Organisational Culture: Creating the Influence Needed for Strategic Success - Assignment Example

Question 3 There are two forms of communication that is known to humans: that is verbal and nonverbal communication. In some studies verbal communication has been described as communication that is aided by the voice as the main channel of communication. This study also gives the fact that verbal and nonverbal communication forms can be used together for communication. However the purpose of nonverbal communication is to lay emphasis on what has been communicated verbally (Butterfield, 3). In (Ritchie, 275), the discussion that is advanced is based on the fact that verbal communication forms can exist without nonverbal communication. It cites the example of written communication as one form that does not necessarily include nonverbal communication. In the same study, the three criticism of nonverbal communication are given. It states that if these nonverbal communications can be translated into a higher form which is verbal then they are not explicit and are considered primitive (Krizan, 22). In fact their inadequacy makes them unrecognizable. The second argument is that these nonverbal forms are accompaniments to the verbal communication; they are a repetition of what has been expressed through speaking (Ritchie, 277). And lastly that observation or research has shown that infants have a higher use of nonverbal communication that slowly dwindles as they learn to speak. As such, nonverbal communication is therefore just an early precursor of verbal forms that occur later. However, the study asserts that these notions despite containing a level of truth are not to be taken in their entirety. First it gives the example of facial variations as a means of judging the emotions and reactions of individuals when communicating. It states that facial expression can show an individual mood and a number of researches have proved this to be true. Raising an eyebrow for instance is depicted as a sign of surprise in an individual (Ritchie, 278). Due to these observations made in research, it is important to recognize the necessity of both verbal and nonverbal forms of communication. Language is the predominant form of verbal communication. A language consists of several symbols with meaning arbitrarily assigned to them. The human language has a number of sounds that can be combined in many different ways to provide meaning. This characteristic of human language of having the potential to be formulated in many different ways and still make meaning makes it versatile and efficient (Ritchie, 19). Different cultures and traditions in the world have different languages that they use for purposes of verbal communication. Moreover, the signs and symbols that are used for nonverbal communication also vary significantly. Examples of major class languages include French, Arabic, English, German, Japanese Spanish and Hindi. Due to globalization and integration of culture, the world has developed in to a virtual village of many. One of the major results of this is international trade or cross border trade that will involve two or more individual that are of different language and culture. The most important thing is that the individuals must communicate and reach an amicable agreement in the business. Communication is therefore the only way that interaction whether social or formal business interactions can be achieved. It is absolutely essential for an individual doing business in another country to understand the language of the same. This is because the basic business operations like everyday transactions and negotiations to the most complex operations like management will involve a level of communication. As such a business man must stay up to speed with the language of the land. It is essential to realize that the language here includes both verbal and nonverbal communication. In (Krizan, 409), the aspect of nonverbal communication is emphasized more than even the verbal communication. This is mainly because nonverbal communication is spontaneous and difficult to control than verbal communication. It gives an illustration of a satisfied customer just smiling without realizing that they are smiling. Similarly it is difficult to hide your nonverbal communication while you are in pain (Big Think). As such it is essential for the business persons to pay keen attention to both the verbal and nonverbal aspects of the language or country that they have to do business in. Public relation is another important reason why an individual should strive to learn the language of the land in which they do business. Every business or legal entities that operate within a jurisdiction has the social responsibility toward the people of the land, supplies and customers and even the government. The only possible modality is to communicate freely with these entities and be in compliance with the set regulation. To maintain a positive image or just to show a positive image, a detailed communication plan is necessary. It is possible to achieve it, if someone understands the language of the land (Krizan, 19). Technological advances and change within the firm will also require an individual managing a firm to equip themselves with the much necessary communication tool. This is due to the fact that such changes do affect the different procedure of work or might require a downsizing of a team in the firm. In this case, the manager or the owner at a business entity needs to be well endowed with the language. The main reason here is that they will be required to explain the situation to the works perfectly to avoid loses. Despite the importance of the possession of the language of a different country for business purposes, it is essential to admit that language is quiet difficult to acquire. Many challenges arise in this process that will present a level of difficulty. If a human being was not taught any language, the person would not have any language and as such cannot speak any language (Ritchie, 22). Due to this language is a teachable and that one has to learn it over time before speaking the same language. The critical age that one has to learn this language is between the age of zero and six years. Beyond this age bracket, the ability to acquire a new language dwindles with time. At an age where someone has the ability to manage a business this age is long gone and the difficulty is mounted. For example English language is one of the link languages of doing business in the world today. One would be able to speak it fluently if they were born in England or they lived there. However, as demonstrated by the incredible boy who spoke the language in twenty four accents (Top of Form Bottom of Form Trusuneye 92). Adults who are involved in studying language as a subsequent language must have a different accent from the original English accent. Secondly, language is bound in culture. As depicted by the video of the elephant blessing people in Pondicherry (RAMHKG), the Hindus have a specific name for specific objects that have value or meaning in their traditions and culture. This is the reason a vocabulary word exists for that name or event. As such, in order for a person to effectively learn a language, they must learn to have some value for the traditional objects found in that language. In conclusion, culture and language are intertwined. In order for one to do business successfully in a foreign country, they must have an understanding of the most dominant languages that are spoken in the country. This has an implication that the person has to understand the culture of the country or the people. An understanding of the culture is pegged on the fact that culture and language are closely linked (Nakata, 146). Question 4 The cultural dimensions theory developed by Hofstede was meant to describe the effects of societal culture on an individual member of the same society. This study was necessitated by the desire by Hofstede to understand the effect of culture on the individual’s workplace performance and actions that the individuals take. In managing personnel with multiple cultures across several borders, it is important to understand the nature of the work force and the effect that the diversity will have on the organization. The emergence of globalization has caused different individuals from diverse backgrounds to cross borders and work together (Wild and Kenneth, 41). It also implies that trade, redistribution of resources and infusion of norms and culture has to take place. In this regard, an important issue is not the diminishing of the borders but the reaction of individuals towards each other within the organization. The model presents four dimensions. The first dimension is individualism versus collectivism. In this aspect the research focused mainly on the interpersonal relationships within a workplace with multicultural personnel. Here, the research concluded that the actions of individuals were guided by personal interests, sense of duty, loyalty and group participation. Next the research looks at the dimension of power distance; this was to determine the level of inequality that existed within an organization. Many individuals did not find a problem with social stratification. However a larger power distance showed that there was inequality. Uncertainty avoidance within the personnel of IBM is a dimension that is also highlighted (Hofstede, Geert, Gert and Michael, 34). Here the central focus was the need to have consistency even in the future. Persons that liked to avoid uncertainty in the future were more rigid and loved structured systems and rules. Their counterparts had less written rules and liked variability. Masculinity versus femininity is also discussed. In this case the division of roles and responsibilities is the main aim. Masculine individuals are assertive and strong competitors who like success. Feminist on the other hand prefer a high quality of life, solidarity and interpersonal relations. Long term orientation, the fifth dimension, was later added. In this dimension, championed for Confucian dynamism where respect for social obligation, traditions and planning for the future by an organization was expected (Hofstede 29). However, this research has a number of significant flaws. First the assumption that a nation can have a single culture is wrong. Switzerland, for instance, has for distinctive cultures and as such the findings that pegged nations to a particular behavior are not accurate. Secondly there could have been some bias in his findings due to the fact that only one firm was used (Sycara et al. 46). The analysis of culture as done by Hofstede in this comparative research will provide business leaders and managers to assign individuals accordingly in teams and responsibility (McDonald and Fred, 178). People who are individualistic can be assigned personal roles while others who are sociable can work in teams. This understanding of culture will help improve the process of delegation of duty and improve business. Culture is also closely linked to religion. There are groups whose tradition is closely linked to their tradition. An example of this group is the Hindus that take a pilgrimage every 12 years (Puri, Yogananda). Therefore the firm should put in place a balanced timetable that will ensure that leaves are well managed and that at no point that the organization is understaffed. This is while considering that in these cultures, there are some elements of a cultural value that must be followed. This might have an impact of interrupting the normal working operations or activities of the organization. The cultural dimensions developed by Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner is somewhat similar to the initial one developed by Hofstede in many perspectives (Black 21). First it describes a dimension refers to as universalism versus particularism. In this concept, the idea of universalism propagates the belief that beliefs are universal and it is possible to implement them anywhere in the world, without a modification. In particularism, ideas and belief are unique to a situation and the central focus is on making people suit a particular situation. Emotional versus neutral is the other dimension discussed by this study. In emotional perspective, people openly display their feelings but in neutral cultures, there is a considerable restrain on the display of talk, laughter and other feelings. It also looks at another dimension referred to as specific versus the diffuse cultures. In this case, individuals with diffuse cultures have an introverted personality and guard their privacy with zeal. Public and private space is similar and the way an individual protects their public space is exactly the same as they do to their private space. There is no difference within work or private life. In specific culture, the there is a variation of public and private space. Despite the private space being closely guarded, a few friends can still access it. The public space in this culture is fairly open and can be accessed by a specific group of people. The fourth dimension discussed in this model is known as achievement versus ascription (Wild and Kenneth, 44). In the achievement cultures, people are awarded social status based on their performance. As such the better an individual performs the better the status given. In ascription cultures, status is awarded based on the individual’s characteristics. As such one could be awarded a status based on social ties, gender or age. The time approach is another dimension in this model. In this case, cultures are either divided into either sequential or synchronous approach. Synchronous approach individuals are in a position to perform more than one task at a time. In the sequential approach to culture the performance of tasks is one thing at a time. Other dimensions under this approach are cultural clusters where there is a general belief that groups of countries share a common culture and are similar in nature (Wild and Kenneth, 38). This aspect could hold a level of truth. The reason behind this is that the commonality of borders would lead to the sharing of some cultural beliefs through actions like intermarriage and common events. The final dimension in this model is the environmental dimension, which two perspectives are defined. Inner-directed cultures that believe in controlling destinations and outer-directed cultures that believe in letting things come out naturally. From the description of this culture models; one can single out a number of people management issues that can make an organization better (Beugré, 59). It is essential to take note of the fact that culture and personality are closely linked. The reason is because cultural systems dictate societal value like discipline, kinship religion and even work. In this model of cultural analysis, the central focus of the management identifying cultures that fit within their type of work (Black, 17). For companies that favor sequential type of labor activities, this research would help in identifying a culture people whose actions are planned in a sequential order. Identification of such people leads to great efficiency within international organizations. In conclusion the cultural models that are developed by Hofstede and the other model developed by Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner are crucial in understanding interpersonal and work place relations in multicultural organizations. Both these two models aim at determining if culture has any link with the behavior of individuals in an organization. In the event that research can reveal that there is a link between these two events then management of multicultural organizations become fairly simple. However, the generalization of the fact that a nation state contains a single homogenous culture is not is still a subject of research that can be advanced researchers in the field of culture and organizational management. Works cited Top of Form Bottom of Form Top of Form Bottom of Form Top of Form Bottom of Form Beugré, Constant D. A Cultural Perspective of Organizational Justice. Charlotte: Information Age Pub, 2007. Print. Big, Think. “How to catch a liar. (Assuming we want to)” You Tube. Web. 2013 Black, Richard J. Organisational Culture: Creating the Influence Needed for Strategic Success. United States: Dissertation.com, 2003. Print. Butterfield, Jeff. Verbal Communication. United States of America: Course Technology, 2010. Print. Hofstede, Geert H, Gert J. Hofstede, and Michael Minkov. Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind : Intercultural Cooperation and Its Importance for Survival. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. Print. Krizan, A C. Business Communication. Mason, OH: Thomson -Western, 2006. Print. McDonald, Frank, and Fred Burton. International Business. London [u.a.: Thomson Learning, 2002. Print. Nakata, Cheryl. Beyond Hofstede: Culture Frameworks for Global Marketing and Management. Basingstoke [England: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009. Print. Puri, Yogananda. "Kumbh Mela-worlds Biggest Festival-national Geographic." You Tube. Web. 1 Mar. 2015. . RAMHKG. "Elephant Blessing in Pondicherry." You Tube. Web. 1 Mar. 2015. . Ritchie, de K. M. The Relationship of Verbal and Nonverbal Communication. , 1980. Print. Sycara, Katia, Michele J. Gelfand, and Allison Abbe. Models for Intercultural Collaboration and Negotiation. Dordrecht: Springer, 2013. Internet resource. Trusuneye 92. "The English Language in 24 Accents." You Tube. Web. 1 Mar. 2015. . Wild, John, and Kenneth Wild. Inteernational Business, The Challenges of Globalization. New York: Pearson, 2012. Print. Read More