A WIN-WIN GAME.- Culture and People: Cross cultural negotiation strategies.

Let us look at a brief example of how cross cultural negotiation training can benefit the international business person:
There are two negotiators dealing with the same potential client in the Middle East. Both have identical proposals and packages. One ignores the importance of cross cultural negotiation training believing the proposal will speak for itself. The other undertakes some cross cultural training. Nine times out of ten the latter will succeed over the rival. Cross cultural negotiations is about more than just how foreigners close deals. It involves looking at all factors that can influence the proceedings. By way of highlighting this, a few brief examples of topics covered in cross cultural negotiation training shall be offered.

Eye Contact: In the US, UK and much of northern Europe, strong, direct eye contact conveys confidence and sincerity. In South America it is a sign of trustworthiness. However, in some cultures such as the Japanese, prolonged eye contact is considered rude and is generally avoided.

Personal Space & Touch: In Europe and North America, business people will usually leave a certain amount of distance between themselves when interacting. Touching only takes place between friends. In South America or the Middle East, business people are tactile and like to get up close. In Japan or China, it is not uncommon for people to leave a gap of four feet when conversing. Touching only takes place between close friends and family members.

Time: Western societies are very 'clock conscious'. Time is money and punctuality is crucial. This is also the case in countries such as Japan or China where being late would be taken as an insult. However, in South America, southern Europe and the Middle East, being on time for a meeting does not carry the same sense of urgency.

Meeting & Greeting: Most international business people meet with a handshake. In some countries this is not appropriate between genders. Some may view a weak handshake as sign of weakness whereas others would perceive a firm handshake as aggressive.

Gift-Giving: In Japan and China gift-giving is an integral part of business protocol however in the US or UK, it has negative connotations.

Negotiation Styles: The way in which we approach negotiation differs across cultures. For example, in the Middle East rather than approaching topics sequentially negotiators may discuss issues simultaneously. South Americans can become quite vocal and animated. The Japanese will negotiate in teams and decisions will be based upon consensual agreement. In Asia, decisions are usually made by the most senior figure or head of a family. In China, negotiators are highly trained in the art of gaining concessions. In Germany, decisions can take a long time due to the need to analyse information and statistics in great depth. In the UK, pressure tactics and imposing deadlines are ways of closing deals whilst in Greece this would backfire.

Clearly there are many factors that need to be considered when approaching cross cultural negotiation. Doing or saying the wrong thing at the wrong time, poor communication and cross cultural misunderstandings can all have harmful consequences.

Adapted from: http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/cultural-services/articles/cross-cultural-negotiation.html

Let’s continue with our session of idioms. In this unit we are going to focus on those idioms used to describe feelings, mood and states.

Look at the following table to know more idioms to describe feelings or mood.

This song by Gloria Gaynor is about survival regardless what you have to overcome. It won the 1979 Grammy for Best Disco Recording and it was the first and last time that the Grammys offered this category. It has been reproduced in 20 languages, including Arabic.

This song was released as the B-side of another song called Substitute. Gloria knew this would be the hit, but the president of her record company specifically ordered Substitute as the single. Gloria put her efforts into promoting I Will Survive, and when club DJs started playing it, radio stations caught on and it became a huge hit.