Russian Business Practices and Sixth
Sense
Melissa Campbell
Raquel Austin
Tiana Mutter- Veitch
Monique Wiggers
Russian Culture
 Extremely rich, diverse culture consisting of 160 ethnic
groups speaking over 100 languages
 Largest country in the world which gives way to intense
variation amongst geography as well as people
 History filled with political obstacles, bloody wars, and a
rocky economy
Russian Culture Cont’d
 Culture preserved through literature, art, architecture, and




cuisine
Experiencing wave of new culture from the west as they move
farther from Soviet times
Theatre is considered very important, multiple venues in each
city
Majority Christian, although not altogether a religious nation
Highly educated, most individuals know a little bit about
everything
Russian Values
 Proud, tough nation who are not afraid to tell it like it is
 Collectivist state with a large emphasis on family as well as
friends
 No such term as ‘Private Property’
 Used to situations where everything is unpredictable and
unstable
Russia vs. the West
 Going to extremes vs. Everything in moderation
 Open-heartedness vs. Privacy
 Generosity vs. Practicality
 Critical towards one’s country vs. Patriotism
 Being vs. Acting
 Leisure vs. Work
 Complaining about problems vs. Being ‘OK’
Things To Avoid
 When doing business in Russia:
 Don’t be offended if your Russian counterpart is very late
(this can often be a tactic to test how serious you are about
dealing with them).
 Don’t try to impress by using flashy presentations, get to
the point and show your knowledge and professionalism.
Things To Avoid Con’t
 Don’t cave in too early during a negotiation. Russians
believe concessions are a sign of weakness
 Don’t refuse an offer to go out for dinner as business
decisions are increasingly being discussed during meals
 Don’t refuse alcohol unless you have a legitimate excuse
such as health or religion
Things To Avoid Con’t
 Don’t miss out on smaller or one-on-one meetings.
Russians often make key decisions with those they have
built a personal relationship with and only use formal
meetings to ratify decisions that have been made elsewhere
 Don’t use humour in a formal meeting as they are seen to
be quite serious
 Don’t be impatient during a meeting. Russians tend to
think and wait before responding verbally or visually.
Things To Avoid Con’t
 Don't waste time dealing with middle managers for
decisions. Most Russian companies are managed by one
central character, so you should go straight to the top if
possible.
 Don’t only put out information in writing as Russians will
often believe what they hear over what they read. This also
makes face to face conversations very important.
In Russia, remember to...
 Make appointments far in advance
 Be punctual to meetings but be prepared to wait for host
 Punctuality shows respect and interest.
 Being late is considered a test of patience and interest
 Shake hands firmly and make direct eye contact
 When shaking hands with women, shake less firmly
In Russia, remember to..
 Take a personal approach
 Personal contact such as an embrace
 Engage in small talk about person’s family
 Show emotion
 Take a small gift
 Print materials in English and Russian
 Bring business cards
 Sign a contract to finalize the deal
In Russia, remember to...
 Show respect for seniority
 Pay attention to titles and credentials
 Be flexible and democratic in work ethic
 Be patient in doing business negotiations, it can move slow
 Dress in a formal and conservative manner
 Highly polished shoes
 Men wear business suits
 Women wear business suits in subtle colors with knee
length skirts
Sixth Sense
 Object of the Game:
 Create powerful non-verbal communication
 Create teamwork among employees
 Seeks to instil player compatibility
 Overall goal is to guess the number of chips that your
partner is going to throw and match them
How to play
 2 players sit across from each other
 Decide upon using odd or even numbers
 Start by giving 6 tokens to each player
 Once the game begins no verbal or non verbal
communication will be allowed
 Each player guesses what the other player will throw and
matches that
 After two rounds, two more tokens are given
Scoring
 If players match the number of tokens thrown then add to
two numbers together i.e. 2+2=4
 If players do not match the number of tokens thrown then
add the two numbers together and subtract double the
highest number
i.e. 4+6=10-(6*2)12= -2
Sixth Sense and Management Skills
 Dominant players or leadership skills expressed
 How to read players (co-workers)
 Which tactics prove successful? Which tactics proved
unsuccessful?
 Develop strategies to determine what number of tokens
should be thrown when
References
 Ardichvili, A, et al. Organizational Culture and Socio-culturalValues: Perceptions of Managers
and Employees in Five Economies in Transition. Performance Improvement Quarterly.
Hoboken: 2004. Vol. 17, Is. 2; pg. 5, 23 pgs
 Bat Batjargal. The Difference Between Chinese and Russian Entrepreneurs. Harvard Business
Review. Boston: Oct 2008. Vol. 86, Is. 10; pg. 32
 Gorrill, J. R. (2007). Doing Business in Russia. Retrieved May 27, 2010, from
Communicaid: http://www.communicaid.com/cross-cultural-training/culture-forbusiness-and-management/doing-business-in/Russian-business-and-social-culture.php
 Kwintessential. (n.d.). Kwintessential . Retrieved May 25, 2010, from Doing Business in
Russia: http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/etiquette/doing-business-russia.html
 Students, U. o. (2007). Russia. Retrieved May 25, 2010, from Russian Business Etiquette:
http://www.cyborlink.com/besite/russia.htm
 World Business Culture. (n.d.). World Business Culture. Retrieved May 25, 2010, from
Doing Business in Russia: http://www.worldbusinessculture.com/Business-inRussia.html