Part One: Culture and Management

CHAPTER 1
DETERMINANTS OF CULTURE

Concept 1.1: Facets of culture

Concept 2.2: Levels of cultures

Slide 1.1 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 The concept of culture

What culture is?/is not?

Culture is a code of attitudes, norms and
values, the way of thinking...
The culture determines:
How we see ourselves
How we see the world
Culture is not right or wrong, inherited, about
individual behaviour ...

Slide 1.2 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 Three layers

The concept of culture has three layers:

Artifacts and attitudes

Behavioural or explicit level
Norms (rules) and values
Every culture has its own system
Basic assumptions
Difficult to describe or explain

Slide 1.3 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 How can we explore culture?

Figure 1.1 Navigating the seas of international business

Source: Adapted from Schneider and Barsoux (2003: 21)

Slide 1.4 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 Cultural assumptions in management

Edgar Schein defines culture as:

a set of basic assumptions shared solutions to
universal problems of external adaptation (how to
survive) and internal integration (how to stay
together) - which have evolved over time and are
handed down from one generation to the next
(Schein, 2004: 14)

Slide 1.5 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 Comparison value systems of societies

Four categories (Ruano-Borbalan, 2002: 339)

Traditional society (Arab countries)
religion plays an important role
Rational society (Germany)
interests of the individual come first
Society where materialism is predominant
(ex-communist countries)
Post-modern society (Scandinavia)
tolerant and democratic
Slide 1.6 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 European Culture

What is important in the forming process of

an European culture?
Meeting of diversity
Complementarity of ideas
Interaction and interference within opposite
values :
- religion/rationality
- mythical thought/critical thought
- humanism/science
(Morin,1987)

Slide 1.7 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 Levels of cultures in a business context

Cultures can develop at different levels:

Culture and nation
National culture
Organizational culture
Corporate culture
Professional culture
Culture and management

Slide 1.8 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 Culture and nation

Influence of culture on organizations

Macro level
laws and economic institutions
the nation must be considered by organizations
going about their business.
Micro level
the organization is influenced through a number
of cultural elements relating to:
employer-employee relationships
behaviour among employees

Slide 1.9 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 National culture

Elements that contribute to the creation of a

national culture:
- Physical environment
- History of the nation
Institutions that contribute to the
establishment of a national culture
- Family/Religion/Education
- Mass communication media
- The multinational company
(Tayeb, 2003: 13)

Slide 1.10 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 Organizational culture

In organization, culture affects the way:

- strategy is determined
- goals are established
- how the organization operates

The personnel of the organization:

- influenced by their cultural backgrounds
- shared their own values and perceptions

(Schein, 1999)

Slide 1.11 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 Corporate culture

Corporate culture is a combination of:

- Organizational culture
- National/regional culture
Two meanings on the influence of corporate
culture:
Key to success if:
1) Clearly defined corporate culture
2) Flexible culture
Role of the company culture
- internal cultural factors
Slide 1.12 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 Professional culture

Three professional cultures in management:

Operators
- involved in production (goods/services)
Engineers
- design and monitor the technology
Executives
- senior managers
(Schein, 1996)
The question remains: how these professional
cultures co-exist?

Slide 1.13 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 Culture and management

Cross-cultural management
explains the behaviour of people in
organizations around the world
describes and compares organizational
behaviour across countries and cultures
seeks to understand and improve the
interaction of :
co-workers, managers, executives, clients,
suppliers, and alliance partners
(Adler, 2002: 11)

Slide 1.14 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009
 Conclusion Chapter 1

Chapter shows how difficult it is to give a

definition of the word culture.

Chapter also shows that the individuals in a

group form a culture that can be national,
organizational or professional.

Slide 1.15 Browaeys and Price, Understanding Cross-cultural Management, 1st Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2009