By Becky DeStigter, The International EntrepreneurA few years ago I was coaching a technology company?s CEO, ?Doug? on building strategic partnerships around the world. As we covered the various cultural issues he was likely to face, Doug had a strong emotional reaction when we talked about women in international business. In many places, women are likely to be given a lower status than their male counterparts.? Nearly half of the company?s staff were women including the COO, and Doug was upset that his colleagues would be potentially be downgraded. Or worse yet, a staff member might have to fend off an unwanted sexual advance. Doug was so insistent that we nearly had to plan the company?s expansion strategy around cultures that treated women as equals.
Savvy entrepreneurs making their entry into international markets for the first time often research target country cultures. But to truly be ready to do business globally, smart business leaders need to also take inventory of their own cultural values, assumptions, beliefs and expectations[1]. In Doug?s case, he was reacting based on his American value of gender equality and his assumption that unsolicited sexual advances are offensive in the workplace. Also, Americans have a cultural tendency to moralize and judge a situation in extreme terms. This would seem like an impasse if Doug cannot move past his concerns.
When most business dealings are in your native business culture, everyone you work with operates under a similar set of assumptions. To learn about your own culture, I have a few suggestions. First, if your company will be expanding to many countries, it would be wise to pick up a resource book that describes many business cultures. One of my favorites is International Business Negotiations by Lothar Katz. But if your time is limited and there is only one or two business cultures you need to learn, then study about the specific business culture and watch for your own emotional reactions to what you learn. When you encounter something that doesn?t feel right, try break it down to what about it bothers you. Once you know this, then you can decide if this prevents a relationship in that country or if you are willing to plan to deal with it.
In Doug?s case, he did move forward. We planned for situations where the status of women were likely to come up. For instance, Doug always introduced his whole management team, taking special care to explain everyone?s role and importance in the company. This helped international partners to understand the importance Doug placed on the women in his team and not to make assumptions that their role was lower. The team was briefed on basic safety and no female member of the team was ever to be left alone with an international partner. Some work cultures expected Doug?s team to socialize during visits, but female team members excused themselves from drinking any alcohol. To date, no one on the team has had any issues with status or harassment. What?s more, the company did not have to limit their own market potential or compromise their strongly held cultural beliefs!
About Becky DeStigter
Becky is an international marketing consultant helping B2B companies become more globally competitive. She conducts international market research, develops international business strategies, advises on international negotiations and helps with American market entry. Becky has an MBA and an MS in International Business. She speaks Dutch, Spanish, German and is currently learning Mandarin Chinese. Prior to her focus on international, Becky led a successful strategic marketing consuting firm. She regularly blogs at http://The-International-Entrepreneur.com/ and tweets as http://twitter.com/IntlEntreprenr/.
[1] James G. Clawson, Level Three Leadership.
Source: http://www.entrepreneurcommunityonline.com/in-international-business-first-know-thyself/
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