Philippines And Indi Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions

I feel that we have a low power distance, because though we all have our specific roles, some holding more power than others, we all collectively voice our options and have a collective decision making process. We all work together and we all trust each other to do well.

Cultures across the world differ in just about everything. Why would leadership be any different? While listening to Sayaka Isoda, from Japan, and Ali Al-Tameemi, from Iraq, I saw just how different their countries were from the United States. These differences led to differences in leadership between the three countries.

The United States is an example of a low power distance culture. The United States is a democracy run by an executive branch, legislative branch, and judicial branch. Members of this culture are aware that some other individuals may have more power, influence, and authority but those lower-ranking members are not intimidated or more respectful toward members in higher standings of power (Sprague, Stuart, Bodary, Verderber, Sellnow, 2015). An example of this would be that although the United States is run by the President, he or she is always under examination of the other branches of government as well as the citizens they represent (Carroll,

Filipino culture is a mix of east and western perspectives and is heavily rooted in Christianity. The diversity of its people coupled with their ability to adapt and tolerate new ideas has created a fusion of traditional and modern. Filipinos pride themselves in their Sociability, religious belief, and Family oriented lifestyle.

Culture influences leadership in many ways, so it is helpful to first understand what culture is. According to our text culture is defined as the learned beliefs, values, rules, norms, symbols, and traditions that are common to a group of people (Northouse, 2016). Culture is the way of life, customs, and script of a group of people. Different cultures have different ideas about what they want from their leaders, but by understanding cultural differences leaders can become more empathetic and accurate in their communication with others. It is clear that different culture groups desire different leadership behaviors when they are looking for an effective leader. Surprisingly there were effective leadership attributes that was identified as universal characteristics. Positive leader attributes include being trustworthy, positive,

----Saudi Arabia. A Low Power Distance ranking indicates the society de-emphasizes the differences between citizen 's power and wealth. In these societies equality and opportunity for everyone is stressed----New Zealand (Hofstede, 2012).

Now that we have touched on culture let’s look at the same two countries and see how each culture affects management styles. Three notable differences of management in Asian countries compared to the US are: (Member, 2014)

Power distance is the way cultures create levels due to power, authority, prestige, status, wealth, and material assets.

Power Distance is one of Hofstede’s dimensions which is used to measure how the difference in power between the people is seen in a country. A country that has a high power distance is one where people are considered superior according to their gender, status, education, race, or family background. A good example of this dimension is India, mainly because of their caste system and females being looked down upon. Indian population is split into 5 groups, and each group has a separate power status and one you are born in the lowest caste, you cannot marry or associate with the highest class other than being servants of the higher class. Cultures with low power distance include Canada, Austria and Israel. People in these countries see each other more as equals.

Dr. Hofstede performed a comprehensive study of how values in the workplace are influenced by culture. In the 1970’s, as a Dutch researcher Dr. Geert Hofstede, collected and analyzed data from 116,000 surveys taken from IBM employees in forty different countries around the world. From those results, Hofstede developed a model that identifies four primary dimensions of differentiate cultures. These include: Uncertainty Avoidance (UA), Masculinity-Femininity (MAS), Individualism-Collectivism (IND), Power and Distance (PD). After a further study of the Asian culture by researcher Michael Bond in 1991, Hofstede added a fifth dimension in his theory, Long- and Short-term time orientation (LTO), also referred to as the Confucian Dynamism. His research has framed how cultural differences can be used in professional business transactions. Geert Hofstede 's dimensions analysis can assist the business person in better understanding the intercultural differences within regions and between countries.

Infusing a specific culture(s) into one’s leadership, by far, is one of leadership’s greatest challenges. It could be said that culture dictates how leaders lead. In the culture of leadership itself, a leader must understand the context of what is happening around them and how information flows from one audience to the next (Barrett, 2014). Time, language, power, spirituality, tradition, and whether or not a specific culture is driven by collectivism or individualism are also to be considered within that culture of leadership (Barrett, 2014). Understanding these concepts drives how we lead, do business, and communicate with others within the melting pot of our own country and people of foreign lands. Culture shapes the leader’s ideals, personality traits, work values, and to a point, determines the pattern of leadership towards a specific culture (Wibbeke, 2014). It is by knowing other cultures that allows leaders to effectively lead and to connect the dots of differences that impact strategy (Soo, 2012, para. 2).

Many of the leadership styles rival positive transformational approaches such as inventiveness; self-sacrifice, mediation and authoritativeness are all common across all cultures. Universally recognized leadership styles across all cultures include; charismatic/value-based, team – orientated, humane and participative leadership. All leadership styles used must take into account all cultural differences and values. The intent of the GLOBE

Leadership must now be earned; it is no longer bestowed. Effective leaders grasp this cultural shift and its implications for them. They evidence servant attitudes and focus on building people as the way to missional effectiveness. (McNeal p.83) He then expounded = further on culture by giving three task that are required for a leader to know his culture. They consist of: knowing where he comes from, knowing where he stands, knowing where he wants to go and take others with him. The leader’s historical, social, and environmental influences help determine his leadership development. This can involve shaping by the leader’s family and early life; the leader’s current position in life and its surrounding circumstances; and a strong sense of mission.

Power/Distance (PD), “refers to the degree of inequality that exists- and is accepted- among people with and without power. A high PD score indicates that society accepts an unequal distribution of power, and that people understand “their place” in the system. Low PD means that power is shared and well dispersed.” (www.mindtools.com) As an example from the article, Myers goes on to say, “there were basically four levels: VP, director, manager, and worker bee. You only talked to people at your level.” SK Telecom boasted that

1. Power distance index (PDI): The degree to which the less powerful members of a society accept and expect that power is distributed unequally.