Summary
Intercultural Competence in Business (ICB) Adler book summary
- Course
- Institution
The document is a summary of the book in the course 'Intercultural Competencies in Business (ICB) by Adler.
[Show more]
2 reviews
By: neecintha • 5 year ago
Not all chapters are in there, 5 pieces or so
By: GerbenBouw • 7 year ago
Seller
Follow
Chrissi92
Reviews received
Content preview
Adler – Part 1: The impact of culture on organizationsChapter 1: Culture and management
foreign competition is a key factor in a firm’s business success
future: big shift in economic strength and emerging economies will dwarf
industrial ones
Will today’s developed countries continue to prosper or will they lose out
to the forecast for developing countries?
Pessimists
1. jobs shift to cheaper, educated workers in developing countries due to
access to advanced technology
2. Increasing unemployment in rich countries due to free trade with
developing countries
3. Massive migration of firms to countries with high skills and low wages
4. Developing countries: “villains, stealing capital and jobs, destroy wealth
of rich countries”
Possible to have high productivity, advanced technology and low wages at
the same time
Optimists
1. Advanced economies benefit growing developing countries (e.g. India’s
middle class)
2. New consumers there increase demand for exports from advanced
economies
3. Both benefit from increased competition
4. In both increased foreign direct investments
Era of global economic activity including worldwide production and
distribution, joint ventures, mergers, etc. – business is global today
Therefore, corporations must develop global strategies
Going global: Phases of development
the impact culture differences on multinational and global firms depends
on the stage of development of the firm, industry and world economy
Global Corporate Evolution model reflects most common evolution for
North American firms
firms frequently skip phases to more rapidly to maximize their global
competitive advantage
DOMESTIC PHASE
most firms initially operated from a domestic/ ethnocentric perspective
unique products and services offering exclusively to the domestic market
if so, they exported products without altering them for the foreign
consumption
products fit with an ethnocentric “one-best-way” approach
people, assumptions and strategies from the headquarters country
dominated management
firms regarded cross-cultural management and global human resources
systems as irrelevant
,MULTIDOMESTIC PHASE
domestic competition led to initial need to market and product abroad
companies use a market orientation and addressed each foreign market
differently
strategic assumption: products fit in “many good ways”
sensitivity to cultural differences became critical to implement effective
corporate strategy and in worldwide production:
managers had to learn culturally appropriate approaches to managing
people in each country in which the company operated
MULTINATIONAL PHASE
most firms entered this phase in the 1980s
demands for culturally sensitive management practices within each firm
importance of cultural differences and advantages gained by cultural
sensitivity in marketing due to price competition among almost identical
products of multinational companies
strategic assumption: product design and marketing are made in “one
least-cost way”
firms can compete through the price rather than through cultural
differences
> price competition reduces the influence of cultural difference
GLOBAL (or transnational) PHASE
top quality, least possible-cost products are the standard
advantage through strategic thinking, mass customization, outlearning
one’s competitors
Companies tailor products, services and marketing to discrete market
niches
Culture becomes a critical competitive factor
Global firms need to understand their potential clients’ needs, no matter
where they live
Companies use a culturally responsive design orientation
Strategic assumption: products fit in “many good ways”
Cross-cultural management
Describes organizational behavior within countries and cultures
Compares organizational behavior across countries and cultures
It seeks to understand and improve the interaction of co-workers,
managers, clients, alliance partners, etc. from countries and cultures
around the world
Single-culture management is now only a limited subset of global/cross-
cultural management
PAROCHIALISM (Engstirnigkeit)
= viewing the world solely through one’s own eyes and perspective
, A person with this perspective neither recognizes other people’s different
ways of living and working nor appreciate that such differences create
opportunities or consequences
People in all cultures are, to a certain extent, parochial
Many Americans ignored to think and act globally; tendency towards
parochialism due to their history
Large domestic market, English as business language, dominance in
technology
Most management professors and researchers are U.S. educated
“Copernican revolution” is needed > US no longer economic centrum
The intense global competition renders parochialism self-defeating
No nation canclaim to be alone in the world (parochialism) superior to
others ethnocentrism)
GLOBAL VS DOMESTIC ORGANIZATIONS
Two fundamental differences:
(1) Geographic dispersion (Streuung):
- spread of global organizations’ operations over vast distances
worldwide
- It confronts organizations with political risk, fluctuations in exchange
rates, transportation and communication costs due to great distance
and national borders
(2) Multiculturalism
- Means that many people from many countries and cultures interact
regularly
- Domestic firms can be multicultural if their employees come from more
than one culture
- Increases complexity by more perspectives, approaches and methods
within global firms
To successfully manage both dimensions managers must develop a global
mindset
What is culture?
Generally accepted definition by Kroeber and Kluckhohn:
= culture consists of pattern, of and for behavior acquired and transmitted
by symbols; the essential core consists of traditional (historically derived
and selected) ideas and especially their attached values; culture systems
may be considered as products of action or as element of future action
Culture is therefore something
- shared by (almost) all members of a given social group
- older members of a group pass on to younger members
- that shapes behavior (e.g. morals, laws, customs) or one’s perception of
the world
In general, we see people as being from different cultures if their ways of
life as a group differ significantly
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller Chrissi92. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $4.82. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
52510 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now