CULTURE AND MANAGEMENT

INTRODUCTION TO CULTURE.

One single concept of culture can not satisfy all those who speak about it. Various moments which try to constitute cultural reality help to explain the existence of many acceptations of the term culture. This as well renders possible and analogical understanding of the diversity of culture. This analogical understanding serves to clarify the ongoing dialogue among the various cultures.

More often than not a term culture takes on a descriptive connotation and the following is one such description of culture; that culture refers to the distinctive, collective, mental program of values and beliefs within each country, organization or profession. Such values may be in form of power distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity & femininity, individualism & collectivism etc.

Culture is a set of values, beliefs, rules and institutions held by a specific group of people. The major components of a culture include: values and attitudes, manners and customs, religion, aesthetics, language, social stratification, education and the general environment whether physical or material.

Culture, according to Geertz, is “a system of inherited conceptions expressed in symbolic forms by means of which men communicate, perpetuate, and develop their knowledge about and attitudes toward life.” The function of culture is to impose meaning on the world and make it understandable. Culture is the means by which people communicate, perpetuate and involve their knowledge about attitudes towards life.

It’s a fabric of meaning in terms of how human beings interpret their experiences and guide their actions.

THE ESSENCE OF CULTURE

Culture is beneath awareness in the sense that no one bothers to verbalize it yet it forms the roots and basis of our actions. Culture is man-made, confirmed by others, conventionalized and passed on to young people or new comers to learn.

It provides people with meaningful context in which to meet one another, think about themselves and the context in which they meet the outer world. Culture can be distinguished from one another by the differences in shared meanings and they expect an attribute in their environment.

LEVELS OF CULTURE

There are two levels of culture:

a)      Practical level

The practical aspects of culture bears on tangible reality that’s the activities and ways of conducting social life, ills and techniques of culture, community forms of apprenticeship and rites among other things.

b)      Symbolic level

This aspect of culture indicates all that which transmits meaning consciously or unconsciously and representations between members of a certain group, generation or society.

CULTURAL MANIFESTATION

Artefacts and products

Culture manifests itself in three different ways:

 

Normal & values

Assuption

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

a)      The outer layer

This comprises of artifacts and products. The explicit culture of a people is the observable reality of languages, food, buildings, monuments, agricultural practices, dressing and part of the people. These are symbols of deeper issues for a group of people. In business and management prejudices and biases begin on such symbolic and observable levels of culture.

b)      The middle layer

This carries norms and values. Norms are the mutual sense a group has on what is right and what’s wrong. Norms may develop on a formal level as written laws and regulations or on an informal level as the social controls of the society. Values are the shared ideals of a group of people which determine the definition of what’s good and what’s bad.

c)      The inner layer

This basically rotates around the individual and it encompasses assumptions about human existence. The most basic value of a people is to strife  for survival. The problems of daily life are solved in such obvious ways that their solutions tend to disappear from our consciousness. As the solutions disappear from human awareness they become part of our absolute assumptions of life. One simply assumes that a group of people or someone needs something or behave the way they do because of certain reasons which can’t be easily appreciated by other around them.

CULTURAL CATEGORIES

There are basically three categories of culture with a great impact of business operations and management.

1)      National/ Regional culture and subcultures

A national culture is a central organizing principle of a peoples understanding of work, approach and ways in which they expect to be treated. National cultures are often reflected in the host countries’ political, social, economic, technological and natural factors. Nations support and promote the concept of a national culture by building museums and monuments to preserve the legacies of important events and people.

A subculture is a group of people who share a unique way of life within a larger and dominant culture. It could differ from the larger culture in language, race, lifestyle, values, among other things and can even extend beyond national borders.

Therefore it is difficult to operate in a country without conforming to the social-cultural issues of such a country and be mindful of the existing subcultures because nations intervene in business activities to help preserve their national culture. Decisions regarding product marketing must be able to consider various distinct national cultures and subcultures.

2)      Corporate/ Organizational culture

The way in which attitudes are expressed within a specific Organisation is described as organizational or corporate culture. It therefore refers to the corporate values, behaviors and aspirations which members of that particular organization uphold and work for.

The corporate organization of a firm respects its working environment and a management practice of such a firm must therefore yield predictable behaviors. Self-efficacy if it has to enforce national cultural values which is important for business and management, practices that require consistency with the existing environment, behaviors, expectations and routines must be put in place which will transcend the essence of work.

3)      Professional culture

This is the ethical orientation of a group of people within a particular firm involving what should be adhered to in terms of standards and behaviors which they must aspire to uphold and fight for.

COMPONENTS OF CULTURE

A people’s culture includes what they consider beautiful and tasteful, beliefs and habits and how they relate amongst themselves and their environment. There are several components of culture as discussed below.

       I.            Manners and customs

Manners are appropriate ways of behavior in a culture. A custom can be defined as repetition of the same act; way of acting common to many; ordinary manner; habitual practice; usage; method of doing or living. It is a habit or a way of behaving in certain circumstances. It’s important to understand manners and customs to avoid mistakes abroad. For example; although giving token gifts to businesses and government associates is customary, the proper type of these gifts vary from one culture to another. Cultures differ in their legal and ethical rules against giving and receiving gifts.

    II.            Social structure

Social structure embodies a culture’s fundamental organization .including groups and institutions, social positions and relationship and resource distribution. Social structures includes such aspects as:-

a)      Social group associations

A social group is a collection of two or more people who identify and interact with one another. Social groups contribute to identify and give a self-image such as a family and gender.

b)      Social status

Social stratifications is the process of ranking people into social layers according to family heritage, income and occupation.

c)      Social mobility

Social mobility is the ease with which individuals can move up or down a culture’s ladder is a system of is a system of social stratification in which people are born into  a social ranking with no opportunity for social mobility. A class system is a system of social stratification in which personal ability and actions decide social status and mobility highly class conscious offer less mobility and can experience more class conflict.

 III.            Aesthetics

Aesthetics is what a culture considers to be in ‘good taste’ in the arts. What sound or looks good in the eyes of people. The beauty. All this affect appropriate colors for advertising, product design and packaging and all other things pertaining work place. What is considered beautiful about a certain culture such as music, colors and symbols can be of great help in management and business.

 IV.            Communication

Every culture has a communication system to convey thoughts, feelings, knowledge and information. These could be through speech, actions and or writing. Understanding a culture both spoken and unspoken language may provide a leeway into why people think and behave in a certain manner. It is important to learn a cultures spoken and body language.

    V.            Environment

The physical environment and material surroundings of a culture heavily influences the development and speed of change of that cultural orientation. The physical environment which entails topography and climate has a series of impacts on culture.

Climate and weather pattern influence where humanity settles and gives direction of system distribution. Climate plays an integral part in the determination of the lifestyle of a people, habits of work as well as dressing.

On the other hand topography implies physical features that give meaning to the earth surface of a particular place. Therefore geographic locations that are separated by large landmarks such as mountains and vast deserts are less likely to influence each other’s cultural orientations.

Material culture such as the techno-knowhow and methods of production of goods and services sometimes used to measure technological advancement is an aspect of culture that firms should not ignore.

 VI.            Education

Education is crucial for passing on traditions, customs and values. Cultures educate young people through parenting, religious teachings, and schooling among other many modes. Families and other groups provide informal instructions about socialization and other customs.

Countries with somewhat excellent systems of basic education attract upper wage industries which take time to invest in research, development and capacity building to increase productivity.

VII.            Values and Attitudes

Values are ideals, beliefs and customs to which people are emotionally attached to. This affects a people’s work ethics, as well as the urge for material possessions and wealth. Some cultures value leisure more than hard work while others are the opposite. Examples of values could be responsibility, honesty, freedom, faithfulness etc.

Attitudes on other hand are positive and or negative evaluations, tendencies and feelings towards something. Attitudes are more flexible than values. Individuals harbor different attitudes towards time, work and even cultural change.

VIII.            Religion

Human values often derive from religious beliefs which sometimes take different views of work, savings and material wealth. These religious views more often than not influence the competitiveness of companies, the space of economic development and the need for adaptive strategies, techniques and methods. There are seven most common religions of the world that shape the culture of human beings include:-

a)      Judaism

Judaism was the first religion to believe in one God and it is more than 3000 years old. It claims close to 18 million followers worldwide. The orthodox Jews make up to of Israelis and in business they constitute an increasingly important economic segment. Therefore businesses and companies hoping to operate in such countries must understand the important observances of the Jews such as the Sabbath which starts from Friday in the evening to Saturday in the evening, the Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah), the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), the Passover and the victory over the Syrians (Hanukkah).

Business must be aware if these holidays since they have adverse implications on the work schedules which might need adjustments during such holidays. Another important consideration is the foods that are banned among the strict observant Jews such as pork.

b)      Christianity

Christianity originated from Palestine some 2000 years ago among the Jewish people who believed that Jesus of Nazareth was the prophesized Messiah. It is the world’s single largest religion with slightly more than 2billion followers today with more than 300 denominations within it most of whom are Roman Catholics, Protestants and the eastern orthodox.

These denominations have different philosophies and doctrines that shape their behavior towards human life and as such they affect how business is done within such cultures. It is therefore important for businesses to understand the different viewpoints of these denominations and the important observances within their denominational calendar so as to align their business practices with such.

c)      Islam

Islam originated in the city of Mecca, the holy city of Muslims, in Saudi Arabia around 600 A.D. it is the world’s second largest religion with about 1.3 billion adherents who submit to Allah. This religion affects the kind of goods and services acceptable to its adherents such as pork, alcohol and some business practices such as charging interest rates. A company like farmers choice would find it hard to sell their sausages in such cultures.

d)     Hinduism

Hinduism originated around 4000years ago in the present day India where 90% of its nearly 900 million followers live. It is considered a way of life rather than a religion and its caste system is an integral part of Hindu faith. Its followers believe in reincarnation which is the rebirth of the human soul after death.

Hindus do not eat beef because cows are considered sacred animals. They as well do not eat or willfully harm any living creature as they believe such creatures may be a reincarnated human soul. In such religious cultures companies such as McDonald’s replace beef products with either lamb.

e)      Buddhism

This religion started about 2600 years ago in India by a Hindu prince Siddhartha Gautama and has approximately 360 million followers most of whom are from Asian countries such as Tibet, China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam and Thailand.

It promotes a living centered on spiritual rather than worldly possessions. Its followers seek to escape from reincarnation (Nirvana) through charity, modesty, compassion for others, restraint from violence and general self-control.

f)       Confucianism

This religion was founded by an exiled politician and philosopher called Confucius nearly 2500 years ago in present day china. This religion is common in the cultures of Japan, South Korea and nations with large numbers of ethnic Chinese people including Singapore.

Business practices in say South Korea reflect the Confucian thought in its rigid organizational structure as well as reverence to the authority and for years adhererants of this religion despised traders because earning cash violated the beliefs of Confucianism. Therefore many Chinese traders moved and set up successful businesses in countries like Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore.

g)      Shinto

This religion implies “the way of the gods” is considered the native religion of the Japanese which teaches sincere and ethical behavior, loyalty and respect towards others as well as the enjoyment of life. To date Shinto has close to 3.5 million strict followers in Japan alone.

The beliefs of this religion are reflected at the workplace through lifetime employment and security of tenure and the traditional trust and loyalty extended between customers and businesses. Today Japanese have gained competitiveness in the world markets due to the Shinto beliefs that shape a loyal workforce characterized by low employee turnover and good labor management relations.

CULTURAL DIVERSITY

Each society possesses its own culture which is a modal of embodied symbols of various aspects such as dressing among other things. The diversity of culture should therefore be understood in the same way as the diversity of human society.

Cultural diversity is simply a manifestation of the limitations and the richness of various cultures. The natural relationship between cultures is one of necessity and mutual exclusion. The basis of cultural differences worldwide arises from the specific solutions different people or organizations choose for certain problems or similar problems.

There are three major cultural differences in relation to business which in turn possess universal dilemmas which mankind faces while doing business. All the three are shared by all mankind however their solutions aren’t similar. These differentiate the basis of work relationships, management structure as well as corporate structures among firms.

        i.            Those cultural differences which are based on our relationship with other people ( a dilemma of how man relates with other human beings)

These are categorized under five social values:-

a)      Universalism vs. particularism (rules vs. relationships). Some cultures emphasize rules rather than relationships when dealing with people while others may look at relationships rather than rules.

b)      Individualism vs. collectivism (individual thinking vs. group thinking). Some cultures are individualistic while others base on collectiveness.

c)      Neutralism vs. emotionalism especially in reference to the range of feelings expressed in different cultures.

d)     Specifics vs. diffusion in reference to the level of involvement.

e)      The achievement vs. ascriptive cultures

Note: These five social values shall be discussed at a later stage individually.

      ii.            Those cultural differences which are based on the passage of time ( a dilemma of how man relates with time)

The manner in which societies look at time differs. In some societies what someone has achieved in the past may not be so important. What may be of more importance is for the community to know what that person plans to do now and in future.

For some cultures time is perceived as something which moves in a straight line that is it is a sequence of events. In other cultures time is perceived as something that moves in circles i.e. the past, the present and the future all intertwined. In such societies, one may make better impression in presentation by referring to one’s past experiences and achievements.

    iii.            Those cultural differences which are based on the relationship with the environment ( a dilemma of how man relates with nature)

Some cultures look at their life experiences based on vices and virtues. Others look at the environment as something which must be feared or respected. Both these attitudes affect business and management practices within these particular societies in different ways. Most of the time, such attitudes affect their research and development.

CLASSIFYING CULTURES

People in different cultures respond differently in similar business situations and cultures have been classified in two ways based on their characteristics like social structure, values and attitudes.

       I.            Kluckhohn-Strodtbeck Framework

This framework compares cultures along six dimensions, asking the following questions

a.       Do people believe that their environment controls them, that they control the environment, or that they are part of the environment? For example the Japanese believe in a delicate balance between nature and people.

b.      Do people focus on past events, on the present events, or on the future implications of their actions? Whereas some cultures consider the past to shape both the present and the future, some cultures such as Japanese focus only on the future.

c.       Do people prefer to conduct their activities in public or in private?

d.      Do people desire accomplishments in life; do not care what happens in life or desire spiritual and contemplative life.

e.       Are people easily controlled and therefore cannot be trusted or they can be trusted and therefore left to act freely and take responsibility.

f.       Do people believe about themselves as individuals or do they believe that others in a group influence their welfare.

    II.            Hofstede Framework

This framework came up from a vigorous study of more than 110,000 individuals working in IBM subsidiaries. It was conducted by one Geert Hofstede, a Dutch psychologist upon which he developed four dimensions for examining cultures.

a.       Individualism vs. Collectivism which identifies the extent to which a culture emphasizes on the individual or the group.

b.      Power distance which identifies the degree to which a culture accepts social inequality among its people.

c.       Uncertainty avoidance which identifies the extent to which a culture avoids uncertainty and ambiguity.

d.      Achievement versus nurturing which identifies the extent to which a culture emphasizes personal achievement and material wealth versus relationships and quality of life. 

FIVE SOCIAL VALUES OF MAN’S RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHERS

       I.            Individualism vs. Collectivism cultures

Individualism is the prime orientation to the self. It is a culture in business concept developed through periods of intense innovation such as re-birth (renaissance). This rebirth was basically in Europe and the countries that were first to industrialize became most individualistic. Individualist cultures value hard work, entrepreneurial risk taking and freedom to focus on personal goals.

Collectivism in comparison is a prime orientation to the common goals and objectives of the group. This is typical of those societies where individuals are defined in terms of surrounding collective groups. Highly collectivist societies include most Asian cultures, almost all Arab cultures, almost all African cultures and almost all Latin-American cultures.

Collectivist cultures feel a strong association to groups including family and work units. The main goal is to group maintain harmony and work towards collective rather than personal goals.

Individualism or collectivism follows the protestant-catholic religious divide. Catholics have always approached God as a community of the faithful while the Protestants on the contrary seek to approach God as individuals seeking justification through their works.

 Collectivism and individualism may be seen as being complementary and not typically opposing preferences. They can be easily reconciled by an integrative process such that a collectivist group can discuss a problem and get a solution through consensus whereas an individualistic one may employ a voting system to solve outstanding challenges within a group. Such a system ensures respect for of the individual opinions and the opinions of the group.

Individualism is often regarded as the modernizing driver of the society’s interests while collectivism on the other hand is associated with additional societies and a failed experience of communism.

In most western European countries, it is taken for granted that individual genius operate successful businesses and therefore they deserve very high credit. However most collectivists question this line of thought posing the question that ‘how much credit is due to an individual and how much is due to the pattern of events that contribute to this success?’ The issue then is whether we are self-made or we are products of families, friends and by extension our communities who contribute to our formation.

In collectivist societies or cultures, unaccompanied delegates to meetings or business deals are assumed to lack status and such delegates are looked at as officials of low ranks and are likely to receive look worm attention. On the contrary large delegations are construed to be irrelevant and resource wasting by individualistic societies and cultures.

Among the collectivist cultures, decision making is time consuming because they always engage in exhaustive discussions until everyone is heard and won over. Within these cultures everyone must own out the decision reached and this leads to a more lasting stable policing within an organization. For individualistic cultures, individual opinion is highly respected. They will always call for a vote on any contagious issues. The majority usually carries the day and the minority always disregards the majorities’ decisions. Here decisions made are more unstable.

 

 

Effects of collectivism & individualism on organizational culture

Individualistic cultures

Within individualistic cultures, organizations are founded to serve individual interests. Relationships within these organizations are based on legal contracts which can be terminated at any given time. Overall business planning is often done on short-term basis. Productivity is usually high and remuneration is equally high basing on individual qualification and inputs. Job security is not guaranteed.

Collectivist cultures

Within collectivist cultures, an organization is looked at as a means for an individual to benefit from as part of the larger group. Such organizations take care of their employees’ needs such as housing, medical, schooling etc. Business planning is often long-term and job security is guaranteed however remuneration is quite low.

Summary

Individualists

ü  Frequent use of ‘I’ form in discussions of business deals.

ü  Spot or instant decision making.

ü  Achievement is on individual basis and takes personal responsibility.

ü  Prefer quick decision on any matter.

ü  A negotiator may commit his organization.

ü  A negotiator is trusted and respected by the organization and may not have aides.

Collectivists

ü  Frequent use of ‘WE’ form in discussions of business deals.

ü  Referral of decisions to company headquarters.

ü  Achievement within a group and take group responsibility.

ü  Are willing to be patient and take time to consult.

ü  A negotiator may only agree tentatively on an issue.

ü  A negotiator is surrounded by aides to indicate status and respect.

    II.            Universalists vs. particularism cultures

Universalists are rule-based cultures whilst particularists are relationship-based cultures. Behavior within rule-based cultures tends to be abstract. There is perceived equality for everyone in the sense that all people falling under a certain jurisdiction should be treated equally. Rule-based cultures tend to resist exceptions to the rulers which exceptions may water down or weaken that particular law or rule.

According to Universalists, there is a fear that once exceptions are encouraged to the rule, the results may be the collapse of the system. Societies which emphasize rules and regulations are predominantly protestantic cultures.

Particularists focus on the exceptional nature of circumstances no matter what the rule spells out. Under these cultures, it is one’s duty and at time obligation to accord, sustain, protect and support a person known to him despite the rules governing that particular situation.

The overwhelming principle is the relationship that exists between these two people. One therefore has a duty to work in the other person’s interest and favour or disfavor depending on the circumstances. Countries where rules are less the drivers of social activities such as particularists societies are predominantly in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Universalists often accuse Particularists of bias when it comes to business and management. They think that Particularists often deal with people they know or rather deal with relatives. On the other hand, Particularists accuse Universalists of inhuman and irrational attitudes. They think that because of their rigidity, they cannot extend assistance to those who may be in need of their assistance.

Countries with strong Universalist cultures often use courts of law to mediate disputes and conflicts whereas those with strong parrticularist cultures resort to kitchen negotiations to settle business and civil disputes and conflicts.

Universalism vs. Particularism in International Business.

When companies and organizations go global, there is often an inevitable tendency to move towards the Universalist way of thinking and conducting business. Contracts serve to uphold an agreement on particular principles and qualify what the respective parties have pronounced to do and not to do. It also implies consent to an agreement and proves to impose to legal settlement if the two sides do not keep to the contract.

Particularists are however offended by too many penalty processes within a contract which to them implies that may be the other party has hidden agenda for not adhering to the contract. For Particularists, contracts act as rough guides or approximation to the agreement. They often draw vague contracts with an intention of avoiding tie-downs or being fixed and thus believe contracts are not definitive.

Among Universalist cultures, the head office tends to hold the key to global marketing, production and human resource management. It provides direction to all their subsidiaries and controls almost all policy issues used by the subsidiaries.

Among the Particularist cultures on the other hand the head office does not shape local policies of their subsidiaries and subsidiaries manage their activities with a high degree of autonomy.

Universalist cultures find problems to do business with Particularist cultures because Universalists do not value the importance of relationships in business and management. Instead they view contracts as being definitive, binding and non-negotiable. To them, nothing or no circumstance may alter any nature of a contract.

 III.            Affective vs. Neutral cultures

Decision making basing on reason or emotions depends on whether an individual or group of people is affective or emotional. Within cultural set ups which are basically neutral, feelings around individual members or groups are controlled or suppressed. Similarly joy and grief manifest mildly. Neutral dominant cultures are found in Asia, North and North-Western Europe. The neutral cultures:

·         Do not greatly reveal what they are thinking about neither do they express their feelings.

·         The emotions are often dunned up though though there may be moments of violent explosion.

·         Lack of emotional display does not mean that they are interested or disinterested in the on-going activity; they simply do not want to show their stand.

Cultures where feelings are amplified i.e. affective cultures, joy and grief manifest loudly and are excitable people. Affective cultures are basically from most of Africa, Southern Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. The affective cultures:

·         Over project their feelings verbally and emotionally.

·         Emotions flow easily, effusively, vehemently and without any indiction or roadblock.

·         Their enthusiasm, readiness to agree or disagree does not mean that they are actually convinced about a project or activity.

Degree of Affectivism in Different Cultures.

To establish the degree of Affectivism in different cultures the following questions must be answered.

Q1. How do people react to disagreements?

Q2. How do people react to setbacks?

Q3. How do people react to failure or success?

The amount of visible emoting constitutes the major differences between various cultures. There is a tendency for the emotionally neutral cultures to dismiss anger, delight or stress at their work places. According to them, overreaction is treated as being unprofessional. Humour, understatements or irony are acceptable in most Western European countries but these may however seem offensive in many Arab and Asian countries.

Intercultural communication is another factor that indicates the degree of Affectivism. Communication for a fact makes place most of our feelings. How we communicate and when we communicate is what differentiates us from one another. Communication is essentially the exchange of meaningful information. This may be inform of words, ideas or emotions.

Communication is only possible between people who to some extent share a common system of meaning. There are various problems encountered when communicating across cultural boundaries. These often arise from the differences which exist between the affective and neutral cultures.

The most common form of communication is verbal/written communication (the spoken or written word). Communicating across cultures is always a problem because different words may mean different things in different situations. Western societies have a predominantly verbal culture. They principally communicate through conversations, dialogue or though written forms of communication. Therefore Western cultures become unease and nervous once their correspondences stop talking.

The Japanese and most South Asian cultures often take long silences within moments of verbal conversations. There is communication overlaps, interjections and interruptions. During important business meetings, negotiations and discussions, one has to be conscious of the above communication positions and extremes.

Non-verbal communication on the other hand forms 75% of all forms of communication in most cultures. In the Western cultures for example, eye contact is crucial to confirm interest in something.

In multi-cultural situations, the distance kept between people matters. This is indicative of the difference between Affective and Neutral cultures.

  IV.            Specific vs. Diffuse cultures

These address private and official roles of managers and their level of involvement. They examine hoe the roles of managers affect business relationships. A contention is that the level of involvement of these people depends on whether the culture is they work in is predominantly specific or diffuse.

Employer-employee relationships manifest through two levels i.e. specific or diffuse. Within specific cultures, a boss or manager segregates the task relationship which he has with that of his subordinates. He endeavors to insulate this relationship from his other dealings with his subordinates.

When outside the official premises, his authority would not diffuse into a relationship of his subordinates. Each situation of their interaction is considered different from the other.

In diffuse cultures, the employer-employee relationship manifest at several levels. There exists no segregation between the tasks and relationships of the boss with his subordinates. Every life space within the diffuse culture and every level of personality tend to permeate all others.

Added to all time authority, the opinion of the boss is always better than that of the subordinates. Such bosses expect respect and submission from their subordinates everywhere all the time.

Characteristics of Specific Oriented Cultures

ü  A boss has got sharp defined roles.

ü  A boss’ position and authority are limited to space and time.

ü  Titles of authority are limited to specific places.

ü  Specific oriented managers have got little private life.

ü  They are usually very open with their private lives.

ü  Open criticism is acceptable between the boss and subordinates.

ü  Members subscribe to individual responsibility, accept individual gain and loss individual honor or take offence individually.

Characteristics of the Diffuse Oriented Cultures

ü  A boss’ standing and orientation is not limited to space and time.

ü  Business relationships are more stable.

ü  Members tend to be reserved with their private lives.

ü  There is guarded criticism for fear of consequences.

ü  There is collective responsibility, achievement rewarding and taking of offence.

The Degree of Involvement

This may be high or low in its context. Western countries are specific and low context societies. Most of them opt for an MBO (management by objectives) or PFP (pay for performance) as devices to motivate their employees. For instance, supervisor or boss A may agree with subordinate or employee B that B will work towards certain agreed objectives. Evaluation of B’s work will be taken as a benchmark of these set objectives and if achieved, a good relationship will exist between A and B.

These systems do not appeal to the diffuse high context cultures. This is because they approach issues from the opposite direction. For the diffuse cultures, it is the good relationship that exists between A & B which may increase or reduce productivity and output.

Objectives or specifics may be out of date or outdated by the time evaluation comes around. The employee may not have performed as promised but may have however done something more valuable in altered circumstances or situations. Only strong and long lasting relationship may handle our expected changes of nature.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The specific-diffuse circle

Quality of products

 

 

                                                                                                                  Specific low cortex culture

 

 

 

Can be developed because it is ultimately the guarantee for quality products

Needs to be developed so that eventually

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                    

                       Diffuse high context culture

The quality of the relationship

 

 

 

 

 

Pay for performance is in particular not very popular with diffuse cultures because it arbitrarily undermines good relationships. To claim most or all of the rewards to oneself denies the importance of relationships including feelings of affection and respect for supervisors and colleagues or peers with whom one has diffuse contact.

Asian corporate cultures will therefore always promote diffuse above specific ideals and Western corporate cultures on the contrary promote specific above diffuse ideals.

Summary table:

SPECIFIC CULTURES	DIFFUSE CULTURES
Ø  Straight forward, transparent and definitive	Ø  Negotiation is time consuming, tactful and their discussions are often ambiguous.
Ø  Paramount contractual agreement and dependable	Ø  Attach much value on personal relationships and confidence building.
Ø  Enjoy higher turnover and productivity due to higher efficiency	Ø  Experience lower turnovers due to unlimited loyalties.
Ø  Motivation is personal gain	Ø  Motivation is good relationships.

 

     V.            Achievement vs. Ascriptive/ Nurturing cultures

Some societies accord status to people on the basis of their achievement. This is referred to as achieved status. Achieved status refers to status given to someone basing on ones degree of preference in trade, academics, profession or office. This status is achieved as a result of working for it.

Most achievement oriented cultures deem achievement as being key to economic, business and management success. According to them, working for achievement in any area in life is the key to social and economic modernization of what works best for those nations and proceed to confer status only those who apply it in business and management can establish successful economies.

They do not believe that respect for someone should depend on age, family background or connections. Instead they believe that someone must work for this status and be able to state or show what he has achieved in order to deserve such status.

They also believe that status is worked for individually and achieved individually.

Ascribed status refers to a social status assigned at birth or assumed involuntarily later in life. It is a position based on attributes over which the individual has little control, such as sex, race, ethnicity, lineage, disability, or family reputation, rather than on accomplishment or merit.

The beneficiary of such status doesn’t have to sweat for it by way of investing in it. Within ascriptive cultures is status accorded to someone basing on the following:

        i.            Age – the older the person the better and this is very paramount to such cultures in that the older person is given much respect and is deemed to be full of wisdom than the youthful person.

      ii.            Gender – in these cultures masculinity is preferred to femininity and therefore men are deemed to be tougher and better managers than women.

    iii.            Social connections- having someone you know in higher positions may guarantee one for his status in these cultures.

Anglo-Saxons and most Europeans believe that ascribing status for reasons other than achievement is quite archaic and inappropriate to business and management.

According to this philosophy, societies which ascribe status are economically backward because the reasons they give for conferring status on someone do not facilitate commercial success.

Countries with a high score on ascription are notably Sub-Saharan states, Latin-Americans, Asia and the Middle East. For most European countries, ascription is looked at as a feature of countries which either developed late or which are still developing.

Within ascriptive cultures, managers are always emphatic about knowing all answers to problems. By being omniscience managers, they are ever determined to live up to their ascribed status which leads to higher productivity and performance.

Such managers are always everywhere all the time forcing discipline among their subordinates and personally directing organizational activities. They take key decisions on behalf of the organization and everyone within it. In their performance, intelligent anticipation is based on whether they ascribe importance on the core project which then fit the organization and its members.

These managers often promote joint ventures, strategies alliances and partnerships which result in good working relationship between the employers, employees and other organizations.

The role of titles

The use of and mention of titles on business card or formal introductions is always a problem for the achievement oriented cultures but a normal practice for the ascriptive cultures. In most ascriptive cultures, formal titles which are received for formal education or appointment diffuse through various contexts in order to elevate ones status.

Within diffuse cultures it is always important to tie in your status with your organization. In most Western European countries, such titles like Doctor, Professor, Engineer etc. imply someone being academic and only fit for consultancy and not as business partners. Therefore it is advised that one should carry one or two business cards for these two situations.

Relationships with other organizations

In ascriptive cultures, it is only the head of the organization or his immediate deputy who may have personal discretion to commit the organization without engaging first in consultation. However within achievement cultures the representative may commit the organization to any contract made. Such an individual enjoys delegated authority to use personal judgment and engagement.

Ordering of status

Within ascriptive cultures, the supervisor is by designation responsible for increased performance and productivity within his area of jurisdiction. If therefore rewards are to be offered, they must be done proportionately to ones ascribed status beginning with the highest to the lowest.

Achievement oriented organizations base seniority on how much more one has achieved for the organization. One’s authority therefore and respect is justified by one’s skills and knowledge.

These two cultural extremes however are never exclusive of each other. Those organizations or communities which begin with ascribing eventually ascribe future success or achievement. While those communities which emphasize achievement end up ascribing importance and priority to the persons and projects which may have been successful.

All societies ascribe and all achieve. It is the question of where the circle begins. Countries which score highly on ascription may be Turkey, Argentina, Uruguay, Egypt, Cuba, Hungary, Russia, China, Brazil, Japan and most of Africa. Countries which score highly on achievement include Norway, Canada, Ireland, Denmark, UK, Sweden, Australia, USA, German, Finland and Netherlands (Holland).

CORPORATE CULTURE

Cultural preferences influence the modals people give to organizations and the meaning they attribute to them. An organization is subjective construct where by its employees give meaning to their environment basing on their own particular cultural programming. The organization may be deemed to act as a family or an impersonal system designed simply to achieve certain targets. Organizational culture is shaped by markets, technologies, individual preferences as well as group preferences.

There are three aspects important in determining corporate culture:

o   The general relationships between the employees and the organization.

o   The vertical system of authority defining superior and subordinates.

o   The general views of employees about the organization’s destiny, purpose and goals.

There are four major types of corporate cultures:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Project – oriented culture

Fulfilment B oriented culture

                                                            Egalitarian      

 

 

 

 

INCUBATOR

Personal

Family

Eiffel tower

Tasks

GUIDED MISSILE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Power omened culture                                                                        Rose omened culture 

 

 

Hierarchical

 

 

 

 

 

 

       I.            The Family Corporate Culture

This is a power oriented corporate culture in which the leader is regarded as a caring father who knows better than his subordinates what should be done and what is good for everyone around the organization. It is personal, rational and hierarchical. The day to day relationship is characterized by love between people of different ranks while indulgence is extended to the junior members of the organization and respect is reciprocated behind the elders.

The relationship in cooperation is long term and devoted forming part of the reasons for performing well as well as to please one’s superior. A leader of this style of culture weaves the pattern, sets the tone, modals the appropriate posture for the corporation and expects subordinates to behave as expected.

The power oriented family culture exercise power through its members acting in one accord. Such cultures exclude strangers without necessarily wishing to do so. They often communicate in codes which only members can understand.

Relationships in family cultural corporations tend to be like diffuse. The general happiness and welfare of these employees is regarded as a concern of the whole organization. Power within such organizations is political in the sense that it is broadly contained by authority rather than originating from the roles played by employees or from past performances.

In order for such organizations to perform well, preliquisite knowledge and skills must be brought to the power centre by everyone. The boss must therefore be informed about each and everything running in the company or organization.

The authority within this family modal is unchallengeable as it is not seen to depend on the individual tasks performed but on the status ascribed to someone. Family corporate cultures tend to be stronger where universalism or rule of law is weakest. They often experience difficulties with group organizations such as trade unions or any other workers’ organizations.

When the role of an employee is unrelated to his qualification and or capacity creating a conflict of interest, a family modal appreciates it as a form of reinforcing its operational effectiveness. The reason is that the person connected to your family at work has more reason not to cheat you.

Examples where family corporate cultures predominantly manifest include Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, Southern Europe and most of Asia. Examples where family oriented cultures least manifest are Western Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand.

The family corporate culture is more interested in intuitive rather than rational knowledge. They are more concerned with dev0elopment of individuals rather than with their deployment and utilization and thus one may not be transferred to another post for the sake of realizing efficiency as long as he lives and survives where he is deployed.

Personal knowledge is sometimes rated above empirical knowledge about a task or an office. Conversations are preferred to questionnaires and insights are preferred to objective data. Who is doing something is more important than what is being done. For example, when the Japanese are invited to a function of meeting, they would wish to know who other guests are to assess whether they can fit in the activities or not.

Training, mentoring, coaching and apprenticeship are deemed very important sources of personal education and growth. For instance a PhD holder in Medicine may learn on job to be an excellent marketing manager so long as he is a family member. Family style cultures usually respond quickly to changing business and management environment which affect their power. They often have very sharp political antennae.

Members of family corporate cultures are often motivated by more of praise and appreciation other than monetary rewards such as pay for performance. They detest any form of motivation that may threaten their family bond. Resolution of conflicts often depends on the leader’s skills and criticism is seldom voiced publicly or openly.

The family corporate modal gives low priority to efficiency that is doing things right but high priority to effectiveness that is doing the right things.

    II.            The Eiffel Tower Corporate Culture

This is a culture that connotes that one supervisor can oversee the completion of several tasks at the same time.

The Eiffel Tower is found in central Paris in France and was constructed in 1896. It is broad, robust and very stable at the bottom and steep, symmetrical and narrow at the top. What is important in this case is the structure and not the function of the tower.

Therefore the hierarchy of this kind of corporate culture differs from that of family culture as within the Eiffel Tower corporate culture, one obeys only the boss because it is his duty to give one instructions.

The boss is incidentally a person who plays a certain management role at a particular point in time whose absence from the organization doesn’t affect the system from continuing. Authority stems from occupancy of the office at a particular point in time.

The relationships between employees are limited and specific to the office they hold. Bureaucracy within this modal is depersonalized and rational. They follow a legal system. Careers are backed by personal qualifications. Typical Eiffel Tower models are German and Australian organizations.

In the Eiffel tower corporate cultures learning means accumulating skills necessary to fit a role and or qualify for higher positions. Employees are conceived as similar to cash resources such that they can be planned, scheduled, deployed, reshuffled among other things.

Policy change is immensely complex and time consuming. Responsiveness to duty is a very important issue as it is an obligation felt within an employee rather than towards an individual.

Every role at every level of the hierarchy is clearly defined, described, rated for its difficulty and complexity before employment. This is then accompanied by a distinctive salary tag. Employees are usually precise and meticulous and conflicts between them are viewed as irrational offences against efficiency. Criticisms and complaints are channeled and dealt with basing on the laid down rules and fact finding procedures.

Almost everything the family corporate culture accepts, the Eiffel tower corporate culture rejects. According to the thinking of the Eiffel tower corporate cultures, personal relationships which characterize the family modal create warp judgments, favorism, obscure clear boundaries between roles of employees and obscure responsibilities of employees.

Subscribers of the Eiffel Tower modal argue that:

ü  An organization’s purpose should be logically separate from personal needs for power or affection.

ü  Corporate goals should be clearly spelt out.

ü  Rules and regulations governing an organization should be put in place in advance and should be applied without exceptions.

ü  Properly laid down procedures should be put in place and adhered to in conducting employee evaluation and promotion.

Subscribers of the Eiffel tower model perceive those within the family model as being arbitrary, irrational, conspirational and corrupt. All in all, the good and viable from both backgrounds should be adopted for the common good of conducting business.

 III.            The Guided Missile Corporate Culture

This culture is Egalitarian (concept of equality) in nature. It differs from the Eiffel tower in being impersonal and task oriented. Here everything must be done to preserve one’s strategic intent in order to reach a set target. It is task oriented undertaken by teams or project groups and the tasks undertaken are not fixed or set in advance.

Procedures may be unclear and may be discovered as the task progresses. Everyone works in harmony to accomplish the task at hand. There may not be a boss or expert to supervise others and thus everyone is potentially equal since their relative contribution is never measured or spelt out.

These kinds of cultures usually draw on high caliber professionals and are often cross-disciplinary in nature. The projects are often very expensive because the professionals who run them are quite expensive to train and maintain.

These organizations are often temporary and employee relationship lasts as long as the project lasts. This corporate culture is not mutually committed and such projects through it may include airplane manufacturing, ship building, armament industries etc.

The guided missile corporate culture is cybernetic (bases on feedback signals) and leans on its target using these feedback signals. This culture is also circular and not linear and whose learning is problem centered rather than discipline centered.

Appraisal is by peers or subordinates rather than someone up the hierarchy or boss. Change in this kind of culture comes quickly because as different targets move on others appear on the scene, new groups are formed and old ones are dissolved. Loyalties to profession and projects are greater than loyalties to the company which may not last beyond a certain project.

Motivation tends to be intrinsic within this culture and team members are particularly enthusiastic about working towards the final product. Therefore there is a high level of enthusiasm, participation and commitment to work. It also tends to be individualistic i.e. the scenery of faces keep changing and only the pursuit of personal development remains constant. Employees are paid for performance, achievement and break through.

 IV.            The Incubator Corporate Culture

This kind of corporate culture is both personal and egalitarian where organizations are only but secondary to the fulfillment of individuals’ interests. The logic behind it is to free individuals from routine work towards more creative activities and to minimize time spent on self- maintenance. Any one at any moment regardless of their status may come up with a winning idea and therefore this culture acts as a spring board for innovative ideas.

The incubator corporate culture attempts to respond intelligently to new initiatives and companies within it are founded by creative teams of ambitious young people who often quit larger employers just before break even stage. Most of these young ambitious individuals have limited attachment to the “old rigid parent firm” and as a consequence, they feel less constrained by organizational loyalty to them hence parent firms are often undermined by the culture of ‘walk outs’.

Organizations in this corporate culture have minimal structures and hierarchies. They operate in intense emotional commitment environments which benefits them through enjoyment of the fruits of innovation. These organizations are usually start-up firms once found in the Silicon Valley, California in the USA. These were generally computer software which sooner than later went bust. These young individuals are always ruthlessly honest, effective and exciting due to the shared enthusiasm and super-ordinate goals.

The firms are usually under-funded and only fueled by hope and idealism and therefore change can be fast and spontaneous. Participants often work together searching for a solution to their shared problem and sometimes such a problem is itself often open to redefinition. These firms are strong at creating but not to survive altered patterns of demand and that is why they rarely survive to see the maturity of their products or their markets.

Motivation in this corporate culture is intrinsic and intensive with individuals working extra hard towards a common goal which is often idealistic. Competition to contribute to developing a new product or service is often the biggest motivation for members with a belief that if the whole succeeds there will be plenty for all. Leadership is achieved and not ascribed and conflicts are solved either by splitting up or by trying the proposed alternatives to see which one works best.

 

 

 

National Patterns & Corporate Culture.

DECENTRALIZED

 

 

 

 

                          U.S.A                                                CANADA

 

 

SWEDEN

INCUBATOR

GUIDED MISSILE

 

 

 

 

FORMAL

INFORMAL

                                                                                                        U.K

 

 

                 JAPAN                                                                  DENMARK

EIFFEL TOWER

FAMILY

 

 

 

 

 

                        INDIA                                                GERMANY

                        FRANCE                                            HOLLAND

 

                                                      CENTRALIZED

 

 

Successful conduct of business and cultural management depend on the ability to appreciate all and to reconcile most of these cultural diversities in any single situation.

Summary of Corporate Culture.

A.    Authority and control

        i.            Guided missile

·         Under this if a problem is solved, that is your authority.

      ii.            Eiffel tower

·         Strict rules and procedures exist and legitimate authority and control also exist and actions are out of order.

    iii.            Incubator

·         Authority belongs to the science or discipline used to innovate.

    iv.            Family

·         Social pressures are extended by deeply respected persons.

B.     Guiding principle

        i.            Guided missile

·         Effectiveness.

      ii.            Family

·         Harmony.

    iii.            Eiffel tower

·         Efficiency and cost reduction.

    iv.            Incubator

·         Creativity and innovation.

C.    Excellency

        i.            Guided missile

·         Being professional and producing the desired results.

      ii.            Family

·         High levels of social influence exercised to the company’s benefit and the benefit of its employees.

    iii.            Eiffel tower

·         A new system of order by which a culture is structured and disciplined.

    iv.            Incubator

·         Personal creativity and geneous

D.    Cohesion

        i.            Guided missile

·         When a team shares a mission that it will bring into success.

      ii.            Family

·         Held together by trust, long affinity and loyalty.

    iii.            Eiffel tower

·         Held together by common subordination to a boss or expert.

    iv.            Incubator

·         Held together by a feeling that they were there when the discovery was made.

E.     Power

        i.            Guided missile

·         Teams help to constitute and define knowledge that will guide the company.

      ii.            Family

·         Powerful personalities get their way to power by ascription through family discussions.

    iii.            Eiffel tower

·         Attribute is to ones’ formal position.

    iv.            Incubator

·         Deals with ideas whose time has come.

F.     Attraction, retaining and motivating talent

        i.            Guided missile

·         Need to forge team solutions through group effectiveness.

      ii.            Family

·         Loyalty, social ability, diplomacy and being a trusted insider.

    iii.            Eiffel tower

·         Job description and precisely qualified job holder are key.

    iv.            Incubator

·         Need people in search of personal creativity and development.

G.    Rewarding staff

        i.            Guided missile

·         Raise esteem of fellow team members i.e. to be in love and admired by colleagues will be the strongest reward.

      ii.            Family

·         Gives you deep respect, personal recognition and special attention from people.

    iii.            Eiffel tower

·         External incentives such as cash for exceeding set standards.

    iv.            Incubator

·         The joy of creating and celebrating discovery of a new product.

H.    Attitudes towards money

        i.            Guided missile

·         Is a symbol of team success and achievement of the team members.

      ii.            Family

·         Is partly symbolic token of respect and a way of caring.

    iii.            Eiffel tower

·         Compensation for work you will not do otherwise.

    iv.            Incubator

·         To facilitate innovative activities.

I.       The best management style

        i.            Guided missile

·         Meeting team objectives and group goals.

      ii.            Family

·         Fulfilling ones’ obligations to colleagues.

    iii.            Eiffel tower

·         Fulfilling ones’ job description as specified.

    iv.            Incubator

·         Sharing excitement with fellow innovators.

MASCULINE AND FEMININE CULTURE

These bases on the gender differences in management and in style of conducting business. It is a recognizable fact within the work place that most women have to work harder than men to show that they are achieving individuals.

Challenges for female bosses

        i.            Women bosses or managers have got to struggle harder in order to work their way out the ladder in a predominantly male world.

      ii.            They have got to escape stereotypes which are typical in most women i.e. the way of dressing, motherhood, female talk etc.

    iii.            They have to measure themselves by specific criteria and by universal yardsticks such as toughness and being a no nonsense individual among others

Characteristics of female bosses/Managers

o   They are consistently more out-directed than men

o   They are more synchronic in approach to time than men

o   They are more emotional than men

A good measure for both male and female bosses is the ability to command all the values and dimensions of running business and proper management. Both should be individualistic enough to generate a work force which develops capable individuals. They should also be Universalists enough to cover all the interests of the particularists.

Gender differences

a)      Different words different worlds

Men	Women
Men talk in terms of:-	Women talk in terms of:-
Ø  Hierarchy	Ø  Community
Ø  Winners and losers	Ø  Involvement
Ø  Freedom from obligations	Ø  Egalitarianism
Ø  Individualism/independence	Ø  Autonomy
Ø  Reaching decisions and giving orders.	Ø  Understanding

 

b)      Cross purpose talk

Men	Women
Men show that they are:-	Women put more emphasis on :-
Ø  Problem solvers (to the point)	Ø  Understanding
Ø  Reluctant to ask questions and receive information	Ø  Solidarity
Ø  Happy to give information even when not asked.	Ø  Backing others

 

c)      Rapport versus report talk

Men	Women
Ø  Talk in public i.e. report talk	Ø  Prefer talking in private i.e. rapport talk
Ø  Men feel that talking is meant to give and get information	Ø  Feel that the situation is public if there are men around
Ø  Men do activities/things with friends	Ø  They talk more with anyone who cares to listen and share secretes
Ø  Men do not use rapport talk in public	Ø  Find no problem using rapport talking in public

 

d)     Gossip

Men	Women
Ø  Men prefer facts, meaningful conversations and not small talk	Ø  Women prefer the personal view
Ø  Men discuss detailed technical problems	Ø  Women are interested in details about their own lives and that of friends
Ø  Men do not discuss human problems with other men	Ø  Women are interested in details about other people
Ø  Men talk to friends only about ‘real’ problems	Ø  Women find comfort in small talk

 

e)      Conflict situations

Men	Women
Ø  Conflict is a necessary means to proof status	Ø  Conflict is often perceived as a threat to connections both personal and official connections
Ø  Playful aggression is part and parcel of friendship	Ø  Women prefer suggestive engagements
Ø  Men issue orders with considerable ease	Ø  Women styles are often non-confrontational in that orders may be given in form of requests
Ø  Men engage in contest stories that make them look positive and good	Ø  Women tell community stories that make them look inadequate
Ø  Men measure status by skills and achievement	Ø  Women measure status through complex network of relationships

 

Generally, female mangers prefer to rule by consensus and indirectly because they generally prefer an egalitarian environment. They dislike boasting and feel that this behavior is unfeminine. During conversations, female bosses tend to look you straight in the eyes searching for any traces of deception.

Male bosses on the contrary prefer to rule by autocracy/fiat. They are less willing to take any gossip or nonsense from their juniors. In a mixed audience, men grasp the opportunity to proof their worth through arguments, lengthy talk, use of upscale language and sounding very knowledgeable on all issues.

BOSS AND SUBOERDINATE MANAGEMENT

Most organizations practice a top-bottom system of management and because of this tradition in most organizations; it may not be so obvious as to why one needs to manage relationships upwards. A compatible relationship with your superior is essential for one to be effective in one’s job.

Managing ones boss is to continuously work with superiors to obtain the best possible results for oneself for the boss and for the organization as a whole. An effective employee is therefore one who takes time and effort to manage relationships with fellow employees and bosses. This important aspect of management is often ignored by most employees.

Some managers who aggressively supervise subordinates, products, markets and technologies assume an almost perceived reactive state.  Much as it is difficult to manage a relationship with one’s boss, it is of paramount importance to do so to register success. Successful managers or employees develop relationships with everyone they depend on including the boss and are the ones who are good managers of people.

When one works with a bad boss, there may be a challenge of moving things forward which may arise from misunderstanding and bad feelings between two parties and this may lead to poor planning and strategy for the organization. A war of blame for one another ensues and may lead to a crisis in the organization. Inability to manage upwards may be costly to a firm in situations where a new policy on machinery is procured for the organization to which it is in actual fact not necessary or needed. A question may arise as to you a technical person, can you tell your boss he is wrong in procuring or recommending the machinery procurement.

A boss or subordinate relationship if not well managed leads the two parties to overlook or underestimate the mutual interdependence between the two parties. In many organizations most of the employees behave as if their bosses are independent of them. They fail to appreciate that the boss needs their help and cooperation to do his job effectively. This relationship is well driven by cooperation, dependability and honesty by both parties. Managing a situation of mutual dependency among human beings requires:

        i.            That one has to have a good understanding of the other person and oneself especially regarding strength, weakness, work styles and myths.

      ii.            That one uses this information to develop and manage a health working relationship which is compatible with both peoples work styles and assets. This is governed by mutual expectations.

Understanding the boss is always vital. One needs to appreciate the boss’ goals and pressures, his strength and weaknesses, the organizational and personal objectives. In this situation, such questions as

        i.            What are the strengths and blind spots of the boss?

      ii.            What is his preferred style in working?

    iii.            How does he like receiving information?

    iv.            Does he drive on conflicts or tries to minimize them?

Without this information an employee may be ignorant when dealing with his boss and often unnecessary conflicts, misunderstandings and problems are inevitable within such organizations. One may not change his basic personality or that of his boss but one can become aware of what it is about oneself that impedes or facilitates working with one’s boss and with that awareness takes action which makes the relationship more effective.

DEVELOPING AND MANAGING RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN BOSSES & SUBORDINATES

With a clear understanding of both one’s boss and oneself, one can establish a working relationship based on mutual expectations. The checklist of managing ones boss may include:

o   Compatible work style

Subordinates who often adjust their working styles in reference to the boss’ regard in terms of methods of work such as receiving information, decision making style among others create a good and conducive relationship with their bosses.

o   Mutual expectation

 A subordinate who assumes that he knows what the boss expects is usually in trouble. The burden falls on the subordinate to find out the expectations of the boss and work towards fulfilling such expectations to improve his relationship with the boss.

o   Flow of information

How much information a boss may need about what a subordinate is doing varies significantly depending on the boss’ style, situation he is in and the confidence the boss has in the subordinate. Managing the flow of information upwards is particularly difficult if the boss doesn’t like to hear about problems.

o   Dependability and honesty

Few things are more disabling to a boss than subordinates on whom he cannot depend on and whose work he cannot trust. Because of oversights, some employees end up cutting an image of non-dependable or dishonest employees. This is of concern to them and the organization as a whole.

o   Good use of time and resources.

A boss is as limited as his store of time, energy and influence as those of employees. Every request put to him uses up some of these valuable resources. Therefore one should draw on any of those resources sparingly and selectively.

THE TIME CONCEPT

Time may be looked at in two ways:

o   As a line of discrete events i.e. seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years each pushing in a never ending succession.

o   As a revolving circle where by seconds and minutes of an hour keep repeating as to hours of the day, the days of the week, the weeks of the month and the months of the year.

Time is a factor which all organizations must manage. Man thinks universally in categories of the past, the present and the future but accords different importance to these issues. The perception of time is therefore strongly affected by man’s own culture.

Ordinarily culture can be described basing on three categories of time:

        i.            Present Oriented Cultures

These are relatively timeless, traditionless and they do often ignore the past and the future.

      ii.            Past Oriented Cultures

These are concerned with maintaining and restoring tradition in the present.

    iii.            Future Oriented Cultures

These reflect a more desirable future setting and set out to realize it. In most cases its cultures in this last category that experience faster economic development. How people think about time is interwoven with how they plan strategize and coordinate their activities with others. Some people base on interpretive view of time where one considers what competitive move to take today based on the past experience and future expectations. It is understood here that time has got different meanings to different individual groups for instance the French use time as a social application for business. In essence time agreed on to complete an assignment may be approximate or precise.

Time may also be seen as being important and not merely a guide. Some cultures think about time as an entity which must be respected in its entirety. These are culture that impose universalistic observance of time and this often demand monthly reports, deadlines etc.

SEQUENTIALLY AND SYNCHRONICALLY ORGANIZED CULTURES

       I.            Sequential cultures

Within some cultures time is looked at as a dotted line which has regular spacing. For them everything has its time and phase as far as the sequential thinking is concerned. These cultures believe in orderly sequencing consequence where by one may never jump the queue that is they believe in the principle of first come first serve.

According to their thinking this ordering ensures efficiency in everything e.g. the Europeans in the west and North America and the Anglo-Saxons. Sequential people have the critical part worked out in advance. They also have set periods of completion of each task. They tend to schedule tightly.

It may be taken by people in these cultures as being rude to show up late by even a few minutes because the whole day’s schedule will be affected. Within this cultural set up, time is valued as a commodity that can be used up, gets exhausted and depleted. Lateness for anything is deemed as depriving the other party of precious minutes in the world where time is money.

    II.            Synchronical cultures

These cultures require people to track various activities in parallel. They appreciate being valued by way of giving them time and audience any time they show up even if it’s unexpectedly. They are less insistent on punctuality. They argue that it is always necessary to give time to people with whom one has a particular relationship.

Likewise it is vital and in order to show affective pleasure even at friends unexpectedly. One’s schedule may never be an excuse to ignore a friend or a colleague. Meeting time of schedules for these cultures is approximate, ranging from fifteen minutes in Latin America, Europe, part of the day in the Middle East and a whole day in Africa. This is because such people are running activities in parallel and any waiting may even be welcome to allow organizations more time to perfect things.

 

Time Orientation and challenges of Cross-cultural Management

Whenever orientation to time differs within an organization, spanning different cultures, confusion is a likely outcome. For instance working on Fridays for Christians which is a holiday for Muslims, Norwegian lunch time versus the British lunch time etc.

Business and organizations are normally structured in accordance with how proprietors perceive time. Most organizations and corporations have got departments which are in charge of  planning, scanning the environment for market trends, putting in place strategies for accelerating market penetration etc. such plans cover specific time in most countries such as working calendar, lunch intervals, public holidays etc.

CULTURE, CORRUPTION AND BRIBERY

Corruption and bribery are economic crimes committed by an individual or individuals with an intention of defrauding or getting an advantage over another person, an institution or nation. Bribery is a form of corruption and corruption is one of the biggest threats to modern economies which distorts economies and discourages effective free markets and eventually it leads to inferior goods and services on the market.

Poverty-Corruption link (Need breeds Greed).

Poverty is a common trait of corrupt countries. These countries are low developing economies with per capita gross national product of less than USD 600 per annum. Some of these countries are Nigeria, Pakistani, Kenya, Bangladesh, Uganda just but to mention a few.

Corruption in most of these countries is partly as a result of poor pay for government and public officials. Low salaries tempt some employees to supplement their incomes with bribes and kickbacks.

The least five corrupt countries on the other hand are among the world’s richest economies such as New Zealand, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong etc.

Over-controlled economies

Over-regulated economies which experience a lot of red tape tend to be corrupt. Their commercial laws give bureaucrats a lot of discretionary authority to decide management and business issues which power is often abused by way of demanding for bribes and kickbacks when an opportunity arises.

Societies in which bribery and other illegal payments are common share key cultural values. Three of these values are:

ü  They are relationship focused where personal connections are normal in securing service or getting an investment certificate.

ü  They are polychromic that is they have relaxed attitudes towards time and scheduling.

ü  They are hierarchical with wide status differences.

It is however important to note that cultures which are relationship focused, polychromic and hierarchical need not necessarily be corrupt. Those which are corrupt may simply share these cultural traits.

RELATIONSHIP FOCUSED CULTURES

In relationship focused cultures, personal connections are absolutely essential. One must know the right people to assist him in having anything done. Also known as technical know whom. In these cultures, one needs good contacts to do business because relationship focused people feel uncomfortable with strangers whom they take to be outsiders and ones who cannot be trusted.

Relationship focused cultures and behavior often lead to desperate foreign business people into the bribery trap. Foreigners assume that bribing may be the best way to expedite the lengthy processes of developing good working relationships with these people. Foreigners to such cultures wrongly assume that exchanging of gifts and favours is part and parcel of building good working relationships.

Within relationship focused cultures, relationships are developed with an intention of creating social insurance especially in time of need. Such insurance may save one the agony of giving bribes or may secure one a job among other things.

What counts most in relationship focused cultures is whom one knows and not what one knows. Right personal contacts save you time, money and a lot of frustrations.

POLYNCHROMIC CULTURES

Polychromic cultures have a unique meaning of time. Most corrupt countries or communities have relaxed approach to punctuality, schedules and deadlines. Frustrated by long delays of waiting, executives coming from ‘Clock Worshiping’ monochromic cultures may be willing to make under the table payments to these people in order to expedite decisions for their projects.

TIPs (To Insure Promptness) may also be given for reasons similar to the above. The underlying assumption is, ‘it’s your money on your time’ so they part with money in forms of bribery to save on time wasted in frustrating situations. What’s important to appreciate however is the fact that polychromic cultures may not be rushed into forming relationships in business.

This may be contrary to the philosophy of the ‘time bad’ Westerners who wish to speed up things and have the job done. A bribe may offer a short end to something but may eventually lead to a dead end. The one taking bribes is likely to go back to the source for more.

 

HIERARCHICAL CULTURES

Hierarchical cultures are status and power based cultures with high respect for authority. Patronage here is usually a norm. Corrupt countries or communities experience steep organizational hierarchies which have wide status differences. However ranking officials rarely make decisions on behalf of their organizations preferring to pass them on to their superiors.

For a problem to get solved expeditiously, one needs to reach the top of the hierarchy ( could be the head of state, the minister, the managing director, the Chief executive officer, etc.) which may be time wasting.

Subordinates always live in fear of their superiors’ disapproval. They are always willing to cooperate to avoid the experience of being dismissed or reprimanded even when they are acting centrally to the set rules and regulations of the establishment.

Within hierarchical cultures, governments play a big role in the economies of these countries. There is high political patronage in all sectors of the economy. Identifying with the powers in place is important to move things in one’s favour to avoid giving bribes and or getting involved in unnecessary graft.

AFRICAS EXPERIENCE WITH CORRUPTION

Africa as a continent experiences the worst form of state-based forms of corruption partly because of its colonial and post-colonial experiences. Following the independence most states wrongly assumed that it was the governments and not private entrepreneurs who knew best how to allocate resources.

For years, the states in Africa have been the principal economic actors and because of the mistakes committed it led to stagnation of most Africa’s economies. This also led to the rise of despotic regimes and the cancerous growth of corruption. This came about due to various reasons.

Such systems failed to take into account human nature. They wrongly assumed that governments would ably undertake the task of uplifting the economic welfare of their people and countries and that the best personnel would always offer best services.

Too much economic power was placed in the hands of only those in government and appointments to the positions of power and management were based on political affiliations i.e. their standing within ruling political elites, relationships with ‘big’ people, loyalty to tribes, clans or families.

The profit motive for managers of the economies gradually became irrelevant. Large enterprises were created most of which were not based on economic realism. There was no need to balance books, demonstrate performance or efficiency and there was little or no accountability.

Government corporations became giant monopolies benefiting only those in the inner circles most of whom lacked merit, skills and ability and at the centre was the government of the day. The fewer the resources available the greater the number of ‘gatekeepers’ and the more they demanded to allow one to access the basics. This eventually gave birth to higher levels of corruption and bribery in most if not all African countries.

African countries should promote the private sector as the major engine of economic growth and development. Private entities seek to replace the in efficient and sectarian state machineries and by extension reduce the levels of corruption and bribery within these nations.

Privatization and general liberalization are some of the best approaches to move around the state patronage jungles because no private company should be allowed to hold monopoly to supply goods and services, profits cannot be made without efficiency which comes with relevant skills and ability which in turn do not come with favorism, nepotism or corruption.

There should be determination and will on behalf of government to overcome political complexities in order to investigate, prosecute and punish offenders of corruption and bribery. In countries like Kenya where corruption is most endemic, conventional law enforcement organizations may themselves harbor corrupt officials who may frustrate the fight against this vice. There is need to institute parallel special agencies to undertake and sustain the war on corruption.

There is a need to address the fundamental economic and cultural factors which underlie and promote corruption. There is also a need to concentrate more energy on changing the behavior and attitudes of individuals which is essential for the general transformation of the society.

Fighting state based corruption is a logical consequence of democratization with more political space, more freedoms; people can ask questions and demand accountability from those in power. Those people in power also become aware of their responsibilities to those who elected them and who have sovereign power over them. This people’s power lies in their ability to punish corrupt politicians or officials by voting them out of power. However, where the masses do not have such sovereign power, corruption thrives unabated.

THE IMPACT OF CULTURE ON BUSINESS

From a consumer behavior perspective culture has implications on international business. Business organizations may be influenced by culture in different ways. The levels of influence depend on specific cross-cultural meaning of that firm’s operations and activities.

The cultural difference between a firm and its market may occur because that firm and market exist in different meaning systems. Some firms operate in culturally heterogeneous markets compared to others whose markets are more homogeneous.

Firms are also influenced by cultural differences whereby their product and marketing concepts are related to the universal cultural systems. Attitudes to business, product and management differ depending on:

ü  A culture of origin of a particular firm

ü  The influence of a host culture ( the host country’s culture)

ü  Organizational culture as individual organizations adopt their own way of doing things which identifies them and enable them to do their business well.

Therefore problems can erupt in business organizations from mere cultural misunderstandings and cultural literacy can help improve the performance of business organizations. Being culturally enlightened may mean the difference between returning home with a signed contract deal and returning without a deal.

Understanding the host country’s values, beliefs, rules and institutions and designing business policies and practices alongside the host country’s culture promotes success and makes managers effective at their work.

• Email Address: skliffe.katamu@gmail.com