Engl CD3u4 100107 10.01.2007 17:11 Uhr Seite 2 BusinessTalk

Business Talk

Business Englisch Trainer

No. 3

Interkulturelle Kommunikation 1: Knigge f?rs internationale Parkett. Plus: L?nderportr?ts USA, Japan, Frankreich, Russland etc.

Business Talk No. 3

INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION

Discussions with intercultural expert Robert Gibson 1. Introduction 2. Cultural stereotypes Advice: The dangers of dos and don'ts lists 3. Working with India Interview: Sujata Banerjee 4. Working with France Interview: Caroline Balmer 5. Foreign assignments Interview: Guillermo Havenstein 6. Working with Russia Interview: Vera Bade 7. International meetings Advice: what to consider 8. Negotiating with Americans Interview: Damien Loughrey 9. Working with Japan Interview: Claudia Graefe-Gasior 10. Management styles Advice: a reflection of culture 11. Conclusion

Total playing time:

1:13 4:40 4:41 3:41 4:55 6:29 4:29 4:41 4:51 4:32 1:30 45:42 3

I N T E R C U LT U R A L C O M M U N I C AT I O N

1. INTRODUCTION

Erica Gingerich: Hello, this is Erica Gingerich. Welcome to Business Talk, a series of CDs pro-

duced by Handelsblatt in cooperation with Business Spotlight magazine. With these audio products, you have the chance to improve the skills you need for doing business internationally in English. The third and fourth CDs in our series cover the subject of intercultural communication. In this third edition of Business Talk, intercultural communications expert Robert Gibson will be talking to international guests about working with people from India, France, Russia, the United States and Japan. Robert will also explore the usefulness of cultural generalizations, and take a look at international meetings and intercultural differences in management styles.

2 . C U LT U R A L S T E R E O T Y P E S

Gingerich: We'll start by talking about something

most of us tend to do: make generalizations about people from other countries. We think generalizations will make it easier to understand the mentali-

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ty of different cultures. So, before we travel abroad, many of us look for simple lists of what to do -- and what not to do -- in that culture. Robert, why are these kinds of "dos and don'ts" guides so popular?

Robert Gibson: That's a very good question, Erica. I

think it's because of globalization. This brings new challenges for people, and they're in contact with more cultures than ever before. This is sometimes difficult to deal with, and what they want is a quick solution, some help.

Gingerich: What exactly are the dangers of follow-

ing a list of dos and don'ts?

Gibson: Well, I always think it's a bit like going to the

doctor, and you want just some medicine very quickly, and you say to the doctor, "I need penicillin." And he gives you penicillin -- there's no real diagnosis of where you're coming from, where you're going to. There's also no consideration, with a list of dos and don'ts, of the context in which you're working -- and that's very, very important, because the same people from the same culture will react differently, will behave differently in different situations. And so I think that serious intercultural preparation and intercultural training has to take this into account.

Gingerich: And what elements are needed for a suc-

cessful intercultural training programme?

Gibson: Well, I think it's vital to consider cultural dif-

ferences in a specific context, and to recognize the complex interplay between the individual, culture, context and situation. In training, it's important to give people personal feedback and help them to

develop their own strategies for coping. That's what's lacking in lists of dos and don'ts: there's no interaction; there's no interplay. You can do this by creating situations where people have to play roles, and then give them feedback on how they behaved, how they were perceived by their partner, and how they perceived the situation. In those cases, observers can also say what they thought was going on, and this sharpens the mind; it sharpens the awareness of what is really playing an important role in each particular situation.

Gingerich: So what advice would you give to a busi-

ness person who needs to prepare quickly for a business trip abroad?

Gibson: Above all, beware of the false sense of

security that a list of dos and don'ts can give you. Really, you have to develop your intercultural skills through reflection and training over a longer period of time. I suppose, really, the quick solution, if you really do have to go somewhere tomorrow and you have no time for any form of preparation, and it's a very critical situation, then I think the main thing I would advise people to do is to look for local informants who can support you when you're away. Ideally this should be a person who has no direct interest in the outcome of, for instance, the negotiation. They have to have a certain neutrality -- combined, though, with a knowledge of the situation that you're going to be in. This could, for instance, be a management assistant, who gets a lot of information and also interacts with many people from different cultures. They need to be able to filter that information and communicate it to you in

a way which helps you to be more effective.

Gingerich: With so many companies working glob-

ally, are cultural differences really so important?

Gibson: Superficially, international business culture

is the same everywhere, but if you probe beneath the surface, cultural differences are very important. I experienced this recently when I was in Belgium and I noticed actually very big differences when I travelled between Antwerp and Brussels; it was actually quite striking. Even if you want to standardize, then you need to know where people are coming from. At the moment I'm working on projects where companies are trying to standardize their procedures and processes across the world.

account: take sth. into ~ Belgium challenge cope (with sth.) cover sth. critical deal with sth. dos and don'ts for instance interact with sb. interplay negotiation outcome perceive sb./sth. probe

procedure process striking superficially vital

etw. ber?cksichtigen Belgien Herausforderung (mit etw.) zurechtkommen etw. behandeln entscheidend etw. bew?ltigen Gebote und Verbote zum Beispiel mit jmdm. Umgang haben Zusammenspiel Verhandlung Ergebnis jmdn./etw. wahrnehmen sondieren; hier: genau hinsehen Verfahren Arbeitsablauf auffallend oberfl?chlich (betrachtet) unerl?sslich

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And on the surface, you think OK, you can just do the same; you define the process, the procedure, and then you introduce it. But actually the key thing to the success of this -- to the actual execution and implementation of this -- is to understand where people are coming from: what is their attitude to a process or a procedure? Do they actually respect rules or do they try to avoid them? How far do they take these things seriously? How can you motivate them to really live the processes? And that's the challenge and that's where you need really in-depth intercultural understanding.

Gingerich: Yes, our aim is to do just that: increase

intercultural understanding. We'll move on now to talking about cultural interactions more specifically. To do this, we'll look at individual countries with the help of our studio guests.

3. WORKING WITH INDIA

Gibson: The first country we'd like to look at is

India, which has become a popular location for outsourcing and a world leader in IT services and call centres. India is also a huge consumer market for Western products. Because of all this, business dealings with India are likely to increase substantially in the coming years. I'm very pleased to welcome Sujata Banerjee, an expert on Indian-German business relations. Sujata, maybe you could first tell us a little bit about languages in India. What languages do people speak? How do they use English?

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Sujata Banerjee: Well, Rob, namaste, or good

morning to you. There are a lot of languages, there's a diversity of languages in India. There are 15 major languages, a few thousands of dialects, and two main languages, one being Hindi, the other English. It's not so much a question of people using English in their daily life, it's a question of higher education. And anybody who has a higher education speaks English, has learned to use it one way or the other.

Gibson: Is there any difference between the

English spoken in India and the English spoken in the US or in Great Britain?

Banerjee: We have a very lively, a very vibrant

usage of English; sometimes we don't even know where it all comes from. If you have the spoken English, you have these clich?s, like "I am not liking this". But you must always see that many people learn English off the streets. They don't learn it at school. They use it according to their needs and, of course, their languages. Their first and second and third Indian languages have a strong influence on their usage of English as well.

Gibson: Well, let's move on to the topic of inter-

cultural communication. Perhaps you could tell us what images Indians and Germans have of each other.

Banerjee: Well, the typical assumption about

Germans are that they are slaves to punctuality, but it is considered a strong, major virtue. And that they are extremely loyal, but very hard to win over. It is said that they have a hard shell and a soft inner. But many people say that they don't

know whether after the hard shell there is a hard inner as well! They haven't been able to find out so far.

Gibson: In my experience, German business peo-

ple have some problems dealing with India. They don't always find it that easy. Can you give them any advice?

Banerjee: Well, there is always a set of assump-

tions both sides have about each other, and a set of expectations both sides have. It would always help to treat a short-term contact, a short-term interest, as a long-term one, because you never know what kind of network you're going to generate, what kind of interest you're going to spark off. You have to see yourself a little bit as an economic ambassador. I know it sounds a bit difficult, but it is also an immense challenge and also an immense pleasure, if you once know you have made headway -- not just for yourself but also for the company you represent and the network you come from in Germany.

Gibson: Do you have any suggestions for how

Germans can make their Indian guests feel welcome?

Banerjee: Well, perhaps you should treat an Indian

visitor as somebody who would be happy to have a little bit of hand-holding, a little bit of welcoming once he or she enters, because the same would happen to you if you were to come to India. You are coming to visit a country, and that country is supposed to receive you; and hospitality is one of the prime virtues, driving forces, in business relations.

Gibson: I was recently working with some Indian

colleagues and I went to the canteen with them. I was really surprised at how difficult it was for them to find something that they could eat. What advice would you give on the subject of meals and food?

Banerjee: Food is of course a very important topic

to all of us; it's the direct access to our hearts. You don't have to go to the next Indian restaurant; it's not a sign of showing that you have a cultural respect. It is just to ensure that there is a certain

access ambassador assumption attitude canteen diversity driving force ensure sth. execution generate sth. hard shell hospitality implementation in-depth inner non-stand. lively make headway network prime punctuality short-term spark sth. off topic vibrant virtue win sb. over

Zugang Botschafter(in) Annahme Einstellung Kantine Vielfalt; hier: Vielzahl treibende Kraft etw. sicherstellen hier: Ausf?hrung etw. hervorbringen harte Schale Gastfreundschaft Umsetzung in die Tiefe gehend Inneres lebhaft Fortschritte machen Netzwerk HauptP?nktlichkeit kurzfristig etw. ausl?sen Thema lebendig Tugend jmdn. f?r sich gewinnen

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amount of cooked vegetarian dishes, and, most importantly, a large assortment of spices, more or less spicy spices, on the table.

Gibson: Great, thank you. Well, Sujata, thank you

very much for your help here and your very useful advice.

4. WORKING WITH FRANCE

Gibson: Coming closer to home now, we're going to

look at the problems that can arise for Germanspeakers when they're doing business with France. Here to talk to us is Caroline Balmer, who is from near Strasbourg. Caroline has been working in Germany for several years and can give us a French perspective on the intercultural differences between Germany and France. Caroline, what is the main impression you have of working in Germany?

Caroline Balmer: Well, I don't have much working

experience in France, but my impression is that, in Germany, more emphasis is put on processes: people spend hours creating a process for everything. In France, I think this would be seen as a waste of time. In France, I would expect someone to have an idea, organize a meeting, and take a decision. Another feature of work in Germany, I think, is the way information is shared. German people are used to getting the information they need from defined channels. In France, people use informal channels. This means I sometimes get the information about a project before my colleagues do.

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Gibson: Maybe that brings us to the question of

how you find relationships in Germany, at work. Are there any differences between France and Germany here?

Balmer: As a younger colleague, I find the use of

"Sie" much too distant with people I work with very often. I would expect colleagues to use the "du" much more, and sooner. I can also remember when I received my first e-mail, in which the person wrote "Frau Balmer". I found it very odd -- I felt it could have been for my mother!

Gibson: But what's it like in France? Don't you use

vous at work?

Balmer: Yes, in France we also use vous very often,

but with a first name.

Gibson: Oh, I see. Is there anything else that you

find different in Germany?

Balmer: Yes, another thing is, when I call a col-

league, I sometimes ask "how are you?" and most of the time, the people laugh because they're just surprised. They normally get straight to the point! Germans can easily work together without knowing anything about each other. In France, it is the other way round: a good relationship is a requirement for business. I was surprised when people first wished me "einen sch?nen Feierabend". This doesn't exist in France. Friends of mine who are working in France often have a drink or go to the restaurant with their colleagues.

Gibson: That perhaps shows a difference between

what is seen as private, and what is seen as public. Maybe this is a chance for you to talk a bit about life outside of work.

Balmer: There are many little differences that I see

every day. For example, Germans pay separately in a restaurant. In France, you would ask for the bill and divide it by the number of people at the table. The French would also think it is strange to wait for the little green man before crossing the street in the middle of the night when there is nobody there!

Gibson: Do you think that living in Germany has

actually changed you?

Balmer: Well, on a business trip to France, I found

myself getting impatient with my French colleagues, wondering why we spent so much time having lunch. It was then that I understood why some other cultures see the French as chaotic and badly organized. And on the way back to Germany, I said to my boss, "I am getting too German -- I have to learn again what it is like to work in France!"

Gibson: Thank you vey much, Caroline. Well, that

wraps up our glimpse at some of those subtle but important differences between Germany and France, and what they mean for business people dealing with both cultures.

5. FOREIGN ASSIGNMENTS

Gibson: Let's now move on to a more general topic:

foreign assignments. As business becomes increasingly international, more and more people have the opportunity to live and work abroad. Some people see such overseas assignments as a chance to develop their careers. Others are just curious to do something different, and to see what

life is like in another country. Unfortunately, things often don't work out quite as well as expected. Often the hectic pace of business life leaves little time to prepare properly for a move abroad. You might only have a few weeks in which to finish up your existing work, prepare the handover to your successor, and use up any holidays you've got left. You just can't focus on what's ahead. And before you know it, your lack of preparation, false expectations, and possibly the lack of support while you're away make your assignment less successful than it could be. One person who knows all about the challenges of living and working abroad is Guillermo Havenstein. He's an engineer from Argentina, who's lived in Germany for more than ten years, and has also worked in Chicago, for three years. Guillermo, can

arise assortment challenge channel emphasis engineer feature foreign assignment glimpse handover odd other way round: the ~~~ spice spicy subtle successor vegetarian wonder wrap sth. up

entstehen Auswahl Herausforderung Kanal Gewichtung Ingenieur(in) Merkmal Auslandseinsatz (kurzer) Einblick ?bergabe seltsam andersherum Gew?rz scharf subtil Nachfolger(in) vegetarisch sich fragen etw. abschlie?en

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