How Does Culture Impact on the Planning and Carrying out of International Strategy and Negotiations

Culture is defined as a whole basis of knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, and customs that define a person or group of persons. Culture differs is so many ways and that culture is what defines each of person as an individual. This concept comes from the cultural that was taught and developed from after birth and through our adolescent years. Our culture is the foundation of who we are. It identifies the lifestyle and pursuits that are practiced in the group of people we interact with in our society. Culture beliefs, values, and practices are learned from birth.

In today’s high tech global community, it is not uncommon to have companies in one country doing work with others clear across the world. It is important to keep in mind that understanding the role of culture, in the international business setting, is key to success and prosperity. It is essential and know that each nation has their own set of values and ways of interacting. For example, although the United States and China frequently do business together and are equally seen as leaders on the global market, they still have very apparent differences in cultural norms. These contrasting characteristics are grouped under Geert Hofstede’s six dimensions of culture. They include, the level of uncertainty avoidance, masculinity versus femininity, individualism versus collectivism, power distance, long-term versus short-term orientation, and indulgence versus restraint (Hofstede, 2001). Once one is able to properly distinguish cultural differences, can they then successfully communicate, thrive, and potentially lead in the global economy.

There are five Dimensions of Culture that Hofstede mentions in International Business, The Challenge of Global Competition. These include: Individualism-collectivism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity-femininity and long-term orientation/Confucian dynamism. Understanding these dimensions will assist a U.S.

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.

I want to begin by discussing some general definitions so that you have a better understand of the topics that I am going to discuss. I think it is important to begin by defining the definition of culture. As we learned in class culture is a unique combination of rituals, religious beliefs, ways of thinking and ways of behaving that unify a group of people. Further

Negotiation is an important process of business that takes place when two or more parties agree to exchange goods and services against certain amount. There are some major and minor differences that exist in conducting negotiations. For effective cross-cultural negotiation one gather necessary information, about communication pattern, time orientation, national culture and mindsets. For example in European countries businesses are done on contractual basis where as in south Asian countries it is more dependent on personal terms.

North America’s culture certainly affect international business activities, the same happen among all countries and continents in the world. Culture and tradition have a particular role in person’s critical thinking, communication barriers and behavior. In the business environment negotiation is an important skill in where all parties needs to be pleased, at the end you have to give for you to be able to receive, either is entering into a contract or building a

Given this, the main target of this essay is to analyse the main approaches to understanding national culture and how relevant is such an understanding to an internationalising firm.

Cultural Differences. Cultural differences affect the perceptions and behaviors of different parties in any international negotiation in different ways. These include the goal of the talks; different cultures view negotiations differently with some negotiators viewing them as an opportunity to get a signed contract between the involved parties. Others view negotiations as a start of a relationship between the two parties. The concept of win-lose or win-win scenarios deeply ingrained in different cultures and might affect the perceptions of the many negotiators. The time factor is also sensitive in negotiations with Europeans consider highly punctual while Latinos are usually late and the Americans are fast at cutting a deal (Craig et al., 1996). By reducing formalities, Americans maximize on time available which could be central to the Japanese. Display of emotions during negotiations varies from one culture to another with the Asians are hiding their feelings while the Latinos show how they feel. The cross-culture attributes and skills needed for successful negotiation International business refers to the performance of direct investment activities and trade across the national borders. Globalization has pushed firms to pursue markets across the national builders. The growing numbers of collaborations and transactions across

Analysing it in depth, several theories exist but this essay is going to concentrate in two main frameworks that suppose a point of inflexion in the study of the culture in the business: Hall’s Model, which is focus in the meaning of context for the culture and time orientations and Hofstede 's Model, which develop a five dimensional scheme to establish cultural comparisons between nations.

     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

Cultural differences between countries have strong effects on individual personality and behavior, as well as on organizational culture (Hofstede 2001). These differences can be a significant barrier for an international business leader. Failure to understand and adapt to these differences may

In this negotiation, we learned that it is important to research your opponent, to understand their culture, not only of their country or backgrounds, but also their company culture. When we are able to understand our opponent’s way of thinking about business and doing business we can then understand how to approach a negotiation situation with them. In this exercise, we learned that it is difficult for us to adjust when it involves breaking or acting in a way opposite of what we are accustomed to. We also learned that although my classmates live in the same country as we do, their upbringings may have similarities to their origin country and will therefore help them to communicate and adjust to that country’s norms and standards. We were surprised how we were able to stay in character although it was hard and it was surprising how people responded when they were unaware of your intentions and strategies. If we had to do this exercise again, what we can do is do more research on our opponents so that we would have an idea of what to expect in the negotiation table.

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

Culture will play a major part in the dynamics of the way we operated in international business circles. Managers today will need special skills in order to meet these challenges. Language differences, culture awareness, and management skills are necessary for success. These challenges often lead to a debate in which is better for a company, expatriate or foreign national workers. There are pros and cons to the use of each, but it will depend on several factors to which managers will be better suited for the challenge of