Importance of Effective Cross-Cultural Communication in Business Today - Essay Example

Importance of Effective Cross cultural Communication in Business today Name: I.D Number: Unit Code and Name: Lecturer’s Name: Essay Assignment: Date of Submission: Importance of Effective Cross cultural Communication in Business today Research indicates that communication is an important element to consider for any business to flourish in the modern day. This has been brought about by the increased competition especially in international markets. A firm’s communication strategies and skills can play a huge part in determining its profitability. It is therefore important to take note of this invisible barrier in business communication brought about by the cultural differences especially in international markets. For instance, lack of proficiency in a foreign language, may hinder communication between individuals involved in a cross border transfer of skills and capabilities as well as raising costs. Communication should therefore be considered essential due to the tiring process associated with implementation and also organizational uncertainty that surrounds it (Guang &Trotter, 2012). Lack of clear cut communication or differing languages may create the feeling of rumors or gossip in a foreign language hence bringing about added anxiety and counterproductive deeds. It is noted by Cheng and Seeger (2012), that in the case of cross border mergers and acquisitions, a communication barrier may lead to misinterpretation of messages sent by the acquiring firm, hence leading to creation of false impressions that may trigger concealed or evident political struggles between the two parties. The culture of a business and its awareness dictates how the businesses behave in the international markets that consist of varying cultures. For a business to have a competitive edge in the international market, it needs to possess a clear understanding of cultural differences that exist in that particular market. This paper looks into factors of essence with regard to cross-cultural issues in business communication internationally and offers an outline for creating competitive advantage for businesses operating in the international market. This is because most elements of international business communication are affected by culture. Its impact is felt on policies of free trade, consumer behavior, business relationships, brand effectiveness and advertising, international marketing and business management among others. Various sources have examined the reasons why cross-cultural communication is important in business today. One of the major issues facing multinational organizations in the modern day is cross-cultural relationships. With the ongoing globalization of business, adaptation of cross-cultural behaviors cannot be avoided. This is because businesses have become international hence the need to communicate effectively on the global platform. According to Ott (2011), this calls for business managers to be well accustomed to cultural differences nationally, locally and ethnically so as to be successful in the global market. This is also brought about by need for global business communication which is a cross cultural process. Ott further notes that establishment of the varying factors in cultural values should be the guide to formulating an international business communication strategy of any firm because understanding the essence of cultural values in advertising has a great practical value in business communication. One of the increasingly popular and important mechanism for enhancing communication and interaction between business partners, customers and workers is the adoption of cross-cultural solutions to international business. The ability for a marketer and a consumer to effectively communicate cross-culturally is crucial for business success. This calls for the need of marketers and marketing managers to learn how to conduct business in varying cultures (Lee et al, 2014). There are numerous issues that business students and businesses must be aware of in relation to the importance of cross-cultural communication in business productivity and goal achievement. Three of these issues are; Miscommunication; especially when conveyed through advertisements, miscommunication has been one main reason for failing businesses in the international market. This is because, as shown by recent studies a change in cultural values can be identified by a change in the advertising content. It is therefore important to note that norms, principles and characteristics contained in an advertisement message are looked at from different perspectives depending on the cultural differences that exist between the culture of the organization and the culture of the market in which its operating (Farazmand & Daneefard, 2011). The failure of a firm to integrate cross-cultural factors in its marketing strategy in international markets where it conducts its business would negatively impact the company’s brand and business relationships (Cheng & Seeger, 2012). Cross cultural business communication refers to communication between consumers who have a different culture from that of the marketer with respect to a fundamental element of culture such as language, living style, religion or education. It’s a basic and important rule of cross-cultural business communication for firms to be aware, sensitive and respect the cultural variances that exist. In this regard, it is noted by Brydon and Liddel (2012) that to achieve success in cross cultural markets, firms should be aware that customers have a right to their culture hence the need to respect their values, beliefs and the right to their culture. Businesses can apply a range of strategies or approaches to overcome cross-cultural communication problems. Three of these skills involve implementation of an adaptation strategy in place of a standardization strategy. Culture is an important factor in advertising and when customers are processing a particular brand. Therefore, through understanding the cultural environment of a market, a firm is able to align its marketing with customer preferences, their purchasing behavior and patterns of product use (Guang & Trotter, 2012). The focus of businesses should not only remain in learning cultural differences for the purpose of adjusting business communication as expected by the customers, but also to note similarities in culture so as to establish opportunities. According to Ott (2011), the ability to work in a skillful manner with both the similarities and differences in culture in the global market is a very essential marketing task for businesses to implement in its international business Strategies. Organizations can achieve this through training programs so as to enable them and their workforce to understand in better way, cultural diversity and how it can be effectively managed to enhance workplace performance with regard to relationships, teamwork, customer service, productivity, community relationships and market knowledge (Brydon & Liddel, 2012). Many businesses have been successful in dealing with cross-cultural communication problems, while others have not shared this success. One that has been successful is the Volvo’s construction equipments acquisition of Samsung heavy industry’s division of construction equipment. During the initial stages after acquisition of Samsung by Volvo, there were conflicting opinions between employees from both companies with regard to some human resource policies. This led to some organizational problems at both the work place and individual levels. The interviewees from the two contrasting cultures were concerned about their cultural differences. This was underlined by the considerable amount of time spent complaining and comparing the differences that existed between the two regimes (Lee et al, 2014). However, despite the hard start, the company was able to turn fortunes by integrating both cultures to the satisfaction of employees from both ends. After a while there was positive perception by the Korean employees with regard to cultural differences. For instance, during the second interviews, most of them applauded the strength of the western work related values. This change in attitude resulted from the learning process whereby the negative perception of cultural differences by the acquired employees at the initial stages tends to change and lessen. Most Korean employees started having a positive feeling about being members of VCEK. Unlike before most of them had changed their attitudes and some of them saw this as a result of adaptability by Volvo to the Korean culture. This gave them a feeling of satisfaction and importance of their jobs; hence their input did not change but rather worked even harder (Lee et al, 2014). On the other hand, one business that has not been successful in dealing with cross- cultural communication problems is BenQ, a Taiwanese company that acquired the Siemens mobile based in Germany, following this acquisition, there were accusations from labor leaders, politicians and the media indicating that Siemens was aware that their business could not be revived when it was acquired by BenQ and that they did this intentionally to evade large payoffs that they would have paid their German workers for loosing their jobs. Employees of the Siemens mobile company felt betrayed and deceived by the German executives and therefore lost their trust in BenQ. The situation would have been easier to contemplate if there had been more effective internal communication from the executives. It is for such reasons that researchers argue that, success of an implementation is heavily dependent on effective communication as a result of varying corporate cultures and the imminent organizational changes. Failure to adhere to that tends to elevate doubt, tension, absenteeism, employees turnover, and minimizes their job commitment and satisfaction. Had BenQ incorporated proper internal communication structures as the deal kicked off, it would have reduced rumors and anxiety among the German employees (Cheng & Seeger, 2012). Due to the differing in value orientations such as varying national cultures between acquiring and acquired firms, it is inevitable to avoid clashes in culture leading to a series of integration related matters. It is therefore important for a firm to acknowledge the contributions of a diverse workforce both socially and economically, and bring out the best from the widespread skill set, perspectives and networks of today’s multicultural market place. This enables a firm to take advantage of the diversity to develop customer service and competitiveness both locally and in the international market. Acknowledging and celebrating the diversity in culture leads to happier and more productive workplaces which are beneficial to both the international market and the firm. References Brydon, K & Liddell, M. 2012. Supporting international students undertaking Australian university studies’,Social Work Education, December, vol. 31, no. 8, pp. 995 – 1011 Cheng, S. & Seeger, M. 2012. Cultural differences and communication issues in international mergers andacquisitions: a case study of BenQ,’ International Journal of Business and Social Science, February, vol. 3, no.3, pp. 116 – 127 Farazmand, F.A, & Daneefard, H. 2011. Is Religious Culture a Factor in Negotiation: A Cross-Cultural Comparison Of Iran, Taiwan And The United States. retrieved in April.2015 from http://www.freepatentsonline.com/article/Journal-International Guang, T., & Trotter,D. 2012. Key issues in cross-cultural business Communication: anthropological approaches to international business,’ African Journal of BusinessManagement, June 6th, vol. 6, no. 22, pp. 6456 – 6464 Lee, S.J., Kim, L., & Park, B. 2014. Culture clashes in cross-border mergers and acquisitions: a case study of Sweden’s VOLVO and South Korea’s SAMSUNG,’ International Business Review, October, pp. 1 – 14 Ott, U. 2011.The Influence of Cultural Activity Types on Buyer-Seller Negotiations: A Game Theoretical Framework for Intercultural Negotiations. J. Int. Negotiation, 16(3): 427-450. Read More