The rapid growth of globalization in the world has increased the attention paid to intercultural communication as a significant constituent to success in enterprises. Globalization has led to communication not only confined to communities or country levels but also to an international scale. The main intention of communication is to pass information to others. There are different types of communication such as cross-cultural in the world. It has led to an increase in the importance of effective intercultural communication to the businesses. Intercultural communication refers to the method or process sending and receiving messages between individuals or people with different cultural backgrounds considerately affects the interpretation of the verbal and non- verbal clues.
Communication is important to all organizations, and poor communication can lead to lackluster organizational accomplishments. An inclination to intercultural communication provides an entity with a competitive edge (Neuliep, 2012). Effective communication is one of the biggest challenges in the global environment. Misinterpretation of information not only arises among those who speak different languages but also when both parties speak the similar language but have different cultural backgrounds. Thus, an effective intercultural communication is significant for businesses to develop the competitive advantage in both the domestic and international market. According to Hilton (2010), businesses which can communicate cross-culturally have an advantage in the international market as they can channel their resources and time to engage in business activities rather than solving internal and external communication problems.
Intercultural communication competency enables a company to describe more succinctly to the customer’s distinctness and superiority of the company’s products (Zhang, 2014). In the international company, communication in the foreign countries is difficult than in the domestic businesses due to the differences in cultures that lead foreign companies transacting business in a whole other way (O’Neill, 2016). Effective intercultural communication is a critical necessity for enterprises as it involves dealing with customers, colleagues, employees and business partners from a different culture that is involved in attaining the company’s mission and building values for the stakeholders ((Li, 2012). Therefore, intercultural communication is significant in the business. With the effective intercultural communication required, it is difficult to achieve the success as mentioned earlier. The paper discusses some of the impediments such as different cultural values and etiquette, direct versus indirect styles of communication and different cultural norms of decision making that enterprises should overcome to attain intercultural communication in an organization (Hofstede & Minkov, 2010).
Intercultural communication is processes of conveying and receiving message between people of different cultures to create common meaning. Different cultures have different modes of interpreting information and the way of communicating. These differences are mostly related to cultural patterns, verbal and non-verbal codes and social perceptions (Bourne, 2016). The extent of variation between cultures becomes relatively large; it leads to misinterpretation and dissimilar expectations about how to communicate competently (Hyun-Jung, Katsuhiko & Reade, 2018). Thus, the communication is more difficult in intercultural communication.
Every culture has its standards and rules about different behaviors making it difficult for one to learn a culture. Communication between cultures is likely to be less effective because of the violation of the culture’s norms. People are not aware when they are violating other people culture. There are many challenges to communication across cultural backgrounds preventing effective communication (Gut, Wilczewski & Gorbaniuk, 2017).
In an international working environment, awareness and knowledge about the key impacts of cultural differences are fundamental to achieve success (Cateora, Gilly & Graham 2011). The differences significantly impact the people and profitability of international entities. China and Australia both have different techniques of communication in the business. For the Australian company to succeed, it has to overcome the following challenges that affect the company in China.
Different cultural values and etiquette
The Chinese cultural values and traditions sustain the Chinese business networks. The disappearance of the values will see the collapse of networks. The Chinese cultural values such as trust, power distance, harmony, long-term orientation, reciprocity, face, hierarchy and time are fundamental factors in the success of the business. The practice of Confucianism represents the cultural values of Chinese.
For international companies to prosper in the Chinese nation, they need to be aware of how to integrate the Chinese culture to their advantage. The culture determines how they position their products in the Chinese market (Kang, Jia & Ju, 2016)
Some of the values of the Chinese culture that are practices include:
The Chinese appear to be cold towards strangers and tend to work with those they have established a relationship. They do not trust outsiders easily, and the social network includes those they are familiar with such as family members, colleagues, and friends. Within these social networks, they establish trust and reciprocate favors to one another. The Chinese tend to do business with immediate social cycles. The trust is established to protect one’s interest and prevent opportunistic behaviors such as cheating. The business market is purely based on the trust making it one of the fundamental factors in the market. It enables the businesses to survive stress and shows greater adaptability. Mistrust is not taken lightly in the Chinese culture, and despite having quality products in the market, if the Chinese people do not trust you, they will not conduct business with your company.
In the Chinese culture, the face is a concept of central importance due to its pervasive influence in the interpersonal relations. The face concept in China represents the confidence of society in the integrity of ego’s moral character, loss of which makes it impossible for him to function properly within the community. The face also refers to the kind of prestige that is emphasized, the reputation achieved through life accomplishments, success, and ostentation. When the face is lost, the person may feel unwanted. The face is critical in the development of businesses due to the reputation and building confidence in the society. It enables people to trust and believe in your products. International companies should strive to minimize the opportunistic behaviors such as cheating to attain their reputation and develop them. Also, a good reputation in the Chinese community will enable you to to be in a position to gain favors from other members enabling you to transact business easily. Unlike in the Australian culture where favors in businesses are considered bribes, the Chinese do not consider this bribe, and it is permitted by the law. The Australian company can learn to integrate this aspect of value in their business operations to develop business wise.
The Chinese believe in the reciprocity. When one receives benefits, they are expected to reciprocate it later. Both the parties involved oblige to this concept. Transactions only take place when there is a mutual benefit to both the parties involved. The concept of reciprocity in the Chinese culture enables them to establish and sustain a network relationship with sustains the businesses. Without the reciprocity, many businesses will collapse. Additionally, communicators face challenges during their first years of employment as most of them tend to lack the required skills and talents. These challenges have forced some universities across the world to put a mechanism to ensure that all their graduates have a higher competitive advantage in the marketplace, for example, the Australians universities to provide global employability evidence of their graduates.
For the Chinese culture, the time has two dimensions that are the past-time orientation and community. It implies that, when a relationship is established, it is very difficult to break and when the relationship is broken, it is hard to reestablish it. The transactions conducted in the business are usually long-term oriented. Both the parties involved in the transactions try to reciprocate the benefits. The benefits of establishing a long-term supplier and buyer, relationship have been regarded as one of the pillars for the business development, and it is encouraged for the Australian company to follow. An emphasis on long-term relationships is also essential to the development of trust which is considered as a critical component of a business network.
The Confucian culture encouraged people to avoid competition and conflicts and to try to maintain inner harmony. The Chinese people try to avoid confrontation and adopt a non-assertive approach to conflict resolution due to the influence of Confucian teaching on preserving harmony in the traditional Chinese culture. The Chinese believe that business cannot survive without harmony as relationships are built based on well-established trust harmonious relationships.
Thus, it can be concluded that the key factors which help sustain and develop business networks overlap with the Chinese cultural values. Hence for the international organizations to conduct businesses in China, they need to be intercultural competent to achieve success. Therefore, this literature review focuses on the employability skills that comprehensive universities should embrace to equip the students for the global market. The literature reviews entails the global talent management of graduates with an emphasis on the graduate attributes that are preferred by the various employers and how multiple institutions should ensure that each graduate possesses those attributes in the employment market.
The cultural strips code the human being communication styles. According to Zhang, Chen, Liu, & Liu, (2010) the Chinese communication style is understood in the native Chinese culture. The Chinese communication style is more of the high- to low-context. A high context culture communicates with absolute messages whose meaning can only be inferred from the context. The Chinese are also regarded to be a collectivist culture. Personal interdependence, social harmony, and group interests are prioritized over personal autonomy and satisfaction of the needs of the self. The Chinese communication styles are drawn from their Confucian cultural traditions.
The Chinese communication is dominated by the indirect communication style as opposed to the direct style used in Australia. For indirect communicators, the capability of picking up nuances in communication despite not being familiar with culture or language spoken. Unlike the direct communication users who may not understand the expectations for the given communication. The direct communication style users do not realize that their styles are abrasive and threatening to others. The communication is a big challenge to the international businesses in China trying to penetrate the market. The use of two different styles of communications requires an organization to be intercultural communication competent (Laurent, 2016).
Indirectness is critical in human communication. The human interaction use indirect communication in certain circumstance. It is believed that the communication means more through the body language than what we say. According to Dong, Keyong, and Liu, Ying (2010), indirect communication is one of the elements of communication that varies most from different cultures across the world, and they might cause confusion and misunderstandings. The degree of indirect communication varies across different regions and cultures. The Australian communication style is considered to be direct, while Chinese style is considered to be more of indirect communication. The direct communicators tend to say what they think, and the message is primarily transmitted by the words they use and the interpretation of these words. The main aim of communication is receiving or providing information. The direct communication style tends to be more observed in the low context cultures such as Australia where they emphasized self-reliance, individualism, and independency (Fu & Kamenou, 2011). For the Australian company to prosper in China, they need to understand and adopt the collectivism practiced in China. It is a challenge for the company to develop an intercultural communication needed to conduct business in the Chinese market. It is evident in the use of different styles of communication and the concept of high-context and low-context communication styles (Dutta, 2011).
In the communities where the indirect communication styles are used, it is inappropriate and rude to speak directly to someone. It creates interpersonal tensions and damage of reputations that had been established earlier. Though the direct communication users may not understand what they have done wrong as it is acceptable in their cultures (Teven, Richmond, McCroskey, & McCroskey, 2010). For the direct communication style users, it is the responsibility of the users to understand what has been communicated and not be offended by the talk. These differences create a lot of tension and misunderstandings that affect the performance of the business. Hence, one is expected to be culturally aware and speak with caution to build trust and develop the relationships needed for the business to grow (Kim, 2012).
The Chinese culture emphasizes the hierarchical method of decision making. The Chinese culture believes in superiority (Conte & Novello, 2012). The final authority in any decision-making process lies with the superiors. The superiors are responsible for building social and interpersonal connections. It helps develop mutual trust, loyalty, and cooperation. All the parties involved are kept in the loop, and they are required to be less aggressive and polite. The people are expected to manage their emotions and not to display them excessively. In the business environment, they are expected to avoid physical contacts with other employees and pay attention to cultural nuances. For a foreigner, they are required to pay attention to the cultural beliefs of the Chinese to avoid problems with the prevailing hierarchy. Understanding the cultural norms help the decision making process simple and avoidance of misunderstandings, (Arasaratnam, Banerjee & Dembek, 2010).
The Chinese organizations practice the high power distance concept, where there is an acknowledgment of the authority of the managers to make decisions in the organizations. The decision is made from the top to the bottom. The employees tend to follow their leaders and not expected to agree with managers in the presence of other colleagues and should approach the manager one-to-one to present their arguments (Lin, Zhao & Zhao, 2010). The managers are responsible for better working conditions for their workers. The managers are expected to build effective relationships with the employees to make and implement decisions made (Lan Zhang, 2011). Understanding these cultural norms enable smooth operations and conducting business in China. For Australians, they encourage the subordinates to participate and give input on the decision making process. They lay more emphasize on individualistic, and one is held accountable and responsible for the decision made. The two cultures are different and being culturally aware enables the company to conduct business with ease (Khatri, 2010).
It is significant for the international managers conducting business in China to establish an understanding and acceptance of the superstitious characteristics and traditions in Chinese culture as most of the decisions and actions are based on their beliefs (Wang, 2010).
Conclusion
Due to the cultural differences between Australia and China, it is notable that for the Australian business to grow and establish them in the Chinese market, they are required to be intercultural communication competent. It will provide them with a competitive advantage over the competitors in the market as they will be able to pitch and position their products correctly in the market and not waste resources and time dealing with external and internal communication problems.
Some of the challenges faced by the international enterprises arise due to differences in the cultural values, etiquette, norms and different communication styles. International managers who can understand the cultures have an upper advantage in not only managing the subordinates but also the customers, suppliers and the company.
The Chinese cultural values emphasize building relationships through the trust which enables long-term social networks required for the business. The concept of ‘face’ is also important as it builds the confidence required for the business in the community. The Chinese also encourages harmony and reciprocity. It enables the company to be assured of future benefits and the development of long-term orientations in the business. Another aspect of the Chinese culture is the emphasize on the collectivism. Social networks build long-term relationships.
The Australian culture, on the other hand, emphasizes on individualism and being held responsible for one’s actions and decisions made. They also use the direct method of communication where one is responsible for what they say. The Australian culture also emphasizes on full participation in the decision-making process. They also do not believe in reciprocity, and they emphasize more on the products, and the best quality is what is more desired. Despite earlier benefits from them, they do not expect the other party to reciprocate the same.
From work, it is evident that there is a huge cultural disparity between the two cultures and for the Australian company to achieve its mission and goals in China, they need to be aware and acknowledge the Chinese values, beliefs, and norms.
Finally, since it is beneficial to both China and Australia Company to conduct business in China, it is important for both the parties to be more aware of the surroundings and the cultural differences between the two countries. Both the countries should develop an intercultural competency in the communication process. The Chinese should not be so rigid to the Australian company due to the difference in the culture and communication styles. On the other hand, the Australian company needs to be more cautious in their communication styles and should strive to avoid misunderstandings. More attention should be paid to the importance and significance of the business to the Chinese economy and not on the cultural differences that may arise. The following recommendations are relevant for the international companies to conduct business in the Chinese market:
It is important to understand the Chinese cultural dimensions as it would help explain the different behaviors of the Chinese people. It also helps create awareness and acknowledgment of the culture making it easier for the foreigners to conduct business and understand the business environment they are participating in.
As it is evident from the challenges mentioned above, the Chinese takes their time to build trust and create a long-term relationship to conduct business with other parties. Hence, for a foreign company to succeed, they need to be patient with the Chinese people, understand their needs and build trust. Ones the trust is formed, they would conduct business transactions with you for a long time.
The Chinese use the indirect communication style in the exchange of information process. Understanding the business environment would assist one to establish the trust needed. Being aware of their culture and environment enables one understands how they conduct businesses and what is needed to gain their trust. Also teaching the Chinese language in the western countries would see a long-term solution to international trade and cultural awareness ( Zhou, 2011). The trust is important as it ensures long-term business network. It also enables a manager to know how to handle Chinese employees
In summary, being intercultural competent and understanding the business environment of the Chinese market would enable an international manager to achieve success in the businesses established. It is also notable that communication is an important factor in the growth of an organization.
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