Strict procedures

In terms of organisation, the rampant individualism in American society is strictly controlled in business life through strict procedures and paper­work. American executives are allowed to make individual decisions, espe­cially when travelling abroad, but usually within the framework of corpo­rate restrictions. Young Americans' need for continual appraisal means that they are constantly supervised. In German companies staff are regularly monitored, but German seniors do not hover. In the USA senior executives pop in an& out or offices, s'naring information and inspiration with their subordinates ('Say, Jack, I've just had a terrific idea^). Memos, directives, suggestions in writing are ubiquitous. Shareholder pressure makes quarterly reporting and rolling forecasts imperative. The focus is on the bottom line. Americans can be quickly hired and just as rapidly fired (often without compensation). Being sacked carries no stigma, ('It just didn't work out, we have to let you go'). For the talented, other jobs and companies beckon. There is precious little sentimentality in American business. The deal comes before personal feeling. If the figures are right you can deal with the Devil. If there is no profit, a transaction with a friend is hardly worthwhile. Business is based on punctuality, solid figures, proven techniques, prag­matic reasoning and technical competence. Time is money and Americans show impatience during meetings if Europeans get bogged down in details or when Orientals demur in showing their hand.

Europeans, by contrast, are often miffed by American informality and what they consider to be an oversimplistic approach towards exclusively material goals. Eastern cultures are wary of the litigious nature of American business. Two-thirds of the lawyers on earth are American - a formidable deterrent for members of those societies who settle disputes out of court and believe in long-term harmony with their business partners.

SWEDEN

The Swedish concept of leadership and management differs considerably from other European models and is dealt with in some detail in Chapter 20. Like Swedish society itself, enterprises are essentially 'democratic', although a large percentage of Swedish capital is in private hands. Managers of thousands of middle-sized and even large firms have attained managerial success through subtle self-effacement, but the big multina­tionals have also thrown up some famous executives who might well claim to be among the most far-seeing business leaders in the world: Carstedt, Gyllenhammar, Wennergren, Barnevik, Carlzon, Wallenberg, Svedberg.

Modern Swedish egalitarianism has age-old cultural roots. Although some historical Swedish monarchs such as Gustav av Vasa and Charles the Great were dominating, compelling figures, the Swedish royals, like those of Denmark and Norway, have espoused democratic principles for many centuries, no doubt mindful of the old Viking lagom tradition when war­riors passed round the drinking horn (or huge bowl) in a circle where each man had to decide what amount to drink. Not too little to arouse scorn; not too much to deprive others of the liquid.

LATINS

The business cultures of Italy, Spain and Portugal are described in later chapters. In Latin Europe, as well as in South America, the management pattern generally follows that of France, where authority is centred around the chief executive. In middle-sized companies, the CEO is very often the owner of the enterprise and even in very large firms a family name or con­nections may dominate the structure. More than in France, sons, nephews, cousins and close family friends will figure prominently in key positions. Ubiquitous nepotism means that business partners are often confronted with younger people who seem to have considerable influence on decision making. Delegations may often consist of the company owner, flanked by his brother, son, cousin or even grandson. Women are generally, although not always, excluded from negotiating sessions.

Status is based on age, reputation and often wealth. The management style is autocratic, particularly in Portugal, Spain and South America, where family money is often on the line. There is a growing meritocracy in Brazil, Chile and in the big northern Italian industrial firms, but Latin employees in general indicate willing and trusting subservience to their 'establishments'.

Task orientation is dictated from above, strategies and success depend largely on social and ministerial connections and mutually beneficial coop­eration between dominant families. Knowing the right people oils the wheels of commerce in Latin countries, just as it does in Arab and oriental cultures. It helps anywhere, but assumes greater importance in those soci­eties which prioritise the nurturing of human relationships over pragmatic, rapid implementation of transactions based on mere notions of opportu­nity, technical feasibility and profit.

THE EAST

Cultural values dominate the structure, organisation and behaviour of east­ern enterprises more than is the case in the West, in as much as deeply-rooted religious and philosophical beliefs impose near-irresistible codes of conduct. In the Chinese sphere of influence (People's Republic of China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore) as well as in Japan and Korea, Confucian principles hold sway. Thailand is Buddhist, Indonesia and Malaysia strongly Moslem. Although national differences account for variations in the concepts of status, leadership and organisation, there is a clearly dis­cernible 'eastern model' which is compatible with general Asian values.

This model, whether applied to corporations or departments of civil service or government, strongly resembles family structure. Confucianism, which took final shape in China in the twelfth century, designated family as the prototype of all social organisation. We are members of a group, not individuals. Stability of society is based on unequal relationships between people, as in a family. The hierarchies are father-son, older brother-younger brother, male-female, ruler-subject, senior friend-junior friend. Loyalty to the ruler, filial piety to one's father, right living, would lead to a harmonious social order based on strict ethical rules and headed up in a unified state, governed by men of education and superior ethical wisdom. Virtuous behaviour, protection of the weak, moderation, calmness and thrift were also prescribed.

Confucianism entered Japan with the first great wave of Chinese influ­ence between the sixth and ninth centuries AD. For some time it was over­shadowed by Buddhism, but the emergence of the centralized Tokugawa system in the seventeenth century made it more relevant than it had been before. Both Japan and Korea had become thoroughly Confucian by the early nineteenth century in spite of their feudal political systems. In the twentieth century Japanese have wholeheartedly accepted modern science, universalistic principles of ethics, as well as democratic ideals, but they are still permeated, as are the Koreans, with Confucian ethical values. While focusing on progress and growth, strong Confucian traits still lurk beneath the surface, such as the belief in the moral basis of government, the empha­sis on interpersonal relationships and loyalties, the faith in education and hard work. Few Japanese and Koreans consider themselves Confucianists today, but in a sense almost all of them are.

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