Culture And Its Business Implications

CULTURE AND ITS BUSINESS IMPLICATIONS Culture and Business Culture, the socially transmitted human product of interaction, is a crucial business environment component. Failures to comprehend cultural differences cause many international blunders. Cultural Elements Culture encompasses:  Knowledge and beliefs: Prevailing notions of reality and myths to scientific facts, enforced by sanctions on deviance  Ideals: Norms defining proper behavior and expectations, like folkways and mores  Preferences: Definitions of desirable vs undesirable objects of desire. Ideals needn't match preferences. Tastes vary across cultures. Defining Culture Culture refers to the part of human action repertoire and products that are socially, not genetically, transmitted. It is the complex whole including knowledge, beliefs, morals, laws, customs etc. acquired as a societal member. Culture is the "software of the mind" - learned, not innate, so changable. Key aspects of culture:  Social product meeting needs through acceptable patterns  Cumulative, handed down over generations  Meaningful due nature to symbolic  Learned during development individual  Shapes personality  Depends on society but is independent of individuals/groups Culture has material elements like man-made things and environmental alterations, and non-material elements like language, ideals, values, music etc. Cultural Organization Organization refers to the structured integration of traits, complexes and patterns comprising culture. Social structure and stratification represent cultural organization. Stratification assigns ranks, roles, limitations etc. Major institutions like economic, political, educational, religious, recreational systems reflect cultural organization and meet societal needs. Traits form complexes, which in turn constitute patterns, integrating culture meaningfully. Culture patterns represent overall organization but also major segments like religious patterns of groups. Cultural Adaptation Adaptation means fitting into the environment. It is essential for survival and happens at individual and group levels. Firms and employees must adapt to different market environments. Adaptation involves constant selection and equilibrium. Understanding adaptation patterns formulation. aids strategy Cultural Shock Environmental unfamiliarity causes cultural shock - confusion, insecurity and anxiety. Proper understanding alleviates shock. Shock-handling abilities are important for foreign assignments. Even organizations may suffer shock. Cultural Transmission Culture transmitting across generations and members makes it cumulative. Each generation inherits accumulated cultural elements, dropping some old ones. Transmission is downward, upward and horizontal between contemporaries. Language, literature, media, institutions, advertising etc. enable transmission and diffusion of cultural elements. Effective transmission eases socioeconomic change. Understanding transmission processes aids strategies like promotion. Cultural Conformity Conformity to cultural norms ensures social order. Internalizing role obligations is key. Blind conformity constrains change marketing. Analyzing conformity aids strategies. Cultural Lag Cultural lag means correlated cultural parts don't change equally rapidly. Rapid material culture changes need slower adaptive changes in nonmaterial culture. Technological changes face constraints from social inertia and conservatism. Cultural lag indicates market readiness differences for new products/ideas. Firms must identify and address lag factors. In essence, culture is a complex, pivotal environment component. Substantial analysis of cultural dynamics is vital for successful international business strategy and operations.