Telephone shock
An
abrupt response to a simple telephone greeting changed the [direction]
of Gayle Cotton’s career.
When Cotton began her career working at the United Nations in Geneva in
the early-90s, she answered a routine phone call with a polite, “Hello,
how are you?”
Surprisingly, the person on the other end of the call was annoyed.
“He answered, ‘That’s none of your business. Now what I want to talk
about is…’,” recalled Cotton, now president of Circles Of Excellence
Inc, which offers training and coaching programs to global clients in the US and Europe.
It was nothing personal; the caller, a Swiss German, wanted to get down to business, and the personal inquiry was irrelevant. She began answering her phone using just her last name — emulating her colleagues in Geneva. This experience and some similar interactions led Cotton, author of Say Anything to Anyone, Anywhere, to her current career.
In an increasingly globalized workplace, where team members might be spread across continents and clients spread around the world, communicating proper cultural norms can be the difference between working well together and securing a deal — or watching things crumble.
Crossed wires, burned ground
Many professionals err in assuming it is enough to speak a common language when speaking with people from other cultures. In fact, spoken language is only 30% of communication, says Denis LeClerc, professor of cross-cultural communication at Thunderbird School of Global Management in Arizona, USA.How people say things, how they listen, body language and how they
perceive authority all influence interactions. Not recognizing those
vital factors can result in crossed wires and serious miscommunication.
“There are companies that have been increasing employee
diversity for years,hiring people from different countries” said LeClerc, but they then reach a
point in that diversity that there is no financial return because those
teams are absolutely dysfunctional.”
LeClerc says he finds people should focus on do’s and don’ts, such as not
showing the soles of your shoes in Muslim country and how to shake
hands. Those behaviors, he says, are easy enough to teach.
But communicating seamlessly across cultures requires a “chameleon”
approach, he said. That requires being ok with changing who you are and
how you think from a cultural standpoint — and also being comfortable
with being a little uncomfortable.
Here is what you should know to effectively communicate across certain cultures. Keep in mind that cultural traits should never be taken as absolutes. LeClerc always cautions his students against making cultural assumptions. While particular communication style may be fairly common in a certain culture, individual people, businesses and industries also have their own styles. (Thinkstock)
Asian countries: Indirect and hierarchical
Respect
and honor are prevailing themes that influence typical Asian
communication style. This quickly becomes apparent in speaking patterns.
There is a strong emphasis on listening, and many Asian business
people, following what they are taught growing up, will wait for a
sentence to end before responding, then also wait for a couple of seconds
of silence before talking.
“You can imagine the outcome on a global team for those individuals who
are waiting for silence that never comes,” said Erin Meyer, a professor
at INSEAD business school in Fontainbleau, France, who specializes in
cross-cultural management. Business people from Asian countries tend to be stronger negotiators compared with managers from Western cultures, said Cotton. That’s because they wait to speak — which often throws off the people on the other side of the table — and they reveal very little with facial expressions and body language.
“They will pause and be quiet and honor us to show what we have said is important to them and that they are reflecting on it,” said Cotton, who travels internationally frequent from her US base in Dallas. “They don’t want to respond hastily, and [others] often don't get that.” Asian cultures also are the least direct cultures in the world, said Meyer, author of The Culture Map.
However, the level varies. For instance, Indians are much more direct than Indonesians, she said. Open criticism, negative feedback and the word “no” are almost always avoided, because they all are considered highly disrespectful. “Maybe is a no,” Cotton said.
Asian cultures tend to be very hierarchical. Authority is highly respected and meetings that straddle hierarchy are not encouraged. For instance, vice presidents meet with vice presidents or their equivalent, but rarely a senior executive.
Latin countries: Small talk and relationships
In
Latin countries, including Italy and Spain, family is priority — and
business is also very relationship-focused.
Meaningful small talk is a necessity and something people engage in
freely and enjoy, asking in earnest about families and weekend
activities.
There is much more room for feeling in communication in Latin countries
than in many other places.
Latin countries also have a great respect for authority figures and defer to them. One Swedish person working in Mexico told Meyer he realized he needed to change his communication approach after he voiced disagreement in meetings — intending to contribute to the conversation — and the group would go silent. But, “when he voiced an opinion people automatically lined up behind it,” she said. “And he realized he needed to get the dialogue going in another way.” (Ernesto Benavides/Getty Images)
United States: Direct outcomes, direct talk
Independence and personal initiative characterize US communication style, Cotton said, because US work culture is very outcome-oriented. People of varying status are given the authority to make decisions, and they are expected to speak up.
US communication style also prioritizes clarity, Meyer said. “We tell them what we’re going to tell them, we tell them; and then we tell them what we told them,” she said. “And that style often comes off as condescending to other cultures.”
Feedback is given in a very distinct way in the US, too, Meyer said. A negative is often heavily sandwiched between multiple positives. Meyer tells a story of a French employee, recently transplanted to the US. Her boss informed her that her performance needed to change. But because he delivered the negative feedback by expounding first on what he appreciated about her work — and she was generally unaccustomed to receiving positive feedback — she floated out of the meeting thinking it had gone well. (Thinkstock)
United Kingdom: Soft criticisms
Even though English is a common language, there are clear distinctions in communication style between the UK and the US. In general, communication in the UK is more hierarchical, conservative and indirect. In particular, the prevailing UK communication style involves a lot of “downgraders,” words or phrases that introduce criticism in order to soften it, Meyer said.
She recalls a German whose British boss suggested he ‘think about doing this differently’. The employee thought about it, and decided not to do it. “He was surprised later when his boss chewed him out for insubordination,” she said.
In the UK criticism or suggestions are expressed obliquely when compared with American, German and Scandinavian cultures. For example, “that is an original point of view,” or “could you consider some other options?” all are cloaked British negatives. (Thinkstock)
Germany and the Netherlands: Precise and pointed
Germanic,
Scandinavian and Dutch communication styles can be traced to the
languages themselves, which are very precise and direct, Cotton said.
“There is no fluff,” she said. “They are frank, serious, direct and
detailed.” These cultures also tend to be very objective. When topics
are presented they want facts and research as backup.
Meyer said, in particular, the Dutch give and receive very honest and
direct feedback — and it’s appreciated as a sign of respect.