Simple discussion assignment. It′s a basic international marketing course discussion HW. We are studying about ″ Negotiation″ for this chapter. The attached file has chapter summary, key terms for this chapter, and questions that you can discuss about ( if you want) You can freely discuss about these. You explain and expand (using your own words) a concept or an idea or You can also discuss applying a concept to current news or events.
Chapter 19 Inventive Negotiations with International Customers 611
Conclusions
Despite the litany of potential pitfalls facing international negotiators, things are getting
better. The stereotypes of American managers as “innocents abroad” or cowboys are
becoming less accurate. Likewise, we hope it is obvious that the stereotypes of the reticent
Japanese or the pushy Brazilian evinced in the chapter may no longer hold so true. Experience levels are going up worldwide, and individual personalities are important. So you can
find talkative Japanese, quiet Brazilians, and effective American negotiators. But culture
still does, and always will, count. We hope that it is fast becoming the natural behavior of
American managers to take culture into account. More information regarding inventive negotiations can be found at http://www.InventiveNegotiation.com.
56Michael Elliot, “Killing off Kipling,” Newsweek, December 29, 1977, pp. 52–55.
business relationship. The emphasis of such a session should always be putting new ideas
on the table—answers to the question, “What haven’t we thought of?”55 English author Rudyard Kipling said some one hundred years ago: “Oh, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet.” Since then most have imbued his words
with an undeserved pessimism. Some even wrongly say he was wrong.56 The problem is that not many have bothered to read his entire poem, The Ballad of East and West: Oh, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet, Till Earth and Sky stand presently at God’s great Judgment Seat; But there is neither East nor West, border, nor breed, nor birth, When two strong men stand face to face, though they come from the ends of the earth!
The poem can stand some editing for these more modern times. It should include the
other directions—North is North and South is South. And the last line properly should read,
“When two strong people stand face to face.” But Kipling’s positive sentiment remains.
Differences between countries and cultures, no matter how difficult, can be worked out
when people talk to each other in face-to-face settings. Kipling rightly places the responsibility for international cooperation not on companies or governments but instead directly
on the shoulders of individual managers, present and future, like you. Work hard!
Because styles of business negotiations vary substantially around the world, it is important to take cultural differences into account when meeting clients, customers, and business partners across the international negotiation table. In addition to cultural factors, negotiators’ personalities and backgrounds also influence their behavior. Great care should be taken to get to know the individuals who represent client and customer companies. Cultural stereotypes can be quite misleading. Four kinds of problems frequently arise during international business negotiations—problems at the levels of language, nonverbal behaviors, values, and thinking and decision-making processes.
Foreign-language skills are an essential tool of the international negotiator. Nonverbal behaviors vary dramatically across cultures, and because their influence is often below our level of awareness, problems at this level can be serious. Whereas most Americans value objectivity, competitiveness, equality, and punctuality, many foreign executives may not. As for thinking and decision making, Western business executives tend to address complex negotiations by breaking deals down into smaller issues and settling them sequentially; in many Eastern cultures, a more holistic approach is used in discussions.
Much care must be taken in selecting negotiation teams to represent companies in meetings with foreigners. Listening skills, Influence at headquarters, and a willingness to use team assistance are important negotiator traits. Americans should be careful to try to match foreign negotiation teams in both numbers and seniority.
The importance of cross-cultural training and investments in careful preparations cannot be overstated. Situational factors such as the location for meetings and the time allowed must also be carefully considered and managed.
All around the world, business negotiations involve four steps: nontask sounding, task-related information exchange, persuasion, and concessions and agreement. The time spent on each step can vary considerably from country to country. Americans spend little time on nontask sounding or getting to know foreign counterparts. Particularly in relationship-oriented cultures, it is important to let the customers bring up business when they feel comfortable with the personal relationship. Task-related information goes quickly in the United States as well. In other countries, such as Japan, the most time is spent on the second stage, and careful understandings of partners are the focus. Persuasion is the most important part of negotiations from the American perspective. Aggressive persuasive tactics (threats and warnings) are used frequently. Such
persuasive tactics, though they may work well in some cultures, will cause serious problems in others. Because Americans tend to be deal oriented, more care will have to be taken in follow-up
communications with foreign clients and partners who put more emphasis on long-term business relationships. Finally, a new emphasis is being put in inventive negotiation processes in international commerce.