Intercultural business
communication: an overview
Gary Walder
Lecturer, Munich Business School
Intercultural understanding
It’s more than food
The world is shrinking
 More people travelling
• 898 million international tourism arrivals in
2007; 6% increase over 2006 (UNWTO World
Tourism Barometer, January 2008)
 Growth in international trade increasing
dramatically:
• $136bn in 1960
$9 trillion beginning
2000 (Saee, 2007)
 Cultural diversity within organisations is
increasing:
• Intel Munich: only 40% Germans
• IBM: 375,000 people on six continents
Globalisation: fuelling the need for intercultural communication
Intercultural communication—
differing views
Culture can be a barrier:
“Despite popular beliefs to the contrary, the single
greatest barrier to business success is the one erected by
culture."
Edward T. Hall and Mildred Reed Hall
e.g. Daimler Chrysler Merger
Wal Mart Germany
Intercultural communication—
differing views
Culture can be an opportunity:
“Diversity...will be the engine that drives the corporation of
the 21st Century. Successful global managers will be able to
manage this diversity for the innovative and competitive
edge of their corporations."
Stephen H. Rhinesmith, A Manager's Guide to Globalization
e.g. Nestle’
Culture-what is it?
To understand culture, we need to be
able define it.
“culture definition” = 24,000,000 entries
Ways of looking at culture
Behaviour
Meanings
Clothing
Beliefs
food
Attitudes
values
Behaviour
Clothing
Behaviour
Meanings
Beliefs
Clothing
food
Meanings
Beliefs
Attitudes
Attitudes
values
food
Cultural roots
values
Culture:
…is behaviour patterns, values, assumptions, and shared common
experiences.
…defines social structure, decision-making practices, and
communication styles.
...dictates behavior, etiquette, and protocol.
…is something we learn. It impacts everyone, and influences how we
act and respond.
…is communication. It is a way people create, send, process and
interpret information.
Intercultural communication
Surely it’s enough that everyone speaks English……
 “Most transnational organisations have a lingua fanca that enables
managers, irrespective of cultural background, to communicate
with each other, usually English.” (Jacob, 2003)
 Largest number of coutnries use English as the prevalent
language:
 Predominant language in over 44 countries
 Unofficial lingua franca in several Asian / African countries
 Gaining importance in emerging market countries e.g. Vietnam
 Business Schools in Europe increasingly offer courses in English
Intercultural communication
• English is the predominant language of international business, but
proficiency varies across countries
• “While an organisation’s tendency to focus on language training
to remedy communication problems is laudable in itself, it is only
a partial solution………..it is a false assumption that
communication between cultures is solely based on linguistic
competence.” (Saee, 2007)
Lost in translation
 In Italy, a campaign for Schweppes Tonic Water
translated the name into "Schweppes Toilet
Water.“
 KFC’s ‘finger lickin’ good’ slogan is used the
world over to highlight the tastiness of the
product. However, when the phrase was
translated into Chinese for the Hong Kong
market, it came out as ‘eat your fingers off’.
Needless to say, most customers opted for the
fries instead.
Intercultural branding failures
• Clairol’s ‘Mist stick’ in Germany
• When Clairol launched its ‘Mist Stick’ curling iron in Germany, the company
apparently had no idea that ‘Mist’ was a slang term for manure. The
company discovered that few women were crying out for a manure stick.
Intercultural branding failures
• Ikea’s ‘Gutvik’ bed, Germany
• Ikea names its furniture and furnishing after a
range of things. Bedding is named after flowers
while beds are named after Norwegian cities. It
was unfortunate then that the hugely popular
child's bed 'Gutvik' amused/riled customers in
Germany due to its similarity to a German
phrase meaning 'good f**k?'. Australian Ikea
stores recently renamed the desk called
'Jerker' but outrage about the bench called
'Fartful' is yet to be ignited.
Source: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/corporatecockups-ten-costly-gaffes-1894089.html?action=Gallery&ino=4
Lost in translation…but some are not
so funny
“Chinese 'classical poem' was brothel ad”
Science journal mistakenly uses flyer for Macau brothel to illustrate report on
China (The Independent, 9 December 2008)
The Editors of the MaxPlanckForschung
journal had hoped to find an elegant
Chinese poem to grace the cover of a
special issue, focusing on China, but
instead of poetry they ran a text effectively
proclaiming "Hot Housewives in action!"
on the front of the third-quarter edition.
Lesson: Be cautious about
translations.....
Marketing and advertising across cultures:
content
Who is likely to be offended by this advert? Why?
Message: Use a condom, and be sure you're not
bringing the next Mao Zedong into the world.
(Client: Doc Morris condoms. Agency: Grey Group
Germany).
Chairman Mao, Chinese
Communist Party leader, 19491976
Marketing and advertising across cultures:
content
Grey Begs Bloggers to Stop Posting Mao
Condom Ads; Grovels to "Offended" Chinese
Officials.
“Recently an ad execution from Grey Germany, which has never appeared in any paid
media, found its way onto internet websites devoted to showcasing advertising. We
have asked that the ad be taken down immediately.
“We understand that the ad offended the sensibilities of people in China for its visual
reference to Chairman Mao. Grey has offered a heartfelt apology and formally
contacted the Chinese embassy in Germany to assure them that this ad will never run.
We have the utmost respect for China, its people, culture and institutions. “ (April
2009)
Marketing and advertising across cultures:
content
Who is likely to be offended by this advert? Why?
Client: Doc Morris condoms. Agency: Grey Group, Germany
Marketing and advertising across cultures:
content
This one is not so
funny.
Client: Anti-smoking campaign.
“Smoking kills more.”
Agency: F/Nazca Saatchi & Saatchi, Brazil
Adverts using culture