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Chapter 05 - Culture, Management Style, and Business Systems
Chapter 5 – Culture, Management Style, and Business
Systems
Teaching Objective
Business customs within a country are an extension of the country’s culture. There are many similarities
in how business is conducted from country to country but the differences, if not properly adjusted for,
often cause enormous problems.
It is not necessary for a business person to forsake their ways and to change to conform to local customs
but, rather, to be aware of differences and willing to accommodate those differences that can cause
misunderstandings. Just as is the case with all cultural differences, a person’s SRC can cause problems
when trying to operate under different business customs. The literature is full of examples of
misunderstandings between business persons from different cultures when each responds to the other
from his/her own SRC without an appreciation of the SRC at work. The classic example is time. In some
Latin cultures, there is a different urgency placed on time. The punctuality of someone from the United
States can appear “pushy, too much in a hurry to make a decision, and so on” while the lackadaisical
response to time by a Latin can be erroneously interpreted as being lazy or indifferent. Or, in the United
States, calling someone by their first name when first introduced implies friendliness but appears as rude
or boorish to a Frenchman or German. The teaching objectives of this chapter are to:
1) Acquaint the student with some of the more frequently encountered differences in business
customs.
2) Emphasize the importance of adaptation or accommodation to differences in behavior patterns.
3) Discuss those business customs that are important to adapt to since many differences that exist
within a culture do not require adaptation.
4) Become aware of the disparate standards for business ethics that exist and to test one’s own
ethical values.
5) Explore a guide to help you make ethical and socially responsible decisions.
Comments and Suggestions
1. We begin the discussion of this chapter by stressing the importance of tolerance when dealing with
cultural differences and a need to gain insight into “where the other person is coming from.” The key
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2. To those less experienced with cultural diversity, the number of differences can be overwhelming.
Which ones of the many cultural differences are important? To bring some order out of the chaos of
3. We use the discussion on m-time and p-time to introduce the discussion on modes of doing business.
4. Gender bias is an important issue in business customs discussion. The main point we want to make is
5. The other topic that needs special attention is the issue of ethical behavior. Because there is no easy
answer to the question of ethical and socially responsible behavior it is important to discuss all the
6. Exploring the various issues of acting socially responsible when making decisions can be addressed
using Exhibits 5-6 and 5-7, or the most recent Transparency International Corruption Perception
Lecture Outline
I. Business Customs and Practices in Global Marketing
II. Global Perspective: Do Blonds Have More Fun in Japan?
III. Required Adaptation
A. Degree of Adaptation
B. Imperatives, Electives, and Exclusives
IV. The Impact of American Culture on Management Style
V. Management Styles around the World
A. Authority and Decision Making
Chapter 05 - Culture, Management Style, and Business Systems
B. Management Objectives and Aspirations
C. Communication Styles
D. Formality and Tempo
E. P-Time versus M-Time
F. Negotiations Emphasis
G. Marketing Orientation
VI. Gender Bias in International Business
VII. Business Ethics
A. Corruption Defined
B. The Western Focus on Bribery
C. Bribery: Variations on a Theme
D. Ethical and Socially Responsible Decisions
VIII. Culture’s Influence of Strategic Thinking
IX. A Synthesis, Relationship-Oriented vs. Information-Oriented Cultures
Discussion Questions
1.
Define:
Cultural imperative
Subornation
Cultural elective
Principle of utilitarian ethics
Cultural exclusive
M-time
Silent language
FCPA
P-time
2. “More than a toleration of an alien culture is required . . . there is a need for affirmative acceptance as
different but equal.” Elaborate.
3. “We should also bear in mind that in today’s business-oriented world economy, the cultures
themselves are being significantly affected by business activities and business practices.” Comment.
4. “In dealing with foreign businesses, the marketer must be particularly aware of the varying objectives
and aspirations of management.” Explain.
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8. Contrast the authority roles of top management in different societies. How will the differing views of
authority affect marketing activities?
9. Do the same for aspirational patterns.
In the United States, management tends to emphasize profit or high wages. In foreign countries,
10. What effects on business customs might be anticipated from the recent rapid increases in the level of
international business activity?
11. Interview some foreign students to determine the types of cultural shock they encountered when they
first came to your country.
Individual project.
12. Differentiate between:
Private ownership and family ownership.
Decentralized and committee decision making.
13. In which ways does the size of a customer’s business affect his business behavior?
14. Compare three decision-making authority patterns in international business.
Chapter 05 - Culture, Management Style, and Business Systems
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The top management decision making is the centralized decision making whereby only the people at
15. Explore the various ways in which business customs can affect the structure of competition.
The customs would affect the structure of competition mainly by determining whether or not there is
16. Why is it important that the business executive be alert to the significance of business customs?
17. Suggest some cautions that an individual from a high-context culture should take when dealing with
someone from a low-context culture. Do the same for low- to high-context situations.
An individual from a high-context culture operating in a low-context culture should be careful about:
18. Political payoffs are a problem; how would you react if you faced the prospect of paying a bribe? If
you knew that by not paying you would not be able to complete a $10 million contract?
19. Differentiate among the following:
Subornation
Chapter 05 - Culture, Management Style, and Business Systems
Subornation generally involves large sums of money, frequently not properly accounted for, which
are designed to entice an official to commit an illegal act of magnitude on behalf of the one paying
20. Distinguish between P-time and M-time.
Edward Hall defines two kinds of time systems in the world – monochronic and polychronic time.
M-time (monochronic) typifies most North Americans, Swiss, Germans, and Scandinavians. In these
Western cultures, they tend to concentrate on one thing at a time. They divide time into small units
21. Discuss how a P-time person reacts differently from an M-time person in keeping an appointment.
When business people from M-time and P-time meet, adjustments on both sides need to be made for a
harmonious relationship. P-time is characterized by a much “looser” notion of what is “on time” or
“late.” Interruptions are routine, delays to be expected. It is not so much putting things off until
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22. What is meant by “laws are the markers of past behavior that society has deemed unethical or socially
irresponsible?”
23. What are the three ethical principles that provide a framework to help distinguish between right and
wrong?
Explain.
24. Visit Transparency International Web page and check to see how the CPI Index for countries listed in
25. Discuss the pros and cons of “there is no controlling legal authority,” as a basis for ethical behavior.
In many countries, the law may help define the borders of minimum ethical or social responsibility,
but the law is only the floor above which one’s social and personal morality is tested. The statement
1 Patricia Digh, "Shades of Gray in the Global Marketplace," HRMagazine, April 1997, p. 90.
Chapter 05 - Culture, Management Style, and Business Systems
26. “The company.com page is a company’s front door and that doorway should be global in scope.”
Discuss. Visit several Web pages of major multinational companies and evaluate their “front door” to
the global world.
Not only can you select and purchase goods through a company’s Web page, but support services,
27. Visit the Web sites of Shell and Nike and see if you can find their statements on corporate values.
Compare the statements. What are the major issues each address? Do you think their statements are
useful as guides to ethical and socially responsible decision-making?
28. Go to your favorite Web reference source and access some recent news articles on Nike and alleged
