OVERVIEW
An intercultural communication specialist helps companies to strengthen their intercultural communication, both in the internal environment, between employees in the workplace, and external business relationships with foreign partners. Evidently, with this work, it is common to come across people who do not understand the importance of communication in the work environment. That being said, having intercultural knowledge and being in a culturally diverse environment may seem sufficient. However, most issues regarding intercultural communication do not just arise from lack of knowledge, but also from not obtaining the essential skills needed to put this knowledge into practice. This may derive from a lack of ability or interest from one party to understand another’s culture and background which results in conflicts regarding intercultural miscommunication.
This point may be illustrated by taking an international meeting between a Japanese firm that wants to do business with a Dutch company. In this meeting, the Dutch company brings a proposal to the table in which they see great potential and, thus, expect a positive reaction from their Japanese partners or constructive criticism. Accordingly, after being presented with the idea, with a smile on their faces, the Japanese party expresses how they deem it a nice idea and thank their Dutch partners for the effort and hard work. For the Dutch company, this is a confirmation to go ahead with their idea for the project after the meeting is finalized. However, after a certain period, the Dutch company does not receive any communication from the Japanese firm about the project. The Japanese firm, however, is not occupied with the collaboration because it was not agreed upon to do the project as it was not verbally expressed to proceed. Leading to the issue of confusion and miscommunication between the Dutch and Japanese and possibly deterioration of the business relationship. Generally speaking, Dutch people are quite direct when communicating, while Japanese people tend to be very polite in their behavior. The indirectness of the Japanese party comes from the reluctance to negatively affect group harmony, which is a very important factor in cultures that tend to be more collectivistic like the Japanese with a score of 46 for Individualism. Whereas on the contrary, in the Netherlands the level of individualism is significantly higher with a score of 80. In the rather feminine Dutch culture, having individual opinions and desires are highly valued and voicing these, regardless of the setting and the person you are speaking to is not uncommon, highlighting the difference in both individualism and power distance between both cultures.
Hofstede Dimensions
https://tcps.institute/cultural_bridges_tool.html
OUTCOME
The significant differences between Japanese and Dutch people in theory are quite common and can be easily researched. However, it may be important to be open to gain a more practical cultural experience to comprehend values and beliefs that lead to certain behaviors, as the iceberg model would suggest. Knowing about the former mentioned cultural differences does not mean that one knows how this would play out in reality. Thus, analyzing Japanese culture in general terms contributes to gaining an understanding to a certain extent. However, emphasizing the transference of knowledge into skills and putting it into practice to gain a more in-depth cultural learning experience is essential to overcoming barriers and preventing confusion and miscommunication between Dutch and Japanese partners when interacting in such an intercultural setting.
AUTHORS
Shariska Etienne (LinkedIn)
International Business Student (3rd year): Block 2, Semester 1, 2020/2021
Romy de Groot (LinkedIn)
Communication student (4th year), Block 2, Semester 1, 2020/2021
Yousef Ehab Ahmed Shawky (LinkedIn)
International Management student (3rd year), Block 2, Semester 1, 2020/2021