Cultural Influences on Business and Tips for Doing Business in Another Culture

Cultural Influences on Business and Tips for Doing Business in Another Culture
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Cultural Influences on Business and Tips for Doing Business in Another Culture
Americans are long-term minded individuals. There is a reason why the freest country in the world is also the most developed. The United States (U.S.) has business sprouting in every little town. Las Vegas was born out of an individual's dream for a sprawling hub of casinos and hotels. Today, it is still the first largest desert city. Although other such cities are being developed in countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE), this goes to show America's position as a business powerhouse. Most importantly, it shows the confidence of Americans and their will to believe in dreams. These dreams have led to the growth of most businesses in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. For instance, there is the Apple company, Amazon, and Facebook. These are the world's largest technology companies. They have also led to the growth of another sprawling technology hub known as Silicon Valley. This is the commercial capability of the U.S.
The Culture Map and The Six Cultural Dimensions
Erin Meyer's Culture Map proposes eight steps that managers and business leaders can use to improve multicultural environments' commercial effectiveness (Meyer, 2016). The model proposed by Meyer provides a platform that these groups can use to analyze the position of different cultures. This way, they can understand the actions of individuals from different cultures. Meyer's eight scales are communication, evaluation, persuasion, leadership, decision, trust, disagreement, and scheduling (Meyer, 2016). In each of these scales is divided into two extremes, which Meyer believes represent many of the world's countries. In the late 1970s, Geert Hofstede published six cultural dimensions that every leader in business should understand (Gallego-Álvarez & Pucheta-Martínez, 2020). Hofstede's cultural dimensions were as a result of ten years of research. First, he had only identified four cultural dimensions after studying IBM employees in 50 countries. But, he later added two dimensions after conferring with like-minded researchers, Michael Bond and Michael Minkov. To date, these six dimensions are widely accepted as international standards for identifying cultural differences. Hofstede's dimensions include masculinity vs. femininity, individualism vs. collectivism, indulgence vs. restraint, long-term vs. short term orientation, power distance, and uncertainty avoidance (Gallego-Álvarez & Pucheta-Martínez, 2020).
Punctuality/Scheduling
The culture map and cultural dimensions discussed above are remarkable tools of analysis. Using these tools, it is easy to understand how the American business culture operates. For instance, Americans are punctual individuals. They take great pride in arriving on time for meetings, interviews, and seminars. In some countries, however, punctuality is not that pronounced. For instance, in African countries, scheduling is a suggestion of the appropriate time to meet. In these countries, it is possible to start a meeting scheduled for nine at 11 o'clock. This is the way business is conducted in such countries. There is no rush as long as the task at hand is handled. Still, this cultural behavior is unacceptable in some countries. For instance, in Russia or Germany, people take punctuality very seriously.
Meyer discusses this idea of punctuality in her Culture Map. In it, she names it scheduling (Meyer, 2016). In America, the business sector should continue to grow because punctuality is a major part of everyday business activities. For instance, stock traders and hedge fund managers believe that every second of the day counts. This goes to show the business mindset of Americans. Wall Street is known throughout the world as the largest commercial hub. It is where billion-dollar firms broker multi-billion-dollar deals in a matter of minutes. Thus, it should not be a surprise that punctuality has played a vital role in the country's growth as part of the American business culture (Sagmeister, 2018). 
Leading/Power Distance
Another concept proposed by Meyer and backed by Hofstede is leading. In Hofstede's cultural dimensions, he refers to it as the power distance index. This is the degree of inequality that exists between people with power and people without power (Gallego-Álvarez & Pucheta-Martínez, 2020). Meyer asserts that this is the idea that characterizes societies as egalitarian or hierarchical (Meyer, 2016). The U.S. is a highly egalitarian society. People believe that they are all equal. Commercial activities in the country operate completely independent of government interference. This highly capitalistic environment has allowed the U.S. economy to grow tremendously. Also, equality makes every American believe that they can start a business and develop it into the most formidable global enterprise.
The idea of equality is, however, lacking in some countries such as Malaysia and Mexico (Gallego-Álvarez & Pucheta-Martínez, 2020). In these countries, economic, political, and social sectors are hierarchical. This makes it hard for people to believe or achieve equality. In most of these countries, oppressive governments, corruption, and the huge presence of illegal activities such as drug trafficking have disrupted equality. Senior government officials operate with favoritism and nepotism. Drug lords coerce government officials to act in their favor and threaten ordinary citizens who do not respect them. This creates fear and an everlasting belief among ordinary citizens that they are insignificant (Gallego-Álvarez & Pucheta-Martínez, 2020). It is this fear and belief that influences the lack of equality within their societies and negatively impacts their business culture.
Masculinity vs. Femininity
Masculinity vs. femininity is another of Hofstede's six cultural dimensions. According to Hofstede, different business cultures in the world are either feminine or masculine (Gallego-Álvarez & Pucheta-Martínez, 2020). Feminine cultures operate openly in all aspects, including business. In such societies, individuals make deals through negotiation and compromise. But, in masculine cultures, roles are defined in a patriarchal system. A good example of a country on the masculine extreme is Japan. Japan's working hours are characterized by long hours. This means that it is mainly men who take part in business activities. Women cannot do the same because they often have to attend to family commitments (Gallego-Álvarez & Pucheta-Martínez, 2020). Also, within Japanese society, the patriarchal system is a tradition. Men are brought up to provide for their families while women are taught to care for their husbands and children. This extends to their business culture.
In the U.S., however, society has become increasingly feminine. Other countries, such as Sweden, have surpassed America in this area. But, American women have become more empowered and willing to operate at the center stage over the years. This has created a challenge for many firms and corporations in the U.S. Women are more willing to occup...