Wor

king

acr

oss

Cul

ture

s

John H

ooke

rCarn

egie

Mello

n U

niv

ers

ity

AIC

hE W

ebin

ar,

May

2011

Cul

ture

and

man

agem

ent

Eve

ry c

ulture

has

a logic of its own

.

Its

uniq

ue w

ay

of

gett

ing t

hin

gs

done.

Know

ing t

his

is

the k

ey

to s

ucc

ess

.

Wha

t cul

ture

is n

otCulture

is not

prim

arily

about

food,

language,

dre

ss,

cust

om

s, h

olid

ays

.

Wha

t cul

ture

isCulture

is

about how we think.

It d

ete

rmin

es

our

deepest

ass

um

ptions,

most

of

whic

h w

e n

ot

eve

n a

ware

.Li

ke a

n ice

berg

, cu

lture

lie

s m

ost

ly b

eneath

the s

urf

ace

.

Lang

uage

Cui

sine

Dre

ss, h

airs

tyle

Ove

rt r

elig

ion

Co

nce

pt

of

auth

ori

ty

Con

cept

s

of s

pace

and

time

Gu

ilt v

s.

sham

e

Ru

le-b

ased

vs.

rela

tio

nsh

ip

-bas

ed

Apo

lloni

an

vs.

Dio

nysi

anU

nive

rsal

izin

g

ratio

nalit

y?

Man

agem

ent

of in

form

atio

n

Str

ess

man

agem

ent

Cov

ert r

elig

ion

Fun

dam

enta

l

conc

eptio

n of

real

ity

Pop

cul

ture

Cul

ture

vs.

per

sona

lity

Eve

ry c

ulture

conta

ins

the full

range o

f hum

an p

ers

onalit

ies.

Culture

is

about

the f

ram

ew

ork

in

to w

hic

h t

hese

pers

onalit

ies

fit,

not

about

”national ch

ara

cter.

”

How

eve

r, d

iffe

rent

pers

onalit

ies

succ

eed in d

iffe

rent

culture

s.

Cul

tura

l glo

bali

zati

on?

World e

conom

y is

now

multi-polar.

Succ

ess

ful nations

exp

loit t

heir u

niq

ue c

ultura

l tr

aits.

Less

pre

ssure

to W

est

ern

ize.

Resu

lt: Cultural deglobalization

.

Com

munic

ation

tech

nolo

gy

support

s th

is

trend.

Cav

eats

There

are

5000+

culture

s in

the w

orld.

This

talk

must

vast

ly o

vers

implif

y.

No judgm

ents

.I

don’t k

now

whic

h c

ulture

s are

“b

ett

er.

”

Aim

is

to u

nders

tand t

hem

.

Tw

o ty

pes

of c

ultu

res

Culture

s are

very

diffe

rent.

But

they

can b

e c

lass

ifie

d r

oughly

as:

relationship-based

rule-based.

Rel

atio

nsh

ip-b

ased

= life is

org

aniz

ed p

rim

arily

aro

und personal relationships.

Afr

ica,

Asi

a,

Mid

dle

East

, South

Am

erica

Rule

-bas

ed =

life is

org

aniz

ed p

rim

arily

by rules.

Aust

ralia

, Euro

pe,

Nort

h A

merica

Meetings

Pers

onal co

nnect

ions

vs.

strict

ly b

usi

ness

Deals Pers

onal tr

ust

vs.

co

ntr

act

s &

law

Tru

st t

he person

vs.

trust

the system

.

Tra

ffic

behavi

or

Negotiation v

s.

regula

tion.

Traff

ic in C

hin

a

Dealin

g w

ith stress

Fam

ily &

friends

vs.

tech

nolo

gy

& e

ngin

eering.

Fili

pin

o f

am

ily

Conce

pt

of

auth

ority

.R

ela

tionsh

ip-b

ase

d –

auth

ority

rest

s in

the person

.

Rule

-base

d –

auth

ority

derive

s fr

om

rules.

Cust

odia

n o

f th

e T

wo H

oly

Mosq

ues

Kin

g A

bdulla

h b

in A

bdul Azi

z Al-Saud

No c

ulture

is

pure

ly r

ule

-base

d o

r re

lationsh

ip-b

ase

d.

It w

ould

n’t w

ork

.

•You c

an’t b

uild

a b

rick

house

pure

ly o

ut

of

brick

.

•O

r a w

ood h

ouse

pure

ly o

ut

of

wood.

Noneth

ele

ss,

one s

yste

m t

ends

to d

om

inate

.

Many

cultura

l tr

aits correlate w

ith t

he r

ule

-base

d,

rela

tionsh

ip-b

ase

d d

istinct

ion.

Rel

atio

nsh

ip-

bas

edR

ule

-bas

ed

Hig

h po

wer

di

stan

ceLo

w p

ower

dis

tanc

e

Sha

me-

base

dG

uilt-

base

d

Hig

h-co

ntex

tLo

w-c

onte

xt

Pol

ychr

onic

Mon

ochr

onic

Cor

rupt

ion

as

brib

ery

Cor

rupt

ion

as

chea

ting

Rel

atio

nsh

ip-

bas

edR

ule

-bas

ed

Hig

h p

ow

er

dis

tan

ceL

ow

po

wer

d

ista

nce

Sha

me-

base

dG

uilt-

base

d

Hig

h-co

ntex

tLo

w-c

onte

xt

Pol

ychr

onic

Mon

ochr

onic

Cor

rupt

ion

as

brib

ery

Cor

rupt

ion

as

chea

ting

Pow

er d

ista

nce

Power distance

is t

he

degre

e t

o w

hic

h less

pow

erf

ul people

accept

their s

ubord

inate

posi

tion.

Rela

tionsh

ip-b

ase

dco

untr

ies

tend t

o b

e high p

ow

er

dis

tance

.Behavi

or

is r

egula

ted b

y people

with a

uth

ority

.

Rule

s are

legitim

ate

d a

nd

enfo

rced b

y auth

ority

fig

ure

s.

Deng X

iaopin

gD

e f

act

o leader

of

Chin

a

1978-1

992

Rule

-base

d c

ountr

ies

tend t

o

be low

pow

er

dis

tance

.People

resp

ect

the rules

more

th

an s

uperiors

.

Exa

mple

: Sw

eden.

Karl X

VI

Gust

af

Sw

edis

h K

ing s

ince

1973

Hig

h p

ow

er

dis

tance

:Child

ren o

bey

and r

esp

ect

pare

nts

, te

ach

ers

.

Em

plo

yees

are

relu

ctant

to c

halle

nge t

he b

oss

or

dis

cuss

pro

ble

ms.

•G

uangzh

ou e

xecu

tive

s

•Fili

pin

o m

aid

s

Hig

h p

ow

er

dis

tance

:G

ood b

oss

is authoritarian b

ut

takes care o

f su

bord

inate

s.

Make

s deci

sions

on a

ca

se-b

y-ca

se b

asi

s.

Poss

ibly

larg

e d

iffe

rence

s in

sa

lary

/ski

lls.

Dalit

(unto

uch

able

)In

dia

Low

pow

er

dis

tance

:Child

ren a

re a

llow

ed t

o c

ontr

adic

t th

eir p

are

nts

.

Tw

o-w

ay

dis

cuss

ion in c

lass

room

.

Dis

ciplin

e m

ay

be a

pro

ble

m;

pare

nts

sid

e

with c

hild

rath

er

than

teach

er.

No c

orp

ora

l punis

hm

ent.

Low

pow

er

dis

tance

:Consu

ltative

managem

ent.

Em

plo

yees

bring c

once

rns

and g

rieva

nce

s to

the b

oss

.

Good b

oss

inspires w

ork

ers

and t

reats

then equally.

Go b

y th

e r

ule

s ra

ther

than c

ase

by

case

.

Labor

unio

ns.

Sm

alle

r sa

lary

diffe

rence

s;

work

ers

may

rese

nt

exe

cutive

perk

s.

•Sca

ndin

avi

an v

s. U

.S.

off

ices.

•Pow

er

dis

tance

hig

her

in

U.S

. busi

ness

Solid

arity

logo,

Pola

nd

Rel

atio

nsh

ip-

bas

edR

ule

-bas

ed

Hig

h po

wer

di

stan

ceLo

w p

ower

dis

tanc

e

Sh

ame-

bas

edG

uilt

-bas

ed

Hig

h-co

ntex

tLo

w-c

onte

xt

Pol

ychr

onic

Mon

ochr

onic

Cor

rupt

ion

as

brib

ery

Cor

rupt

ion

as

chea

ting

Sham

e an

d gu

ilt

Shame

and guilt

are

mech

anis

ms

for

enfo

rcin

g

behavi

or

norm

s.

Relationship-based

culture

s enfo

rce b

ehavi

or

norm

s by shame.

Loss

of

face

.

Hum

iliation.

Punis

hm

ent

on t

he s

pot.

No g

uilt

.

•Shohei N

aza

wa a

nd Y

am

aic

hi Secu

rities

•JA

L Flig

ht

123 (

1985),

Yuso

moto

Taka

gi

apolo

giz

ed &

com

pensa

ted v

ictim

s’fa

mili

es.

Boein

g a

ppare

ntly

at

fault.

•Aki

o T

oyo

da in C

ongre

ssio

nal te

stim

ony.

Key

poin

t fo

r sh

am

e-b

ase

d c

ulture

s:People

exp

ect

direct and constant supervision

.

•D

epart

ment

store

cle

rk.

•G

uangzh

ou o

ffic

e.

Failu

re t

o s

uperv

ise gives permission t

o b

reak

the “

rule

s.”

•Exa

m c

heating.

•Com

pany

rule

s.

Asi

an c

ountr

ies

Manage face c

orr

ect

ly.

•D

on’t c

ause

em

plo

yees

to lose

face

by

public

em

barr

ass

ment.

•U

nle

ss t

hey

have

already

lost

face

by

inco

mpete

nce

or

malfeasa

nce

.

Mid

dle

East

ern

countr

ies

Be a

uth

orita

rian b

ut just.

•Li

sten t

o e

mplo

yee p

etitions

and t

ake

them

seriousl

y.

Latin A

merica

n c

ountr

ies

Resp

ect

honor.

•Ara

bic

origin

s of

mac

his

mo.

Guilt

is m

ore

im

port

ant

in

rule-based

culture

s.G

uilt

enco

ura

ges

obedie

nce

to

rule

s w

ithout

superv

isio

n.

But

it m

ay

be a

poor

motiva

tor

and c

arr

y hig

h p

sych

olo

gic

al

cost

.

•Ein

gute

s G

ewis

sen ist

an

sanft

es R

uhek

isse

n.

Guilt

is

rein

forc

ed b

y fe

ar

of

punis

hm

ent.

Rel

atio

nsh

ip-

bas

edR

ule

-bas

ed

Hig

h po

wer

di

stan

ceLo

w p

ower

dis

tanc

e

Sha

me-

base

dG

uilt-

base

d

Hig

h-c

on

text

Lo

w-c

on

text

Pol

ychr

onic

Mon

ochr

onic

Cor

rupt

ion

as

brib

ery

Cor

rupt

ion

as

chea

ting

Con

text

In low-context cultures,

info

rmation a

nd b

ehavi

or

norm

s are

spelle

d o

ut.

Typ

ical of

rule

-base

d c

ulture

s.

The r

ule

s are

spelle

d o

ut.

In high-context cultures,

these

are

im

plic

it in t

he

cultura

l co

nte

xt.

Norm

s are

tra

nsm

itte

d b

y th

e p

eople

aro

und y

ou.

Part

icula

rly

auth

ority

fig

ure

s.

In low-context

culture

s,

There

any

many signs,

tim

eta

ble

s, m

aps.

Contracts

are

writt

en,

long,

and d

eta

iled.

•Fix

ed o

nce

sig

ned.

•D

ispute

s re

solv

ed b

y la

wsu

its.

People

exp

ect

the r

ule

s to

be

in w

riting.

•Com

pany

polic

y, e

.g.

vaca

tion

People

pay attention to

written rules.

•Exa

mple

: re

stro

om

sig

n.

In high-context

culture

s,

People

already

know

what

to d

o.

Contracts

are

vague,

verb

al, o

r nonexi

stent.

•Exc

ept

in “

low

unce

rtain

ty t

ole

rance

” cu

lture

s, e

.g.

Latin

Am

erica

.

•Agre

em

ents

evo

lve w

ith t

he s

ituation.

•Le

gal sy

stem

weak.

•D

ispute

s re

solv

ed b

y negotiation.

People

don’t pay attention to

written rules.

•Exp

ect

pers

onal co

rrect

ion, e.g

.no s

moki

ng

•But

good f

or

hig

h-t

ech

info

rmation

transf

er.

Rel

atio

nsh

ip-

bas

edR

ule

-bas

ed

Hig

h po

wer

di

stan

ceLo

w p

ower

dis

tanc

e

Sha

me-

base

dG

uilt-

base

d

Hig

h-co

ntex

tLo

w-c

onte

xt

Po

lych

ron

icM

on

och

ron

ic

Cor

rupt

ion

as

brib

ery

Cor

rupt

ion

as

chea

ting

Tim

e co

nsci

ousn

ess

Monochronic c

ulture

sPeople

do o

ne t

hin

g a

t a t

ime.

Deadlin

es,

sch

edule

s, q

ueues

import

ant.

Polychronic c

ulture

sO

K t

o d

o s

eve

ral th

ings

at

once

.

Monoch

ronic

culture

structures and organizes

tim

e Sense

of

contr

ol, s

ecu

rity

.

Ironic

ally

, deals

with s

tress

.

Tim

e p

art

itio

ned into

intervals

Each

devo

ted t

o o

ne t

ask

.

Appoin

tments

and p

unct

ualit

y im

port

ant.

Ord

erly

queues.

Monoch

ronic

tim

e is

a measurable substance

Can b

e s

pent,

save

d,

wast

ed.

Tim

e is

money.

Deadlin

es

import

ant.

A h

andic

ap in c

ross

-cultura

l negotiation.

Arr

angem

ents

made in a

dva

nce

Tra

vel arr

angem

ents

, e.g

. in

Sca

ndin

avi

a

Deadlin

es

People

get

nerv

ous,

speed u

p a

s deadlin

e a

ppro

ach

es.

Poly

chro

nic

tim

e is elastic.

Punct

ualit

y unim

port

ant.

Import

ant

people

keep o

thers

waitin

g,

not

vice

-vers

a.

OK t

o d

eal w

ith s

eve

ral people

at

once

Your

host

may

talk

to o

thers

, ta

ke

phone c

alls

, etc

.

Cle

rk w

ill s

erv

e s

eve

ral at

once

.

Queue m

ay

be a

mob.

Act

ivity

Act

ivity makes t

imes

rath

er

than f

illin

g it.

Idle

ness

stops t

ime.

Not

a s

ign o

f la

ziness

.

Arr

angem

ents

made a

t la

st m

inute

Tra

vel arr

angem

ents

, e.g

. In

dia

Deadlin

es

Not

incl

ined t

o s

peed u

p a

s deadlin

e a

ppro

ach

es.

Rela

xed a

bout

tight

connect

ions,

etc

.

Stre

ss m

anag

emen

t

Rule

-base

d/m

onoch

ronic

culture

sPeople

belie

ve t

hey

have

contr

ol

ove

r th

eir liv

es.

When t

he g

oin

g g

ets

tough,

the

tough g

et

goin

g.

Rely

on t

ech

nolo

gic

al fix.

Contr

ol lif

e b

y co

ntr

olli

ng t

he

envi

ronm

ent

(engin

eering).

Rela

tionsh

ip-b

ase

d/p

oly

chro

nic

cu

lture

sLi

fe a

re g

ove

rned b

y outs

ide

forc

es.

When t

he g

oin

g g

ets

tough,

rely

on e

ach

oth

er,

hig

her

pow

er.

In s

om

e c

ulture

s, c

ontr

ol lif

e b

y co

ntr

olli

ng o

ne’s

sta

te o

f m

ind.

Rel

atio

nsh

ip-

bas

edR

ule

-bas

ed

Hig

h po

wer

di

stan

ceLo

w p

ower

dis

tanc

e

Sha

me-

base

dG

uilt-

base

d

Hig

h-co

ntex

tLo

w-c

onte

xt

Pol

ychr

onic

Mon

ochr

onic

Co

rru

pti

on

as

bri

ber

yC

orr

up

tio

n a

s ch

eati

ng

Cor

rupt

ion

Corruption

is b

ehavi

or

that

underm

ines

a c

ultura

l sy

stem

.

So c

orr

upting b

ehavi

or

is

different

acr

oss

culture

s.

In r

ela

tionsh

ip-b

ase

d c

ulture

s, bribery is

com

mon.

Als

o k

ickb

ack

s, f

aci

litating p

aym

ents

.

Short

cut

to r

ela

tionsh

ip b

uild

ing.

Sys

tem

is slow b

ut stable

.

•e.g

., C

hin

ese

eco

nom

y

•G

uān

xì.

In r

ule

-base

d c

ulture

s, cheating is

com

mon.

Inco

me t

ax

eva

sion,

busi

ness

sca

ndals

, pla

gia

rism

.

Rela

tive

ly little s

uperv

isio

n.

Sys

tem

is efficient

but unstable

.

•G

lobal financi

al fr

eeze

.

Eth

ical norm

s –

and c

ulture

s –

stem

fro

m d

iffe

rent

conce

ptions

of who we are

.R

ule

-bas

ed:

auto

nom

ous,

rational individuals

•W

e a

re e

qual &

so m

ust

resp

ect

rule

s ra

ther

than p

eople

.

•H

ence

rule

-base

d,

focu

sed o

n r

ationalit

y.

•Eth

ics

base

d o

n equality, fairness.

Rel

atio

nsh

ip-b

ased

: p

art

of

a larger unit

.

•Ext

ended f

am

ily,

com

munity,

eth

nic

gro

up.

•M

ust

resp

ect

people

with a

uth

ority

.

•Eth

ics

base

d o

n care

.