Chinese management and communication principles - Intercultural competence as prerequisite for business success

Seminar paper from the year 2010 in the subject Communications - Intercultural Communication, grade: 2,0, University of applied sciences, Marl, language: English, abstract: 1. Introduction

1.1. Problem

Globalization is an ongoing process by which regional economies have become integrated

through a global network of communication and trade, which simultaneously

induces ¿globalization of culture¿.

In an attempt to explain culture more clearly, the ¿Iceberg Model of Culture¿ can be

used2 since culture is often compared to an iceberg which has both visible (on the surface)

and invisible (below the surface) parts.

Visible elements of culture ¿ the ¿perceptä¿ can be seen, such as food, clothing or laws.

Those elements which are not as obvious ¿the ¿conceptä - such as norms, values or beliefs are represented by the much larger

portion of the iceberg underwater.

In a course of increasing cross-cultural business encounters, the question arouses

whether it is necessary to be acquainted with both the visible and the greater invisible

part of the culture concerned ¿ i.e. to possess intercultural competence ¿ in order to gain

international business success.

1.2. Objectives

With reference to Hofstede¿s Dimensions of National Culture, this seminar paper has

the intention to verify the close correlation between intercultural competence and international

business success.

In this context, it makes an attempt to visualize the ¿invisible¿ part of culture by the

example of China, which gains a steadily increasing importance for the world economic

growth shown by its gross domestic product real growth rate of 8.7 % est. in 20096, thus

attracting more and more companies from all over the world to establish business in

China.