Culture of Society and Managers from Japan, Germany and the United States

The culture of society is the many facets of shared characteristics that make each society of the world unique.  It is important for multinational companies to understand the culture of a society.  This report will present an analysis of Hofstede's cultural dimensions for Japan, Germany and the United States, specifically how the cultural dimensions relate to behaviors of managers in each country emphasizing differences as related to operational change, and the meaning of culture of a society.

Analysis of Managers

Japan

            Japanese managers view subordinates as being able to succeed if they work hard and based on a score of 54 will ensure that all their decisions are approved and blessed by each layer of upper management due to their hierarchical society model.  They tend to have a collective nature and are reserved and private—with a score of 46 on Individualism the Japanese manager will be more individualist than most other Asian cultures.  The Japanese manager is predominantly male, has a high work ethic, hold high expectations of their workers, and require perfection in the products produced and services delivered.  Japan scores higher than most other Masculine societies with a 95.  Managers in this society will not be open to change and will require many details and fact-finding measures.  Japan scores 92 on Hofstede's Uncertainty Avoidance—everything must be planned and scrutinized to determine the level of risk.  Japanese people do not believe in God and see themselves as a very small part of the universe.  They score 80 on Long Term Orientation, which means they look at the value of long-term growth verses short profit cycles.  The organization is viewed as not making money for shareholders, but as serving the betterment of society and the stakeholders for future generations (See Figure 1)(Bing, 2012; Firoz & Taghi, 2004; Griffith, Myers, & Harvey, 2006; Hofstede, 2012; House, Hanges, Javidan, Dorfman, & Gupta, 2004; Minkov & Hofstede, 2011; Usunier & Lee, 2005; Williamson, 2004).

Germany

            In Germany, an effective leader or manager must be expert and direct in communication with subordinates based on the Power Distance score of 35 on Hofstede's culture map.  Managers in Germany are honest and must present contractual agreements between themselves and workers as is noted by the score of 67 on Hofstede's dimension scorecard. Germany is one of most Individualist cultures in the world.  They are also a highly Masculine society with a score of 66; their managers will be predominately male, status driven, assertive, and decisive.  Managers believe people are made to work—managers will hold hard workers in high regard.  German managers usually approach most task with deductive instead of inductive reasoning due to the high score of 65 on Uncertainty Avoidance.  The managers tend to rely on their own expertise instead of relying on their superior or their subordinates.  Germany scores low on short-term orientation—people live in the now.  Managers are impatience and expect quick results; traditions important and truth is paramount (See Figure 1)(Bing, 2012; Firoz & Taghi, 2004; Griffith, et al., 2006; Hofstede, 2012; House, et al., 2004; Minkov & Hofstede, 2011; Usunier & Lee, 2005; Williamson, 2004).

United States

            In the United States, managers are informal with communication and interaction with subordinates.  With Power Distance, score of 40, managers strive to treat everyone equally and maintain an open door policy for consulting at all times.  The manager depends on employees and teams to accomplish their goal.  The United States is a highly individualistic culture with a score of 91 and the manager expects self-motivation and high levels of production from employees.  Most promotions will be performance based.  The United States is a masculine society with a score of 62.  Mangers want to win and are usually driven by competition and success.  Americans tend to accept uncertainty and score 40 in Uncertainty Avoidance, which produce managers that are open to ideas, encourage innovation, and allow freedom of expression from employees to a greater extent than high scoring Uncertainty Avoidance countries.  With a score of 29 on Long-term orientation—American managers review immediate results, such as quarterly profit and loss statements.  They expect the truth from employees, instant results and hold traditions and social responsibility in high regard (See Figure 1)(Bing, 2012; Firoz & Taghi, 2004; Griffith, et al., 2006; Hofstede, 2012; House, et al., 2004; Minkov & Hofstede, 2011; Usunier & Lee, 2005; Williamson, 2004).

Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions for Japan, Germany, and the United States

	Power distance Large small	Uncertainty avoidance large small	Individualism collectivism	Masculinity femininity	Long or short orientation
Japan	54	92	46	95	80
Germany	35	65	67	66	31
United States	40	46	91	62	29

Figure 1 (Hofstede, 2012; Usunier & Lee, 2005)

Operational Change

            Bing 2012 opined that MNC must embrace change to become successful in the global business arena and should use Hofstede's cultural dimensions as a guideline.  In addition, communication is the corner stone of effective operational change—most people do not like change and will usually resist.  Bing defines four characteristics of change that are effective when aligned with Hofstede's culture map.

1.      Most people are inspired by their own self-interest and will follow if they understand what the expectations are, thus communications and incentives are critical to successful change and relates to Hofstede's Individualism dimension.  The old adage what is in it for me or us works?  Japanese managers would focus on how change would be good for the group, whereas, German and American mangers would focus on what is best for individuals. 

2.      Generally, most people will do what they are requested or made to do as employees and align with Hofstede's Power Distance dimension.  Deliver the message based on low or high Power Distance and preference of Hierarchical or Participant Orientation.  Managers from Japan would have superior's present change or present the change with authority.  Managers from the United States and Germany would present the change through discussion and persuasion.

3.      Most people do not like interruptions and loss; however, most people adapt well to new situations or circumstances and relates to Hofstede's Certainty dimension.  For example, meet the needs of specificity for those that have a Need for Certainty and reward and teach those that have a Tolerance for Ambiguity.  Japanese mangers would need to present many facts; the Americans and Germans would need open communication and learning exercises that show improvement through expertise.

4.      Most people being social in nature stick to culture values and norms.  Throughout history, culture values and norms are being redefined by organizations, war and economic and political instability.  This happens by redefining what the acceptable culture norms and values are and relates to Hofstede's Masculinity dimension.  For example, present the change through rewarding performance and results for the cultures that prefer Achievement Orientation and for those that prefer Quality of Life Orientation emphasis service interdependence, and solidity.  The manager from Japan, Germany and the United States must be decisive and intuitive, as well as ensure the change will be achieved through hard work (Bing, 2012; Hofstede, 2012; Minkov & Hofstede, 2011; Williamson, 2004). 

The Meaning of Culture of a Society

            Culture of a society means the shared beliefs, customs, values, and other characteristics of a specific group or society (House, et al., 2004; Minkov & Hofstede, 2011; Usunier & Lee, 2005). “Culture is the collective programming of the mind distinguishing the members of one group or category of people from others” (Hofstede, 2012).  House, 2006 indicates cultures are clustered or broken down by most scholars as intercultural societies based on geographical regions, modernization and ethnicity, and language and religion.  Each of these groups share commonalties of regions in the world, historical background, language, religion, values, ethics, traditions, and many other traits that make up the society of culture.  In the GLOBE study House (2006) developed societies of culture with the aforementioned scholarly guidelines—the society clusters are Anglo, Latin Europe, Nordic Europe, Germanic Europe, Eastern Europe, Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East, Southern Asia, and Confucian Asia.  House and Hofestede's studies indicate that societal clusters can be determined by shared climates (Hofstede, 2012; House, et al., 2004; Minkov & Hofstede, 2011; Williamson, 2004). 

Conclusion

Throughout the world cultures of societies exist—there are differing methodologies on how to group people; however, as the world becomes more globalized though technology and business the societies of culture will become more and more melted together and yet, there will remain societal units that exhibit deeply rooted cultural influence of their ancestors.  Managers from Japan, Germany and the United States have cultural differences; they manage people based on their inherent cultures.  However, research indicates that managers from all three countries using excellent communications skills and Hofstede's cultural dimensions can implement effective change strategies and understand the societies of culture that make up their work force even though they belong to unique cultures of society.

          

References

Bing, J. W. (2012). ITAP International, from http://www.itapintl.com/facultyandresources/articlelibrarymain/hofstedes-consequences-the-impact-of-his-work-on-consulting-and-business-practices.html

Firoz, N. M., & Taghi, R. (2004). Understanding Cultural Variables is Critical to Success in International Business. International Journal of Management, 21(3), 307-323.

Griffith, D. A., Myers, M. B., & Harvey, M. G. (2006). An Investigation of National Culture's Influence on Relationship and Knowledge Resources in Interorganizational Relationships Between Japan and the United States. [Article]. Journal of International Marketing, 14(3), 1-32.

Hofstede, G. (2012), from http://geert-hofstede.com

House, R., Hanges, P. J., Javidan, M., Dorfman, P. W., & Gupta, V. (2004). Culture, leadership, and organizations-The GLOBE study of 62 societies. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Minkov, M., & Hofstede, G. (2011). The evolution of Hofstede's doctrine. Cross Cultural Management, 18(1), 10-20. doi: 10.1108/13527601111104269

Usunier, J. C., & Lee, J. A. (2005). Marketing Across Cultures (4th ed.). New Jersey: Printice Hall.

Williamson, C. D. (2004). The development of stewardship relationships between managers and their principals: A study of the effect of three organizational/cultural variables. Ph.D. 3117958, Regent University, United States -- Virginia. Retrieved from https://login.libproxy.edmc.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/305054976?accountid=34899

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