NATIONAL CULTURE AND MANAGEMENT

QUESTIONS RE CULTURE&MANAGEMENT

• WHAT IS THE ROLE OF CULTURE IN MGT?

• IN WHAT WAYS DO CULTURES VARY IN MGT?

• WHAT PROBLEMS ARE FACED WHEN DEALING W/ OTHER CULTURES?

• HOW DO WE DEAL WITH THESE PROBLEMS?

• IS THE IMPACT OF CULTURE EXAGGERATED?

• IS MANAGEMENT UNIVERSAL?

• WHY IS THE MGT/CULTURE RELATION HARD TO UNDERSTAND?

CULTURE DEFINED

• A WIDELY SHARED SYSTEM OF MEANING, IDEAS,THOUGHT AND ACCEPTABLE PATTERNS OF BEHAVIOR.

• SOFTWARE OF THE MIND

• POWERFUL BECAUSE IT SHAPES OUR BEHAVIOR

• GOES WITHOUT SAYING, HABITUAL

• IT IS LIKE GRAVITY, RECOGNIZED WHEN DEFIED.

LEVELS OF CULTURE

• PAN-NATIONAL CULTURES• NATIONAL CULTURES• NATIONAL SUBCULTURES (ETHNIC)• PROFESSIONAL SUBCULTURES• ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURES• ORGANIZATIONAL SUBCULTURES

– WE ARE ALL MEMBERS OF MULTIPLE CULTURES– WHY DO WE FIRST FOCUS ON NATIONAL CULTURES?

DIMESNSIONS OF NATIONAL CULTURE:SILENT LANGUAGE (HALL)

• TIME: LINEAR (ON SCHEDULE) OR NON LINEAR (BUKRA)

• SPACE: NORMS OF SOCIAL DISTANCE; INDICATE: FORMALITY,INTIMACY, FRIENDSHIP

• SPATIAL ARRANGEMENTS DENOTING STATUS• MATERIAL GOODS: INDICATE POWER AND STATUS

IN US, NOT IN JAPAN OR EU• FRIENDSHIP: DEBTH, DURABILITY, SENSE OF

RECIPROCAL OBLIGATIONS.• AGREEMENTS: HOW VOICED; DISSENT

&CONFRONTATION; HOW SIGNALED?

HIGH VS LOW CONTEXT CULTURES

• HALL’S CENCEPTUALIZATION OF CULTURAL DIFFERENCES

• CULTURE AS A MEANS OF COMMUNICATION• CONSISTS OF FIVE SILENT LANGUAGES

– LANGUAGES OF• TIME

• SPACE

• MATERIAL GOODS

• FRIENDSHIP

• AGREEMENTS

HIGH CONTEXT CULTURESEMPHASIZE

• FRIENDS AND NETWORKS• LESS FORMAL IN NEGOTIATIONS• TRUST AND UNDERSTANDING• COMMUNICATION W/O MUCH EXPLICIT CODING• RELATIONSHIPS AND SOCIAL CONTACTS• MULTITASKING CONCURRENTLY

– EXAMPLES• MEDITERRANEAN

• ARAB

• JAPANESE

• LATIN

LOW CONTEXT CULTURES EMPHASIZE

• EXPLICIT CODING

• PLAIN, OPEN PRECISE SPEAKING

• VOICE DISAGREEMENTS OPENLY

• OPEN, EXPLICIT, COMPLETE AGREEMENTS AND CONTRACTS

• DISCRETE, LINEAR USE OF TIME AND SCHEDULES

• CASUAL FRIENDSHIPS, EASLILY ESTABLISHED

CULTURAL WORK RELATED VALUES(HOFSTEDE)

• INDIVIDUALISM/COLLECTIVISM

• POWER DISTANCE

• UNCERATINTY AVOIDANCE

• MASCULINITY/FEMININITY

• CONFICUIAN WORK VALUES

INDIVIDUALISM/COLLECTIIVISM

• INDIVIDUAL OR A MEMBER OF A GROUP

• FOCUS ON INDIVIDUAL FIRST SO THAT THEY CONTRIBUTE TO THE COMMUNITY OR COMMUNITY SINCE THE BENEFITS ARE SHARED

• PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENTS, INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS, INDEPENDENCE OR GROUP WELFARE, HARMONY, EQUALITY, DUTY TO THE OTHERS

• INTERACTIONS ARE NEUTRAL,DETACHED AND OBJECTIVE OR EMOTIONAL AND EXPRESSIVE

POWER DISTANCE

• HIGH POWER: WIDE AND ACCEPTED GAP B/W HIERARCHICAL POSITIONS– LESS EGALITARIAN– SUBORDINATES SHOW PROPER RESPECT– TOP DOWN MANAGEMENT AND DIRECTIVES– STATUS SYMBOLS ARE IMPORTANT AND WELL

PRONOUNCED– STARTS IN EARLY CHILDHOOD, IN THE FAMILY AND AT

SCHOOL: AUTHORITY FIGURES ARE RESPECTED AND NOT-QUESTIONED.

• OPPOSITE FOR THE LOW POWER DISTANCE CULTURES

UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE

• “WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW IS DANGEROUS” VS “WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW IS CURIOUS”

• HIGH UA: AVOID RISK, DISLIKE AMBIGUITY, THREATHENED BY UNCERTAINTY, PREFER STABILITY& CONTINUITY&RULES &REGS

• LOW UA: EMBRACE CHANGE, COMFORTABLE WITH STRANGERS, NEW IDEAS, DIFFERENT VIEWS; WELCOME RISK, TAKE INITIATIVE

MASCULINITY VS FEMININITY

• MASCULINE CULTURE EMPHASIZE– ASSERTIVENESS– AGGRESSIVE PURSUIT OF MATERIAL GAIN– ACHIVEMENT– COMPETITIVE BEHAVIOR– BOTTOM LINE PERFORMANCE– REWARDS FOR PERFORMANCE– FOCUS PERFORMANCE

FEMININE CULTURES EMPHASIZE

• HIGH QUALITY OF LIFE• CARING FOR AND NURTURING OTHERS• MAINTAINING AMICABLE RELATIONSHIPS• OVERALL WELFARE OF THE ORGANIZATION• BEING SENSITIVE TO OTHERS’ NEEDS• CONSIDERING THE WHOLE INDIVIDUAL NOT ONLY

THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS

CONFUCIAN WORK VALUES

• HARD WORK• PERSEVERENCE• PATIENCE• FRUGALITY AND HIGH SAVINGS• DELAYED GRATIFICATION• LONG TIME ORIENTATION• STRIVE FOR PERFECTION• DISREGARD “TEMPORARY”ABSENCE OF WORLDLY

GOODS• EAST ASIAN NATIONS