Summary of Article
Irene Tieh, the author, argues business people need to take time to understand cultural practices observed in different areas before they do any business activities. She uses two case studies that talk about the experiences of two American entrepreneurs who traveled to China to explain why cross cultural awareness is important in business. She insists a business person needs to know how to socialize with people from different cultural backgrounds before meeting them for business. She talks about Amanda, an American entrepreneur who was not interested in interacting with her Chinese work colleagues during her 18 months stay in the country. Her failure to adapt to important Chinese business practices made her lose many business opportunities. Amanda was not eager to socialize with her Chinese colleagues who later became offended by her individualistic demeanor. The author reveals why it is important for business people to learn how to communicate with their peers from other countries to establish mutually beneficial relationships.
She stresses that entrepreneurs need to strengthen their cross-cultural skills to get more information from foreign businesspeople about new trends in the market. Therefore, business people need to compare their cultural practices with those observed in other locations to expand their thinking. An entrepreneur needs to have a multicultural perspective to enable him to understand values and beliefs which are observed in different global regions. She asserts that Amanda’s judgment was strongly influenced by her cultural background which discouraged her from being receptive towards Chinese culture and business practices. Tieh also uses another case study involving Naomi who spent more time to understand Chinese cultural practices before her visit to China.
Tieh made Naomi aware of peculiar mannerisms that are cherished by Chinese corporate executives and how they differed from what she was accustomed to in the US. This made Naomi aware of what she needed to do to make her Chinese counterparts more trustworthy of her during business meetings. Her open attitude towards the new culture helped her bond easily with her hosts because her initial conduct impressed them. As a result, they were willing to share with her more information about new business opportunities available in the country. Therefore, Naomi had a more meaningful visit to the country compared to Amanda because she was willing to learn more about her hosts’ culture. Tieh insists that every entrepreneur needs to take time to understand cultural practices and common lifestyles observed in different places across the globe. She argues that cross-cultural communication helps business firms form strong relationships with other firms that have more knowledge about how different foreign markets operate. Tieh insists that business firms need to have a long-term outlook to enable them to build strong reputations in different markets they are operating in.
How the Article Relates to This Class
The article reveals why cross-cultural communication is a vital concept in modern business. Tieh explains why businesspeople need to familiarise themselves with cross-cultural factors that are likely to have an impact on business performance. Cross-cultural communication allows an entrepreneur to learn more about important cultural and business practices that are observed in different places. The article shows that business firms need to invest more time and resources to adapt to global business standards. They need to make all their employees more receptive to modern international practices to become more competitive in global business.