The Importance Of Japanese Business Communication

Non-verbal communication is very important and is often more important than verbal communication. This consists of eye contact, hand and body language and facial expressions.

I am originally from Puerto Rico, which is a country in which communication is an integral part of society. The cultural norm of the Puerto Rican culture is to speak up when necessary and communicate clearly if we want things to be done. At the same time, I believe that in order to produce results, the manner in which communicating takes place, is an extremely important component. My culture also showed me how the emotions used when communicating, such as the use of the hands and body language, will dictate the tone and flow of the communication. The literature suggests that the majority (as much as 76%) of the message we gibe to another person during conversations is carried by non-verbal or para-verbal communication. Thus, we must be very careful and strategic in our use o non-verbal communication (Van Acker, 1997).

Cultural differences are present wherever you travel to, you will come across cultural differences, and these can vary quite a bit, such as the language people use e.g. English people say "Chips" compared to Americans who say "Fries”. A businessman may find himself in the middle of cultural differences quite often and thus, will have to devise methods as to how to make sure no one is offended or that he is fully understood. Certain methods he would use to overcome such issues are greeting people on a last name basis. Also refraining on using most signed gestures, as they can vary in meaning quite greatly, for example, the English gesture to say

When communicating with others you need to adapt to different situations, for example, you will use formal language and behaviour in a meeting. Spoken words is not the only way in which we can communicate, it also happens in the way in which we respond to others, for example, the way in which we respond to emails or phone messages, how we respond to others when they are speaking to us and how we dress. Non spoken forms of communication can be an issue of they are misread by adults and children. Different cultures will use

People from different background use and interpret communication method in different ways. Ethnicity and background influence how we use communication and our understanding to it. Many factors such as culture, age, gender dialect can determined our interaction with others because English may not be their language, culture can play a major role on how we communicate with people. In some culture for instance, it is not acceptable to give direct eye contact to an elderly person when they are communicating with you. However, in some culture not giving eye contact will be term as being rude. Also, different people from different background

When communicating with others, it is important to consider the context in which we are working. For example, more formal language and behaviour would be used in a meeting and the school will have a range of types of planned communication with other adults – when dealing with other professionals, there will be meetings and discussions as well as more informal communication at different times. However, there are also the non-spoken forms of communication such as how quickly we respond to an email or phone message, how attentive we are when speaking to someone, how we dress. Different cultures will have their own norms of behaviour which will extend to gestures, body language and eye contact. In some cultures, for example, it is not polite

While communication across cultures relies on speech to convey the messages of those living in the same society, usually the unspoken language has a larger role to play in delivering these messages. Similar to the country’s language being specific to the region it surfaces from, body language and facial expressions also have individual characteristics within a particular region. There are shared attributes of nonverbal communication across the world but these are commonly divided into high and low context cultures. This results from different cultural beliefs and attitudes within such societies and impact on the social norms of communication. In Japan, the citizens communicate with actions and gestures to a larger percent in comparison to their speech, as they are able to understand each other’s meaning without additional words. Due to it being a high context culture Japan relies heavily on its nonverbal communication for its society to function efficiently and for adequate comprehension to be achieved.

The first important custom to understand when conducting business with Japan is bowing. In Japan bowing represents respect and can be very instrumental in making a positive initial impression (Nevison, 2009). There are many incidents when bowing should be conducted and they are, introducing oneself, as a welcome, as a form of gratitude, and to express remorse (Custom of Bowing, n.d.). Japan’s business culture is very inclusive. According to Japanese Business Customs (2011, para.3) “group decision-making is important in Japan and has been generally described as a “bottom up” exercise rather than “top down.” The fact that Japan conducts business with this approach can make the process time consuming. It is important to be aware that developing connections with Japan will/do not happen overnight. Another custom of Japan is gift giving. According to Japanese Business Customs (2011, para.4) “gift giving is expected on many business occasions in Japan.” It is imperative to note that the value of the gift is not as important as the essence of the gift. Exchanging business cards are another very important aspect of conducting business with Japan. According to Nevison (2009, para.5), “business cards should be printed on both sides, with your first language on one side and the other party’s language on the other." Physical contact like hand shaking, hugging and even

Communication is a frequent occurrence, yet it is not a simple ordeal. Communication has layers and density. The two primary forms of interpersonal communication are verbal communication and nonverbal communication. Verbal communication includes the content of speech, as well as factors such as tone of voice, rhythm of speaking, word choice, and emphasis. Experts and researchers in the field of communication assert that nonverbal communication composes more than half of the communication among people. Nonverbal communication has a variety of factors such as eye contact, gestures, body language, and even the dress of the person speaking/communicating.

While many of the world’s economic powers seem similar, there is no doubt there are some very key differences. Many of these differences can be attributed to cultural differences within each of the countries. While many of these countries work together in global business efforts, cultural differences would certainly have a significant impact on management style, leadership and even work ethic of the employees. The United States and Japan are both strong economic powers that hold to a capitalistic economic system. Their management styles, however, are very different. This can often be explained through the differences in culture and management or leadership styles. Over the years, the two

Unfortunately, many of us are ignorant to other cultures forms of communication, yet we try to get by anyway. However, this only leads to confusion, low morale, and ultimately, poor customer satisfaction (Neo, 2015). A notable cause of communication failure is the differences in direct and indirect communication between cultures. Western cultures tend to be more direct and obvious. On the contrary, other cultures are more discrete in the methods used to present their message (Neo, 2015). Body language also plays a major role in communication. To western cultures, a head nod typically represents agreement. However, other cultures are usually only acknowledging the other’s statement (Neo,

As we know that there are verbal and non-verbal communication methods and one of the non-verbal communication methods that I use in my office is body language. It is important to use the correct body language because you have people from different countries and they share different cultures and traditions. Body language can be face expression, eye contacts, hand shaking, head and body movement and gestures as well there are more but these are some of it.

Business communication can be defined as the process of sharing information among business professionals, prospective customers, and affiliates who are associated with an organization. The essential skills of business communications are currently in demand and highly required for the workforce for the modern workforce. To be an effective communicator is to have the ability to respond with skill, confidence, and assertiveness and is pertinent to the quality and expertise business professionals considered for employment. Hence, knowing how to communicate properly in an organizational structure requires the skill of communication necessary to interact with different levels of management. In a world

Business communication requires avenues through which leaders, management, and workers communicate. It also requires the communication process between an organization and its partners, as well as the customers. In business communication, it is vital for an organization to develop a communication channel that is not only efficient and effective, but one that relays positive messages. Positive messages are crucial in developing good relationships with the employees, business partners, and customers. Research shows that we actually comprehend a positive statement 30 to 40 percent faster than we do a negative statement, our mind literally has to unscramble negative messages to determine the meaning (Simoneaux &Stroud, 2014). There is a power in using positive messages, a strategy in building relationships and producing positive results. When using positive messaging it is beneficial to use the 5 S’s, and goodwill messaging. The 5 S’s are; selfless, specific, sincere, spontaneous, and short. This paper looks into the effects of positive messaging, with an emphasis on goodwill messages, and the 5 S’s.

Resist the urge to jump into conversation if your associate is silent for a minute. Many Asian cultures have silence as a form of communication. (Hong Kong - Language 2014)