Market+Leader+Intermediate+3rd+edition+SB

AUDIO SCRIPTSEl Mmm ... we'll have to think about that. OK, thank you. How ahoutyou? Arc you interested as well?T1 Yes, I like the product as well, but I also think it'll need a lot ofmarketing to get established, and you may have to change thepackaging. So ... I'll offer you the full amount, 5200,000, for a stakeof45%.El OK, so we seem to have two offers on the table. Could I ask each ofyou, what business expertise you could bring to our business? Howmuch help could you give us, apart from money?T1 Well, I have a company which sells household products to the retailtrade, and it's very successful. You would be able to usc our salesforce to build up sales and develop the brand. And I would be veryhands-on in developing your product.T2 In my easc, I have a very good track record investing in start-upbusinesses like yours. Basically, I invest in people, and I've beenimpressed with your presentation. I think we could work well together.El Thanks to both of you. Could we have a break and consider your offer?n&2 By all means/certainly. Take your time ..WORKING ACROSS CULTURES 2:INTERNATIONAL MEETINGSCOl TRACK 43The culture we come from or live in influences what we sec, do, believeand say. It affects our expectations and behaviour, and we need to be verya\vatC of it. TIle Simple fuet is tllat whats nonnal or appropriate for usmay seem very strange or even rude to someone from a different culture.l'Ulook at three of the key areas of culture which may affectcommunication in international meetings, causing confusion andfrustration. Firstly, time: not aU cultures or people are ruled by thedock. TIlere are some cultures, it's true, where the feeling is indeedthat 'time is mane)': They will often have strict approaches to thisaspect of meetings, such as starting and finishing times and theduration of discussion. Other cultures, however, have a completelydifferent approach and see the starting time as a guide only and thefinishing time as not fixed. Other stages may be surprisingly flexible,and you may find that there is little attempt to stick to the agenda.Secondly, the idea of hierarchy in a culture, and therefore in meetings,can be very Significant. By this, we mean the relative levels ofimportance and seniority which people have in a company. Someonefrom a very hierarchical culture is likely to feel very uncomfortablesaying what they think or criticising the ideas of others, especially if theperson being criticised holds a higher position. TIley arc also unlikelyto openly disagree or report a problem in front of a boss or manager.Criticising the ideas of a superior could be seen as a loss offace forboth people involved.Another key area to think about is the objective of the meeting. Inmany cultures, there's an attitude that meetings should have veryclear purposes and 'get down to business' pretty quickJy ... using astructured, pre-planned agenda is important. in such cnses, there's verylittle in the way of small talk - maybe just a couple of comments abolltthe weather, fo otball, etc. However, other cultures sec meetings as theplace for relationship building and developing trusl, so the meetingmay be a lengthy discussion, and actual decisions may often be madeoutside the meeting. Again, the idea that the purpose of a meeting is tomake a decision may be alien to some cultures. It's important to bearthis in mind, as it can be quite a surprise if you're not used to it.Finally, some advice on successful international meetings. Clarifying iskey in any international meeting. Different cultural assumptions meanthat sometimes spoken languagel body language, including gesturesl andwritten symbols can be misunderstood. Constant checking and feedbackis crucial. At the end of a meetingl its vital to summarise the main areasof agreement and disagreement and ensure that everyones happy withthem to avoid confusion and frustration later.Overall, any international meeting requires planning, organisationand thinking about ifit's to succeed. We must consider how culturaldifferences may affect mutual understanding and we should try topredict any areas open to misunderstanding before they happen.UNIT 7 CULTURESCOl TRACK 44 (I = INTERVIEWER, IT = JEFF TOMS)I Can you give us some examples of culture shock that people haveexperienced?IT There arc many, many examples of culture shock, andl er, many ofthose really come about because people haven't prepared themselveswell enough. So examples of that might be timing, where in somecultures the concept and perception of timekeeping is very differentland I guess the obvious one that people always use is the exampleoflhe MJddle East. TIle Middle Eastern dock really revolves aroundtwo things really - the prayer times and of course, because they weredesert travellers, about the movements of the sun and the moonl er,during periods of the day.Um, other examples is where, abrain around time, where) perhapsfrom a Latin culture's perspective, um, it's about buildingrelationships before you actually get down to, to business. Now veryoften Westernl and particularly American, bUSinesspeople find thatvery frustrating. For Americans, time is mone)" and so they'll bevery keen to actually ... er, the salesman will be very keen to get outhis sales literature and start exalting the virtues of the product he'strying to sell yOll, er, they'll try to get on with the agenda as quickJyas possible, whereas) particularly in Latin cultures and also in peoplelike Chinese cultures, relationship building is very important. They'llwant to entertain you for sure, and very often invite you back totheir home, and all this before they actually want to sit down anddo business with you because, in the Latin culture, they arc makingjudgements about you as an individual, as to, as to whether you're thekind of person that they want to do business with.COl TRACK 45 (I = INTERVIEWER, JT = JEFF TOMS)IArc some people better suited fo r international business than others?JT Absolutely - er, what companies still tend to do is select people forinternational business and business aSSignments, er, purely basedon their skill set. So if you're the best civil engineer or you're thegreatest IT cOllsultant in the bUSiness, it is often thought that thisfu lly equips you to be the best person to conduct that businessinternationally. Clearly those skills arc very important, but they haveto be underpinned by, I think, a number of personal traits that makeyou a more effective international businessperson.Some of those traits - um, adaptability: )'ou have got to be preparedto adapt the \vay that you do business or adapt your expectationsor your needs, to meet the needs of the culture ofthc people thatyou're doing business with - so) adaptability; flexibility is obviously"ery important. Er, you've got to be prepared to actually change theparameters with which )'ou were intending to do business.COlT RACK 46 OT = JEFf TOMS)JT Very important - and you'll know from this course incommunication - um, you've got to be a good listener. Er, you've gotto pay more attention than you would when speaking to somebodyin your own culture to make sure that you have understood quiteclearly what is being said. And one of the things that we always sayto people is that, to be very sure that you've actually heard what youthink you·ve heard. There arc some steps )'OU can take. It 's alwaysa very good idea to get the individual, if you're not clear, to repeatwhat they've said. It may seem tedious to you, but actually it's veryimportant to make sure that you haven't made mistakes.I think also one of the key features orthe successful internationalbUSinessperson is to be non-judgemental. For instance, if you'recoming from an Asian culture, er, to try and do business with, er, aWestern culture, er, for certain the way that people do things willbe fundamentally different - er, the hierarchy, the structure, thedecision-making process, the seniority and the influence of thepeople you're doing business with - will be fundamentally different.Er, you may not agree, you may not approve of the way that businessis done in another culture; but the way that people do business inthat culture is as a result of many, many years of, of development andso YOll have to be accepting, er, thai it may be not to your liking and itmay be different, but it is not wrong.COlTRACK 471 Small talk is one way to break the ice when meeting someone for thefirst time.2 I was thrown in at the deep end when my company sent me to run theGennan office. I was only given two days' notice to get everything ready.3 We don't see eye to eye with our US parent company aboutpunctuality. We have very different ideas about what being 'on time'means. It's a question of culture.4 I got into hot water with my boss for wearing casual clothes to themeeting with the potential Japanese customers.5 I really put my foot in it when I met our Spanish partner. Because Iwas nervousl l said '\Vho arc you?' rather than 'How are you?:6 I get on like a house on fire with our Polish agent; we like the samethings and have the same sense of humour.158scanned for Paul Jennings