Corporate Culture Differences between the United States and China
In the leadership cultures, there are differences in both the countries particularly when it comes to the executive seats. In the U.S culture, there more human resource positions assisting in creating company direction, contributing in conversation and acting as the advisory board in various meeting. In China, most of the people who hold senior official positions accorded lesser treatment as strategic advisors, though they contributed vital points in the workforce management and in the decisions making process by the executives (Walker, 2009).
Although there are similarities in both China and America cultures, there are still differences in there leadership styles which is leading Asian countries particularly China to an economic development. In Asian countries like China, political connection and family control and frequently present than in the United States. Due to the political connection and family control, most Chinese leaders present or on the rage of retirement promote one member of his family like his sibling who joined as an employee or was among the founders to take over his seat. This is either publicly or privately (Mills, 2005).
Leadership differences
In directive leadership culture, roles and tasks are assigned by the executives to the rest of the people in the lower level. Directive leadership culture is recognised in America although deteriorating frequently. In Asian countries like China, direct leadership is so much recognised. Another leadership style includes participative leadership, which involves togetherness. Participative leadership is more common and supported by regulation of law in America. Empowering leadership involves assigning responsibilities to workers. Empowering leadership is frequently practiced in America than in Asian countries like China where few and old business leaders are now trying to adopt. Most big American companies use the empowering leadership style because of the extra divisions in their company. Charismatic leadership style is a style that shows a leader and how he is a leader. This encourages the workers not on how best the leaders management skills are or how neither successful nor active, partnership nor empowerment he is but how closer the leader is to the subordinates. The cultural differences are different and the way the Americans see a charismatic leader may differ from the way the Chinese view a charismatic leader (Mills, 2005).
The Chinese people like there privacy, while this is not the case in America. In America, most executives become role models and the executives are sought later by the media as a screen star. The screen star requires good looks, dramatic ways and an ability to handle the media effectively. Although there is a problem facing the executives on the ability to ensure things are done correctly in the company in US, the problem will be sorted and celebrity leadership will be recovered (Mills, 2005).
The executives and board members have less freedom of action in America than in China. This is frequently seen in America than in China where organizations managed by professional managers who when they reach the age of retirement or through the board of Directors are replaced by other professional managers. In America, good companies have experienced programs that develop executives and automatically appoint one from the internal staff. In the US, unlike in China, there is still organisation or firms that hire their executives directly though they lack experience with the firm from outside and still have a great publicity deal. In US, the executives hired are pushed to bring excellence and developments to the competitive environment. With the pressure put to them, they insist that their professional achievement is greater when compared to money (Mills, 2005).
There are always differences or lack of connectivity between human resource, new or learning leaders and other management. Most senior human resource managers face difficulties when they need to get performance records from business managers in China. In addition, the individual output is measured heavily than the performance taken from the subordinates. If acceptable, this could mean that the time measured to be worthwhile in the US, although the management (Walker, 2009) does this.
In China, focus on achievements is valid less. Total commitment, being obedient, leaving in agreement and peaceful manner is required by all the staff members working in the firm. Due to the collectivism of several heads, a serious mistake may result to an examination with the idea of changing the error. In the United States, individualism or personal development is richly practised by most businesses, which override the performance review. In addition, the Chinese performance in business were received by compliments and praises of there good work but question still popped, if they were capable of producing a balanced, constructive performance review with there managers and executives which was not the case. A balanced, constructive performance review with their managers and executives was a real challenge (Tong, 2009).
In the United States, the masculinity is closer to equality as seen in the example of Dell Company. Dell is strong in the U.S culture, the women at there work place have close equality to there male workmates. Although this equality is noted in the U.S, most countries like China still lack equality. Apart from equality, Dell China has gone through guanxi as another cultural difference whereas the United States, businesses depend on mutual agreement like mutual credible prices (Boone, 2000).
To explain on the guanxi, most employees tend to work on extra hours using there resting time to further socialise most in Chinese events like drinking of baijou and even Karaoke. However, the U.S businessmen clear there work, and leave straight for home to relax with there families. The Chinese businessmen make there decision according to how situational it is, they do not base there decision on legality hence the existence of gray area China and America vary in the ways of solving there problems. The United States uses harmony as a key instrument to there success whereas the Chinese especially in Dell solve there is through stringent ethics policy (Boone, 2000).
Management of employees
Chinas has different management ways of its workers. Dell for example in America uses the two-box management structure. This is employing two executives to one particular department. Both of the executives are responsible for all there employees in their sections and in charge of conducting all communications with the home offices and the locals. Dell in China currently uses the theory x management which involves employees being assigned little responsibility unless if your in the higher or upper levels of the management or sales (Austine, 2006).
Problem solving
When problems are noticed in the U.S, they are brought to the table immediately without resistance however the Chinese people afraid to expose there partners face because they may loose there business deals. In addition to the loss of face, there is a difference in the time concept. As the Americans negotiate point by point of there progress, the Chinese businessmen focus ahead on how to maintain there businesses to the future. For this reason, they are mostly known as holistic thinkers. However, by doing so they have been known for non-verbal communication in there culture (Boone, 2000).
Acquisition of finance
In the United States, most Americans get there funds from legal financial institution, through sale of securities and from private lenders from the capital markets. The Chinese people remain solid to themselves. They fund there own businesses through the help of there families, friends of the family who they take loans with or even from recognised investment funds but. The Chinese tend to stick close avoiding outsider private sources. Due to these facts, we can say that the Chinese business culture is based on the most popular family head. Apart from finance, he is the one person who can decide on places to get funds, employ, and sack and make decisions in the business. (Thompson, 2007).
In addition, the Americans can be said to be so dependent to their capital markets to acquire funds and focuses more on the Wall Street, which is not the case in Asian countries like China. The succession, performance of executives and their behaviours are very strong in Wall Street (Mills, 2005).
Protocols and reasons of the business
In China, most people start a business for there personal gain. This gain may include taking care of your family .As stated before, the most dominant family member calls all the shots, the rest of the family members and employees accept to his decisions. Although the Chinese do not follow the chain of command, they still respect and notice there most dominant family member as head. In America, there are various regulations that are to be followed. The chain of command is one important factor to consider. It is not accepted for a middle management employee to go directly and question the upper most employees bypassing other superiors in between (Thompson, 2007).
Methods used in sales and marketing
In the internet, there are many descriptions of various subjects. These may include various methods of product marketing how to persuade your customers close sale pitches the right press release and the top management teams in American business culture. The difference between Chinese and the American culture is wide particularly when it comes to some marketing styles like direct communication. Americans tend to market there business using advertisement and other monetary incentives. This involves putting offers, money wise to get the information to the customers. The Chinese business culture are much different, they depend deeply on the connection and exposure of there families. This helps then make sales (Thompson, 2007).
Most businesses that partner with the Chinese usually adopt a character that will make the Chinese have repeated sale with them. These characters may include having to learn the various ways that may help the Americans sustain there relationships with the Chinese businessmen for a long period. The prolonged relationships may also include having to offer satisfactory products and quality services, which will help, continue the strong personal connection between the Chinese and the American people. In addition, personal connection with the head decision maker, personally having visits, and inquiring about customer satisfaction through phone calls also help build the connection between the Chinese and the American. For this reasons it is highly advisable for these businesses to have each and every work done during international travel for their sales people. Having to understand the Chinese manner of businesses operating through family obligates and not the pursuit of riches as it takes place in America encourages the target customers to be frequent buyers (Thompson, 2007).
Another method of sales in China is guanxi. As explain before is a complex cultural system that involves sales through personal relationship and moral obligations. Although the American and other western business people take it as corruption, the Chinese businessmen understand it as an easy way of solving problems in a practical and sensible way (Burton Stewart, 2008).
Lessons learnt in corporate culture
The most important principle in the Chinese system is the aptitude for low prices. This is having the skills to sell your items at low prices. Dell through environmental assessment has learnt that penetration in the Chinese competition is the most difficult task to achieve holding its record in the world. For Dell to get its shares and become a market leader in information technology in China to, Dell needs to flow with the current happening in China like from low price to high quality goods (Austine, 2006).
Although most countries in particular the United States offer their trust fully in China when they do business or even work there, most Chinese business people work based on their assumptions of the Chinese reality. The businesses in China have less public trust, poor enforcement of regulations, lack of a system, extreme competition, and quiet a number of winners as compared to the losers whose mind has been set according to the environmental factors (Tinto Urumqi, 2009).
In the later stage, much improvement has been noted mostly towards the American businesses or firms as compared to the Asian countries like China. The Americans increase in development has been brought by several changes, like advancing to a more professional management from family leadership, getting there capital from capital markets and not the government whether directly or indirectly. During this period of change, they have acquired particular leadership styles fast and positive to the boards who are led by outside directors and to Wall Street (Mills, 2005).
There is a possibility that the Asian firms especially China will try to adopt this practice in order for them also to make positive improvement in development. This is so because the political connection is so much important to the top business leaders even if their leadership style is in a one party state or even democracy. In America, firms lack direct connection with head politicians, for this reasons businesses are handled by business people who put there government at a distance. Although there are exceptions and involvements, they are still the basics to success in American business, which are much less common in China (Mills, 2005).
In America, emotional resonance is very much important, emotional resonance may be said to be the ability to hold the motives of others and appeal successfully though this does not take place in China. As time goes by, improving there living standards, the workers knowledge impotency, better professional management demand, and the competition between the executives on managerial skills, it will become a necessity in Asia particularly in China. In acquiring self-knowledge, one is in a position to prevent sort of over-reach which is so much in America than Asia e.g. China. A very unpopular trait in America is humility, which is really found in Asian countries like China. Also with the access to the world capital markets, China will need to enforce professional managers who will practice a more intense leadership, styles better than what the Americans will are using now (Mills, 2005).
Internet and information technology are introducing a high-tech leadership style that is only common in the high-tech sectors of America. This is rear in China though the few who have tried introducing it, entrepreneurial, innovative, hard driving, flexibility, ambitious, optimistic, and visionary in technology and business aspects have almost adopted the western style and are successful managing (Mills, 2005).
In addition, the Chinese companies have been requested to improve on their corporate culture if they intend to beat their foreign competitors in the international market. To be able to develop a leading enterprise can be a great motivation to the Chinese companies understanding their global strategy (China Daily, 2003).
Cross cultural differences
Most managers have come to realise that cross-cultural differences may interfere with the success of the business and bring different results either negative or positive to peoples relations, motivations and attitudes. Cross-cultural differences also brings different reports like in the case for Y2K where the US department stated that Y2K was for the first time challenging and working together to meet a common threat. The international cooperative efforts did not compromise any persons commercial gain or complete power to govern Y2K. In addition the chair of the US president applaud it of its exemplary techniques of getting ones arm around common problem that passed a wide sweep although they wont be able to do that again in the near future, though there was much lessons acquired from that exercises that would be invaluable in addressing other management issues. A foreign service officer in the US consulate in Hong Kong also so Y2Ks move in a different perspective contributing by saying that it was a fine demonstration of effective cooperation and communication, mobilization of resources and people (Anbari et al, 2000).
Gender
Gender is one of the key issues in economic and strategic behaviour. In a trust game, gender was noted that the US women were altruistic because they responded highly than the men showing that the men lacked trust in there proposers. This was confirmed mostly in the United States. These explanation can tell everything that men care more about themselves and the women can even go to the extent of denial to themselves to solve others problems (Croson Buchan, 1998 p389).
Conclusion
In corporate culture, the difference between America and China is wide. In leadership styles, culture contributes a lot towards how activities are done but less towards the activities to be done. The different methods mostly used reflect on the development of the companies and the improvements of the economy. Although the Asian countries particularly in China, the Chinese business people depend on their professional employees and as the professional services become so a must, the lesser autocratic, increased participation and also empowered style of leadership shall exist to look like the Americans although the cultural difference shall still be existing and the differences may remain both geopolitical and economic in China and America, perhaps even growing. As the Asian countries like China try to enter the capital markets, in the future China may introduce professional managers who will include the leadership styles practiced in the United States (Mills, 2005).
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