It is not surprising that misunderstandings and disagreements may occur, when people from Asian cultures and western European cultures want to do business together. The behavior in business and every-day life significantly differs. If we take a closer look at all cultural dimension, especially at Hofstede’s and Hall’s models, we can identify possible reasons and solutions how to overcome the (sometimes frustrating) cultural differences in global business.
This paper will give an overview about the most important cultural dimensions, analyze the problems in German-Vietnamese business communication with the help of the cultural dimensions and think about possible strategies how to avoid or solve the cultural misunderstandings.
Table of Contents
1 INTRODUCTION
2 VIETNAMESE AND GERMAN BUSINESS CULTURES – A SHORT OVERVIEW –
3 THE CRITICAL INCIDENT
4 HOFSTEDTE
4.1 Power Distance
4.2 Uncertainty Avoidance
4.3 Individualism vs. collectivism
4.4 Long term vs. short term
4.5 Masculinity vs Feminity
5 HALL’S CULTURAL FRAMEWORKS
5.1 High- and low- context communication
5.2 Monochronic and Polychronic behavior
6 RICHARD R. GESTELAND’S CROSS- CULTURAL PATTERNS
6.1 Deal- Focus vs. Relationship- Focus
7 TROMPENAARS CULTURAL DIMENSIONS
7.1 Individualism versus communitarianism
7.2 Universalism vs. Particularism
8 CONCLUSION
Objectives and Topics
This term paper examines the cultural misunderstandings occurring between German and Vietnamese business partners in a hypothetical start-up scenario. The central research objective is to analyze these communicative and organizational conflicts through established cross-cultural theoretical frameworks to identify causes and propose potential conflict-resolution strategies.
- Application of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions to German-Vietnamese interaction.
- Analysis of Hall’s high-context vs. low-context and polychronic vs. monochronic communication styles.
- Investigation of Gesteland’s deal-focused vs. relationship-focused business behavior.
- Evaluation of Trompenaars’ cultural dimensions, specifically universalism vs. particularism.
- Development of intercultural awareness strategies to foster successful business cooperation.
Excerpt from the Book
6.1 Deal- Focus vs. Relationship- Focus
Gesteland’s pattern of deal-focus and relationship-focus indicates the importance of personal relationships in business life.
The majority of the markets worldwide are relationship-oriented. Arabic cultures, African cultures, Latin America and the Asian regions are relationship-oriented to a great degree. People from relationship-focused cultures only deal with people they are familiar with. These people could be relatives, family and groups of person they know well. It is important that they can trust these people, doing business with strangers makes them feel uncomfortable.
The deal-focused orientation can only be found in some countries and cultures of the world. European countries, especially Central and Northern European countries, Northern American countries and New Zealand are deal-focused.
Deal-Focused Cultures are open doing business with strangers. Those cultures do not need to have a good personal relationship to their business partners, they are willing to discuss business possibilities even with strangers they have never met before.
Conflicts could arise, when deal-focused people try to do business with people from relationship-focused cultures as you can see in our critical incident number two.
Tina, the Vietnamese investor and John the owner of the start-up come into conflict. John is quite deal-focused, he wants to talk about business immediately without trying to bond with Tina first. He regards the small- talk between Sue and Tina as unnecessary and wants to talk about the most important points in 30 minutes. His way of communication is impersonal and factual. Sue tries to handle the situation and communicates with Tina in an empathic and friendly way, because she realizes the importance of a good relationship for Vietnamese. For Tina, John’s behavior is very rude. She is a relationship-oriented businesswoman from Vietnam and wants to know Sue and John better before doing business together with them. She thinks that they have to get her trust and respect her, before talking about the formalities of the capital expenditure. After John's rude behavior she cannot imagine to negotiate with them anymore, because it was not possible for her to build up a good relationship to John and Sue.
Summary of Chapters
1 INTRODUCTION: This chapter outlines the case study involving German and Vietnamese students in a start-up and defines the scope of using cultural frameworks to address their communication challenges.
2 VIETNAMESE AND GERMAN BUSINESS CULTURES – A SHORT OVERVIEW –: This section provides a brief contrast between the hierarchical, relationship-oriented culture of Vietnam and the deal-oriented, formal nature of Germany.
3 THE CRITICAL INCIDENT: The chapter defines a critical incident as a situation where cross-cultural interaction leads to unintended conflict and establishes the methodology for analyzing the case.
4 HOFSTEDTE: This chapter uses Hofstede’s dimensions, such as Power Distance and Individualism, to explain why the two students struggle with hierarchy and task organization.
5 HALL’S CULTURAL FRAMEWORKS: This section explores how high-context versus low-context communication and different time orientations contribute to misunderstandings in business settings.
6 RICHARD R. GESTELAND’S CROSS- CULTURAL PATTERNS: This chapter analyzes the clash between deal-focused and relationship-focused business behaviors within the provided case study.
7 TROMPENAARS CULTURAL DIMENSIONS: This chapter focuses on individualism versus communitarianism and universalism versus particularism to explain differences in rule compliance and contractual attitudes.
8 CONCLUSION: The final chapter summarizes the findings, emphasizing the necessity of intercultural awareness and the need for compromise to ensure successful cross-cultural business relations.
Keywords
Cross-cultural management, Vietnam, Germany, Hofstede, Cultural dimensions, Hall, Gesteland, Trompenaars, Critical incident, Business behavior, Communication styles, Intercultural awareness, Relationship-orientation, Deal-orientation, Globalization.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this research paper?
The paper examines cross-cultural conflicts arising in a business context between students from Germany and Vietnam, specifically focusing on the challenges of managing a shared start-up.
What are the central themes covered in this work?
The core themes include business communication, cultural hierarchies, perceptions of time and deadlines, the importance of personal relationships in business, and the contrast between rule-based and relation-based decision making.
What is the main objective of the study?
The objective is to identify the causes of cultural friction by applying established academic frameworks—specifically those by Hofstede, Hall, Gesteland, and Trompenaars—and to suggest strategies for better cooperation.
Which scientific methods were employed to analyze the case?
The author uses a qualitative analysis approach, applying selected cultural dimensions and theoretical models to evaluate real-world "critical incidents" observed between the students in the case study.
What topics are discussed in the main body of the text?
The main body covers specific cultural dimensions: Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance, Individualism/Collectivism, Long-term vs. Short-term orientation, Masculinity/Feminity, High/Low context communication, and Deal/Relationship focus.
Which keywords best characterize the work?
The paper is characterized by terms such as cross-cultural management, intercultural awareness, relationship-oriented, deal-oriented, and specific cultural dimensions from the cited theorists.
How does the "Iceberg Model" help explain the conflicts in this paper?
The Iceberg Model is used to illustrate that while surface-level behaviors (like punctuality or directness) cause immediate friction, these are driven by "invisible" factors like values, attitudes, and cultural norms that must be understood to resolve conflicts.
Why did the negotiation with the investor, Tina, fail?
The negotiation failed because John, who is deal-focused, prioritized efficiency and factual discussion, thereby neglecting the relationship-building and respect for hierarchy that the Vietnamese investor, Tina, required to establish trust.
- Quote paper
- Julian Rudolf (Author), 2015, Working across cultures. Vietnam and Germany, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/373919
