Understanding Cultural Differences and Australia Culture
Why is an understanding of cultural differences important to the business managers at BreadTalk? To assist the managers at BreadTalk to decide if they should expand to Australia, briefly describe the Australian culture. A wide range of definitions have been used for the term “culture.” Culture has been defined as the human-made part of the environment (Herkovits, 1955), including both objective and subjective elements (Triandis, 1972); as a set of reinforcements (Skinner, 1981); as the collective programming of the mind (Hofstede, 1991); as a shared meaning system (Shweder
& LeVine, 1984); as patterned ways of thinking (Kluckhohn, 1954); and as unstated standard operating procedures or ways of doing things (Triandis, 1994). Although definitions of culture vary, many emphasize that culture is shared, learned, dynamic, and adaptive (Schiffman et al, 2011). In today’s world of globalization, where migration, international businesses, foreign direct investments, expatriates’ work and any international cooperation has been rapidly increasing (Routamaa & Houtala, 2008). The understanding and appreciating cultural differences in businesses has become of vital importance to all organization in creating and sustaining a good relationship when managing a business deal. While David A. Ricks (2009, 7) mentioned “the failure to understand cultural differences can bear serious consequences,” understanding the importance of culture and respecting the role it plays in the lives of potential customers in foreign markets is vital and could the difference between success or failure of the business deal. Forget or trivialize this important ingredient, company’s business runs the risk of failing to attract potential customers, or at worst, alienating or offending millions of people and experiencing a huge loss of sales. Being able to understand and practice unfamiliar culture when venturing into foreign market is vital to the financial success of the organisaion. It
& LeVine, 1984); as patterned ways of thinking (Kluckhohn, 1954); and as unstated standard operating procedures or ways of doing things (Triandis, 1994). Although definitions of culture vary, many emphasize that culture is shared, learned, dynamic, and adaptive (Schiffman et al, 2011). In today’s world of globalization, where migration, international businesses, foreign direct investments, expatriates’ work and any international cooperation has been rapidly increasing (Routamaa & Houtala, 2008). The understanding and appreciating cultural differences in businesses has become of vital importance to all organization in creating and sustaining a good relationship when managing a business deal. While David A. Ricks (2009, 7) mentioned “the failure to understand cultural differences can bear serious consequences,” understanding the importance of culture and respecting the role it plays in the lives of potential customers in foreign markets is vital and could the difference between success or failure of the business deal. Forget or trivialize this important ingredient, company’s business runs the risk of failing to attract potential customers, or at worst, alienating or offending millions of people and experiencing a huge loss of sales. Being able to understand and practice unfamiliar culture when venturing into foreign market is vital to the financial success of the organisaion. It