HUMAN & CULTURAL VARIABLES IN GLOBAL ORGANIZATION Presented By::

Sanjeev & Binay USM-KUK

.Organizational culture is one of the latest concepts in the fields of management and
Organizational Theory. Culture which is popularly called as Shared values and Beliefs
fulfills important functions. Culture is the complex whole reinforce by knowledge,
beliefs, art, law morals customs & other capabilities. & habits of man as a member of
society. 1. It conveys the sense of identity for organizational members. 2. It enhances
social system ability. 3. It facilitates the generation of commitment to some thing larger
than self. 4. It serves as a sense of making device that can guide and shape behavior.
CULTURE : Is learned, not inherited. Involves responses to a set of problems. Is
by a group. Links group members by shared experience. Develops stable group
membership. Makes the whole different from the simple sum of the parts. View slide
Hofstedes cultural dimensionsOn multi-cultures the great work is done by Dutch
scientist, GEERT HOFSTEDE. Hofstede precedes the GLOBE( Global leadership &
organizational behaviors effectiveness) research project. He identifies mainly four
cultural dimensions: POWER DISTANCE, UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE,
INDIVIDUALISM & MASCULINITY. View slide
POWER DISTANCEPower distance is the extent to which less powerful members of
organizations accept that power is distributed unequally. High power distance countries
have norms, values, beliefs such as: Inequality is fundamentally good. Everyone has a
place, some are high, some are low. Most people should be dependant on a leader.
The powerful are entitled to privileges. The powerful should not hide their power.
Countries of High & Low power distance.Low power distance countries: US, Austria,
Ireland, Norway & New Zealand.High power distance countries: France, India,
Singapore, Brazil, Mexico & Indonesia.
Uncertainty AvoidanceUncertainty avoidance is the extent to which people feel
threatened by ambiguous situations & have created beliefs that try to avoid these. High
U.A accept: Conflict should be avoided. Deviant people & ideas should not be
tolerated. Laws are very important & should be followed. Experts & authorities are
usually correct. Consensus is important.Denmark & Britain are low U.A.
cultures.Germany, Japan, & Spain are high U.A cultures.
Individualism VS CollectivismIndividualism is the tendency of people to look after
themselves & their family only.Collectivism belongs to groups & to look after each
other in exchange for loyalty. Individualism is common in US. Canada, Australia,
Denmark & Sweden. Collectivism famous in India, Indonesia, Pakistan & south
American countries.
Masculinity VS FemininityMasculinity refers to a situation in which the dominant
values in a society are success, MONEY & other material things. High Masculine
cultures beliefs: Gender roles should be clearly distinguished. Men are assertive &
dominant. Machismo maleness is good. People especially men should be decisive.
Advancement, success & money are important.High masculine societies choose jobs
associated with long-term careers & feminine societies choose short term employment,
before marriage.
VARIABLES OF CULTURE ACCRODING TO HOFSTEDE1. Individual and
collectivist culture.2. Masculine and feminine culture.3. High power and low power
distance culture.4. Uncertainty avoidance.5. Context culture(influenced by
environment).6. Immediacy and expressiveness.
VARIABLES ON THE BASIS OF OTHER PARAMETERS National variables:
Economic system, legal system, physical situation, technological know-how etc. Socio-
cultural variables: Religion, education, language. Cultural variables: Value, norms,
beliefs etc. Attitudes: Reflects through work, sense of time, materialism,
individualization & change. Individual & group behaviors: Motivation, productivity,
commitment & ethics.
National culture & Human behavior is also influenced by Kinship : Family
relations. Education : Affects workers performance. Economy : Resource
allocation. Politics : Govt system. Religion Association : Group work (informal-
formal) Health : Level of productivity. Recreation : Impact on attitudes.
FACTORS AFFECTING CULTURAL & HUMAN VARIABLES 1.Social
Institutions2.Public Policy & Legal Framework 3.Societal Cultural Values
1.Social Institutions Countries differs considerably in the kind of social institutions
they have e.g., the way their education system functions, the way FINANCIAL system
works, thestructures of governance etc. which have a direct impact on how business is
conducted in that country.
For Instance:-1.Education System in Germany has a heavyemphasis on technical and
apprenticeshiptraining, which can be historically traced back tothe artisans guides of the
Middle Age.2.Similarly one finds the cultural values ofindividualism and
entrepreneurship embodied inthe American Venture Capitalist System.
2.Public Policy & Legal Framework The government policies and legal frameworks of
different countries also reflects the cultural values of the country. These influences the
business practices in 2 ways: a) They determine the broader framework for doing
business in the country.b) They influence and circumscribe the management practices
with in the company.
Example: -Lifetime employment in Japan which is rooted in theliteral interpretation of
Article 27 of JapaneseConstitution. It is supported by its cultural valuesShakaisei (Social
Consciousness) and Tate Shakai(Social Hierarchy and paternalism).In contrast US
Constitution guarantees the rightwork,, the right cultural value of self reliance
3. Societal Cultural Values:-(i)The most pervasive impact on the business cultureand
practices in a country comes from the broad culturalvalues of the society.At macro level
cultural values allow certain kinds ofbusiness to flourish , while not providing the
rightclimate for others.Example: - French culture is known for its emphasis onelegance,
criticism and concern for Norms.
(ii)The cultural values of the society define the meaning and reason of business and
how it is organized.Example: - While US Companies emphasizes more on the profit
dividendsAnd STOCK prices, Japanese companies focus more on new product
development and market share.
(iii) The cultural values also influence how the business isorganized and conducted in
the societies.Example: In China people conduct business based onpersonal relationship (
Guanxi - Interpersonal relationship).
(iv) At the end the cultural values have a major influence onthe way people relate to
each other and what they aspire forin a job.Example: In many hierarchical cultures (e.g.
India, Japanetc) the meaning and value of job lies in the status morethan in the pay
packet.ON the other hand in more egalitarian cultures (USA, Germany etc) people expect
rewards andcompensation for their performance than their seniority.
Various HR Variable Factors
Prepare for long process Obtain skilled labor Use Recent public policyRecruitment &
from government expatriates shifts encourage use Develop trusting Selection subsidized
sparingly of sophisticated relationship with recruit apprenticeship program selection
procedures Make substantial inv. Be aware of Use bilingual Careful In training
government trainers observations of Training regulations on existing training Use general
& cross- programs training cultural training Use recognition & Note high labor costs
Consider all Use technical praise as motivator for manufacturing aspects of training as
reward Compensation labor cost Avoid pay for performance Treat unions as partners Be
prepared for high Understanding Tap large pool of wages & short work changing labor
cities Labor Allow time for week Mexican Labor Relations negotiations Law Include
Participation Utilize works councils Approach Determine to enhance worker participation
employees motives Incorporate group goalJob Design participation cautiously before
implementing setting participation Use autonomous work teams Japan Germany Mexico
China
BIBLIOGRAPHY1. CROSS CULTURAL MANAGEMENT BY D.K.
BHATTACHARYYA2. INTERNATIONAL HR MANAGEMENT BY K.
ASHVTHAPA & SADHANA DAS 3. CITEHR.COM 4. SLIDESHARE.COM

This episode is one of the many other similar ones which underscore the HR
Challenges in preparing people for Cross Cultural working. Organizational culture is
one of the latest concepts in the fields of management and Organizational Theory.
Culture which is popularly called as "Shared values and Beliefs" fulfills important
functions.

1. It conveys the sense of identity for organizational members.
2. It enhances social system ability.
3. It facilitates the generation of commitment to some thing larger than self.
4. It serves as a sense of making device that can guide and shape behavior.
As business become more globalize, developing and training people across cultural
boundaries is becoming increasingly important. Culture of the country is an
important determinant of behavior of people, and not being sensitive to these
differences can often result in misunderstanding and embarrassments and even in
loss of efficiencies. For instance cultures differ widely in terms of concepts of time.
Besides the obvious implications for punctuality, the difference also lies in how
people from different cultures use their time. An understanding and sensitivity to
such cultural differences in behavior and orientations is necessary perquisites to
develop cross cultural competencies.
The roots of cultural differences in the business practices lie much deeper. Business
cultures in different countries are molded not just by the behavior of culture, such as
social institutions, public system, public policy, legal frameworks and culture specific
social values. Since these provide the cultural context, in which business is
conducted, they are as much if not more important in understanding the culture
differences in business practices.
Factors affecting cultural variables.

1. Social Institutions:- Countries differs considerably in the kind of social
institutions they have e.g., the way their education system functions, the
way FINANCIAL system works, the structures of governance etc. which have a
direct impact on how business is conducted in that country. These social institutions
are important artifacts of the culture and often embody its basic values and
assumptions.

Example- Education System in Germany has a heavy emphasis on technical and
apprenticeship training, which can be historically traced back to the artisan's guides
of the Middle Age. This system focus on imparting hands on technical skills in which
the students get assigned at the very early age, beside this it also influences the
business practices by bringing the specific set of skills into job MARKET .

Similarly one finds the cultural values of individualism and entrepreneurship
embodied in the American Venture Capitalist System. This system legitimizes and
encourages risk taking and going it alone behavior, but also creates a business
environment in which investors have a major impact on how business is run.

2. Public Policy and legal framework:- The government policies and legal
frameworks of different countries also reflects the cultural values of the country.
These influences the business practices in 2 ways;

a) They determine the broader framework for doing business in the country.
b) They influence and circumscribe the management practices with in the company.

Cultural values also influence the interpretation and implementation of the laws. It
determines the nature of the laws, which have direct implication for management
practices within the company.

Example: - Lifetime employment in Japan which is rooted in the literal interpretation
of Article 27 of Japanese Constitution. It is supported by its cultural
values Shakaisei (Social Consciousness) and Tate Shakai (Social Hierarchy and
paternalism). In contrast US Constitution also guarantees the right work,, the right
cultural value of self reliance and " each for him" does not support it.

3. Societal Cultural Values:- The most pervasive impact on the business culture
and practices in a country comes from the broad cultural values of the society. These
values influence the business in different ways at different levels.

At macro level cultural values allow certain kinds of business to flourish, while not
providing the right climate for others.

Example: - French culture is known for its emphasis on elegance, criticism and
concern for Norms.

The cultural values of the society define the meaning and reason of business and
how it is organized. In many cultures, high profits and MARKET capitalization are
not the criteria for doing business.

Such cultural difference has direct impact on the Strategic Orientation of companies
across cultures.

Example: - While US Companies emphasizes more on the profit dividends

And STOCK prices, Japanese companies focus more on new product development
and market share.
The cultural values also influence how the business is organized and conducted in the
societies. In collective societies for instance, personal contacts play an important role
in conducting business. In China people conduct business based on personal
relationship ( Guanxi - Interpersonal relationship).
At the end the cultural values have a major influence on the way people relate to
each other and what they aspire for in a job. In many hierarchical cultures (e.g.
India, Japan etc) the meaning and value of job lies in the status more than in the
pay packet. In these countries people also expect to be recognized for their seniority
and age. ON the other hand in more egalitarian cultures ( USA, Germany etc) people
expect rewards and compensation for their performance than their seniority.
Therefore it is evident that developing people to adapt to and operate across
business cultures of different countries, require an appreciation of aspects which are
deeper and more pervasive than just cross cultural differences in behavior. While an
understanding of differences in behavioral orientation and etiquettes help people in
becoming cross culturally literate but to develop truly cross culturally educated global
managers, it is essential to provide an understanding into the deeper structures
which mould the culture.