Page 246 - DMGT547_INTERNATIONAL_MARKETING

Unit 14: Global E-Marketing and EDI

14.2 The Pervasive Impact of Culture on Negotiation Behaviour Notes

The primary purpose of this section is to demonstrate the extent of cultural differences in
negotiation styles and how these differences can cause problems in international business
negotiations. The material in this section is based on a systematic study of the topic over the last
two decades in which the negotiation styles of more than 1,000 businesspeople in 16 countries
(19 cultures) were considered. The countries studied were Japan, Korea, Taiwan, China (Tianjin,.
Guangzhou, and Hong Kong), the Philippines, Russia, Norway, the Czech Republic, Germany,
France, the United Kingdom, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Canada (English-speaking and French-
speaking), and the United States. The countries were chosen because they constitute America’s
most important present and future trading partners.

Looking broadly across the several cultures, two important lessons stand out. The first is that
regional generalizations very often are not correct. For example, Japanese and Korean negotiation
styles are quite similar in some ways, but in other ways they could not be more different. The
second lesson learned from this study is that Japan is an exceptional place: On almost every
dimension of negotiation style considered, the Japanese are on or near the end of the scale.
Sometimes, Americans are on the other end. But actually, most of the time Americans are
somewhere in the middle. The reader will see this evinced in the data presented in this section.
The Japanese approach, however, is most distinct, even sui generis.

14.2.1 Implications for Managers and Negotiators

Four steps lead to more efficient and effective international business negotiations, which include:
1. selection of the appropriate negotiation team
2. management of preliminaries, including training, preparations, and manipulation of
negotiation settings
3. management of the process of negotiations, that is, what happens at the negotiation table
4. appropriate follow-up procedures and practices

14.2.2 Negotiations with Interest to Customers

Criteria for selecting successful negotiators include:
1. Maturity

2. Emotional stability
3. Breadth of knowledge
4. Optimism
5. Flexibility
6. Empathy
7. Stamina

8. Willingness to use team assistance
9. Listening
10. Influence at headquarters
For negotiations to result in positive benefits for all sides, the negotiator must define what the
problem is and what each customer wants. In defining the goals of negotiation, it is important
to distinguish between issues, positions, interests and settlement options.

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