Click here to read and see a beautiful, artful essay on what makes the US, and specifically New York, so attractive to immigrants.
Check out the latest CultureWizard Digest here!
* Culture & Health Care
* Wal-Mart Acts Locally in Brazil
* Young Americans Emigrating to China
* CALL ME OKAASAN: Adventures in Multicultural Mothering
CultureLinks
+ Corporations Opt for Cost-Effective e-Learning
+ Pepsi’s Chinese Music Label
+ Facial Expressions and Emoticons are Cultural
CultureTips
+ Italy
+ Australia
As I’ve watched the American health care debate become more and more inflamed over the past couple of months, I’ve been amazed by the increasingly passionate reactions Americans have had. Clearly, the very fact that so many of us are paying attention, and almost acquiring a Masters degree in health care systems in the process, illustrates how important we believe this to be. But why has there been such intense emotion around the debate? Why is there screaming and tears at meetings? Obviously, it’s personal. Obviously, the discussion is centered on a potentially massive change. However, American culture tends to embrace change. So, an aversion to risk is probably not the reason for such intensity.
Setting aside cost issues (which are substantial, but not cited when the rhetoric gets overheated), I believe the debate is emotionally charged because our cultural values of individualism and egalitarianism are in conflict. How much individual choice must I relinquish to get a “fair” system? Will my individual rights be taken away, including my right to make foolish choices? What will the individual have to sacrifice for the well-being of the group, and will it be for the group’s benefit? It seems to me that the societies that have embraced universal health care coverage are more group- and community-focused. What do you think?
I’d like your opinion about the passion. I’d also like to share a recent, globally-focused interview with T.R. Reid on NPR’s Fresh Air (August 24, 2009). Reid is a foreign correspondent for the Washington Post and wrote The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Health Care. He spent three years studying health care systems around the world, and while his bias is clear, his insights about British, French, German, Canadian, Japanese, Indian, Swiss and Taiwanese health care systems are fascinating.
Let me know what you think.
Charlene
+ Australians, or Aussies, may downplay their own success, which has lead to a common misconception that they are not achievement-oriented. Their humble attitude may mislead you, but the reality is that Aussies are very competitive.
+ Aussies generally work to live, rather than live to work. This shouldn’t be interpreted as a lack of ambition. Leisurely time with family and friends is very important, so you can expect that holidays and time away from work are normal and expected.
+ For the most part, Australians enjoy humor and use it frequently when speaking. It’s often self-deprecating, but it can also be used to bring someone down if they are taking themselves or a situation too seriously. People are expected to be able to take a joke. In fact, Aussies’ sense of humor is one of the first thing foreigners notice about them.
+ Australia has a collaborative culture where meetings may be held to share information, review situations, make plans, or communicate decisions. Since everyone is thought to have an opinion, emphasis isn’t placed on position or status.
+ Most Australians are direct and comfortable addressing others in a frank, concise manner. They say what they mean and mean what they say. They often expect the same from others.
+ If you come from a culture where communication is more indirect, you may have difficulty with the brevity and lack of context provided in Australian communication. This is a culture where what you say will be taken literally, so it is important to speak plainly.
+ The most important cultural attributes that you will see operating in business in Australia are:
- Egalitarianism
- Achievement orientation
- Direct communication
- Controlled sense of time
- from RW3′s CultureWizard™ Country Profiles
+ Italians have a much greater loyalty to their city than to their state or their country. This bond to one’s hometown is indicative of the value Italian’s place on relationships.
+ Friendships in Italy are never taken lightly. They require total support, acceptance and availability. To be a friend is to be ready and willing to offer support or aid, no matter what you are doing.
+ The important Italian concept of bella figura, literally a “beautiful figure,” is otherwise interpreted in English as projecting a good, impressionable image to others. Italians unconsciously assess another person’s age and social standing in the first few seconds of meeting, often before any words are exchanged.
+ Clothes are also seen as an indicator of social standing and success, which is incorporated in the bella figura concept. Italians take great pride in wearing good fabrics and clothes of the highest standard they can afford. Expect to be judged on your clothes, shoes, accessories and the way you carry yourself.
+ Italians deeply revere and respect mothers and motherhood. Women are the backbone of the family and oftentimes they are in charge of finances.
+ Italians are impressed by international experience. It is a good idea for any businessperson to show that he or she is at ease conducting business in a foreign country and understands cultural nuances.
+ Italian communication is eloquent, wordy and can easily become emotional. Italians often discuss subjects in a roundabout fashion, so be conscious of indirect and non-verbal modes of communication.
- from RW3′s CultureWizard™ Country Profiles
CNNMoney.com featured the Alibaba Group, what many have called “China’s eBay,” in an article about the B2B e-commerce company’s growth in the American market. Alibaba.cn, the original Chinese site, is where small- to mid-size businesses can buy products from suppliers and manufacturers. The fact that many small-business owners in China are not internet-savvy has made Alibaba.cn extremely successful, as it eliminates the need for entrepreneurs to have their own online operations, which is much harder to have in China.
The article questions whether Alibaba.com (the English version) will prosper in a market where e-commerce websties, e.g. eBay and PayPal, and the internet is commonplace. You don’t actually buy things through Alibaba, you only find suppliers and then arrange payment and delivery outside of the website. Alibaba’s lack of contractual regulation may be less attractive to a North American audience, where transactions are considered secure when prices are fixed and easily viewed online. Alibaba is somewhat relationship-oriented, not unlike Chinese culture, since buyers and vendors are required to initiate contact with each other to move forward and finalize a deal or to establish a working relationship.
Can anyone offer an experience they’ve had on Alibaba.com?
Click here to read the full article.
An article in the Science and Environment section of BBC News explains how new research shows that the way people interpret facial expressions can vary across cultures.
“In the study, East Asians were more likely than Westerners to read the expression for ‘fear’ as ‘surprise’, and ‘disgust’ as ‘anger.’
“The researchers say the confusion arises because people from different cultural groups observe different parts of the face when interpreting expression.
“East Asian participants tended to focus on the eyes of the other person, while Western subjects took in the whole face, including the eyes and the mouth.”
The same goes for emoticons when chatting online or writing emails. East Asian cultures utilize emoticons that express different emotions by altering the eyes, while in Western cultures, the mouth is what changes. Cross-cultural communication is a challenge if you’re not aware of these subtle differences.
Click here to read the full article.
In light of Wal-Mart’s history in foreign countries, recent progress the retail giant has made in Brazil is an important model for multinational corporations looking to build relationships in countries that are culturally much different from their own (“After Early Errors, Wal-Mart Thinks Locally to Act Globally,” The Wall Street Journal, 14 August 2009). For example, Wal-Mart’s withdrawal from the German market was in part a consequence of cultural miscommunication. Anil K. Gupta, author of The Quest for Global Dominance and Maryland business professor has analyzed Wal-Mart’s international history.
“If I had to pick Wal-Mart’s No. 1 weakness, it is that they have not historically factored in the fundamentally local nature of retailing, and that is surprising,” says Gupta.
According to the article, Wal-Mart has not only adjusted its inventory to meet the demand of local consumption, but it has invested money into humanitarian and cultural organizations, proving that it’s in tune with Brazil’s relationship-oriented culture.
Miguel Bustillo/The Wall Street Journal
The regional differences in a country are also important considerations for large retailers, which are oftentimes taken for granted.
“Wal-Mart is taking the local approach further, now, by separately targeting the country’s three quite-different population areas: the northeast, the south near Argentina, and the cosmopolitan southeast where São Paulo, the country’s financial capital, is.”
It will be interesting to see over the next few years how Wal-Mart fares in Brazil and the wider global market.
Click here to read the article.
A post on BusinessWeek explains how Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi’s recent trip to China has officially prompted the launch of a new venture for the beverage company. In an effort to strengthen the Chinese population’s relationship with Pepsi, it has founded its own record label in China to produce home-grown musical artists that it will feature in its own marketing campaigns. For an American company in China, this is a culturally sensitive and inventive move. In the past, Pepsi has used big-name pop stars and singers in the US to promote its products to great success. It’s a best practice for multinationals to think locally when extending their reach into regions that are culturally foreign, but will this tactic, originally devised for an American market, work in China?
Click here to read the post on BusinessWeek.
A recent Pepsi advertisement featuring Jolin Tsai and Louis Koo Tin Lok, two Chinese celebrities
The Japan Times reviewed a recently published book edited by Suzanne Kamata: CALL ME OKAASAN: Adventures in Multicultural Mothering (Okaasan means mother in Japanese).
The book is an anthology of stories by mothers who have raised their children across cultures, sometimes as expatriates, sometimes as natives. The stories serve as enjoyable reference material for parents raising their families in multicultural settings.
Read the book review here.
The 2009 annual Elearning! magazine quotes an ASTD (American Society for Training and Development) survey, called the “Economic Impact On Training Budgets,” which reports that there has been a noteworthy move by American corporations away from costly live trainings.
One question in the survey is “What types of adjustments have you made to the types and amount of training your organization provides to employees?”
The majority answered in the following 3 ways:
49.7% said their organization has reduced learners’ travel for training.
42.5% said they reduced travel for instructors and facilitators of training programs.
27.5% said they moved instructor-led courses to e-learning or web-based training.
Doing more for the development of employee skills with less resources is a challenge, but technology resolves the concerns that corporate training and development teams have regarding cost effectiveness and ROI. Online and virtual learning requires no costly travel, and in certain cases online learning tools are available 24 hours a day on the internet and can be used on a trainee’s own schedule.
You can check out Elearning! magazine at www.2elearning.com.
Shiho Fukada for The New York Times
According to a New York Times article, “American Graduates Finding Jobs in China” (10 August 2009), many American graduates and young professionals have gone to China in search of employment and entrepreneurial opportunities. In a way, the small wave resembles the history of immigration in the US, when a shortage of labor sparked immigration from around the world to meet demand. Chinese employers appreciate the work habits American immigrants have, which are rooted in American education and culture, as stated in the quote below.
“Sarabeth is always taking initiative and thinking what we can do,” he said, “while I think the more standard Chinese approach is to take orders.” He says the difference is rooted in the educational system. “In Chinese schools students are encouraged to be quiet and less outspoken; it fosters a culture of listening more than initiating.”
American culture is highly individualistic: a single person is expected to take control over their own lives, sometimes independently, to be successful. In China, the culture is group-oriented: teamwork and relationships are relied upon more heavily to achieve success. In itself, success is generally perceived as a benefit to the community, rather than a personal triumph.
Moreover, Chinese companies are seeking individuals who can effectively establish working relationships with American consumers and businesses. “I’m working with a company right now that wants me to help them find young American professionals who can be their liaisons to the U.S.,” said one American employee at a Chinese company. “They want people who understand the social and cultural nuances of the West.”
For recent graduates, employment in China offers more responsibility. Leadership roles are available on a larger scale and are more reachable than in the US, according to the article. The pool of highly skilled individuals is much larger in the US than in China, making these leadership positions highly competitive in the US.
“A big draw of working in China, many young people say, is that they feel it allows them to skip a rung or two on the career ladder.”
Will China prove to be the United States of America for migrants eager to find work in the decades to come?
Read the full article here.
