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Read the four short incidents described below.
Underline any sentences that suggest cultural differences were at work and answer the following questions.
• How would you explain these differences in terms of Hofstede's cultural dimensions?
• What hints or tips would you give to each of the people below to overcome cultural barriers?
You should have at least one paragraph of 5 full sentences for each point under each incident:
You can do this work on a separate document with the name of the incident as a header or simply write your paragraphs under the incident you are talking about. Cultural Dimensions Essay Assignment Paper
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Sarah Sarah Marshall is head of the business development group at a US-based law firm. Recently she was assigned the task of winning a contract for a new project with the Colombian government. She was competing with teams from Spain and France. Sarah had quite a lot of background information on the proposed project and on the packages her competitors were offering. On the basis of this information and her organization's extensive resources she felt confident that the company would win the contract. Sarah drew up a proposal that was time and cost-effective and designed a presentation based on convincing numbers and a persuasive argument. Arriving in Bogota the day before, Sarah personally made the sales pitch in which she detailed all the relevant facts, highlighted the various ways forward and made a clear recommendation of the best solution. She eventually lost the project to the Spanish team, even though her Columbian counterparts acknowledged the quality of her proposals. Richard Richard, an Australian, is part of a team of lawyers based in Paris. Claude, 48, is the team's PA. Claude works from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., with an hour and a half for lunch. Richard is very pleased with the quality of Claude's, work and her commitment to the team. Unfortunately, because of his extensive travel commitments abroad he has never had the opportunity to have lunch with her or spend any time with her and the team outside the work environment. After a while Richard asks to be addressed by his first name and the informal 712. Several months later, however, Claude is still calling him `Monsieur Lafleur' and addressing him with Voulez-vous bien...' although Richard calls her 'Claude' and addresses her with Veux-tu Richard is puzzled and decides to talk to Claude about this matter in order to clarify the situation. To his amazement Claude replies that she prefers to call him by his surname and refer to him with the formal vous. Karl Karl, a Dutch lawyer, felt that his first business trip to Japan was going fairly well. He was determined to get to know his colleagues better and was particularly pleased to be invited out for drinks after work with most of the team, including the senior managers. At the bar, everyone was expected to entertain; even the senior staff got to sing karaoke songs or tell jokes. Everything seemed fairly informal and cooperative, with Karl's karaoke version of 'Imagine' winning rapturous applause from the group. One of the senior managers even asked Karl for a repeat rendition later in the evening. Keeping this informality in mind, Karl used a team meeting early the next morning to present a proposal for resolving a minor logistics problem he had noticed. He was surprised to be met with a wall of embarrassed silence and was noticeably excluded from informal exchanges as people left the meeting. Cultural Dimensions Essay Assignment Paper Rebecca Rebecca, a recently recruited British executive in an international law firm, was asked to chair a meeting with her French and British colleagues. From Rebecca's point of view, the meeting went well. She did her utmost to make sure that everyone was heard, and the relevant issues discussed and summarized in a diplomatic way. She even changed the agenda and extended the meeting to accommodate new issues that some British delegates had brought up. At the end of the meeting Rebecca was shocked to hear one French colleague whisper to another `... typical British, just typical. No proper preparation...'. She was even more surprised to hear the reply: 'Yes, and they never say what they mean, do they?'Expert Answer
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Sara Underlined sentence: Sarah had quite a lot of background information on the proposed project and on the packages her competitors were offering. How would you explain these differences in terms of Hofstede's cultural dimensions? This difference could be explained in terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions of individualism vs. collectivism. Sarah’s approach to the project was very individualistic, as she was relying heavily on her own knowledge and resources to come up with a proposal. On the other hand, the Spanish team’s approach was more collectivist, as they may have pooled their resources and worked together to come up with a more comprehensive proposal. What hints or tips would you give to each of the people below to overcome cultural barriers? For Sarah, it would be helpful to be aware of the fact that in some cultures, collective effort is valued more highly than individual effort. She should take the time to collaborate with her team and draw on their resources, skills and experience to create a more comprehensive and persuasive proposal. Additionally, she should also be aware of cultural differences in communication styles, such as the use of more formal language and gestures, to ensure that she is presenting her proposal in a way that is most likely to be well-received. Richard Underlined sentence: Richard is very pleased with the quality of Claude's, work and her commitment to the team. How would you explain these differences in terms of Hofstede's cultural dimensions? This difference could be explained in terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimension of power distance. Richard’s request to be addressed in a more informal way may have been seen as disrespectful by Claude, as in her culture, a greater degree of respect is expected to be shown to those in positions of authority. What hints or tips would you give to each of the people below to overcome cultural barriers? For Richard, it would be helpful to be aware of the fact that in some cultures, formal language and gestures are expected to be used when addressing those in positions of authority. He should take the time to understand the cultural norms and expectations of his colleagues before attempting to address them in a more informal way. Additionally, he should also take the time to build trust and rapport with his colleagues, as this will help to create a more open and comfortable environment in which to discuss cultural differences. Karl Underlined sentence: Karl was determined to get to know his colleagues better and was particularly pleased to be invited out for drinks after work with most of the team, including the senior managers. How would you explain these differences in terms of Hofstede's cultural dimensions? This difference could be explained in terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimension of uncertainty avoidance. Karl was likely expecting the same level of informality to be maintained in the meeting the next day, as he had experienced the night before. However, in Japan, a greater emphasis is placed on formality and rules, so Karl’s proposal was likely seen as too informal and out of line with the expected cultural norms. What hints or tips would you give to each of the people below to overcome cultural barriers? For Karl, it would be helpful to be aware of the fact that in some cultures, there is a greater emphasis on formality, rules and procedures. He should take the time to understand the cultural norms and expectations of his colleagues before attempting to make any proposals or suggestions. Additionally, he should also take the time to build trust and rapport with his colleagues, as this will help to create a more open and comfortable environment in which to discuss cultural differences. Rebecca Underlined sentence: At the end of the meeting Rebecca was shocked to hear one French colleague whisper to another `... typical British, just typical. No proper preparation...'. How would you explain these differences in terms of Hofstede's cultural dimensions? This difference could be explained in terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimension of long-term vs. short-term orientation. The French colleague likely viewed Rebecca’s approach to the meeting as too short-term and lacking in preparation, while the French prefer a more long-term and thorough approach. What hints or tips would you give to each of the people below to overcome cultural barriers? For Rebecca, it would be helpful to be aware of the fact that in some cultures, there is a greater emphasis on long-term planning and preparation. She should take the time to understand the cultural norms and expectations of her colleagues before attempting to chair any meetings. Additionally, she should also take the time to build trust and rapport with her colleagues, as this will help to create a more open and comfortable environment in which to discuss cultural differences. Cultural Dimensions Essay Assignment Paper
EXPLANATION
Explanation In each of the four cases, the cultural differences can be explained in terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions. These dimensions include individualism vs. collectivism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, and long-term vs. short-term orientation. In order to overcome cultural barriers, it is important for individuals to be aware of the cultural norms and expectations of their colleagues and to take the time to build trust and rapport.
Final answer
Sara Underlined sentence: Sarah had quite a lot of background information on the proposed project and on the packages her competitors were offering. How would you explain these differences in terms of Hofstede's cultural dimensions? This difference could be explained in terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions of individualism vs. collectivism. Sarah’s approach to the project was very individualistic, as she was relying heavily on her own knowledge and resources to come up with a proposal. On the other hand, the Spanish team’s approach was more collectivist, as they may have pooled their resources and worked together to come up with a more comprehensive proposal. What hints or tips would you give to each of the people below to overcome cultural barriers? For Sarah, it would be helpful to be aware of the fact that in some cultures, collective effort is valued more highly than individual effort. She should take the time to collaborate with her team and draw on their resources, skills and experience to create a more comprehensive and persuasive proposal. Additionally, she should also be aware of cultural differences in communication styles, such as the use of more formal language and gestures, to ensure that she is presenting her proposal in a way that is most likely to be well-received. Richard Underlined sentence: Richard is very pleased with the quality of Claude's, work and her commitment to the team. How would you explain these differences in terms of Hofstede's cultural dimensions? This difference could be explained in terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimension of power distance. Richard’s request to be addressed in a more informal way may have been seen as disrespectful by Claude, as in her culture, a greater degree of respect is expected to be shown to those in positions of authority. What hints or tips would you give to each of the people below to overcome cultural barriers? For Richard, it would be helpful to be aware of the fact that in some cultures, formal language and gestures are expected to be used when addressing those in positions of authority. He should take the time to understand the cultural norms and expectations of his colleagues before attempting to address them in a more informal way. Additionally, he should also take the time to build trust and rapport with his colleagues, as this will help to create a more open and comfortable environment in which to discuss cultural differences.
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Karl Underlined sentence: Karl was determined to get to know his colleagues better and was particularly pleased to be invited out for drinks after work with most of the team, including the senior managers. How would you explain these differences in terms of Hofstede's cultural dimensions? This difference could be explained in terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimension of uncertainty avoidance. Karl was likely expecting the same level of informality to be maintained in the meeting the next day, as he had experienced the night before. However, in Japan, a greater emphasis is placed on formality and rules, so Karl’s proposal was likely seen as too informal and out of line with the expected cultural norms. What hints or tips would you give to each of the people below to overcome cultural barriers? For Karl, it would be helpful to be aware of the fact that in some cultures, there is a greater emphasis on formality, rules and procedures. He should take the time to understand the cultural norms and expectations of his colleagues before attempting to make any proposals or suggestions. Additionally, he should also take the time to build trust and rapport with his colleagues, as this will help to create a more open and comfortable environment in which to discuss cultural differences. Rebecca Underlined sentence: At the end of the meeting Rebecca was shocked to hear one French colleague whisper to another `... typical British, just typical. No proper preparation...'. How would you explain these differences in terms of Hofstede's cultural dimensions? This difference could be explained in terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimension of long-term vs. short-term orientation. The French colleague likely viewed Rebecca’s approach to the meeting as too short-term and lacking in preparation, while the French prefer a more long-term and thorough approach. What hints or tips would you give to each of the people below to overcome cultural barriers? For Rebecca, it would be helpful to be aware of the fact that in some cultures, there is a greater emphasis on long-term planning and preparation. She should take the time to understand the cultural norms and expectations of her colleagues before attempting to chair any meetings. Additionally, she should also take the time to build trust and rapport with her colleagues, as this will help to create a more open and comfortable environment in which to discuss cultural differences. Explanation In each of the four cases, the cultural differences can be explained in terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions. These dimensions include individualism vs. collectivism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, and long-term vs. short-term orientation. In order to overcome cultural barriers, it is important for individuals to be aware of the cultural norms and expectations of their colleagues and to take the time to build trust and rapport Cultural Dimensions Essay Assignment PaperThis question has already been tackled by one of our writers and a good grade recorded. You can equally get high grades by simply making your order for this or any other school assignment that you may have.
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