Negotiation Style in Brazil and the United States - Essay Example

Differences in Negotiation Style between Brazil and United s Table of Contents Differences in Negotiation Style between Brazil and United s1 Table of Contents 2 Introduction 3 Negotiation Style in Brazil 4 Negotiation Style in the United States 5 Conclusion 8 References 9 Introduction Brazil comprises of heterogeneous businesses which include migrants from several cultures such as Germans, Portuguese, Polish, Japanese and Arabs among others. Brazil generally follows group oriented culture. People of Brazil often build trusting personal relationship and strong bonds prior to making any deal. The residents of Brazil usually want to do business only with the people they feel they can trust. The US negotiator relies on individualist value. Their negotiation approach is competitive and they try to distinguish any issue universally. The people of the US generally concentrate on the areas of disagreement in any negotiation and focus on one problem at a time. This study intends to identify such differences in the negotiation style between Brazil and the US (LeBaron, “Culture-Based Negotiation Styles”). Negotiation Style in Brazil Leveraging bond is vital factor in Brazilian negotiation. Brazilians often employ distributive and eventuality bargaining. They anticipate long term commitments from their business partners and focus mostly on long–term benefits. They are very competitive with regard to negotiation and at times become very aggressive. Even when personal bond is strong Brazilian people at times become unenthusiastic to share information frankly. They believe right information can create bargaining advantages and sometimes provide irrelevant information repeatedly. Brazilian residents anticipate negotiation to be deliberate and prolonged. In negotiation process they generally dislike people who try to be in hurry. They think rushing in negotiation process can produce bad results and may be viewed as offensive. Negotiation is about bargaining, information gathering and decision making, thus it takes considerable time. Thus, Brazilian people stay patient, control their sensation and acknowledge the expected delays during negotiation. This behavior at times signifies an attempt to create time pressure to obtain recognition, and simply replicate slow decision process across the country. Brazilian people pursue holistic approach while negotiation. They frequently skip back and forth between various discussed topics rather than concentrate on the problem in order. For certain countries, this negotiation style is annoying, irritating and at times very confusing. Brazilians are used to hard bargaining and they are often very extensive. They use deceptive techniques in bargaining process. At times Brazilian people use false information and ‘fake non–verbal messages’ and pretend to be disinterested in whole negotiation or in single concession. Brazilian people even make false demand as well as concessions. For taking bargaining advantage Brazilian people may try other attempts in order to mislead the person who calls for negotiation. For gaining advantage in negotiation in Brazil one must verify information from local channels otherwise the business relationship will be harmed. In the negotiation process, Brazilian people often use pressure methods such as giving final offers, showing inflexibility or nibbling, but the final offers may not be absolute. The silent behavior of Brazilian people represents rejection of any offer or they intend to obtain further concessions. If someone tries to put time pressure or make expired offer it may result in failure in long–term relationship and termination of negotiation. Their negotiation at times appears as adversarial and forceful. Brazilian people may confront threat and warning in negotiation by displaying anger openly. They often use protective techniques while negotiations such as changing the topic, asking direct questions, giving assurance and keeping inflexible position. Brazilian people don’t hesitate in taking bribe. It is quite common in private or public sectors. They at times consider bribe as a gift. Brazilians use written statement in negotiation because hey feel oral understandings are not always trustworthy or reliable. They use contracts as it is dependable, and the agreed terms are viewed as compulsory (Katz, “Negotiating International Business - Brazil”). Negotiation Style in the United States Negotiation in the US relies on individualist values, and the US people act in an autonomous, sovereign and self–reliant manner. The US people are very impatient which affect their negotiating style. They try to take advantage of every opportunity. Their differences in perception at times cause misunderstanding during any negotiation (McDonald, “U.S. Negotiating Style”). The US people use many different techniques for negotiation, for example at times they turn a client against his lawyer. The US negotiation is popular for directness. Even if they say no in any negotiation they offer to suggest an alternative way or a compromise arrangement where both party will be satisfied. At times they reject any proposal if they are unable to understand it. The US people at times employ hard–line approach for negotiation. They are very doubtful to the reality and try to keep negotiating. The US people don’t hesitate to reject negotiation and at times walkout from meeting while negotiation process is going on. Collectivism and individualism are other two characteristics of the US negotiation style. People of the US are direct to resolve every uncertainty and issues of negotiation. They take linear and task–based approach to negotiation and often seek to establish foundation of facts of negotiation topic. They identify the various issues of negotiation and proceed quickly to reduce the risk and maximize the goals of those identified issues. The US people understand the cross cultural differences and accordingly they position themselves as arbitrator and mediator in negotiation process (Louri, “Negotiation American Style”). The majority of the US negotiators are smart, hardworking, adversarial and legalistic. They are much concerned with detailed knowledge about the subject and less concerned in general principles. The US people follow win–lose concept in negotiation. When negotiation reaches to a conclusion they consider it as final and not attempt to renegotiate again. The US people are known as being friendly and this trait helps them to build a sense of trust among other negotiator. They possess good sense of humor which is extremely essential to solve difficulties in negotiation process. The US negotiation system is fair and honest and is known all throughout international society. The US people embrace more authority while making a judgment in negotiation. They often make judgment on the spot or at convention meeting. They are specialists in subject matter and often have answer for any substantive questions at their fingertips. This intelligence enables the US people to develop positive image. The US people are high risk taker. In negotiations, they often introduce new and innovative ideas or provide suggestions to cooperation. The US people are very convenient and realistic in negotiation. They try to foresee every issue that might occur during negotiation and accordingly develop answer to that predictable situation (McDonald, “U.S. Negotiating Style”). Conclusion Brazil and the United States both have their own preference and style of negotiation. It is found that the Brazilians are more collectivistic than the Unites States. They express a concern for the outcomes of negotiation. On the other hand, the ‘United States’ reflect a concern for their own outcome in negotiation. In case of any disagreement between in-group members, Brazilians try to make adjustment to avoid the argument but United States treat in-group or out-group members equally. References Katz, Lothar. “Negotiating International Business-Brazil”. April 16, 2011. Global Negotiation Resources, 2008. LeBaron, Michelle. “Culture-Based Negotiation Styles”. April 16, 2011. The Beyond Intractability Project, 2003. Louri, Jonathan M. “Negotiation American Style”. April 16, 2011. Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge LLP, 2002. McDonald, John W. “U.S. Negotiating Style”. April 16, 2011. American Diplomacy, 2001. Read More