Long-term business cooperation : The importance of knowing business culture in doing cross-cultural business

Abstract

One of the characteristics of international business negotiations is multi-nationality and multi-ethnicity. Negotiators from different countries and regions have significant differences in language communication, thought patterns, decision-making process, and negotiation style. It is the cultural difference. Differences lead to deadlock or even failure of negotiations. Therefore, the importance of cultural differences in business culture was researched in this thesis, along with an exploration of the challenges that need to be addressed. The commissioner for this thesis was Dongguan Yaxin Craft CO., Ltd. The research aimed to discover how to use and develop better strategies to shape the relationship between the commissioner and foreign customers in future business interactions.

The theoretical framework was based on Hofstede's cultural dimensions theory, proposed by Dutch psychologist Geert Hofstede. This framework served as a tool for measuring the cultural differences among different countries. Theories on business culture, sourced from scholarly literature, were also analyzed to understand the significance and challenges posed by business cultural differences. Qualitative research methods were used in this thesis.

As a result of the thesis, recommendations were successfully drawn based on the author's research. These recommendations were provided to Dongguan Yaxin Crafts CO., Ltd., helping them gain a deeper understanding of business cultural issues in the future. This understanding would assist the commissioner in achieving long-term cooperation with foreign customers without misunderstanding cultural differences and finally get the result of mutual benefit.