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People at all stages of their careers need to understand culture and how it works because it can have a powerful effect on their lives. Just starting their careers, people may think a job is just a job. But when they choose a company, they often choose a way of life. Culture can make them fast or slow workers, tough or friendly managers, team players or individuals.

Culture shock may be one of the main reasons why people “fail” when they leave one organization for another or start doing business with partners from other countries.

When dealing with foreign companies, it is important to be open-minded, which means not judging one cul­ture as better than another. You need to be sensitive too. That means being careful to avoid doing things that people of other culture might find strange or offensive, even if in your culture such things are quite OK.

To avoid misunderstanding it is important to be aware of different cultural tendencies, customs and traditions. Some cultures are formal and polite. Other cultures value a more individual style. For example Americans are direct and open in making their argument, while people from many Far East countries never 'assert " their views, interrupt and dominate the conversation because they don't want to be rude and cause the other to lose face.

Greetings, gestures and terms of address are all potential hazards abroad. In the USA, for example it is normal to for men to shake hands every time they meet. In Britain they shake hands only when they meet for the first time. In our country we are familiar with the short firm handshake. But in the Middle East the hand is held in a loose grip for a longer time.

Another important thing to consider is corporate gift giving. In many countries gifts is an important part of business relationships. The choice of a gift can cause misunderstanding if the country's traditions are not understood. In the US, for example, gadgets with corporate logo are often used as formal gifts while crafts or folk art from home country can be appreciated in Switzerland. A bottle of scent or a scarf can be a good way to express gratitude to a secretary in Brazil. In Middle East you should not bring drinks to an Arab home because alcohol is forbidden by religious law there. You should not admire an object openly either because the owner may feel obliged to give it to you. In China expensive presents are not acceptable and cause great embarrassment. Giving knives suggests cutting off the relationships in that country.

So traveling abroad is a potential minefield for the unprepared traveler and to avoid the problem you should learn customs and traditions of the country and be prepared to cope with corporate culture clashes.

 

offensive respond avoid misunderstanding be aware of cultural tendencies gesture terms of address firm handshake loose grip norms of communication value 'assert’ views cause   ‘ lose face’ corporate gift crafts or folk art express gratitude religious law feel obliged embarrassment cope

наступальний, агресивний відгукуватися, реагувати уникати, ухилятися непорозуміння знати, усвідомлювати (щось) культурні схильністі, тенденції жест; рух тіла умови звертання (до когось) міцне потискання руки вільний потиск; норми спілкування, цінити, цінувати твердити; доводити; обстоювати точку зору спонукати, примушувати; спричиняти, викликати щось ‘втратити обличчя’ корпоративний подарунок народне ремесло, мистецтво, майстерність виражати, висловлювати подяку релігійний закон почуватися зобов'язаним збентеження, труднощі, перешкода спромогтися

culture shock -a feeling of anxiety, loneliness, and confusion that people sometimes experience when they first arrive in another country;

5. Answer the questions on the text:

1. Why do people need to understand culture at all stages of their careers?

2. Why is itimportant to be aware of the cultural differences when dealing with foreign companies?

3. What different norms of communication do different cultures have?

4. When can gift cause embarrassment for the giver? Give an example.

5. Is the awareness of cultural differences vital only for businesspeople? Why / why not?

6. Give your personal opinion on the following:

 

1. Have you ever experienced misunderstanding due to cultural differences? If so, how did you cope with it?

2. Arc there any special rules for gift-giving in Ukraine?

3. What are Ukrainian traditions of welcoming and entertaining guests?

4. What would you recommend a foreign colleague to do to avoid cultural problems in our country?

 

7. Would you like to visit a foreign country? Why or why not? Prepare a short presentation about it.

• Choose a country you are interested in.
• Choose different areas to find out about, e.g. interesting customs and traditions, important industries, business relationships, negotiation processes.

 

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