Russian culture as high-context.

This concept, originating from American anthropologist Edward Hall, means the way we communicate is not loaded with the same hidden content. In practice, the use of nicknames, inside jokes or corporate traditions are the most visible features. The newcomer needs to be initiated to belong to the group. You may notice that Alexei is called Aliosha by his colleagues; that there is probably a poster in the coffee-room with quotes from famous soviet movies and that no birthday is to be ignored among the staff. The newly expatriated manager who locks himself in his office without participating in this folkloric tradition is surely going to have a hard time working in Russia and is likely to have a moderate (if any at all) authority among the local staff. This is mainly because such cultural dimension is also linked to the notion of hierarchy. High-context cultures favour the use of titles, level and distinction. Again, presenting your manager as Professor Ivanov has its own loaded meaning. Hierarchy here has little to do with soviet bureaucracy or old fashion management. You find the same features in Japan, Germany or France. The use of instead of is another mark of the necessary distance that exists between people here. Undermining this point may create some frustrations among your Russian colleagues and subordinates. Hence, it is advisable to clearly state your diploma on your business cards (PhD, MBA, etc.) and to let every one of your staff have their own. There is not such thing as a flat organisation in Russia. When talking to new business contacts, the fact that the Russian culture is highcontext (or diffuse according to cross-cultural management specialist Fons Trompenaars) means that lets get down to business is a no go here. If you assume that both speakers need to be loaded with the same information in order to successfully communicate, then youll understand that small talk is crucial. You need to lead the discussion following a centripetal spiral: you start with subjects remote from the business world (weather, politics, family, sport, etc.) in order to get to know each other, and, finally reach the business subject. Business, then, is not the key element anymore, rather it is the quality of the relationship. Following this logic, words are not so important as context, which might include the speakers tone of voice, facial expression, and gestures. Consequently, a face-to-face discussion is the standard for business in Russia. Although the telecommunication

infrastructures allow talking on the phone (which is very much used) or to send faxes and emails, the traditional businessperson here goes regularly on komandirovka (business trip) in order to talk about the deal in person. Not surprisingly, written contracts bear less binding power than an oral agreement and a handshake after dinner or sauna! While talking about negotiations, it is worth mentioning that high-context cultures such as Russia favour a circular way of thinking. When a set of problems needs to be addressed (such as discussing a contract), circular thinkers will approach the deal as a whole. In the opposite direction, linear thinkers like to resolve problems one at a time. Therefore, when two teams with opposite thinking models meet, frustration may run very high. One team will wish to solve all the issues present in the order of the day while the second one will focus on reaching a general deal where long term relationship and vision outweigh the technical details. In order to reconcile those two models apparently opposite, one way is to plan ahead, with a representative of each team, and a flexible order of the day with the possibility to alter it till the last moment. If the discussions are run at a high level of hierarchy, make sure the head of your team has the matching title with the Russian head of delegation. Also, your team leader should have the proper decision power. Once the Russians agree on the big picture (circular thinking), decisions can be done on the spot; trusting non-decisive specialists can easily solve mere technicalities. Finally, the schedule needs to be precisely planned with numbers of breaks to allow the Russian side to recap the past discussion (especially if the discussions are not conducted in Russian) but more importantly to allow necessary one-to-one small talks useful to clarify misunderstandings and defuse burgeoning frustration. In marketing, this cultural dimension may be the turning point of a successful campaign. In Russia, localization needs to go further than translation. Low-context cultures, such as Anglo-Saxon ones, do not rely on hidden knowledge and therefore the commercials are often understandable by all (which explains why Hollywood movies are so popular abroad). The assumption is that the viewer does not know anything about the product but the commercial needs to be understood, and remembered. A few years ago, during a football competition, a Russian beer company showcased a player with a strange-looking hair cut. The coach was telling him: You

already played against the Polish, so just do the same with this team, lead them to the wrong direction.