Read the portraits of managers in five different countries and decide which country each one corresponds to.

· Germany;

· Poland;

· Sweden;

· The United Kingdom;

· The United States.

1. Managers from this country:

- consider professional and technical skills to be very important;

- have a strong sense of authority;

- respect the different positions in the hierarchy of the companies;

- clearly define how jobs should be done;

- are very loyal to their companies and expect their subordinates to obey them;

- are often older than in other countries;

2. Managers from this country:

- receive a general education;

- delegate authority;

- take a practical approach to management;

- have relatively formal relationships at work;

- encourage their employees to work individually;

- believe it is important to continue education and training at work;

3. Managers from this country:

- consider social qualities to be as important as education;

- encourage their employees to take an interest in their work;

- pay close attention to the quality of working life;

- do not use as much authority as in other countries;

- appreciate low-level decision-making;

- are often women;

4. Managers from this country:

- generally attend business schools;

- communicate easily and informally at work;

- admire the qualities of a leader;

- expect everyone to work hard. Individual performance is measured and initiative is awarded;

- have competitive and aggressive attitudes to work;

- often accept innovation and change;

5. Managers from this country:

- have either gained their experience in state-owned enterprises or are competitive self-starters;

- older managers hold technical degrees rather than business qualifications;

- work very long hours and expect their subordinates to do so;

- are extremely innovative, optimistic and determined;

- are quick to invest in the development of new products, market techniques and methods of production and distribution.

2. In groups discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each approach to management, and say which one you would find the most attractive. Do any of these profiles correspond to management practices in your country?(To express your ideas correctly see Appendix 2)

Reading

Read the text below about The Centre for International Briefing, which runs training courses for business people traveling to other countries, and complete the paragraphs using the sentences below.

a) “In a country like Japan, the notion of personal space which we value so much simply has no meaning”, he says.

b) In Asian cultures most of it takes place behind the scenes.

c) The difference between understanding a culture and ignoring its conventions can be the measure of success or failure abroad.

d) The Centre for International Briefing has spent 40 years preparing the wary traveler for such pitfalls.

e) John Doherty, International Marketing Director with the Irish Industrial Development Authority, explains how you can easily talk yourself at a business meeting in Japan.

f) Greetings, gestures and terms of address are all potential hazards abroad.

Date: 2016-01-14; view: 3393