Poland Ethnographic Study

Introduction

Communication styles and business norms vary from country to country. When a company tries to globalize their business and break into a foreign market, the firm must take many precautions in order to adhere to the country’s many social and cultural rules. In order to succeed in any foreign industry, extensive research is required, possibly in the form of an ethnographic study. Biznes (Business) Consulting will give a presentation to the board of a Canadian construction company who is considering expansion into the Polish market. The report is designed to give the Canadian construction company a detailed assessment of the differing communication styles and business norms in Poland compared to those in the Canadian market.
This will include the basic “do’s and don’ts”, business etiquette, time frames and dress or attire. Next a complete external and internal analysis will be presented. A STEEP analysis will be studied and human resource management for Poland will be discussed in detail. Following the external and internal analyses, an interpretation of the cultural norms in Canada vs Poland will be examined in the form of a cultural comparison. The cultural comparison is significant in determining family closeness, trust issues, motivation behind employees, issues related to leadership, motivation, group work, organizational culture, communication preferences, and negotiation style. Moreover, the management styles in both Poland and Canada will be contrasted. With the given information, Biznes Consulting is positive that the Canadian construction company will have all the communicational tools required to enter the Polish
Most people in Poland don’t understand current interest rates or loan rates but go into business to help fix a need or because they love it, not to make money as in Canada. When holding a job in Poland your superior has much more power over you than in Canada. This is due to perception, people in charge believe they have a lot of power and the people below perceive a lot of authority in their superior due their authoritarian society. Transparency is another difference between business in Poland and Canada. In Poland if you were fired it would be hard to tell who fired and why, this is an accepted way to do things in Poland. However, in Canada you have a right to know why you were fired. Another difference in Polish and Canadian society is how one gets a job. In Poland it is completely based on who you know, resumes are unimportant; it is much more who you know in the organization or in society. This is a little different than Canadian society because one can use their network to find employment sometimes with success; however it is more common through the use of websites and resumes, P. Kossowski (Personal Communication, November 29, 2009). The use of technology is the last major way Polish and Canadian societies differ. Canada is a very technologically advanced society and this technology is engrained in the way we operate in our everyday