Are cultural differences in business holding your team back? – Preply Business

Put simply, the way that cultural differences in business are managed can make or break a multinational company. Grasping the subtle cues, local customs, and distinct communication styles of the different cultural groups you work with can make all the difference to a successful relationship. This is regardless of whether you’re chatting with a teammate from a different ethnicity, managing a diverse team, or negotiating a contract with an international client. 

In this article, we’ll dive deeper into why it’s so important to understand cultural differences in business. Then we’ll explore some common areas of cultural differences that could impact your team’s performance, before outlining several tips to help your multicultural workforce thrive. 

The importance of understanding cultural differences in business 

But, is it really so important to recognize cultural differences at work? After all, business is business the world over, right? 

Wrong. As many international companies have learned at their own expense, understanding the unique cultures and preferences of your diverse team of colleagues and multicultural customers can make all the difference to your business performance. 

To quote Erin Meyer, the author of The Culture Map: Breaking Through The Invisible Boundaries of Global Business, “Today, whether we work in Düsseldorf or Dubai, Brasília or Beijing, New York or New Delhi, we are all part of a global network (real or virtual, physical or electronic) where success requires navigating through wildly different cultural realities. Unless we know how to decode other cultures and avoid easy-to-fall-into cultural traps, we are easy prey to misunderstanding, needless conflict, and ultimate failure.”

In other words, being successful in business requires forming meaningful and long-lasting relationships with an ever-increasing variety of people. Failing to understand some of the common cultural differences in business is likely to substantially and irreparably harm these relationships.

Meyer further explains that while you should treat people as individuals, you also need to take into account the cultural contexts that have helped form those individuals—particularly the ways in which they have learned how work is done. Otherwise, you may easily cause offence, trigger misunderstandings, or damage the productivity of your business—possibly without even being aware of the harm you’ve caused! 

Areas of cultural differences in business 

When speaking of cultural differences, it can be easy (and dangerous) to fall into stereotyping. This is why it’s critical to recognize every person you work with as an individual, with their own distinct set of beliefs, values, and practices. 

Nevertheless, sociologists believe that there are certain core cultural traits that affect behavior at a population level, which can certainly impact business communications. 

In The Culture Map, Meyer proposes that global business interactions can be broken into and measured across 8 general scales: 

1. Communicating

   : low-context vs high-context

2. Evaluating

   : direct negative feedback vs indirect negative feedback

3. Persuading

   : principles-first vs applications-first

4. Leading

   : egalitarian vs hierarchical

5. Deciding

   : consensual vs top-down

6. Trusting

   : task-based vs relationship-based

7. Disagreeing

   : confrontational vs avoids confrontation

8. Scheduling

   : linear time vs flexible time.

These scales can be used as a framework with which to analyze and compare two different cultures relative to each other. By doing so, potential areas for miscommunication, conflict, and so on can be identified, so that steps can be taken to reduce or eliminate this. 

For example, if people from a culture that favors egalitarian leadership are collaborating with others who favor hierarchical leadership, it might be helpful to discuss and agree on a leadership strategy right at the start, in advance of work commencing.

Next, we’ll take a closer look at the first and last of these scales—communicating and scheduling—as they probably have the greatest potential to affect your business relationships. 

Cultural differences in business communications

Communication is key in any business. However, communication is inevitably affected by cultural norms. Many researchers, including Meyer, use the terms “high context” and “low context” to describe how culture can influence communication styles. 

In a high-context culture, communication is implicit, not direct. Here, a great deal of communication is achieved through body language and indirect allusions. Much of what is being communicated relies on the relationship and mutual understanding between the two people conversing. 

On the other hand, in a low-context culture, communication is direct, clear, and explicit. People are more likely to tell you exactly what they need, when they need it, and how it needs to be done.

Consequently, when someone from a high-context culture (e.g., India, Japan, the UK) interacts with someone from a low-context culture (e.g., Germany, the US, Scandinavia), it is possible that they might run into communication issues. Meyer provides a great example of this from the perspective of an Indonesian professional: 

“My boss is German, but my team is all Indonesian. In my culture, if we have a strong relationship and come to a spoken agreement, that is enough for me. So if you get off the phone and send me an e-mail recapping in writing everything we have just decided, that would be a clear sign to me that you don’t trust me.”

In other words, the German manager’s pursuit of clear communication based on their low-context culture is unintentionally causing offense to their direct report from a high-context culture. So, awareness of the cultural context that may be affecting our business relationships is vital to successfully navigating cultural differences. 

It is a near-impossible task to list all the potential areas for cultural miscommunication and therefore the ones shown below are just a starting point:

• hand gestures

  (e.g., the thumbs-up gesture can be viewed as highly offensive in certain parts of the Middle East)

• head gestures (e.g., the Indian “

  head wobble

  ” can be used in a variety of circumstances)

• the use of

  idioms

  and slang

• respect for

  personal space

• addressing people in the most appropriate way (e.g., by using their first name, surname, job title, or something else)

• greeting people

  with a handshake or other action

• maintaining

  eye contact

Cultural differences in business meetings 

Scheduling is another obvious area to discuss, especially for anyone who has worked outside of their country of origin. For instance, researchers found that late starts and finish times for meetings are far more prevalent in Turkey than anywhere else in the world, whereas “arriving too late” to a meeting is one of Germany’s most commonly reported business nightmares. 

More examples of cultural differences in timekeeping that are described in this study include: 

• A Dutch woman in Argentina who waited for clients to show up to an appointment, gave up hope that they would arrive, and so left, only to then find out that they showed up two hours late and expected her to be there. 

• A Peruvian man who remarked to a Dutch acquaintance, “We should meet again sometime!” only to have his new Dutch friend pull out a pocket diary from their bag to write down the date and time of their next encounter. 

• In the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, meetings are not considered to be events that begin and end at a specific time; rather, they use a “flexible approach to time in meetings,” which can begin far later than scheduled and run for as long as is felt to be appropriate. 

It’s important, therefore, to bear in mind these cultural differences when it comes to scheduling and time management. Try not to assume that colleagues and partners from other countries will have the same ideas about time management as you. 

How to deal with cultural differences in business 

The good news is that cultural differences needn’t be a roadblock when it comes to international business. By following several simple rules of thumb, managers and teams can navigate cultural differences without unnecessary communication breakdowns. The tips shown below can set you up for business success in cross-cultural exchanges: 

1) Start by listening

Meyer advises all international teams, “When interacting with someone from another culture, try to watch more, listen more, and speak less.” This will help you to identify moments in which you are making assumptions based on your own cultural norms and help you pick up on any subtle cues that the person you are speaking with is trying to get across. 

It’s also important to be aware of the culture of the person you are listening to. For example, if they are from a low-context culture, then it’s probably best not to expect to see too many body-language cues. Instead, listening closely to exactly what they are saying is likely to be more helpful here.

2) Learn about your own culture 

It’s natural to think of our own culture as “normal,” especially if it’s all we’ve ever known. However, to succeed in international business, you must learn about how your own customs and practices are perceived elsewhere in the world. Does your culture have a reputation for bluntness, indirectness, reserve, or emotionality? 

Think about how your cultural norms might possibly conflict with people you’re meeting with, so that you can proactively try to avoid clashes. During the interaction itself, try to tune into how your colleagues or clients are responding to your communication style, so that you can figure out how to effectively and productively interact with them. 

Dealing with cultural differences in business is not only about understanding other cultures but also understanding your own.

3) Watch out for the fundamental attribution error 

The fundamental attribution error is a cognitive bias that occurs when we attribute the behavior of others to their personality rather than to their circumstances. 

For instance, if someone is late to a meeting, it’s common to assume that they have poor time management skills. On the other hand, if we ourselves are late, we are much more likely to consider external factors, e.g., we are late because the traffic was bad! 

In a multicultural business setting, this means we may assume that a coworker or customer is behaving in a particular way because that is their personality type instead of ascribing it to cultural factors. To overcome this error, we must consider that they might speak bluntly or be late for a meeting because they come from a low-context culture or a society with a more flexible idea of scheduling—not simply because they are rude or disorganized.   

4) Consider cross-cultural training 

If cultural differences are currently hindering your team—or are likely to in future, due to planned expansion into other countries, for example—whether when working with colleagues or dealing with customers, it’s most likely time to invest in learning and development opportunities that improve your cross-cultural skills. 

This training can help in several important ways:

• It addresses

  communication issues

  (as described above), including language barriers. For example, working with an

  experienced language teacher

  will not only help learners build grammar and fluency in a foreign language, but these experts can also advise your team on cultural issues that might impact communication. 

• It teaches about

  etiquette and customs

  in other cultures.

• It reduces reliance on

  stereotypes

  by offering context and real-life examples.

Cross-cultural awareness can also be increased at the workplace in many other less-formal ways too—for example, by celebrating important dates in the calendars of other countries and a variety of religions.

Don’t let cultural differences catch your business unaware

Recognizing, understanding, and adjusting to cultural differences in business can be challenging, particularly in terms of communication and scheduling. But with enough empathy, awareness, and training, it doesn’t need to hold you and your company back. 

Committing sufficiency time and resources to increasing cultural awareness in your organization is a wise investment because ultimately it benefits the bottom line. It can also be achieved by taking a few relatively easy actions, such as listening more to others, understanding how your own culture is perceived elsewhere, and enrolling in training. 

At Preply, our team of qualified online language tutors can help you and the members of your team understand and negotiate cultural differences in business in order to thrive in our increasingly globalized world. Sign up here to find out more.