文化差异对国际商务谈判的影响--商务英语本科学位论文

中国某某某某学校学生毕业设计(论文)

题目：文化差异对国际商务谈判的影响

姓名：0000000

班级、学号：000000000

系(部) ：经济管理系

专业：商务英语

指导教师：00000000

开题时间：2009-4-10

完成时间：2009-11-1

2009 年11 月1 日

目录

课题文化差异对国际商务谈判的影响一、课题(论文)提纲

二、内容摘要

三、参考文献

Impacts of Cultural Difference on International Business

Negotiation

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Abstract:

Since China entered the world Trade Organization successfully. The international trade and foreign relations of our country have become more and more frequent, and it’s the hot spots of the World’s technological cooperation and investment. Under the condition of large-scale transnational economic activities, the function of international business negotiation has become increasingly evident. Business negotiations under different cultural conditions can be called cultural negotiations. Nowadays with the world’s economic globalization and frequent business contracts. It seems that cultural differences among the countries are very important; otherwise it could cause unnecessary misunderstanding, and even affect the result of the business negotiations. This means it is very important to know the different culture in different countries and the ways to avoid the culture conflicts in the international business negotiations. The article not only analyzes the cause and influence of cultural differences in negotiation process but also introduce the proceedings we should pay attention to during negotiating. In the end, the thesis also tells us how to deal with the problems appeared in the negotiations. Such a stand point is emphasized: in the business negotiation between different

countries, negotiators should accept the other party’s culture, and try to make them to be accepted. And then make a correct evaluation with the help of valid communication and discover their real benefits between them. Besides we should know their different cultural backgrounds clearly and try to accept the cultural differences as possible as we can. It is very crucial to the success of business negotiation.

Key words: culture; cultural difference; business negotiation; impact.

0. Introduction

Business negotiation as a special form of interpersonal communication will inevitably involved different geographical, ethic, social and cultural exchanges and contacts, then, it will lead to the intercultural negotiation. In the intercultural negotiations, the different geographical, ethnic, cultural differences will inevitably affect the thinking of the negotiators, negotiation style and behavior can also affect the whole process of negotiation. Therefore, engaging in business activities, especially cross-border business activities, we need to understand and grasp the link between different cultures. When preparing for or organizing a negotiation, we also need to understand more about the impact of cultural differences on negotiations. Only by facing the impact positively can we achieve the desired objectives.

1. The cause of cultural differences’ appearance

There are many reasons causing the World’s cultural diversity, all in all,

the main source of cultural differences are in the following aspects:

1.1 Geographical differences

Geographical difference means that due to the difference between geographical environment, the different level of economy and traditional practice in different geographical regions will affect their behavior. For example, Western and American people think that Christmas is very important, but people live in country near the equator may not have the concept of Christmas, because there is no snow all the year around. However, the best modification of Christmas is the Christmas snow.

1.2 Ethnic differences

Ethnic’s differences means that different ethnic groups in the development of long-term process, formed their own language, customs and habits. They have their own characteristics on food, clothing, festivals, accommodation, rituals, manners, and culture. Like China has 56 ethnic minorities, they have different life style and manners.

1.3 Political differences

Political differences are due to the political system and political relations. It plays a role to unify and standardize people’s behavior, so people in all countries may have different concepts of policy.

1.4 Economic differences

Economic discrepancy is a kind of cultural differences which is caused by economic factors. For example, in developed countries people live a

happier life .they pay more attention to a higher quality of life. But in the Third World, people are more concerned about food and clothing, because of the backward economy.

2. Cultural factors on international business negotiation.

Cultural factors play an important role in international business negotiation. The following factors are most important in this aspect.

2.1 View of time

Time has different meaning and importance in different cultures. While “time is money” in the Western culture, it has value attached to it in many cultures in Asia, Latin America and Africa. This influences the pace of negotiations and punctually in meetings. For negotiators, it is important to have advance information on the opposite party’s behavior regarding time. This will help them to plan their time as well as to have practice and not to get irrigated during the process.

2.2 Pattern of communication

Different cultures have different communication patterns. They are related to culture as well as the contextual background of languages. Some languages are traditionally vague and people from outside find it difficult to communicate each people with such language backgrounds. Indicators such as: “may be, perhaps, rather, I’ll consider it and inconvenient”are some examples of ambiguity in international communication and conversation. “May be”and “inconvenient”can

mean impossible in some cultures. In some cultures even “yes”means “may be” and “perhaps” means “no”. Some languages, for example, some Arabic and some Asian languages, traditionally contain exaggerations, fantastic metaphors and repetition, which can be misleading for foreigners. It is, therefore, important to be aware of these aspects and read between the lines. This is even more important in non-verbal communication, the personal space, handshakes, ways of greeting each other, communication between males and females, sign of irritation, etc, are important aspect of communication patterns, and knowledge of these can improve the negotiation process and effectiveness.

2.3 Form of agreement

In most cultures, only written agreements stamp a deal. It seems to be the best way to secure our interests in case of any unexpected circumstances. The “deal”may be the contract itself or the relationship between the parties, like in China, where a contract is likely to be in the form of general principles. In this case, if any unexpected circumstances arise, parties prefer to focus on the relationship than the contract to solve the problem

2.4 Emphasis on personal relations

Different cultures give different importance to personal relations in negotiations. In many countries in the West, the negotiators are more concerned about the issue at hand and the future relationship between the

organizations, irrespective of who is representing these firms, while in some cultures, the personality of the negotiator is more important than the organization he is representing or the importance of an issue. So the emphasis on personal relations can be different in different negotiations.

3. The importance of cultural difference on international business negotiation.

In negotiation practice, many negotiators do not pay attention to cultural difference; they don’t have the awareness of cultural significance. For foreign cultural negotiation parties, many negotiators might have noticed t hat the other side’s negotiation style are “confused”or “different”, but they don’t think it is important during negotiations. If some people do international negotiations, they will think that the most important of negotiations are facts and data. They believe that facts and data are common all around the world. Similarly, some negotiators go to a foreign country for negotiation, in order to maintain harmonious relations with each other, they should notice the similarities of both sides instead of ignoring the differences. Let’s look at an example.

In 1992, the Chinese delegation of business negotiation went to the United States to purchase about 30 million U.S. dollars of chemical equipment and technology. Naturally, Americans want to show their hospitality, they give a small souvenir for each of the delegation, and the packing of the souvenir is very particular, the red color means

well-developed. But when the delegation opens the boxes face to face according to the American custom, everyone looks unnatural-there’s a golf cap inside, unfortunately, it’s green! So finally, they didn’t reach an agreement on the negotiation. Thus, Americans failed the negotiation because of their misunderstanding of Chinese culture.

From the above example, we can conclude that: In business negotiations, if you do not pay attention to each other’s cultural differences that can easily lead to the failure of the negotiation.

4. Pay more attention to the process of international business negotiation

4.1 Pre-negotiation

Before we start the negotiation in foreign countries, the most important thing is to do pre-negotiation. When parties begin with the first contract with each other, then, they begin to understand each other’s needs and evaluate the benefits of entering into the process of negotiation.

The parties gather as much relevant information as possible on each other, the operating environment, the involvement of other third parties, influences, competitors and the infrastructure. Parties need to be aware that their relative power relationship can be altered at any time by such events as the repositioning of competitors or movements in exchange rates.

The pre-negotiation is often more important than the formal negotiations

in an international business relationship. Social, informal relationships developed between negotiators at this stage can be of great help. Trust and confidence gained from this relationship can increase the chances of agreement. One method of establishing such contacts is to invite individuals from the other side to visit your country in an attempt to develop trust. The parties need to understand the interests and fears of the other party.

Parties for international business negotiations should have an initial strategy, which is dependent on the information attained so far and the expectations. The negotiators should list the problem and issues, especially the conflicting issues and form strategies and choices for all possible solutions they or the other party could suggested. It is, accordingly, important to have several solutions for each problem or issue.

4.2 Face-to-face negotiation

When there’s a problem arising during the negotiation process, the parties should also be aware that each side views the situation, the matter under discussion, in its own way. Not only that it has a different perception of the process but it has different expectations for the outcome. It is therefore, important to start face-to-face negotiation with an open mind and to have several alternatives.

Experience shows that the negotiation process is controlled by the partner

who arranges the agenda, thus putting the other party on the defensive. However, the agenda may reveal the preparing party’s position in advance and hence permit the other side to prepare its own counter-augments on conflicting issues. Some negotiators prefer to start negotiations by discussing and agreeing on broad principles for the relationship. Another way to ensure success at this stage is to negotiate the contract step by step-discussing both conflicting issues and those of common interest. In particular, an initial discussion on items of common interest can create an atmosphere of cooperation between parties. The choice of strategy depends upon the customer or supplier with whom one is negotiating. It is helpful to anticipate the other party’s strategy as early as possible and then to choose a strategy to match or complement it.

It is also common that the party perceiving greater relative power makes fewer concessions and that the weaker party yields more, often to create a better atmosphere. Maintaining flexibility between parties and issues is of great importance in this stage. These usually occur after both parties have tested the level of commitment and have sent and received signals to move on. For example, an entry into a huge protected market may be strategically more important than obtaining handsome profits on the present deal.

4.3 Post-negotiation

After all the terms agreed and the contract is ready to be signed.

Discussion should be summarized after negotiations to avoid unnecessary delays in the process. Both parties should read the terms agreed-upon after concessions are exchanged and discussions are held, by keeping minutes of meetings, for example. This will help test the understanding of the contract, as parties may have perceived issues or discussions differently. This not only applies to writing and signing the contract but also to its implementation. Trouble may arise later during the implementation of the contract if parties are too eager to reach an agreement and do not pay enough attention to details. The best way to solve this problem is to confirm that both sides thoroughly understand what they have agreed upon before leaving the negotiating table.

5 Coping with culture

International business comprises a large increasing portion of the world’s total trade. The growth of international business has accelerated faster than previously recorded, outstripping domestic business. International markets, it is believed, offer companies opportunities to market their products and services on a worldwide scale and reap the benefits of the particularly high stakes involved .In pursuing global opportunities, managers are increasingly engaging themselves in international business negotiations. But, how can we survive in this global playing field, and what can we do to run our businesses more effectively? Nowadays, businesses of all sizes search for suppliers and customers on a global

level. International competition, foreign clients and suppliers may become a danger, but they may also create huge opportunities to develop our business. The increasing global business environment requires managers to approach the negotiation process from the global businessman's point of view. This approach includes aspects which are usually unimportant in domestic negotiations. Some of the components of a cross-cultural negotiation process are more complex and difficult, but they will increase our success in avoiding barriers and failures in the international business area. So we need to cope with the cultural difference. What approach is more efficient and proper when dealing with Japanese, Americans or Germans?

5.1 L earn to other side’s culture

It is very important to know the common basic components of our counterparty’s culture. It’s a sign of respect and a way to build trust and credibility as well as advantage that can help us to choose the right strategies and tactics during the negotiation. Of course, it's impossible to learn another culture in detail when we learn at short notice that a foreign dele gation is visiting in two weeks’ time. The best we can do is to try to identify principal influences that the foreign culture may have on making the deal

5.2 Don’t stereotype

Making assumptions can create distrust and barriers that expose both your