CULTURE : COMMUNICATION

Communication

•         Communicating across cultural boundaries, whether verbally or non-verbal, is a particularly important skill for international managers.

Non-verbal Communication

•         Nonverbal communication includes facial expressions, hand gestures, intonation, eye contact,body positioning, and body posture.

•         Because of cultural differences, nonverbal forms of communication often can lead to misunderstandings.

Example

•         For example, in the United States, people discussing business at a party typically stand 20 inches from each other. In Saudi Arabia, the normal conversational distance is 9 to 10 inches. A U.S. businessperson conversing with a Saudi counterpart at a party will respond to the Saudi’s polite attempts to move in closer by politely moving back. Each is acting politely within the context of his or her own culture—and insulting the other in the context of that person’s culture.

Gift-Giving and Hospitality

•         It's important means of communication in many business cultures.

•         Business gifts are opened in private so as not to cause the giver to lose face should the gift be too expensive or too cheap relative to the gift offered in return.