Culture of Business Culture of Business CommunicationCommunication

First lecture: What is culture?First lecture: What is culture?

Different types of cultural groups as Different types of cultural groups as presented in layers:presented in layers:

worldworld

countrycountry

towntown regionregion

companycompany husband’s/ wife’s familyhusband’s/ wife’s family journeys journeys colleaguescolleagues

schoolschool collegecollege universityuniversity friendsfriends

relativesrelatives pre-schoolpre-school streetstreet

familyfamily

What is culture?What is culture?

ArtArt MediaMedia Social lifeSocial life

ReligionReligion Culture Culture LawLaw

PoliticsPolitics LanguageLanguageLiteratureLiterature

What are the elements, the What are the elements, the artefacts of a corporate culture?artefacts of a corporate culture?

1.1. the way the company does business: the way the company does business: red tape, bureaucratic, hands-on approach, by-the-red tape, bureaucratic, hands-on approach, by-the-book, entrepreneurial, visionary, rat-race company, book, entrepreneurial, visionary, rat-race company, competitive, based on bonuses and incentives – competitive, based on bonuses and incentives – stimulating, etc.stimulating, etc.

2. 2. the way the employees dress:the way the employees dress:formal, informal, casualformal, informal, casual

3. 3. the way the employer treats his employees:the way the employer treats his employees:autocratic, democratic, motivating, mentoring, autocratic, democratic, motivating, mentoring, monitoring, etc.monitoring, etc.

4.4. the way the company is structured:the way the company is structured:hierarchy is outlined, top, middle, lower management, hierarchy is outlined, top, middle, lower management, etc.etc.

The Culture IcebergThe Culture Iceberg

individualindividual has to accept the has to accept the behaviour of the cultural behaviour of the cultural groupgroup

has to adjust his/ her own has to adjust his/ her own behaviour to that of the groupbehaviour to that of the group

What is irritating is that, on one hand, What is irritating is that, on one hand, wewe do not always like do not always like the behaviour of the behaviour of othersothers and, on the other, and, on the other, other people other people might not like might not like ourour behaviour! In both cases there will be behaviour! In both cases there will be a conflict!a conflict!

The best way to resolve this conflict is familiarise with the The best way to resolve this conflict is familiarise with the culture icebergculture iceberg!!

Culture and CommunicationCulture and Communicationencoding and decoding of messages (language)

happens at different levels of awareness (egocentrism!)

involves predictions about the outcome (expectations)

Communication:intention is not the most important

(purpose)

depends on the content of the message and the relationship of the communicator with the outside world

What makes a particular cultural What makes a particular cultural group multicultural?group multicultural?

1.1. more than one languagemore than one language

2.2. more than one religionmore than one religion

3.3. more than one set of norms and more than one set of norms and standards of behaviourstandards of behaviour

What makes a company multicultural?What makes a company multicultural?

Intercultural CommunicationIntercultural Communication

1.1. the ability to encode and decode messages coming the ability to encode and decode messages coming from culturally different sources – precondition is one from culturally different sources – precondition is one mutual language (English)mutual language (English)

2.2. the ability to identify, acknowledge, tolerate and accept the ability to identify, acknowledge, tolerate and accept people from different cultures – surpass ethnocentrismpeople from different cultures – surpass ethnocentrism

3.3. the ability to set goals of common interest – shift the the ability to set goals of common interest – shift the level of expectations from the individual to the level of expectations from the individual to the collectivecollective

4.4. the ability to see the purpose of communication in the the ability to see the purpose of communication in the need of the groupneed of the group

5.5. the ability to formulate the content of communication in the ability to formulate the content of communication in a way everybody will understand and build a positive a way everybody will understand and build a positive relationship towards othersrelationship towards others

Intercultural communication involves Intercultural communication involves much more adjustment than regular much more adjustment than regular

communicationcommunication!!individualindividual has to accept the has to accept the

behaviour behaviour of all the cultural of all the cultural groups in groups in the companythe company

has to adjust his/ her own has to adjust his/ her own behaviour to that of all the behaviour to that of all the members of the groupmembers of the group