Culture in Business

Culture in a Global Economy

• In general, culture is the beliefs, customs, and attitudes of a distinct group of people.

  • The global economy creates a diverse culture for business.

• As companies trade worldwide, they must be aware of different cultural and business practices

• In business, culture has two important meanings.

  • In the broad sense, it refers to the customs of other countries with which companies do business.

    • A custom is a practice followed by people of a particular group or region.

  • Business culture refers to the standards of a particular company.

• To market products successfully in another country, companies must research the country’s languages, customs, and tastes.

• Companies doing business in other countries must be aware of cultural differences that affect the workplace.

• Business etiquette is conduct that is considered socially acceptable in business.

• Many companies avoid cultural problems by hiring local managers in other countries.

Corporate Culture

• A company’s corporate culture is its shared values, beliefs, and goals.

  • A company’s founder can influence its culture.

  • Region and tradition can also play big parts.

• A company’s culture affects the way it is organized and does business.

• A formal business culture may have a strict hierarchy, or chain of command.

  • A hierarchy usually has one person at the top who makes all the decisions.

• There might be several levels of management below.

  • This is known as a bureaucracy

• At a company with an informal culture, employees are encouraged to make decisions on their own

Diversity in the Workplace

Cultural Diversity

• Companies tend to thrive when they have diversity, a variety of employees with different backgrounds and identities.

  • People are diverse in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, and individual needs.

• Some people stereotype others who are different from them.

  • To stereotype people is to identify them by a single trait or as a member of a certain group rather than as individuals.

• As the population becomes more diverse, so does the workplace.

  • There are greater numbers of women, Asians, Hispanics, and African Americans in management positions.

• The 76 million babies born in the United States between 1946 and 1964 are called the baby boom generation.

  • Many members of this generation are reaching retirement age and developing specific needs.

• Discrimination is unfair treatment of a person or group, usually because of prejudiced attitudes about race, ethnicity, age, religion, or gender.

  • For example, in the past, workers over the age of 40 were often fired or denied jobs in favor of younger workers.

    • This form of discrimination is called ageism.

    • To protect older workers, the U.S. government passed the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.

      • It prohibits discrimination against workers because of their age

  • The Equal Employment Opportunity Act was passed to strengthen laws that protect workers from discrimination based on race, ethnicity, religion, or gender.

  • In 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed.

    • ADA prohibits discrimination against qualified people who have disabilities.