Be Attuned to
Business Etiquette
Prepared by:
Jeshua Johnson
Bri Johnson
Case #
March 21, 2002
Dr. Castro’s International Business Class
Executive Summary:
Many overlook the importance of knowing business etiquette, especially when
dealing with business partners from foreign countries and/or other cultures. Oftentimes,
business partners in foreign firms have different cultural practices and customs. Being
aware of these various customs and practices is crucial to being successful in an
international business environment.
The importance of these customs to their cultures can vary into such extremes as
describing proper manners in situations to outlining how to live a proper life according to
the religious practices of the country. These customs can dictate basic protocol for
certain situations, guidelines for proper nonverbal communication, ways to show
gratitude correctly, and the words you choose to use. There are six considerations to
keep in mind when dealing with business etiquette across cultural boundaries: 1. Be
prepared, 2. Slow down, 3. Establish trust, 4. Understand the importance of language, 5.
Respect the culture, and 6. Understand the components of culture. These components
include aesthetics, attitudes and beliefs, religion, material culture, education, language,
societal organization, legal characteristics, and political structures. Understanding these
basic considerations and components can improve the success of your global and
international operations as well as increase the effectiveness of those operations.
Situation Analysis:
This case deals with primarily with making people aware of the importance of
knowing proper business etiquette in all circumstances. These circumstances can change
with each culture or foreign country that you do business with. Business etiquette can
deal with “local customer, etiquette, and protocol; body language and facial expressions;
expressions of appreciation; and the choice of words.”1
There are six main considerations when dealing with cross-cultural etiquette.
These include:
1. Be prepared: Research the country you are visiting and learning the customs,
practices, and any other pertinent items that you might face in your business
dealings.
2. Slow down: Other cultures especially those of South America and even
Europe do not care as much about time. North Americans oftentimes are in too
much of a hurry and that can offend members of another culture.
3. Establish Trust: Most other cultures value relationships above getting the job
done. By taking the time to get to know the people you are dealing with you
establish trust with them, and that can lead to easier business dealings.
4. Understand the importance of language: A clever slogan in one language does
not always translate as effectively into another language. In addition, improper
delivery of a business proposal or a remark meant to ease the conversation said
poorly can cause massive problems in negotiations and can lead to animosity
between both firms.
1
Ball, et al., “International Business: The Challenge of Global Competition.” pg. 343.
5. Respect the culture: People who travel overseas to do business in foreign
countries must remember that they are guests of the host country and therefore
should respect the culture into which they are traveling.
6. Understand the components of cultures: This is broken down into two sub
sections – surface culture and deep culture. Surface culture is the trendy, faddish
things that are popular for short periods of time. Deep culture is those engrained
traits that make that culture unique. Always keep in mind those things that each
culture values and the belief system of that culture to avoid entanglements in your
business dealings.2
The components of business etiquette include:
Aesthetics: A culture’s sense of beauty and good taste
Example: Art, music, folklore
Attitudes and Beliefs
Example: Importance of time, work, and change
Religion
Example: Protestantism, Buddhism and the emphasis they place of certain
things
Material Culture: All human-made objects; concerned with how people make
things and who makes what and why
Example: Technology, Economic considerations
Education
Example: Brain Drain (introducing educated professionals into a mainly
uneducated culture)
2
Ball, et al. pg. 301,302.
Language
Example: Translation, technical jargon and language
Societal Organization
Example: Family structure and makeup
Legal Characteristics
Example: Laws and taxes governing the business practices in each country
Political Structures
Example: Democracy, Oligopoly, Monarchy3
Each of these components together comprises a culture. They form the
foundation upon which the populaces of each culture make value judgments, choose
belief systems, accept trends and fads, respond to marketing, and make decisions.
The following are some selected graphs and charts from the book, “International
Business: The Challenged of Global Competition.” These graphs and charts represent
some aspects of sociocultural forces. While not all inclusive, these are representative of
the types of dimensions you need to be aware of and knowledgeable about when doing
business in foreign countries.
3
Ball, et al. pg 307-336.
Graph 1:
Chart 1:
1999 Bribe Payers Index
Rank
1
2
2
4
5
6
7
8
9
9
Country
Sweden
Australia
Canada
Austria
Switzerland
Netherlands
United Kingdom
Belgium
Germany
United States
Score
8.3
8.1
8.1
7.8
7.7
7.4
7.2
6.8
6.2
6.2
Rank
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
Country
Singapore
Spain
France
Japan
Malaysia
Italy
Taiwan
South Korea
China
Sources of Hope and Relief:
1. Books and the Internet
2. Workshops and seminars
3. State Marketing specialists4
4
Ball, et al. pg. 345.
Score
5.7
5.3
5.2
5.1
3.9
3.7
3.5
3.4
3.1
Works Cited
1. Ball, Donald A., et al. “International Business: The Challenge of Global
Competition.” McGraw-Hill Publishing: New York, 2002.