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ESSAY TOPIC (1) :A joint venture is affected by the cultural distance between two partners. In what ways are joint ventures and types of international collaboration affected by cultural differences?
INDEX
INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………2
What is culture?…………………………………………………………………2-3
The Cultural Orientation Model……………………………………………….4
The cultural Gap…………………………………………………………………5-6
Understanding Cultural Differences………………………………………….6
The Challenge of Cultural Success…………………………………………..7
Cross-cultural training as a solution…………………………………………8
The effectiveness of the cross cultural training programs………………8-9
Future Directions for Cross-Cultural Training and International Business
Assignments……………………………………………………………………..10.
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………..10
BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………………..11
INTRODUCTION
Since the end of World War II, international operations have become a reality for an increasing number of corporations. Many of these initial efforts began as simple export schemes to sell goods overseas to supplement domestic sales. Over time, however, international operations have become increasingly more complex: from joint-ventures to purchasing existing foreign firms to ‘green-field’ start-ups. While export operations usually require no more than extended business trips overseas, more complex international operations demand long-term assignments of key personnel outside their home-country. What would normally be considered routine business transactions in the home country can become very complicated when they are conducted between individuals and organizations from different cultures. In this essay we will examine how this cultural gap can affect international business and joint ventures.
What is culture?
The word 'culture' is often described in terms of concrete ideas or social artifacts. Gary R. Weaver describes some common conceptions such as "good taste," "art or music," or "something that people in exotic foreign lands had."1 However, culture in the context of international assignments relates to how people perceive the world and the influence this perception has on their actions. It is culture on the interpersonal level. Different cultures can perceive the same thing differently, which leads to miscommunication and misunderstanding when one crosses into another culture not their own.
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...s: Software of the Mind, (New York, NY: McGraw-Hill 1998) 4.
5.Ibid., 4.
6.Ibid., 4.
7.Paul E. Rohrlich, "Why Do We Study Intercultural Communication?," in Culture, Communication and Conflict: Readings in Intercultural Relations, 2d ed., ed. Gary R. Weaver (Needham Heights, MA: Simon & Schuster Publishing, 1998), 84-87.
8.Ibid., 85.
9.Ibid., 85.
10. (Schneider & Barsoux 1997:1).
11. Satish P. Deshpande and Chockalingam Viswesvaran, "Is Cross-cultural Training of Expatriate Managers Effective: A Meta Analysis," International Journal of Intercultural Relations 16 (1992): 296.
12.Environments," in Culture, Communication and Conflict: Readings in Intercultural Relations, 2d ed., ed. Gary R. Weaver (Needham Heights, MA: Simon & Schuster Publishing, 1998), 185-186.
13. Stewart J. Black and Mark Mendenhall, "Cross-cultural Training Effectiveness: A Review and a Theoretical Framework for Future Research," Academy of Management Review, No. 1 (1990), 132.
14. Deshpande and Viswesvaran, 301.
15. Rosalie L. Tung, "Selection and Training of Personnel for Overseas Assignments," Columbia Journal of World Business, (Spring 1981), 68-78.
Asuncion-Landé, N. C., & Pascasio, E. M. (1981). Building bridges across cultures: Perspectives on intercultural communication--theory and practice. Manila, Philippines: Solidaridad Pub. House.
Ting-Toomey, Stella., & Chung, Leeva C. (2012). Understanding Intercultural Communication. Oxford University Press. 43, 159-160.
Martin, Judith N., and Thomas K. Nakayama. Intercultural Communication in Contexts. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2013. Print.
Martin, J. N., & Nakayama, T. K. (2013). Intercultural Communication in Contexts (6th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
In recent years, it has become a well noted fact that the education system has become in many ways tougher, for better or for worse. Nevertheless, for anyone susceptible to an anxiety disorder, school often aggravates their symptoms. Today over 10 per-cent of European and American citizens suffer from an anxiety disorder, and it is an even greater number among young people (Points of View: FEAR NOT). As English-speaking countries move forward through time, testing becomes more stressful and more competitive, it should be expected that anxiety will increase. As well, according to Psychology Today the “[a]verage high school student [in the United States] has the same level of anxiety as the average psychiatric patient in the early 1950s” (Psychology Today: How Big a Problem is Anxiety Today). This is logical considering that a similar study done in 2010 concluded that high school and college students were more than five times as likely to develop either depression or an anxiety disorder than a student fifty years ago (Psychology Today: The Decline of Play and the Rise of Children's Mental Disorders?). This excessive rise exemplifies the amount of stress students have. As the years pass, it is becoming increasingly evident that anxiety disorder is prevalent among a majority...
Yan, A. and Luo, Y. (2001), International Joint Ventures: Theory and Practice. (New York and London: M.E. Sharpe, Inc.).
A cross-cultural training will help employees learn and understand the custom and beliefs of another culture. Encourages employees to appreciate and see the benefit another can bring into the workplace. The cross-cultural training helps leaders develop global skills for dealing with people or business partner from another culture. The training will not only ensure diversity, but prepares the organization’s leaders for the global market.
The following sections explore the cultural differences encountered by all businesses desiring to expand their organizations internationally. There are many elements which comprise a country’s culture. Unfortunately, many of these elements are not obvious and are all too often overlooked. For most, international culture is typically associated with visible and/or audible elements such as language, food, music and fashion. In 1976 Edward T. Hall developed “The “Iceberg Model of Culture” (Figure 1) which provides a good visual aid to broaden one’s understanding of the plethora of cultural elements which businesses should understand and consider. The “Iceberg Model” illustrates both visible (surface)
The initiation of intercultural effectiveness can be derived from behaviour impacted by its cultural differences and “cultural self-awareness includes recognition of one’s own cultural influences upon values, beliefs, and judgements, as well as the influences derived from the professional’s work culture” (Winkelman, 2005, p. 9)
Introduction In the reading "A first time expatriate's experience in a joint venture in China" we have come to understand the nature and structure of the joint venture between the U.S.A. and China and the role that James Randolf played in strengthening and maintaining the international partnership. Controls Inc. was a subsidiary of the parent company Filtration Inc. and so was shielded from any outside competition. When Controls Inc. was given the charter to pursue its own business, they realized the need for being cost effective as a result of which they started an operation in Singapore with the name Controls Asia-Pacific with the prime objective to have a presence in the region and to study and evaluate any possibility of a joint venture. James has been an employee of Controls Inc. for the past 23 years with experience in managerial positions of about 15 years.
A major challenge of doing business internationally is to adapt effectively to different culture. Such adaptation requires an understanding of cultural diversity, perceptions, stereotypes, and values (Hodgett &Luthans, 2005). Doing business overseas has its challenges as well as it rewards.
When one encounters a culture that has little in common with own, one may experience culture shock. This is a sense of confusion, anxiety, stress and loss one may experience. One of the barriers in effective intercultural communication is ethnocentrism. It stems from a conviction that one’s own cultural traditions and assumptions are superior to those of others. It leads to a tendency to look the world primarily from the perspective of one's own culture. It is one of the fastest ways to create a barrier that inhibits, rather than enhances communication (Jandt, 2012).
Sonderberg, A-M & N Holden. (2002), Rethinking cross cultural management in a globalizing business world' International Journal of Cross Culture Management 2(1): 103-121
Everyone has been told the importance of college as well that stress comes with it and it can lead to anxiety with time. For most it’s more than just going to school, college is known to be the most important four years of a student’s life since the next four years they will figure out what they will do for the rest of their life. When it comes to thinking about the future, it can be overwhelming for many. So what is anxiety? “Anxiety is a general term that can cover several types of disorders. All of them have nervousness, worry, fear, and apprehension in common. From time to time the feelings can be overwhelming enough to manifest physical symptoms” says the expert Melissa Cohen. Anxiety has increased on college campuses in the last couple of years, it has now surpassed depression as the most common mental health diagnoses among college students, according to a report done by the New York Times also it has topped impediments to withstand academic performance. Sixty-two percent of students
Humans have been communicating since four million years. On the other hand, the birth of culture is estimated to have taken place about 35,000 years ago. Today, both culture and communication have evolved considerably and have become interdependent of one another, to the point that communication is considered to be a product of culture. Thus, our own culture has a deep impact on our thoughts and behaviors. Since each culture has its distinct aspects, intercultural communication can be the cause of conflict and disorder. There are three main issues which are at the root of the problem of intercultural miscommunication : language as a barrier, cultural diversity and ethnocentrism. I will analyze these three notions in situations in which intercultural communication is frequent such as : the workplace, the classroom and vacation trips.