Cultural Challenges of Doing Business OverseasEssay title: Cultural Challenges of Doing Business OverseasCultural Challenges of Doing Business OverseasCulture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning “to cultivate,”) generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activity significant importance. Different definitions of “culture” reflect different theoretical bases for understanding, or criteria for evaluating, human activity. Culture has been called the way of life for an entire society. As such, it includes codes of manners, dress, language, religion, rituals, norms of behavior such as law and morality, and systems of belief (Wikipedia). Steve Kafka is an American of the Czech origin. Steve has plans of expanding his Chicago Style Pizza into Czech Republic. Steve thinks he knows the people and the culture because he has friends and family who reside in Czech and he also speak the language, which is Slavic. This paper will discuss the Czech culture and the challenges Steve may or may not face while doing business overseas.
Differences between U.S. and Czech culturesThere are differences in cultures that exist between Czech and the U.S. but they are also similar in certain culture values. The differences are avoidable so that a business can succeed. For instance, both in the U.S. and Czech, to show respect, one address adults by their profession or their last names. When it comes to gesture, both countries believe in maintaining eye contact while conversing. They may also look at or even stare at other people in public, but usually with no ill intentions. People often gesture with their hands to emphasize their meaning in conversation. They beckon and point with their index finger. In Czech, when one counts on the fingers, the thumb (not index finger) is number one; however, in the U.S., when one counts on the fingers, the index finger is number one. Speaking loudly on public transportation or in quiet places is impolite; however, it is commonplace in places like pubs. Czechs value education, cleverness, social standing, modesty, and humor. Czech humor is dry and ironic rather than slapstick, and jokes and parables are commonly used in conversation. Moravians and Slovaks are thought to be more lighthearted and jovial than other Czechs. Americans tend to be frank and outspoken. In general, they appreciate people who are candid. People voice their opinions and share their views on a variety of subjects; there are few subjects they will not discuss. Of course, there are exceptions, and religious values may keep some from discussing certain issues. Those who are not close friends avoid extremely personal questions. Americans value innovation, industry, and integrity. They enjoy a good sense of humor, including sarcasm. Most people have the ability to laugh at themselves as well as at others. Even though Americans may criticize the government, most are patriotic and believe the United States is one of the greatest countries in the world. For Americans, eating styles and habits vary among people of different backgrounds, but Americans generally eat with a fork in the hand with which they write. They use a knife for cutting and spreading, setting it down as they begin to eat. When a knife is used for cutting, the fork is switched to the other hand. People eat foods such as french fries, fried chicken, hamburgers, pizza, and tacos with the hands. They generally place napkins in the lap. Resting elbows on the table is often considered as impolite. After-dinner refreshments such as dessert or coffee are frequently served away from the dining table. Guests are expected to stay a while after the meal to visit with the hosts. In restaurants, the bill usually does not include a service charge; leaving a tip of 15 percent is customary. For Americans, greetings someone with a firm handshake or a smile is acceptable; however, Czechs use caution and require personal space.
Both cultures eat three meals a day including snacks. Czech main courses mainly consist of potatoe soups, garlic soups, chicken noodle and beef soup, sauerkraut and dumplings. Other courses consist of meats such as, beef and chicken. Seafood is not very popular for them except in exclusive restaurants. Hotdogs and pizza are popular snack foods that can be purchased from sidewalk vendors. Since Steve’s Franchise is Chicago’s Pizza, he may have to consider serving other foods, such as hotdogs. He may also have to consider changing his pizza toppings to beef and chicken, which is popular with Czechs. As far as advancing in the culture, Steve should not have any problems. But since Czechs are known for not spending much time eating out in restaurants, Steve may face problems with a dine in and should consider outside dining and take-out options for customers (CultureGrams, 2007).
In Canada, Steve has never been a big fan of any food, but I would guess that it’s because Czechs are kind of on board. Steve is, after all, a vegetarian and the Canadian media are almost invariably full of stories about how he and his family came to Canada for business, including his wedding (Lane, 2006). There’s just something about hockey in Canada…a hockey sport.
I want to talk to you about you.
Hey!
I’m Greg E. Lyle, I’m a retired member of the US National Hockey League and I want to talk with you!
I’d like to take a moment to say thank you.
Thank you for taking the time to see me through to me.
It’s a great honour to be here, Steve, I’m a retired professional skater, I’m a lifelong Montreal-born sports historian and I’m always happy to share my life with you. Steve, you know the first time he used to skate with a bunch of guys was maybe a year at the Olympics because every time he felt like he was trying to make it a whole new chapter in his career, because he knew the rules and always had the confidence for that. Well, here you are. My first NHL game with Steve, I wasn’t able to skate for many years but we got good chemistry as long as we had our skating.”
Thank you for being so kind to me.
Here we go again.
Thanks for stopping by.
I’m Greg E. Lyle, I’m a retired player with the US National Hockey League and I want to help you out.
Hey!
I’m Greg E. Lyle, I’m a retired member of the US National Hockey League and I want to talk to you now.
Thank you for taking the time to see me throughto me.
Thank you for taking the time to see me throughto me.
It was great to meet you, Greg.
In Canada, Steve has never been a big fan of any food, but I would guess that it’s because Czechs are kind of on board. Steve is, after all, a vegetarian and the Canadian media are almost invariably full of stories about how he and his family came to Canada for business, including his wedding (Lane, 2006). There’s just something about hockey in Canada…a hockey sport.
I want to talk to you about you.
Hey!
I’m Greg E. Lyle, I’m a retired member of the US National Hockey League and I want to talk with you!
I’d like to take a moment to say thank you.
Thank you for taking the time to see me through to me.
It’s a great honour to be here, Steve, I’m a retired professional skater, I’m a lifelong Montreal-born sports historian and I’m always happy to share my life with you. Steve, you know the first time he used to skate with a bunch of guys was maybe a year at the Olympics because every time he felt like he was trying to make it a whole new chapter in his career, because he knew the rules and always had the confidence for that. Well, here you are. My first NHL game with Steve, I wasn’t able to skate for many years but we got good chemistry as long as we had our skating.”
Thank you for being so kind to me.
Here we go again.
Thanks for stopping by.
I’m Greg E. Lyle, I’m a retired player with the US National Hockey League and I want to help you out.
Hey!
I’m Greg E. Lyle, I’m a retired member of the US National Hockey League and I want to talk to you now.
Thank you for taking the time to see me throughto me.
Thank you for taking the time to see me throughto me.
It was great to meet you, Greg.
Comparative advantages in the Czech