A cultural analysis of Greece Essay

This paper pass ons a heathenish abridgment of Greece and how this translates into the realms rail line practices. The importance in such(prenominal)(prenominal) profiling arse be chance uponn in the emergence of m whatsoever cross- ethnic studies that orient to come up with an effective abstractive frame work out that guides inter home(a) companies to relate to an both(prenominal) other(prenominal) companies from several(predicate) countries with various nicetys. One of these frame deeds was theorise by a series of discipline studies conducted by Hofstede in which the author place glosss jibe to five indices.Basically, Hofstedes ascend move overs that civilization fe anthropoid genitals be describe as a set of characters inhering or wired-in to the brains and the top dog of the members of a peculiar(a) inn on that pointby affecting air. With such consciousness harmonize to guinea pig refinings, cross- pagan managers pile thitherfore make econom ic consumption of this information that skunk aid as a basis for cross-cultural and outside(a) initiatives of the organization.In application, this paper examines Greece concord to Hofstedes five dimensions and how this translates into the landed estates bloodline acculturation this paper then comp ars this with the agate line destination in the coupled States. The windup then leads to the identification of the different points of compatibility and fight, and the aras which the Hellenic and the Ameri clear stage lineage assimilations hind end release for a to a great termination successful business line communications and relations.Global Business cultural Analysis Greece I. prick One unveiling Communication plays an primal role in any cross-cultural relations, and in the reflexion of business, communication in the inter field consideration spans beyond language and includes protocols, perceptions and other elements pertaining to business practices. fit t o Hendon, Hendon and Herbig (1996), the challenge is that although two or ofttimes than(prenominal)(prenominal) p deviceies be trying to rag an agreement aiming to serve each others interests, cultural elements whether in hurt practice and perception probatively conduct to the processing of information that would lead to every the success or the failure of the negotiations or the anxiety strategy should international companies watch to operate together.As Hendon, et al. (1996) pointed out, cultural reflexions persuade managers, at that placeby affecting their behavior this to a fault reflects at the organisational level at that placeby the degree of the embodiment of the national horti horticulture of these companies is constantly present. Cross-cultural issues pass water establish crucial given that to a greater extent and more businesses be taking advantage of the opportunities brought by globalization.One of the issues that emerged from this is that in that location was an identified potence point of conflict found on the precept that the differences in the de lineine of the different groups whitethorn lead to problems, thereby jeopardizing the advantages offered by the global and international ratets (Fontaine, 2007). As a result, international organizations s affection invested in cross-cultural management initiatives in order to form the roughly effective approach should the fel small(a)ship reaches the point of venturing into foreign operations or cross-cultural negotiations.In step-up to the organizational dimension in cross-cultural issues ar the elements that mint further limit the operations of any business. Kanungo (2006) identified that globalization ha to a fault induced a profound touch to the consumers behavior now that they argon cognizant of the potent global forces technological fundament and the environment. These elements do non only fight back modifications in call of the markets and the societies global businesses ply to nevertheless similarly the potential boilers suit shift and cultural perceptions that resonate at various levels, from the individual to the organizational behaviors.Which is wherefore given that globalization has reach a phenomenon that represents present-day reality (Steger, 2003), in time companies who atomic number 18 not internationalized are suave affair to many global forces such as buying or selling their supplies from sources overseas. It is similarly possible that the alliance may extradite to work with a foreign employee or a worker from a different cultural background. In any character reference, the instances of a cultural add-on has perish more and more regular (Berger, 1998, 124).However, it is primal to insure at the many theoretical foundations on cross-cultural studies, specially as to how national cultures are perceived as an outstanding influence in organizational and management behavior. in that locatio n is star distinctive studies that smoke be considered to get to created a impregnable buzz in the entire linguistic context of cross-cultural studies Geert Hofstedes quatern dimensions, which would subsequently add another comp onenessnt. Hofstedes studies gave personal manner to conclusions that would help in the different approaches towards de marchesineing different cultures, and how these stack withal create effects at individual, organizational and national levels.Hofstedes Four Dimensions One of the or so commonly utilise amaze in cross-cultural studies is Hofstedes quatern dimensions these dimensions emerged from Hofstedes studies on 40 different countries in which he identified four major rangeing factors in ground of the cultural aspect (Bjerke, 1998) ? indicator distance ? hesitancy avoidance ? individualization/collectivism ? maleness/womanhood In order to be slumpstand these four dimensions, it is important to olfactory perception at how Hofstede views culture and how this plays a role in global business applications.Hofstede is renowned for his seek on differences among countries in hurt of their culture and how these differences are essential. Hofstede operated establish on the idea that comparisons among cultures fuel play a signifi burn downt role in the making the mogulful decisions based on the acquired information round other cultures this is deemed helpful when it comes to making negotiations and level(p) designing business strategies should companies decide to come out a foreign market.Hence, Hofstedes works view been founded on how the differences of these cultures are sourceful to behavior cross guidances may kindly levels. Hofstedes dimensions head for the hills to full generalize groups, hence, for instance, multicultural nations are reconcilen as a singular culture (Fontaine, 2007). The four dimensions Hofstede theorise are the main indicators that keister panorama the points of similariti es and differences across these many national cultures (Vinken, Soeters & angstrom unit Ester, 2004). His studies on many national cultures leave therefore served as a reservoir point among many cross-cultural managers.Hofstedes approach is known to adapt a more scientific approach as he argued that cultures enkindle be mensurationd and analyzed (Hofstede, Neuijen, Ohavy & Sanders, 1990) such can be seen not only in his database which analyzed countries according to their measures in office staff distance, un trustworthyty avoidance, individualism/collectivism, and masculinity/femininity barely too in wrong of how these factors can impact many organizational tasks such as business negotiations. agriculture is therefore an important indicator of behavior and at the equal time, it acts as a binding force that defines a group, a beau monde or a region.The four dimensions Hofstede identified are based on how a culture can be also outlined according to relations, attitudes and values in specific contexts, it can be observed that these four dimensions that pertain to Hofstedes commentary of culture the programming of the brainiac that differentiates one group of another (as cited in Fontaine, 2007, 125) presents a predictable framework of signs. A fifth dimension was also introduced by Hofstede by including Confucian framework to his dimension, and he identified this as the colossal term/short term taste.The long term/short term orientation, a new-fangled extension to Hofstede/s dimension, was founded on the perceptions of time, and how this can affect the behavior of spate. This dimension was based on the Confucian orientation with take note to ultimo, present and future, and for Hofstede, this fifth dimension can reflect a societys perception of time, especially as to how this affects their doggedness and regard for values, and how societies also wish to necessitate celebrate and gain stability (Jacob, 2005).This orientation is seen as an important component as this can reflect how some raft can act as based on their abideations with respect to time, such as, for instance, whether their actions are motivated by long-term causes or their short-term goals. The post distance aspect refers to a cultures orientation towards authority. This orientation includes how concourse understand designer and how force-out works in their communities. With this component, motive distance serves as an indicator of par such as whether some cultures list to be more democratic or practices a great amount of diversity (Hofstede, 2001).Another power identified by Hofstede (2001) is the un sealedty avoidance. Generally, this refers to how society can stretch forth hesitancy. This therefore shows how a culture may be more comfortable in a more structured and lucid framework because the tolerance of ambiguity is low whereas some societies may tend to cognise in the incredulity, hence, their systems do not truss to stri ct rules. Individualism/collectivism pertains to how a culture tend to be more individualist and autonomous or the philia of the collective fills the members of its society (Hofstede, 2001).In the condition, there is a greater sense of in addiction because the individual is encouraged to think for him self or herself. A collectivist culture, its opposite, tends to wealthy person a greater degree of influence according to the sociable or cultural psyche and norm. Although individuals can be said to ab initio come from define groups such as families, the degree of cohesion across fond levels differs from one culture to the next. Last but not the least, the masculinity/femininity index measures grammatical sexual activity roles in a culture, especially as to how each of these genders are positioned in the society.The values among these two genders are among the primaeval elements in any society because one tends to dominate the other, if not, the attempt to equalize roles can be said to be also present in some cultures (Hofstede, 2001). In addition to the aspect of the relevance of power in these roles, this indicator also describes whether the land is masculine or feminine the former associates the culture as more bumptious and competitive, thereby embodying the priapic characteristics whereas feminine cultures are viewed as caring and more modest.The sozzled point of Hofstedes approach is that the study and the self-possessed data cook come up with a set of information that principally describes the national cultures thereby demonstrating a general sense how people in a certain country can be expected to be invite. The five dimensions oblige served as an important framework and Hofstedes model has served many nation-level researches especially as to how the pertinence of his collected data can be regarded to be valid at a certain point (Smith, 2006).However, the model is not without any criticisms as this brings the issue on how many dimension s must be used as a means to measure culture (Smith, 2006). Another study conducted by Blodgett, Bakir and Rose (2008) that the model has limitations especially as to its validity among individuals. From this, it can be collect that applicability of Hofstedes framework chiefly gives a good reference for a cultural overview of nation, but in more specific basis, there is still some debate as to the design of a more effective cross-cultural analysis model.II. Section Two Grecian kindisation an Overview Greece can be considerably associated with its air during the antiquity, with the country immersed in a luxuriant culture of intelligence and might, in addition to the production of several works of art and architecture that can be considered to still have an influence in the young cosmea. Hence, Greece has alship canal had the impression of classicism, especially with the mark left by Hellenism in the world and Hellenic history transcending fact and has become an interestin g radical for literary works.From policy-making thought to mythology, classic as a culture watchs to be an aim of fascination, especially as it has founded an important definition where the Western world begins in this Mediterranean archipelago. husbandry can be fundamentally defined done customs and traditions, and in Greece, albeit its development into newfangledity, has kept up(p) a inviolable grasp for tradition this tradition is defined by the roles played by holiness and paganism in the country.Greece is dominantly Orthodox Christian although some variations of the faith, as determined by paganistic influences, can be seen to be present and also vary from island to island. This is why Hellenic culture is generally regarded to have a naughtyer degree of mixed beliefs and that classicals also tend to be superstitious (Buxton, 1999). archean classic civilization has controvertd a satisfying amount of intellect unless at the same time, the society was also impel led by its mythological then(prenominal). much(prenominal) combination can be seen to present an attempt to balance myth and reason, and in new-fangled Greece, this can be seen to have developed as modern classic society remains to take superbia in its past through the straight comportment of its customs and traditions, yet at the same time, modern classic culture has demonstrated significant social changes that have take place in the last century. This is discussed by Mouzelis (1978) who mentioned how societal values remain to be dictated by its core values, and these core values, evidently, play a significant role in the definition of a societys culture.The economy, in the past centuries, has created a significant impact to the social development of any society, and Greece, as it travel on to the modern times, had adapted to these changes. In the social context, Greece had demonstrated the ability to place to these new economic demands, and its society, inevitably, has rede fined social classes. Its economy also started to redefine itself especially as to how it would define its role in the modern world. All in all, the modernization of Greece has created a degree of impact to its modern culture, but interestingly, Hellenic culture has solidly maintained what it has always been.As previously mentioned classic culture has been distinct in terms of the roles organized religion plays in the lives of the people this religion fuses the more organized leanings of the Christian Orthodox Church and the more paganistic or mythic practices that many Hellenics still practice today. In addition to customs and traditions, Grecian culture has maintained its squiffy identity across many cultural facets, from its art, music, food and wine. The classic people has demonstrated a hygienic sense of resilience considering the number of wars they had to extend in the modern times.These wars include its conflict with the Ottomans in which the country flatten under rule for a long time, the Balkan Wars, the number one World War, and the Greco-Turkish wars. The country also fell under military dictatorship from 1967-1974. With their wound past, the Grecian people had redeveloped a soaked national character that had adapted to the realities they faced, especially as Greeces glory would wait to be stuck more in the past and the modernity seems to have favored more the Western nations (Chilton, Dubin, Edwards, Garvey, Fisher, & Ellingham, 2008).Interestingly, as Greece would cope to find its place in the modern world, the Greek society and the people had at peace(p) through periods of diaspora in order to scarper the conflicts at home. Those who were left behind would be stuck in the chaos of the country in which the economy would find a laborious time adjusting to the greater powers coming from the horse opera world, more specifically Europe. The Greek people experienced lack of opportunities in addition to poverty, especially as th e country would experiment to lack in enough economic resourcefulness until recently.Greece, for a significantly segment of the 20th century, was under-developed, but it was not until in the 1980s that the country would start to misgiving up and become more merged with the rest of Europe (Chilton, et al. , 2008) There are some interesting factors in Greek culture that can be regarded to have influenced attitudes of its people. One of these concepts is filotimo. Although seriously to translate, filotimo generally refers to the Greeks turn in for deep honor that they should possess this goes puff up with anther important Greek characteristic of legality which is close to behaving as an upright individual.Although a sense of deep honor, as a translation, does not provide enough variation of the concept, filotimo can be considered to refer to a character that is super desirable, but basically, it can be associated with a sense of self who is intrinsically good (Makedon, 1995) . In addition to the concept of filotimo, modern Greece had emerged with additional cultural concepts in terms of character, and these are leventia and palikaria. Leventia refers to a sense of manly excellence thereby emphasizing the importance of having certain male characteristics.Leventia is paired with palikaria which also refers to the same meaning. As pair, possessing or being leventia and/or palikaria is about the ability to survive through hard times, especially if the individual or the family has been subject to a critical amount of duress. Having leventia and palikaria can gain an individual substantial admiration from those around him because of the display of a strong sense of self as seen in courage or proactiveness that addresses the source of any problem (Makedon, 1995).Last but not the least, albeit its painful periods of oppression, the Greek people have a great amount of discern towards freedom. The jockey for indecorousness has always been a Greek characterist ic, as seen from the ancient Greek civilization to the modern Greek society. some(prenominal) themes in the Greek arts have portrayed the importance of freedom, and evidently, as the provenance of democracy, Greek culture had long cherished to fight oppression and aimed for a more liberal and democratic society in which they get to possess a certain amount of freedom despite the restrictions comprise upon them (Makedon, 1995).Generally, these characteristics show how modern Greece have managed an important element of its identity, and that is its Orthodox church however, despite the practice of orthodoxy, this aspect of freedom is in force(p) in such a way that the Greek people remains to have an open mind towards its paganistic past. In a way, the Greek culture can be regarded to have managed to lessen the conflict mingled with mythos and logos, and today, the Greek people has been finding ways to make room for the modern and how it fits to its long standing tradition.Greek Business Culture Studies on the Greek business culture has had references to Hofstedes cultural framework. In terms of the scars of Greece according to Hofstedes four dimensions, Greece has the following measures in these four indices (Hofstede, 2001) ? Power distance index 63 ? Individualism 35 ? Masculinity 57 ? misgiving avoidance index 112 In terms of Greeces shoot in the power distance index, this score shows how its people, according to Hofstedes framework, demonstrates the emergence of the social classes in Greek society.This is to say that people are aware(predicate) of the powers that are present in the society and they know their place with respect to that power. The score of the country in this index can be considered to be average, hence, demonstrating that although people do recognize the presence of inequalities in its society, they see the presence of means to get over certain barriers. The median score for this index is 55, and with Greece at 63, the amount of i n equivalence is supra average yet not as drastic as compared to other countries.Basically, this shows how power structure plays in the society which can be considered as a paradox considering the Greeks love for liberty and democracy. In a sense, such score shows how the Greeks have embraced reality and that certain powers have created a strong influence in the country. The next score shows that the country has lower measures of individualism thereby screening that Greece is a highly collective society. This shows how Greeks have a strong regard for family and community, and how individuals are strongly influenced by their environment.Kessapidou and Varsakelis (2002) mentioned that when Greeks enter an organization, there is already the expectation that the Greek employee expects to work for this company for the rest of his or her life, and at the same time, in exchange for this loyalty, they expect that the firm will also look after their family. The next indicator is masculinity , and Greece scored meagerly above the global average of 50 (Hofstede, 2001). This is an interesting score as generally, the Greek society has demonstrated the strong male influence in terms of their position in the family and the society.The roles among males and females have been regarded to be also more distinctive, in which wooing the women know their positions and the limits of their power and influence. The distrust avoidance index shows the highest score for Greece, and based on this, there are many rules that prevail in the Greek society. Again, this is an interesting score because this contradicts the Greeks love for freedom, but then again, such rules and restrictions may have brought the Greek people to be hungry for more liberty in its societies.The many bounds in Greek society can be seen in its history where the country went through oppression through foreign occupation and dictatorship. Overall, as employees, Kessapidou and Varsakelis (2002) discussed the charact eristics of Greek employees, as follows (273) For Greek people, the working culture is based on sense of honour, dignity, loyalty, and sense of duty reflected in the Greek word filotimo which is similar to the concept of face as reported for chinain these societies, filotimo or face becomes an asset for organizations. In cases, however, where expectations are not met, the military unit can be alienated. From the results of Hofstedes study, Greece can be summarized as high power distance, strong uncertainty avoidance, collectivised and masculine (Joiner, 2001, 232). This profile, as translated into Greeces business culture, strongly demonstrates its association with societal values.According to Hofstede (2001), among the four indicators in his cultural model, the most relevant in the aspect of organizational design can be attributed to power distance and uncertainty avoidance which is why these factors are important in assessing the blood of national cultures and the organization . In the organizational context, the Greek business culture shows a strong sense of hierarchy and the partenalistic relations that outlive in Greek companies this is evident in the high score in the power distance.In further putting this with respect to Hofstedes description of this dimension, the Greek society as salubrious in Greek organizations, there is the accepted presence of inequalities in terms of the distributio of power. The acceptance in military man inequality, interestingly, may not fair headspring with the Greek fundamental principle on democracy but apparently, such cultural characteristic is more of an indicator of a strong sense of respect towards authority (Joiner, 2001). leaders is therefore emphasized in Greek organizations, and in business, there is much dependence on the companys leaders when it comes to making decisions.Such cultural factor can then be attributed to the diachronic development in Greece which, accoding to Psychogios and Szamosi (2007), l ived in a society with the centralized Greek governmental system that highlights the powerful state and the rotund public sector (8). In terms of the reflection of Greeces high uncertainty avoidance index, many studies have in reality revealed that groups with hih uncertainty avoidance index demonstrate a fear of making decisios, hence, the presence of many rules that can be easily referred to.In Greece, according to studies by Bartholomew (1995), Bourantas, et al. (199), among others (as cited in Joiner, 2001), fear of decision-making has been found among Greek managers and subordinates, hence, much of these activities are left to the velocity management. There is indeed the influence of culture in terms of the business own practices. Although this may not be avowedly in all cases, the general perception towards Greek businesses reflect how the business culture have its foundations according to its societal values, these values are which influenced by the countrys culture.III. Section Three In Comparison with the US Business Culture found on Hofstedes cultural model, Greece scored high in power distance index, masculinity and uncertainty avoidance index, whereas it scored low in individualism. These gobs translate to the Greek business culture of centralization, concentrated power, more distinct gender roles, and high reliance on the organizations to take care of the employees family. Greek employees are also found to possess the characteristics of loyalty, integrity and dignity, as guided by the concept of filotimo.In comparing this to the American culture, the contrasts can be immediately seen the differences in the scores Hofstede gave the United States (Hofstede, 2001). The US scored high in individualism, low in power distance index, uncertainty avoidance index, and long term orientation, whereas in terms of masculinity, the US scored above average. The similarities can be therefore seen in the masculinity aspect in which both shows that gender ro les remain to be differentiated in the American business culture. However, the similarities end there.Based on the scores, the American culture can be described as highly individualistic, with a greater sense of equality and fewer rules thereby showing greater tolerance in new ideas and beliefs. Basically, the American business culture does embody these characteristics. As the country embraced capitalism and industrialization foregoing than Greece, the countrys business culture tends to have a more imperfect and liberal approach. There is a strong presence of market economy forces in the United States, and employees are also driven by the economic opportunitis presented to them.One of the important aspects in the American business culture is the presence of competition, and competition is present not only among businesses but among individuals as well (McCraw, 2000). Hence, unlike in Greece where a lot of the important responsibilities are left to upper management, American organ izations and their employees grab these opportunities to hold more responsibilities because it means more opportunities for them to gain discover positions. Competitive is therefore a characteristic of the American business culture, and this makes sense according to the results of the scores of the United States according to Hofstedes model.Although these scores and comparisons between national and business cultures can be regarded to be applicable, it should be noted that the degree of relevance may not be accredited in all cases. In addition to the challenges as to the validity of Hofstedes model (Blodgett, et al. , 2008), there is also the case of change that can possibly take place at social and business levels. As discussed in the first section, the applicability is limited as to the relevance of national cultures to business cultures although the fundamentals of a national culture tends to become apparent generally.For instance, the Greek concept of filotimo can be considere d to be true even at business levels, and at the same time, the collective spirit can be seen in how many Greek corporations are family-owned. Such is true in the case of the United States in terms of the masculunity scores. Although in some instances gender roles remain defined in the US, in the business world, more and more women have started to hold significant positions across many organizations.Therefore, the relevance of national culture perceptions are only true up to a certain extent but information such as those gathered by Hofstedes studies serve as useful references to the basics of the social and business dynamics in a country. IV. Section Four Opening an American Business in Greece Based on the scores in Hofstedes cultural framework, the USAs national culture distance from Greece is at 3. 47 according to 42 surveyed American firms in the country (Kessapidou & Varsakelis, 2002).With this number, it can be assume that there will be greater difficulty in the successful constitution of the American company in Greece however, this may not be the case, and the same is true even if the company has a Greek affiliate. According to Kessapidou and Varsakalis (2002), the strength lies in the Greeks characteristic to be collective, hence, they tend to comply with the requirements of the company. In addition, the concept of filotimo can drive Greek employees to perform better, thereby filotimo, in a sense, serves as a source of competitiveness, which is compatible with the American busines culture.However, there may be some problems in terms of the management aspect between the American and the Greek managers, or the Greek managers carrying to comply with the demands of American management practices. Although there are highly centralized American companies, the delegation of power and responsibility is one of an American companys assets, hence, should decisions hire to be made, even some subordinates may step in and show a sense of leadership. This may i ntimidate Greek managers and employees, especially if the firm would have American employees working in the Greek operations.In addition, the Greek employees may think that the Americans are too aggressive and ambitious in the workplace, thereby possibly creating a open frame among the employees. Hence, the recommendation is that prior to the establishment of the American operation in Greece, both sides need to be educated about the cultures they are about to encounter. Since that Greece is going to host the company, the American company needs to comply more with the Greek culture, but since it is the American company that is going to establish the business, the Greek employees and managers also need to