A Summary from the Book Leading "When Cultures Collide: Leading Successfully Across Cultures" by Richard Lewis. How to become interculturally competence; how to deal with cultural differences; intercultural communication

1. Richard D.Lewis
When Cultures Collide
Leading Successfully Across Cultures
Ran Shan & Daisy Zheng
www.SinauOnline.com

2. Richard D.Lewis
• Richard Lewis has been active in the fields
of applied and anthropological linguistics for
over 35 years.
• Mr. Lewis, who speaks 10 European and 2
Asiatic languages, is currently chairman of
Richard Lewis Communications plc.
• His recent book "When Cultures
Collide" - a manual on how to
manage successfully across cultures
- has sold over 40,000 copies.
• If you travel abroad or work in a
multicultural team, When Cultures
Collide is your essential companion
for success.

3. Agenda
1
Getting to Grips with Culture Diversity
2
Managing Across Cultures
3
Getting to Know Each Other
4
Achieving Empathy

4. Different Language, Different World
British Hunting elephants in
British East Africa Dane Elephant-meat
smorrebrod
French The love life of elephants in French
Equatorial Africa Spanish Techniques of
elephant fighting
American How to
breed bigger and Finn What the
better elephants elephants think
“ELEPHANT” about Finland
-- Journalists Competition
Russian How we Swedish
sent an elephant to Elephants and
the moon the welfare state
Indian The elephant as a
means of transportation
German The origin and development before the railway era
of the India elephant in the years
1200-1950 (600 pages)
Norwegian Norway and Norway s
mountains

5. Different Culture, Different Norm
Legal 1:restrictive drink-driving laws
good good
Legal 2: restrictive immigration laws
good bad
Finn ABNORMAL Spanish
bad good
Illegal 1: consistently making use of a
friend at the telephone exchange to
make free international calls
bad bad
Illegal 2: drug traffic

6. What is Culture?
Hofstede: Individual Deviants
Emperor
Meiji
The collective Shyness
programming of the
mind which Politeness
distinguishes the Conceals feelings/Distrust of
members of one Japanese verbosity/Desire to be in a
category of people collective group Learned
from another. programmin
Respect for elders,
g Traditions comfortable in
hierarchy, etc.
Anger at injustice, wants to be liked, love of
young, gratitude for favors, survival procreation
Common to Inherited
mankind

7. Culture Shock – Paths for Core Beliefs
Values &
Core Beliefs
Cultural Display
resistance approval semi-acceptance
defence repetition of display adaptation
deadlock development of conciliation
cultural trait
withdraw empathy
Accentuated traits,
traditions
Maybe try
again sometime CULTURAL SYNERGY
Alien Culture Own Cultural Friendly Cultural

8. Intercultural Management
Categories of Culture
The Use of Time
Organization and Leadership
Horizon and Team Building
Communication Patterns During Meeting
Beginning of A Meeting
Negotiation Objectives
Checklist for Successful Meeting

9. Categories of Culture (I) 1
Linear-Active Multi-Active Reactive
dominated by timetables
timetable unpredicted reacts to partner’s timetable
and schedules
does one thing at a time does several things at once reacts
job-orientated people-orientated people-orientated
introvert extrovert introvert
sticks to plans changes plans makes slight changes
follows correct procedures pulls strings inscrutable, calm
brief on telephone talks for hours summarizes well
unemotional emotional quietly caring
accepts favors reluctantly seeks favors protects face of other
delegates to competent
delegates to relations delegates to reliable people
colleagues

10. Categories of Culture (II) 2
Data-
oriented Gather solid information and move steadily forward from this
Culture database.
liner- e.g. Swedes, Germans, Americans, Swiss and Northern Europeans, etc.
active
Dialogue
-oriented Possess an enormous amount of information through their
Culture own personal information networks.
multi- e.g. Italians, Portuguese, French, Spanish, Arabs, Indians, etc.
active
Listenin
Combine deference to database and print information with a
g
natural tendency to listen well and enter into sympathetic
Culture dialogue.
reactive e.g. Chinese, Japanese, Finn, Singaporeans, etc.

11. The Use of Time
9 AM 5 PM
Linear
Time
westerners
A B C D E F
Cyclic Present
Time A B
easterners
D
E C Past
F Future
visible influential
unknowable
Malagas
A B y Present
F G C concept
D E of time vaguely
understood

12. Organization and Leadership
Hierarchy &
Autocratic
FRENCH
Consensus
(GERMAN)
Structures individualism, Nepotism (LATIN/
speed, drive ARAB)
(USA)
Consensus rule Primus inter Casual leadership
(ASIAN) pares (SWEDISH) (BRITISH)

13. Horizons and Team Building
Concepts &
Values outside
A Concepts B Concepts
& Values & Values
Concepts &
A Horizon Values common B Horizon
to A&B
A Concepts B Concepts
& Values & Values
Concepts &
Values outside
Team Building– Deal with the horizon diversity

14. Communication Patterns During Meetings
Barrier
How to
deal with Ending
Opening
Word Base
Style through the whole process Clarity
the Style
Style barrier
A Chart to Show Communication
Style

15. Beginning of A Meeting
Germany Formal intro. – Sit down – Begin
Finland Formal intro. – Cup of coffee – Sit down – Begin
Formal intro. – Cup of tea and biscuits – 10 minutes small talk
USA (weather, comfort, sport) – Casual begin
Formal intro. – 15 minutes small talk (politics,
UK scandal, etc.) –Begin
Formal intro. – Protocol seating – Green tea – 15-20 minutes small talk (harmonious
pleasantries) – Sudden signal from senior Japanese –Begin
Japan
20-30 minutes small talk (football, family matters) while others arrive – Begin when all are
there
Spain/Italy

16. Negotiation Objectives
USA Japan Latin America
1. Harmonious relationships
1. Current deal 1. National “honor”
and “direction taking”
2. Short-term profit 2. Personal prestige of
2. Securing market share
and rapid growth chief negotiator
3. Consistent Profit 3. Long-term profit 3. Long-term relationship
4. Relationships with
4. Current deal 4. Current deal
partner

17. Checklist for Successful Meeting (I)
 What is the intended purpose of the meeting?
preliminary, fact-finding, actual negotiation, social
 Which is the best venue?
 Who will attend?
level, number, technicians
 How long will it last?
hours, days, weeks
 Are the physical arrangements suitable?
room size, seating, temperature, equipment, transport, accommodation for visitors
 What entertainment arrangements are appropriate?
meals, excursions, theatre
 How much protocol does the other side expect?
formality, dress, agendas
 Which debating style are they likely to adopt?
deductive, inductive, free-wheeling, aggressive, courteous
 Who on their side is the decision maker?
one person, several, or only consensus

18. Checklist for Successful Meeting (II)
 How much flexibility can be expected during negotiation?
give and take, moderation, fixed positions
 How sensitive is the other side?
national, personal
 How much posturing and body language can be expected?
facial expressions, impassivity, gestures, emotion
 What are the likely priorities of the other side?
profit, long-term relationship, victory, harmony
 How wide is the cultural gap between the two sides?
logic, religion, political, emotional
 How acceptable are their ethics to us?
observance of contracts, timescale
 Will there be a language problem?
common language, interpreters
 What mechanisms exist for breaking deadlock or smoothing over difficulties?
 To what extent may such factors as humor, sarcasm, wit, wise-cracking and
impatience be allowed to spice the proceedings?

19. Getting to Know Each Other
Britain
France Japan
Canada Germany Korea
China
United States
Southeast Asia
Latin America
Australia

20. US Vs. CANADA
Individualism Cosmopolitism
Exaggerated Modest
Imprudent & Busy Methodical
Nationalism (Politically) stay cool
Careless about Culture Difference Multi-cultural
Do not trust others Trust others
Feel superiority Feel inferiority
Expansionism Conservative

21. BRITAIN
Strike the golden
Geographic
mean between diversity
excessive familiarity
and premature
familiarity
Become very
informal only after
two or three British insularity:
encounters feel “foreigners”
intend to outsmart
them
Interested in long- Family
term relationships
oriented
Use charm, vagueness,
humor, understatement
and apparent
reasonableness in
negotiation

22. AUSTRALIA
Australian
English
Monumental
cynicism
Love criticizing
themselves
Classless society -
Egalitarianism
Take very poorly
to being
criticized
Ready to help
Do not like/trust
people who constantly
or too enthusiastically
praise them

23. GERMANY
Appearance Reality
“On Time” all the time Time is central to German culture
Very lengthy explanations Lay a proper foundation
Pace of business life is too slow Complete action chains and wish to be thorough
Too private Not a melting-pot society like the USA
Too much secrecy in German organizations Knowledge is power
Believe good procedures and process solve most
Too many rules and regulations
problems
Make things too complex when developing ideas Life is complicated
Disagree with people openly & lack delicacy Frankness is honest
Rarely compliment subordinates on the job Perfectionists expect a job to be well done
Heavy, boring, not visual enough Advertising Entertainment is an unnecessary distraction

24. FRANCE
Appearance Reality
Obstinate, always hold a different opinion from each
Stick to what they believe is right
other
The length and magnificence of their historical
Think themselves are clever than anyone else
achievements
French was once the internationally accepted
Don’t like speak foreign languages, especially
language of diplomacy and spoken widely in four
English
continents
Overemotional Rarely abandon rationality
Like to consider every aspect of a question before
Talk too much at meetings
making decisions
Cannot keep to an agenda Must go back and forth to balance their decision
Make poor team members A good education encourages them to go it alone
Facts are not always that they seem. What is wrong
Prefer ideas to facts
with exploring ideas??

25. SOUTHEAST ASIA
Western South-East Asian
Love of individualism personal ego Fondness for the collective
Life is a challenge Security and harmony
Overt action Subtle, sometimes ambiguous action
Profit sensitivity Social pressure sensitivity
Law, contractual obligations define behavior Face saving, face giving define behavior
Delegates to professionals Delegates to kinship
Planning top down Policy & guideline top down, tactical plan bottom up
External rewards Internal rewards
Technological change is rapid Social and cultural change is evolutionary

26. CHINA
Mainland
Tough
Louder talk Harmonize
Word Base Moderate
negotiation behind the scenes Clarity
moralistic Semi- Without losing
Using position
confrontational & power face
Hong Kong
Restate
Word Base Rather position Quick
concessions to Clarity
verbose
Increase achieve deal
eloquence

27. KOREA
Observance
of protocol Nationalism Obsession
Confucian ethic with survival
Adaptability
Vertical
society
Tenacity
Trickish
Suspicion of
Tendency to neighbors in
violence general

28. JAPAN
Deafen you
Vague/ with silence
A web society Ambiguous
The
language
curtain
Talk in Japanese
Willing to go over during all
the same meetings
information many
times
The
company is Japanese
sacred Must never politeness
lose face

29. LATIN AMERICA
Geographic &
Environment
Spanish
 Love of space
 Optimism bordering on
arrogance  Idealism
 Impatience with  Histrionic
European caution  Emphasized status
 Isolationism  Art of communication
 Lack of international  Fatalism
experience  Touchy & Sensitive Indian
 Uncertainty about future
 Masculinity  Attachment to the land
 More interested in people  Sense of fatalism
than regulation
 Compassion
 Unrelated law & life
 Resentment against
exploitation
 Imitation
 Fear of the unknown

30. Achieving Empathy – Weapons for Empathy
EMPATHY is based on accepting differences and building on these in a positive manner.
Constantly trying to see thins from the other’s culture/point of view!
 Tact  Humor
 Sensitivity  Flexible
 Compromise  Politeness
 Calm  Warmth
 Preparedness for discussion
 Patience
 Will to clarify objectives  Observation of other side’s protocol
 Care to avoid irritants  Careful listening
 Respect of confidentiality  Inspiration of trust

31. Thanks You
Any comments & questions
are welcome
Contact me at hora_t@sianuonline.com
www.SinauOnline.com
@ Tjitra, 2010
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