Cultural Crossvergence

It is no longer feasible that a corporation can successfully move through the global marketplace without learning to recognize the cultural norms of each country. It falls to the executives and managers to implement these changes and to ensure that their companies are working to move towards a more inclusive, and ultimately, more profitable way of doing business that appreciates and respects all cultures and work

Every country differs in culture which has been there for centuries. The international market is growing rapidly, with more and more multinational organisations entering new markets each day. In this assignment I will evaluate how the difference in cultures affects the performance of international businesses.

Globalization and technological advancement have dictated the need for managers to deal with multiple ethnic groups with different culture in their day to day interactions. According to Kulkarni (2012), cultures play critical roles in individuals, including values, beliefs, humor, worries, fears, hopes, opinions, attachments, and anxieties.

It is crucial for today's business personnel to understand the impact of cross cultural differences on business, trade and internal company organization. The success or failure of a company, venture, merger or acquisition is essentially in the hands of people. If these people are not cross culturally aware then misunderstandings, offence and a breakdown in communication can occur.

Making business abroad can be risky, but it can also be profitable for a company as well; thus the necessity to study in deep the country where the company will bring the business to. International companies are faced with many cultural challenges, when doing business across and inside of different borders. Identifying the significant cultural issues involved when evaluating the attractiveness of a particular location as a place for doing business can be crucial for a business. Aspects to consider when studying culture in a new place

Cross Cultural management explains the behaviour of people in organizations worldwide, helping managers and firms to understand how to act in business matters dealing with the different cultures. (Adler, 2008)

     Cultures are varying among different parts of the globe. People with different cultures have different characteristics and viewpoints on the subjects due to diverse understanding and method of learning. During the past few decades, the international trade grows in a very rapid rate due to the advantages that it provides; “increased sales, operational efficiencies, exposure to new technologies and broader consumer choices” (Heslin). Therefore, when considering the culture aspect to current business world, it is crucial for business to understand the culture aspect because of the tremendous growth of international business as well as utilize the international market to its maximum

"Culture is more often a source of conflict than of synergy. Cultural differences are nuisance at best and often a disaster." - Dr. Geert Hofstede

Not long ago my sister recommended me to read Richard Steers’ book “Management across Cultures: Challenges and Strategies”. It was a great book with many interesting insights but one particular chapter called “Culture, Values, and Worldviews” opened my eyes a little bit and helped me to understand why exactly I have never fully fit into any of the new countries I lived in. I understood that the problem was not in me but it is more of a cultural thing. According to Steers, there are five core cultural dimensions that all countries and their cultures can be analysed by – how the power and authority are distributed among the society, whether people are more individualistic or collectivistic, how they perceive the environment, their time and work patterns and the way societies try to reduce uncertainties.

The question as why the crossvergence is produced instead of convergence was answered by North (1990, 2005 cited in Witt 2007) that it could be the path dependence or choice of the most appropriate action.

. Geert Hofstede (1980) describes culture as, ‘a source of conflict rather than synergy. Cultural differences are a nuisance at best and often a disaster’. Justin Paul (2011) also supports this view stating that, human beings tend to have an instinct ‘deep inside’ that all human beings are the same. Therefore, if one goes into another country and makes decisions based on how one operates in one’s home country-‘the chances are that he or she will make some very bad decisions’ (Paul 2011). Hence, different types of factors need to be understood to ensure that you and the business are readily available to adapt to any change in culture or environment, this will be shown by a number of examples involving companies that have successfully set up business and others that have failed significantly all due to the lack of understanding of CCM.

Using appropriate theories critically analyse the role of culture in International Business. Support your answer by quoting relevant examples from the case study.

Sometimes cultural difference between countries can cause a negative impact when conducting free market businesses. According to the textual evidence, economic advancement and globalization may be important factors in society change. The culture of societies may also change as they become richer because economic progress affects a number of other factors, which in turn influence culture.

In this era of Globalisation, cross cultural management is the biggest challenge that is faced by the organisations. Within the business context, cross culture refers to interaction between different cultures. Cross cultural management refers to managing the employees from different cultural background in one environment (Adler, 2008). Cross culture management is a significant issue within the organisations as the success of an organisation depends upon the smooth interaction of the employees. This paper is aimed at providing insight on the cross cultural management and the main issues and challenges relating to cross cultural management. For the purpose of this paper, two articles, “Cross-cultural Differences in Management”, by Amman & Jordan

Managers were concerned about knowing and understanding each and every perspective of their employee’s cultures. As they know that without studying or knowing the culture, coordination cannot be built between the employees. It is the existing perspective of managers dealing with cross-cultural management (Sultana, 2013).