Individualism In International Business

1.0 Introduction

In the modern world today, international organizations face many challenges when it comes to business communication in the workplace. Every nation and organization has their very own political, economic and social environment. Different countries will have different outlook towards the business. Managers, who want to do business with their partners, find it difficult due to cultural differences leads to implications for business operation. National culture certainly has a great influence on business culture. Therefore, in order for international organizations to build successful business relationships with the members of other cultures, organizations should pay attention to cultural dimensions and be more culturally sensitive.

This is the degree to which individuals are incorporated into groups. In this dimension individualism is the complete opposite of collectivism. Countries that are individualistic are more interested in the benefit of oneself where self-reliance explains their traits. “I” is a word for them while collectivism countries use “We” as their word. Asians are generally collectivists, while westerners are usually individualists. Countries that are collectivist believe in harmony and a good relationship with others. Collectivists usually value their relationships over any of their task while individualist focuses on tasks more than their relationships (Mindtools, 2014). As an American in Razorfish, a Shanghai-based media firm, Alterman had to understand the importance of building relationships, for example having lunches or socializing after work with the boss, which does not happen in America (Seligson, 2009). They give importance to group achievements and group rights unlike individualistic countries where people value their privacy. Japanese are treated as a part of a bigger collective, which has more importance compared to an individual's personal development (Tateisi, 2014). Employees would prefer to work in teams and be promoted as a

This aspect describes sexes and their roles and evaluates male and female values. Countries that have higher masculinity are mostly task oriented and they always strive to achieve results while countries that have lower masculinity are more often affectionate (Mindtools, 2014). The business culture of Americans is results-based, therefore they will work against deadlines and change the way they approach work when they feel that they cannot meet them. For Indians and Vietnamese, they have more reserved approaches as the way work is done is more important as the end-result and time constraints. These countries are more competitive compared to countries that have lower masculinity and they look for fast achievements. In America, employees focus on getting work done quickly. However, in China, employees are encouraged to listen and be more patient in completing tasks. As American company expands to China, it has to understand the culture in China. China is a masculine society and it is vital to understand that the society is driven by competition. Hence, in the workplace, presence of competition will be positive to the company as a whole as it will drive employees to do better. Otherwise, performance could become under expectation as people are success driven. Team competition in the company would actually benefit its people. Besides that, countries that are high in masculinity are believed to be always aiming to