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You're a senior manager at a global firm and
you're about to sign an important deal with a Chinese company.
After your flight to Guangzhou, the officials greet you and
they invite you over for dinner.
Here is what could happen to you.
>> [FOREIGN] >> The English
believe it's a slur on your hosts food if you don't clear your plate.
>> Mm.
>> Whereas the Chinese feel you'll question your generosity if you do.
>> [FOREIGN]
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[SOUND] [FOREIGN] >> At HSBC we never underestimate
the importance of local knowledge.
>> [FOREIGN] >> HSBC the worlds local bank.
>> Now this is fairly light hearted but here is another story of how
cultures miscommunication led to a devastating consequence.
In 1945 near the end of World War II,
the winning Allies issued a declaration to call for Japan's unconditional surrender.
The Japanese prime minister,
when questioned by the journalists, mumbled this single word mokusatsu.
Now, this is several meaning in Japan depending on the context,
what he meant was withholding comment and so he makes a final decision.
The Allies interpretation however refusal, within
days Hiroshima was bombed.
Now this was an extreme example but, think about this even
within this room of 47 students we represent 19 countries.
That's 19 different styles of communication, just imagine when you go
out into the world, diversity of cultures you may encounter.
You may be selling a product to German companies,
you may be negotiating with Brazilians, and you may be working for a Chinese CEO.
So that's why today we'd like to introduce the three A's of Global Communication.
To be aware, adapt and acknowledge the cultural differences.
>> Culture and the pins a lot of social norms and expectations on how to
behave in the different groups and organizations that we're a part of.
Culture is also very relative and it is also not homogenous so
in the larger society there can be smaller groups within the society which
have very different culture from the bigger society.
So, having an understanding and being aware of the different dimensions of
culture will help us become more sensitive to different groups that we work with and
the different countries that we may live in or
we are participating activities with.
This is a framework that we adapted from Professor Hofstede and
we see four dimensions of culture.
Power distance, direct indirect, individualism,
and short term versus long term orientation.
Power distance is really about hierarchy.
Is it flat or is it a pyramid?
Is the leader the first among equals or is he the king on the thone.
I've worked in many organizations with very different cultures and
every time I need to organize a meeting I always need to think about how to sit
people, how to arrange people.
Is it in a circle?
Or is it by order of seniority and hierarchy?
Direct versus indirect.
Direct cultures tend to be very very verbal, right?
Explicit in the way they communicate.
Indirect cultures, on the other hand, rely a lot more on context, nonverbal queues,
implicit information to complete the message.
So, it shows a good example of a very direct culture.
One of our classmates showed us that Israelis are more direct than Americans.
They say it as it is, no sugar coating.
Individualism versus collectivism, the question to think about is the individual,
the pivotal unit in the group or is the group and the society and the culture
encouraging the person to be conforming and to be interdependent of others.
In individualistic societies and cultures,
it is very important to voice your own opinion.
I think Stanford is a great example.
In Stanford, we are encouraged to think critically, to challenge, to question.
And I'm sure many of you would have question the instructors,
the lecturers and the guest lecturers that walk through our classrooms.
The last one is short term versus long term orientation.
Are we looking for the here and now or
are we thinking about a partnership to us in the longer term?
Are we looking for quick results, instant gratification?
Or are we thinking about building something a little bit for
the long term and thinking about the long term outcomes?
In cultures with long term orientation some companies may put emphasis on
arrangements that benefits the longer term relationship and longer term partnership.
And this could possibly come at expense of near term results.
So, now that we're aware some of the differences across cultures.
Let's talk about some other ways that we can adapt our own communication.
First, eye contact.
Eye contact is a great way to connect with your audience but,
it can also be tricky in cultures where power distance is high.
Holding eye contact could be seen as a challenge to authority and when you look
at someone they might look down or look away simply out of politeness or respect.
We've learned in this class to try and make eye contact throughout your audience,
but in a hierarchical culture they might expect you to spend
a little more focus and attention on those in positions of authority.
In a collectivist culture eye contact could make people feel a little bit
uneasy, because you're effectively singling them out from the crowd.
If I were to hold eye contact with someone for the recommended five to seven seconds,
like I'm doing right now with Natalese,
it could become extremely painful for that person.
>> [LAUGH] >> Eye
contact can still be an effective tool, but keep in mind that what feels right for
you might end up feeling offensive or uncomfortable for someone else.
Gestures can also be a powerful communication tool.
But remember that different cultures have different levels of expressiveness.
In a collectivist culture, you will be unlikely to see someone with the very
animated, high energy style, because again that was singled out from the crowd.
So, if that happens it will be your style.
You may consider dialing it back just a little bit.
In addition some gestures that are common in the US
can be quite offensive in other countries.
So before you tell your audience that things are going great with
an enthusiastic thumbs up, you may want to consider anyone in your audience
who's from Greece, who you'd effectively be telling up yours.
As far as directness, in this class,
we learned to use the inverted pyramid structure.
That is, to start with your main idea and then add supporting details.
In the US we appreciate this direct approach in getting to the point, but
that approach might not work in other countries.
In Japan, for example, it would be common to see a work email
that might start by saying something like, now it is autumn, and
the delicate red leaves are blanketing the cool earth, with color.
Try starting your working mails in the U.S. with some poetic prose about
the seasons, people are probably going to think you are a little weird.
But in other countries it would be perfectly normal and expected to spend
a little more time and effort upfront to nurture the relationship.
And you risk coming across as all business, with a US style approach.
When it comes to writing, we learn to use strong verbs, active voice,
clear language, but in cultures that value indirectness, passive voice and
ambiguous words might actually be preferred.
Now we're really on scratching the surface here.
We reached out to many of you and asked if there was anything we learned in class
that might not go so well in your home country or places where you worked.
We learned that in Nigeria,
speaking above your normal voice level could actually be considered rude.
We learned that in Mexico a presentation that might be considered normal
in the US could come across as exaggerated or over the top in both style and content.
We learned that in Latin America or in Kenya and other parts of Africa.
Work emails are still expected to have very formal language.
And interestingly we learned that in Bulgaria
people actually shake their heads to say yes.
And nod their head to say no,
which would be incredibly confusing as you can imagine.
So as you can see there are many different ways that cultural principles apply
across the world.
But it's important to remember that the overarching strategy remains the same.
Which is to know your audience, know your intent and know your message.
Thank you, Tim.
So I imagine that a few of you might feel a bit frustrated right now.
Right? After a whole quarter
of Strategic Communication, where you're just thinking,
I think I've kind of got it now, we're just pulling the rug from beneath you.
And now you might feel, man,
how can I possibly keep track of all these different cultures?
And now, you know what, I'm a little worried that I might mess up?
Is one in here that might relate to that feeling?
Show of hands.
I like that.
[LAUGH] >> [LAUGH].
>> And you know for all those, most of you who raised your hand.
I think you have a point, like I agree with you because the reality is that most
of us in this room, as far as I know, aren't chameleons, right?
We're not going to seamlessly blend in and perfectly adapt to any social or
cultural contexts.
We're humans and that means that sooner or later we are going to mess up.
And you know what?
That's okay.
Because we have a secret little weapon here today and that ladies and
gentlemen is our third and last A of the day, acknowledgement.
If you're on a situation in which you feel like there might be a cultural mismatch,
simply acknowledging that fact can be hugely powerful.
And I'll show you what I mean.
All right.
Something like this I'm aware that things are done differently here than
where I'm from.
Right?
So please excuse me and let me know if I do or say something inappropriate.
Now, of course, you don't have to use that exact sentence, but
there are a couple of things I'd like to highlight that are going on there.
First of all, I'm saying, you know what, I know there are differences out there.
And the truth is that your audience might be just as anxious at appearing rude
towards you as you are as appearing rude towards them.
And just simply acknowledging those differences can help everyone relax a bit,
and focus on the things you have in common, rather than those differences.
Second, I'm apologizing in advance for any mistakes I might do.
Right? So, first of all, I'm showing respect but
I'm also giving myself carte blanche to keep on moving in my presentation
even if I do a little mistake here and there.
Last I'm asking for feedback, which shows that I'm trying to learn and to improve.
What this also does is it overcomes the fact that in many situations,
many audiences in certain culture especially, might be just too polite to
tell you even if you're doing something wrong again and again and again and again.
So most of all what acknowledgement does is it let's you stop worrying too much
about messing up, about stepping on toes.
And unless you focus on the message you are there to deliver in the first place,
right, unless we do what matters.
And so now I think you know the secret.
Next time you're on the road to go to a business meeting,
deliver a presentation in a new country or continent.
Remember, that you have the triple A's of global communication to help you.
So, A, aware, do your research.
A, adapt, try to respect and emulate.
And A acknowledge, address those differences.
Now I want to thank you all for listening and
we'd love to answer questions about how you can best use the triple A method
over here to become a more sensitive global communicator.
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