bus culture collisions final

CSR Definition

• a management concept that describes how a company contributes to the well-being of society through environmental and social measures.

elements of CSR

• Discretionary Responsibility

• Ethical Responsibility

• Legal Responsibility

• Economic Responsibility

Discretionary Responsibility

• Philanthropy:

  • contribute to the community: be a good corporate citizen

Ethical Responsibility

• License to operate: Be ethical, do what is right, & avoid harm

Legal Responsibility

• Attain profit within confinement of the law, & obey the law

Economic Responsibility

• Be profitable: Produce goods and services to attain profit

Dimensions of CSR

• Economic

• Social

• Environmental

Economic CSR

• includes any aspect related to the supply chain of organizations, the management of customers, and consumers

Social CSR

• Activities organizations carry out in collaboration with other entities or on their own initiative leading to a positive impact on society

Environmental CSR

• Allows organizations to reduce costs, become more competitive, and attract and retain talent

Hai

• Hai can mean one of at least four levels of yes:

  • recognition, but not necessarily understanding

  • understanding, but not necessarily acceptance and agreement

  • responsibility, understanding, but must consult with others and secure their agreement before acceptance

  • agreement, which means understanding, agreement and acceptance.

• The non-verbal signals from the speaker have to be understood to determine, which yes is being meant.

Karoshi

• translates to "death from overwork"

• reflects the intense work culture in some Japanese companies

  • due to pressure to show loyalty, dedication, and productivity.

• highlights the dark side of workaholism and the importance of work-life balance in corporate culture.

Keiretsu

• a network of interlinked companies

  • often including manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors

• alliances help ensure stability, long-term partnerships, and shared resources, reducing competition within the group

• reflects Japan’s emphasis on cooperation, loyalty, and group harmony over individual competition.

nonverbal communication factors

• cultural background

• socioeconomic background

• education

• gender

• age

• personal preferences and idiosyncrasies

paralanguage

• between verbal and nonverbal communication

• “uhm”

• Voice quality

• vocal qualifiers

  • volume, pitch, intonation

• vocalization

eye contact can be…

• a sign of honesty

• an invasion of privacy

• position in hierarchy

facial expressions

• smiling

  • friendliness or embarrassment

• frowning

  • anger or doubt

gestures

• head movements

  • shaking head up/down is no, side to side is yes in Bulgaria

• arm movements

• posture

considerations for timing in spoken exchanges:

1. who initiates the conversation?

2. what are the patterns of frequency of exchange?

3. what is acceptable behavior for interrupting the speaker?

4. what are the patterns for terminating the exchange?

• an environment that emphasizes…

  • equality

  • seniority and hierarchy

  • gender relationships

touching

• related to status, gender, and seniority

• USA — firm handshake

• france — soft handshake

• germany — firm handshake and slight bow

• japan — handshake with arm fully extended, bow

• middle east — handshake and free arm placed on forearm of other person

the language of space

• personal space:

  • small —> large

    • latin america; arab; french; american; german; japanese

• office space

  • location, size, furnishings; working together or alone

• public space

  • rush hour in tokyo

  • friendliness (germans prefer clarity over friendliness)

  • waiting in lines

appearance

• what is appropriate business dress for men and women in a particular culture?

• what is the difference in attire when doing business in one’s own culture or another’s?

• what degree of importance is attached to ones attire?

• what are the penalties for inappropriate attire?

**related to respect

silence

• silence in low context cultures

  • down time; uncomfortable

• silence in high context cultures

  • japanese prefer it to conversation/part of communication

what constitutes information

• high context culture

  • values relationships, teamwork, long-term group membership

• low context culture

  • independent activity; achievement, individual accountability

assessment of information

• reliable

  • consistent, timely, stable

• valid

  • about a specific thing

formal information

1. publications and public information

2. observation

3. interviews and surveys

4. experimentation

**objective data — low context cultures prefer this

informal information

• not necessarily published information

• subjective = through the grapevine

• understanding the context and the people assures a greater deal of accuracy

criteria for business information

• verifiability

• trustworthiness

• accuracy

• credibility

making decisions based on ends

• companies in low context cultures do this

• focus on profit, productivity, greater market share, more customers

• driven by personal goals

• usa, canada, germany, france, holland

making decisions based on means

• relationships are more important than results

• asia, africa, southern europe

• based on trust

managing conflicts

1. competing — your goals rank over others

2. collaborating — both yours and others goals are important

3. compromising — both settling for less

4. avoiding — not pursuing yours or others goals openly

5. accommodating — letting others goals rank over yours