Сross cultural business communication
Learn the active vocabulary of the Unit and be ready to use it in your further work.
First read the text very quickly and write down one thing about each nationality that you can remember. Discuss what you have written with your partner. Text A We live in a global village, but how well do we know and understand each other? Here is a simple test. Imagine you have arranged a meeting at four o’clock. What time should you expect your foreign business colleagues to arrive? If they are German, they’ll be bang on time. If they’re American, they’ll probably be 15 minutes early. If they’re British, they’ll be 15 minutes late, and you should allow up to an hour for the Italians. The British are happy to have a business lunch and discuss business matters with a drink during the meal, the Japanese prefer not to work while eating. Lunch is a time to relax and get to know one another, and they rarely drink at lunchtime. The Germans like to talk business before dinner; the French like to eat first and talk afterwards. Taking off your jacket and rolling up your sleeves is a sign of getting down to work in Britain and Holland, but in Germany people regard it as taking it easy. American executives sometimes signal their feelings of ease and importance in their offices by putting their feet on the desk whilst on the telephone. In Japan, people would be shocked. Showing the soles of your feet is the height of bad manners. It is a social insult only exceeded by blowing your nose in public. The Japanese have perhaps the strictest rules of social and business behaviour. Seniority is very important, and a younger man should never be sent to complete a business deal with an older Japanese man. A 50-year-old Japanese (or Greek or Italian) manager would be even offended, if he had to negotiate with an aggressive, well-educated, but inexperienced American or German 20 years his junior. You must exchange business cards immediately on meeting because it is essential to establish everyone’s status and position. When it is handed to a person in a superior position, it must be given and received with both hands, and you must take time to read it carefully, and not just put it in your pocket! Also the bow is a very important part of greeting someone. You should not expect the Japanese to shake hands. Bowing the head is a mark of respect and the first bow of the day should be lower than when you meet thereafter. The Americans sometimes find it difficult to accept the more formal Japanese manners. They prefer to be casual and more informal. The British, of course, are cool and reserved. The great topic of conversation between strangers in Britain is the weather – unemotional and impersonal. In America, the main topic between strangers is the search to find geographical link. “When in Rome do as Romans do”
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