Cross-Cultural Management

INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE:

In an increasingly global world, managers must be able to handle diversity effectively. The aim of this module is therefore:

•  To increase the awareness of the impact of national cultures on business.
•  To provide the students with theoretical and practical tools in order to improve their productivity when working and doing business with people from other cultures.
•  To make the students more aware of their personal orientations.

REQUIREMENTS:

•  Fluent in English

CONTENTS:

Cultural Dimensions analysed in the course:

• Identity: individual o collective
  • - Communication: sincere or diplomatic (meaning of “yes”)
  • - Attitude towards conflicts
  • - Decision making process
• Norms: rigid or flexible
  • - The business contract
  • - The price
• Task orientation (“specific”) o people orientation (“diffuse”)
  • - Communication: “low context” o “high context”
  • - Divide between work and private life
  • - A “good” business presentation
  • - Starting a negotiation
•   Initial trust
  • - High or low
  • - Credibility
• Expression of emotions and its impact on credibility:
  • - Communication: expressive or controlled
  • - Interruptions: tolerated or avoided
  • - Verbal and non verbal communication
  • - Silence and humor
• Vision of time:
  • - Priority to the schedule or to the personal relationships
  • - One task or many tasks at the same time
  • - Orientation towards the past, the present or the future
  • - Orientation towards short, middle or long term.
• Attitude towards the unknown:
  • - Enthusiasm for innovation or preference for stability.
  • - Thinking pattern: deductive / dogmatic or inductive / pragmatic
• Power Distribution:
  • - Communication: formal or informal
  • - Level of centralization
• Preferred attitude: "masculine" or "feminine"
  • - Communication: assertive / strong o modest / tender