...designing and operating systems, and working with people around the world to ensure sustained competitive advantage (Sepehri, 2010, as cited in Lecture notes 1). This essay identifies the challenges of operating in different national cultures for international managers by using Hofstede’s theory. In addition, the essay explains international skills and knowledges required by managers to be successful in different countries. Cultural Value Dimensions Culture in a global economy is one of the most important factors in global economy. In international management research, Hofstede defined culture as "…the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from those of another" (Hofstede, 1991, as cited in Jones, 2007). Within the context of international management, culture involves different dimensions. Four major dimensions provide frameworks for identifying international differences in culture (Jones, 2007). First, GLOBE (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effective) Project team classifies cultural differences along four different dimensions:...
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...Researching cross-cultural differences and values Dimension | United States | Philippines | Power Distance | 40 | 94 | Individualism/Collectivism | 91 | 32 | Masculinity/Femininity | 62 | 64 | Uncertainty Avoidance | 46 | 44 | Long-term Orientation | 29 | 19 | Most Interesting Dimension: Long-term orientation How will this affect negotiations? As the United States and the Philippines are relatively close in this score it is likely that there is not as much difference in expectations between the two countries in this regard. Understanding each other’s reasoning and values by way of having many of the same would be strength for both going in. It also is a weakness for both in negotiations if neither party can compromise or gain leverage somehow. * Before – Preparing should be uncomplicated due to the sharing of so many characteristics in this dimension. * During – Both a strength and a weakness if neither has more leverage than the other or is geared towards a mutually beneficial agreement. That is usually present in closer relationships such as friendships or family, not unrelated business people. * After – Possible animosity or resentment if one side feels that they were treated unfairly or manipulated. Strategy to manage this difference: To begin with I would use role reversal. Given the similarities, I would basically be negotiating their side with myself/team to find any pitfalls or weak points prior to the actual meeting. I would also look at...
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...Cultural and Relationship Values Memorandum and Employee Handbook Memorandum TO: All Employees SUBJECT: Employee Handbook FROM: Boardman Management Group DATE: November 24, 2014 The purpose of this memorandum is to explain the reason behind designing the employee handbook that is attached. Subjects discussed include explaining the value and team-based culture, the mission statement, the main areas covered in the handbook and how this handbook will move us forward. The handbook will also cover employer responsibilities and employee rights. The company is a value and team-based culture. Baderman Island Resort aims to please the customers who cause employees to stretch the rules at times to make the guests comfortable. The company also conducts random acts of kindness, which also support a value-based culture. Boardman Management Group empowers its employees, which encourages a team experience as they consider all employees as family. The values of the company are articulated through the mission statement. The mission statement reads “…dedicated to managing leisure and convention focused resorts that provide a unique and quality experience to guests and visitors. The Board of Directors and operational leaders in the organization, empowers its staff to offer unsurpassed quality of customer service, through individual acts of random kindness and specialty services” (Boardman Management Group, 2012, p. 1). This mission statement reflects that the company is a value and...
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...Cultural Values Cultural Values When I was a kid growing up in a small town with 10000 population in Brazil. I was a the second to last child to be born in my family and we were very poor. My father, a Italian Immigrant came to Brazil in the 1950’s to escape the second world war II and to start a new life. Our family were very poor and even tough we didn’t have all the material stuff my mother, a Portuguese decedent were very religious. They brough religion in our every day life and every Sunday we went to church, follow religious holidays and most important of all. My father one rules was that everyone must sit in the dinner table every night and pray the blessing we receive that that, even tough we didn’t have much. I didn’t understand sometimes why we would that every day instead of playing with the others kids. In the beginning I tough it was a tortuture sitting in that table for dinner and having the same thing almost every night instead of playing outside with my friend I had to follow my father’s order because I knew the consequences and it wasn’t very good. The years part and little by little my brother and sisters were getting married and our daily reunion at the dinner table started to fade way and I started missing it. Our daily dinner reunion started to become Sunday reunion when we meet after church on Sunday for Lunch. This tradition lasted for a couple of years until I decided to go after my own luck and moved to the United States in 1996 to look for...
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...Intercultural Communication The Most Prominent Cultural Value in Singapore: ‘Face Value’ Tutor | Professor Stefanie Stadler Done by: Low Nan Wu Darren (U0930545A) Date of Submission: 5th Sep 2011 Introduction The term cultural values refer to our conception of the commonly held standards of what is acceptable or unacceptable, important or unimportant in a community or society. All values are learned values. Humans are not inherently born with the understanding of the kinds of values they should uphold. Instead, values are passed down and inculcated from one generation to another through intricate agents such as experiences, interaction, friends, families and cultural norms. Needless to say, different cultural groups espouse different values. Studies on culture have shown a saliency of difference in both Asian and western values (Schwartz, 1994). Due to the nature and diversity of their beliefs and practices, Asian and western cultures have been largely distinguished as being collectivistic and individualistic respectively (Victor, 1992; Wagner & Moch, 1986). In the case of an individualistic culture, an individualist would consider his or her own personal interest and goals more important than the group’s interest (Victor, 1992; Earley 1989; Wagner & Moch, 1986). On the other hand, a collectivistic culture would value membership in a group, show stronger loyalty to their social groups and place their own interests before the groups’ interest (Victor...
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...Not much sits in the hierarchy of our minds as a source of such constant anxiety, attention, upkeep and manipulation as our hair. At once a biological consequence and cultural marker our hair is both a natural and contrived result of our lifestyles and our personalities. Looking to hair as an extension of the human body and its function as an object open to both pigeonholing and differentiation, ‘hair’ is defined as a unique and complex topic, imbued with more cultural and historical meaning than many others. From the day we are born we start on a personal and often intimate exploration of the excess, absence, cutting, covering, growing, and grooming of hair as the both appearance of individuality and compliance in our lives. Be it on your body, face, or head; whether removed, replaced, relaxed, dyed, long, short, curly, straight, or even synthetic, hair is inherently inscribed with meaning as a manifestation of personal preference or imposed rules of conduct as it has been for centuries. As children, we are familiar with what makes a man and what makes a woman and although lacking in understanding of most biological factors, hair is readily...
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...Personal Values In today’s society, we live our lives and make our future depending “on what we believe has value.” What we do with our time, our money and our lives are all directly influenced by our capacity to make clear, balanced and valued decisions. Each individual brings a set of personal values into the workplace. These values and the moral reasoning associated with them translate into behavior that are considered important aspects of ethical decision making in organizations. For example, the family background and spiritual values of managers provide principles by which they carry out business. Moreover, people go through stages or levels of moral development that affect their ability to translate values into behavior. There are distinct levels of moral development that affect behavior. The first level, as seen in children, is a low developmental level. In short, a child’s decision and behavior are based on rewards and the avoidance of physical punishment. At the next level, individuals conforms appropriate behavior based on the expectations of society. At the highest level of moral development are those individuals who develop and internal set of standards. In other words, they have self-chosen ethical principles that are more important than external expectations. Overall, personal values are developed from an ethical framework of individuals; it guides their decisions. Organizational Values Rarely are unethical or ethical practices attributed to a single...
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...seduced Angela, it was to greater misbelief that no one did anything to prevent his wrongful death at the hands of the Vicario twins. The story focused on how the townspeople's cultural beliefs had led to their inaction in preventing his untimely death. Cultural values play a considerable role in this novella; it is the primary factor to why the crime took place. In the novella, Chronicle of a Death Foretold, Marquez’s use of...
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...Individualism as an American Cultural Value Individualism is often viewed as a positive trait in America, suggesting a certain level of personal confidence. American society tends to reward independent thinkers and those who decide autonomously. To this end, individuality has become a value in many American homes. Although individualism is widely received and respected in American culture, it is not as well respected in other cultures. One culture in particular which frowns on individualism is the Asian culture. Thai family values are very different from American family values. In Asian cultures the family unit is highly valued and emphasized, whereas, in American culture, the focus is on individuality. Values derived from the American family all suggest individuality by stressing autonomy and self-sufficiency of the individual members. In contrast, members of the Thai community are taught to embrace a “we” Identity. The individual does not stand alone, but is seen as the product of all generations of his or her family. One of America’s most prominent cultural values, as seen by Poranee Natadecha-Sponsel in her article Individualism as an American Cultural Value, is individuality. She believes that the way Americans are raised teaches them to become independent and individualistic in their everyday lives, unlike in Thai culture. One of the main values in the United States is individualism. Dr. Sponsel faced a cultural shock when she moved to Hawaii. Being born and raised...
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...Values and Cultural Assumption in China The people in China are rich in culture just like other Asian countries. Therefore, to be involve with Chinese people in China for business, undertsanding their values and culture are very important. The first important thing to understand about Chinese is their devotion to collectivism. Chinese is trained from very early to consider himself as a dependent segment of a group, which is also called totalitarianism. It is helpful to think of the notion of family in China as a template applied to many networks of relationships that hold the society together. In the Chinese business context, the notion of family is about more than the emotional support and ties of a nuclear family. Family members, for example, rely on each other for very instrumental needs such as loans or help in finding jobs. As such, family relationships intermingle trust from the head and trust from the heart. Given that the concept of family is a template for a broader range of Chinese social relationships, it reveals how Chinese business culture can comfortably combine these two types of trust. In fact, the Chinese word for trust, xin-ren, refers to both trust from the heart (xin) and an assessment of the other’s reliability and capability (ren). But the underlying concept also helps zero in on the essence of building successful business relationships in China: knowing how and when to build both types of trust. Because the Chinese emphasize on “the common good” for a...
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...“father” when he is not at home; this could explain the earlier occurrence of child abuse (Turla, Dündar, & Özkanli., 2010). Parents in Turkey as well as in Greece, are expected to support their children in every way, including financially, during their school years and as they begin their family life. Furthermore, parents expect their adult children to take care of them in old age. Family is central to Greek values and behavior and mutually reinforces each other’s importance. The Greek family is traditional patriarchal family and this is specified in the marriage ceremony. In this ceremony the wife accepts the husband as head of the...
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...SOCIAL VALUES AND CULTURAL PRACTICES Certain needs such as to make a living, the need for social organization, knowledge as well as learning, normative and metaphysical expression are common to all the people. As a result, the culture of a society not only acts as an instrument of cooperate development, but also as a basis of social values and cultural practice development. In addition, culture is not considered as being in the opposition to development, but rather as an idea that is continually changing as well as being created in relation to the changing social processes and it constitutes a common point of reference within the global development. The study examines how social values and cultural practices are shaped by age, class, ethnicity and gender. Social values and cultural practices shaped by age A study on the vast potential expansion of HIV epidemic as well as cultural impact in the sub-Saharan Africa reflects how ages shapes social values and cultural practices. Cultural practices that include large differences within the ages of men and women at marriage as well as along the period of postpartum abstinence have resulted into frequent extra-marital relations. However, such relationships have contributed to the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. In order to respond to the spread of HIV/AIDS, the social adaptations have to include some profound changes within the sexual behaviours, child bearing and marriage customs. On the other hand, social values, norms and...
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...Cultural Value of Respect in Business Operations: A Case Study of Developing Communities Name Institution of Affiliation Chapter Two: Literature Review Introduction A work environment that is respectful, reasonable, and that values individual differences is a central part of building a positive workplace culture. Casson (2005) asserts that promoting respect is a managerial aspect that oversees workers as it creates a respectful and positive workplace and, consequently, increased employee productivity. Respect at the workplace inspires respectful relationships, courtesy, and decent manners. On another angle, it ensures that employees stay updated with workplace information and consider and value other people’s positions (Casson, 2005). Regan (2004) defines respect as the fair treatment of employees and other stakeholders, fair valuation of contributions of each employee and consistency in the management of the company’s values. However, respect is viewed broadly under the cultural values that every society or business platform foresees. Accordingly, cultural respect has gone further to embrace the protection of human rights, the core driver of the corporates’ social responsibilities and transparency initiatives. Businesses have in the past integrated their cultural values, respect among them, in their endeavors (Regan, 2004). Since diverse business cultures appreciate and recognize other cultures for efficient business transactions, a critical aspect of what respect accords...
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...Cultural Value: Dedication to Market Economy Key to understanding the healthcare delivery system is understanding the values our nation holds as they relate to the dynamics of that system (Althaus, 2013). Notably, our dedication to the “market economy”, in which prices and investment are driven by supply and demand and goods and services are distributed through the free market (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, n.d.). I have watched hospital medicine become a viable field over the course of the past 15 years, partially as a result of this commitment to market economy. The pioneers of the field saw an opportunity to reduce expenses for hospitals while improving quality. Initially, there was neither supply of nor demand for these physicians. Now we find the field experiencing the same shortage of physicians that is echoed across most other specialties. “One does not experience shortages of anything in a market economy for very long before the market price of the scarce item rises” (Goldsmith, 2012). This steady rise in demand for physicians practicing in hospital medicine has meant that 1) their compensation has increased and 2) they are harder to find and retain. Additionally, the shortage of available physicians to fill these slots has started to have a ripple effect, meaning that some hospitals are now looking for help from the nurse practitioner ranks, which is also driving up their salaries. Apart from the increased spend on physician compensation and increased...
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...It is natural and pleasant for me to bring people together. Living nearly half of my life in Mexico and the other in the U.S has not only made me bilingual, but culturally appreciative and socially open in a way that I enjoy interactions with people from different backgrounds and ideals as much as I enjoy being with people of shared views. Moreover this, I've acquired a bi-cultural identity, seeing the world through two perspectives from drastically different lifestyles. Consequently so, I am able to comprehend and relate with exponentially different societies, which in turn strengthens my diplomacy skills. A good example of this is that during my time in Mexico, around the ages of 14-15 I was part of a yearly U.S/Mexico program called the...
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