Research Paper (postgraduate) from the year 2012 in the subject Business economics - Economic and Social History, grade: 94.0, , language: English, abstract: U.S. firms that decide to go global experience unique challenges that are not particularly present in typical domestic businesses. Companies that have relations abroad are often met with significant cultural differences that can impact the business – either positively or negatively. The importance of cultural intelligence has led to an increase in cross-cultural training; yet, some firms refuse to acknowledge the significant role that culture plays in their international business. A lack of cultural awareness inherently implies an arrogance that has been associated with American culture by other countries. By ignoring cultural differences, American companies reveal an underlying desire to make money without taking the time to know their partners or employees abroad. Such ignorance can be avoided at a relatively low cost; nevertheless, some businesses manage to fail miserably because of a lack of cultural understanding.
Seminar paper from the year 2006 in the subject Business economics - Offline Marketing and Online Marketing, grade: 1,3, http://www.uni-jena.de/ (Philosphische Fakultät - Lehrstuhl Interkulturelle Wirtschaftskommunikation), course: Interkulturseminar USA-Deutschland, language: English, abstract: Globalization has led to remarkable changes in the way we conduct the world’s business. International Mergers and acquisitions are en vogue today. The advantages quoted by managers include advantages of scale, increased shareholder value, access to new markets, lower overheads and so on. The number of international mergers and acquisitions between German and American companies increased a lot during the last years, as well. At the beginning there are high hopes and elation connected with the deal. But the long-term reality, however, is much the opposite. At least 50 percent of all international mergers and acquisition activity fails, no matter how the success is measured. There are also lots of companies who failed, who are therefore not able to benefit from some positive synergy effects like cost reductions. Why did that happen? A survey tried to analyze the reasons for this. The surprising result was that just 30% of the failures were attributed to the “hard factors” of business, like planning, finance or technology. For the rest, the reason lay in the so-called “soft factors”, which contain cultural and organizational behaviour. Somewhat less acknowledged, although hardly disputed, is the positive and negative impact of cultural aspects on the success of M&A activity. The following work reveals the differences between American and German business culture and also analyzes its historical and social background. Thereby, the main goal is to disprove that American and German business styles are almost similar. Furthermore, at the end the reader should know more about the existing differences between the two nations, because their unawareness leads to the failures of M&A. In the second chapter there is theoretical basis information which helps to reach a better understanding of this work. Thereafter comes the main part about the existing differences between Germans and Americans. Because there are plenty of them, it is just possible to take a brief view on a certain field of life. For this reason the author picks a few, those which seem to be the most relevant differences between the German and American business world. In every part, the author is going to illustrate the differences by means of examples . The main question which is answered in this work is: WHY do these different characteristics exist? Where do they come from?
This book demonstrates how the theories and insights of anthropology have positively influenced the conduct of global business and commerce, providing a foundation for understanding the impact of culture on global business, and global business on culture.
Culture impacts all human interactions, including those in business. In an effort to demonstrate how culture impacts international business communications and operations, the video takes a close look at Latin America and examines the impact culture has on its people, economic and social development and business.--Kanopy.
An international business expert helps you understand and navigate cultural differences in this insightful and practical guide, perfect for both your work and personal life. Americans precede anything negative with three nice comments; French, Dutch, Israelis, and Germans get straight to the point; Latin Americans and Asians are steeped in hierarchy; Scandinavians think the best boss is just one of the crowd. It's no surprise that when they try and talk to each other, chaos breaks out. In The Culture Map, INSEAD professor Erin Meyer is your guide through this subtle, sometimes treacherous terrain in which people from starkly different backgrounds are expected to work harmoniously together. She provides a field-tested model for decoding how cultural differences impact international business, and combines a smart analytical framework with practical, actionable advice.
“Companies that do not adapt to the new global realities will become victims of those that do.” In this quote Theodor Levitt, a former professor at the Harvard Business School, points out that companies all over the world need to deal with a process which has changed the way they carry on a business in many ways. The process, namely globalisation, takes advantages as well as disadvantages, not only for the business world but also for the individual. The importance to face globalisation has always been there but, it has increased with the evolving stages of globalisation. Ever since this process started, companies have tried to derive advantage from globalisation while at the same time they had to deal with the disadvantages. For marketers in particular, this process seems to offer a lot of potential for the exploration of new markets and customers. However, the questions determining the success or failure of a marketing campaign are more complex than in domestic marketing. Accordingly, the terms international and global marketing are strongly connected to globalisation, and have become a key factor for the success of companies. Corporations that want belong to these successful multi-national companies (MNC), or global players certainly have to deal with the different issues that come along with marketing products in other countries. These can have a significant impact on international operations but also on the overall performance of a company. Since a company’s approach to these issues determines the success or failure in marketing a product abroad, these situations have to be addressed at an early stage. Among others, cultural differences are one of the major obstacles that have to be considered in international marketing. Every culture has its own individual values, behaviours, ways of thinking, lifestyle and language which make it unique. Accordingly, companies have two different possibilities to deal with that process. At first, standardisation, an identical marketing plan is used across different cultures, and secondly, adaptation, appropriate adjustments are made to the special cultural environment of the target market. It is therefore important for a marketer to be aware of these differences, and to use the right tools to advertise products successfully in multiple, varied cultural environments. This study provides a comprehensive framework of cultural differences in the USA and Germany, and analyses how companies should conceive their [...]
This work looks at the international manager on a professional and personal level, however long- or short-term the assignment may be. It is a practical guide with checklists and exercises, offering step-by-step guidance for those embarking on an international career, and with essential advice for organizations on how to develop and manage their international staff. There is also expert advice on career management and on the effects that international work can have on families, and guidance on returning - reverse culture shock often being the greatest culture shock of all.
William Marling's provocative work analyzes—in specific terms—the impacts of American technology and culture on foreign societies. Marling answers his own question—how "American" is globalization?—with two seemingly contradictory answers: "less than you think" and "more than you know." Deconstructing the myth of global Americanization, he argues that despite the typically American belief that the United States dominates foreign countries, the practical effects of "Americanization" amount to less than one might suppose. Critics point to the uneven popularity of McDonalds as a prime example of globalization and supposed American hegemony in the world. But Marling shows, in a series of case studies, that local cultures are intrinsically resilient and that local languages, eating habits, land use, education systems, and other social patterns determine the extent to which American culture is imported and adapted to native needs. He argues that globalization can actually accentuate local cultures, which often put their own imprint on what they import—from translating films and television into hundreds of languages to changing the menu at a McDonalds to include the Japanese favorite Chicken Tastuta. Marling also examines the unexpected ways in which American technology travels abroad: the technological transferability of the ATM, the practice of franchising, and "shop-floor" American innovations like shipping containers, bar codes, and computers. These technologies convey American attitudes about work, leisure, convenience, credit, and travel, but as Marling shows, they take root overseas in ways that are anything but "American."
