ever since I was there years old, I have always contrasted highly from others. Despite this disadvantage, I can continue enjoying my hobbies and pursue an engineering career so it does not affect me significantly. In conclusion, I will attempt to feel like I want to say, “Carpe diem,” every
...he fearfulness of opening up there will be a challenge with someone at one point or another.
The initiation of intercultural effectiveness can be derived from behaviour impacted by its cultural differences and “cultural self-awareness includes recognition of one’s own cultural influences upon values, beliefs, and judgements, as well as the influences derived from the professional’s work culture” (Winkelman, 2005, p. 9)
“Communicating can be a very complex and intricate process involving the exchange of messages between interactants, both verbally and nonverbally” (2013).When effectively communicating in a culturally diverse workplace; it is important to understand the people in the different culture may not communicate in the same manner as another would. Each cultur...
It is said that people are the greatest assets to an organization and it is their beliefs, customs, perspectives, attitudes, and values that constitute to the culture that prevails in an organization. Culture, a very common word in today’s world, plays a very vital role in organizations and it not only affects an employee’s professional development but also their personal harmony. Culture gives a sense of belonging to people, a sense of who they are and how productive they are at their work place. It helps in interacting with each other at a work place.
In the workplace, it is common to encounter individuals of different cultures, ethnicities, and genders. This diversity can either lead to an introduction of new work methods, or it can lead to conflict between coworkers. In order to avoid conflict, and have all employees work as a cohesive team, managers must educate themselves, and their employees on the topic of cultural diversity. In order for your practices to be considered effective, you must not only respect and recognize an employee’s diversity, you must use their difference to benefit them.
When individuals or groups from different cultures communicate, this process is called intercultural communication. The transaction process of listening and responding to people from different cultural backgrounds can be challenging. The greater the difference in culture between two people, the greater the potential of misunderstanding and mistrust. Misunderstanding and miscommunication occur between people from different cultures because of different coding rules and cultural norms, which play a major role in shaping the patterns of interaction (Jandt, 2012).
Culture can be defined as the beliefs, values and the pattern of behavior of an individual within designated areas. The culture of organizations defines shared values and behavioral expectations. Cultural issues are especially basic issues all around the globe. These issues can happen in various routes relying upon the size, area and the custom culture of that institution. Social issues happen even because of the states of mind and how each individual comprehend in diverse business environment. Today, the corporate administrations and rising business firms have chosen to give the essential attention on trainings and classes at the multicultural working environment that will help them to understand and create
Note that many of these skills could be adversely affected by having multiple cultures on a team. For instance cultural communication issues can negatively impact common purpose, quantifiable clearly defined goals, role clarity, and mature communication.
Therefore, it is essential to study nonverbal and verbal communication Nonverbal communication is all forms of communication other than words themselves, which includes “body motions; vocal qualities; and the use of time, space, and even smell” (Neuliep, 2011, p. 269). On the other hand verbal communication or language “consists of symbols in the form of spoken or written words (Wood, 2014, p. 67). Thus cultures have different representations of symbols and what one culture interprets another may define or view differently. Communication is closely related to culture because communication expresses and alters culture. In a culture you learn behaviors and acceptable ideologies. This can be seen in verbal and nonverbal communication. For example, the tone of your voice is based on culture. Without communication you are unable to establish cultural differences. Your own culture directly shapes how one communicates, such as when it is appropriate to make eye contact. We are not born knowing when and how we should speak; this is a learned behavior that is taught by interaction with others. This is not an easy task because nonverbal signals differ from culture to culture. Charles Braithwaite stated, “One of the fundamental components of cultural and linguistic competence is knowing how and when to use silence as a communication tactic” (Neuliep, 2011, p. 64). Before one can communicate effectively one must understand the context in which the culture exchanges information. One must have a working awareness of how each society conveys meaning, hence high vs. low context cultures. According to the Central Michigan University text, organizational dynamics and human behavior (2009), to become a successful international manager one must develop “cross-cultural skills”. One part of the skill set involves the comprehension of the difference between high-context and low-context
International business contains all business transactions private and governmental, sales, investments, logistics, and transportation that happen between two or more regions, nations and countries beyond their political limits. Generally, private companies undertake such transactions for profit governments undertake them for profit and for political reasons. It refers to all those business activities which involve cross border transactions of goods, services, resources between two or more nations. Transaction of economic resources includes capital, skills, and people. for international production of physical goods and services such as finance, banking, insurance, and construction.
The way people communicate varies widely between, and even within, cultures. One aspect of communication style is language usage. Language has always been perceived as a link between people but it can also constitute a barrier. Across cultures, some words and phrases are used in different ways. For example, even in countries that share the English language, the meaning of "yes" varies from "maybe, I'll consider it" to "definitely so," with many shades in between . Furthermore, communication between cultures which do not share the same language is considerably more difficult . Each culture, has its distinct syntax, expressions and structure which causes confusion in intercultural communication. For example , in Asian countries the word “no” is rarely used, so that “yea” can mean “no” or “perhaps”. Therefore, an American traveling to Japan might be considered impolite if he ignores this rule. Furthermore, individuals who are not comfortable with a certain language may not be taken seriously. Such is the case in the classroom, where a student who has a perfect knowledge of the subject in question may have difficulty expressing his idea due to his inability to write properly and therefore he would not receive the grade he truly deserves. Similarly intercultural communication is dominant in the workplace. In the past, many companies and organizations could operate entirely within their country of origin and conduct their activities exclusively in their own native language. But now, due...
Understand and heed cultural differences - cultural variables in transacting international business. (1991, January 28). Business America. FindArticles.com., Retrieved March 20, 2009, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1052/is_n2_v112/ai_10412261/pg_4?tag=content;col1
As I mentioned earlier, I thought I had very good understanding of cross cultural communication. I did not know if I would gain much in this class before I decided to take this class. For me, cross cultural communication was about talking with people with different cultures backgrounds. For example, two people are from two different countries; the communication between them is cross culture. However, I found that cross cultural communication is a more complex thing than I ever thought. The definition of cross cultural communication can be defined as the ability to successfully form, foster, and improve relationships with members of a culture different from one’s own. It is based on knowledge of many factors, such as the other culture’s values, perceptions, manners, social structure, and decision-making practices, and an understanding of how members of the group communicate—verbally, non-verbally, in person, in writing, and in various business and social contexts, to name but a few. I know this is a long definition. It is not as simple as I ever thought.
ESSAY TOPIC (1) :A joint venture is affected by the cultural distance between two partners. In what ways are joint ventures and types of international collaboration affected by cultural differences?