PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION

COMMUNICATION AND GLOBALIZATION

As discussed in the previous chapter, communication is essential for personal and professional
effectiveness. Further, it helps establish good relationships, creates a better working environment, strengthens
collaboration and cooperation, and unifies conflicting ideas.

The term “globalization”, on the other hand, is very complex to define because different scholars and
institutions view it differently. Nonetheless, the basic concept of globalization is the expansion and integration
of the cultural, political, economic, and technological domains of countries. This reflects that the world is
borderless, and the countries are interconnected and interdependent. For example, the United States of
America (General Electric, Chevron, Starbucks, and McDonalds), Japan (Toyota and Honda) and the
Philippines (Jollibee and Bench) have local companies that have expanded overseas and have become
transnational and multinational.

With the advent of globalization associated with advanced technologies and systems across regions, the
flow of information and communication has become smoother, faster, and easier. Plus, business transactions
and partnerships among local and international institutions have become more efficient. One best example is
the use of electronic mail (e-mail) such as Gmail, and Yahoo Mail, or social networking sites such as Facebook,
Twitter, and Instagram.

Consequently, the context of globalization requires effective communication skills from students and
workers to cope with the demands and challenges brought about by this phenomenon. This includes
communicating effectively with people of different background, age, culture, gender, beliefs, orientations,
preferences, and status.

HOW TO COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY IN A GLOBAL SOCIETY

1. Express your ideas effectively in verbal, non-verbal, and written forms in either digital or non-digital
environment or both.
2. Use effective listening skills to evaluate arguments and rationalize judgments, and improve job-
effectiveness and work relationship.
3. Communicate with purpose to a variety of audiences.
4. Promote collaboration and cooperation with others.
5. Understand the concept of diversity and promote respect all the time.
6. Use technology and social media responsibly. (Barrot & Sipacio, 2018)

Mike Fromowitz 
Oct 7, 2013

Cultural blunders: Brands gone wrong

Everyone makes mistakes. Even marketers. But it’s especially entertaining when we hear of big brands making them.

Marketers create more brand blunders than one would think, and these blunders can cause brands a lot of harm. Some
of them, if they are lucky, escape with just a touch of public ridicule and shaming. Oftentimes, the advertising,
marketing, and PR agencies come out unscathed, but the brand can sometimes take years to recover.

Attempts to create globally consumed brands, or regionally consumed brands throughout AsiaPac, have proved
challenging. Changing a product to cater for local needs or tastes risks destroying the qualities that made the brand
desirable when it was first created. Keeping a brand’s heritage intact when it enters a new market is likely to mean that
marketers need to retain characteristics that root it in the culture it came from.
However, some brand marketers seem to think that they can convince overseas consumers that their products and
services transcend cultural barriers. Wrong.

To prove my point, I’ve gathered a list of marketing blunders made by some of the biggest and most loved brands. All of
these campaigns surely had thousands if not millions of dollars into them, yet the companies couldn’t take the time or
money to check translations or research the culture nuances. Poor sense, poor taste, poor judgement, ignorance, and
above all, laziness can all be blamed. This just shows how important it is to research before thinking your brands and
advertising campaigns can work in any international market.

In conclusion

Culture affects everything we do. The cultural values underpinning a society must be analysed carefully. What are the
religions practised by the majority of the people? Is the society individualist or is it collectivist?   Is there any dominant
political ideology? Or economic ideology? All of these, and more, will impact a brand launch if left unexamined.

There is an important aspect of advertising in foreign markets—that being, the culture and cultural symbols of the target
market are of critical importance. When creating communications, we are taught first and foremost to know our
audience. Who our audience is will be essential to choosing the type of creative (language, visuals, media etc.) we use to
make our messaging relevant and appealing. As brands go international—in some cases as we have seen above—brand
managers can forget that simple truth. That is, know your market. Cross cultural marketing is simply about using
common sense and analysing how the different elements of a brand are impacted by culture and modifying them to best
speak to their target audience. 

Many international companies have had problems with expanding their brands worldwide because they have failed to
put in the research and effort necessary to understand the culture. This has lead to several failed brands, to offended
consumers, and to the loss of millions of dollars that comes with having to start all over again.

Input
With the emergence of a global society, the academic and professional environments have become
multicultural. That means you coexist with people from diverse or different cultural background, beliefs,
religion, gender, nationalities, and ethnicity.
Your verbal communication is always accompanied by non-verbal cues such as gestures, facial expressions, and
other body movements that add to what you are saying in different ways. For example, it is very normal for
Americans to shake hands as a form of greetings but not for the Japanese who bow when they greet each
other. Another is “nodding” to mean “yes” in some nationalities like Indians, and Latin Americans, but in other
countries like Syria, Turkey, and Greece “nodding” means “no”. Indeed, when you communicate in a
multicultural context, it is essential for you to learn, acknowledge, and understand the various communication
and behavioral patterns present in other cultures locally and globally. (Barrot & Sipacio, 2018)

THE DEVELOPMENTAL MODEL OF CULTURAL SENSITIVITY

According to Bennett (2004), the developmental model of intercultural sensitivity ( DMIS) has six stages which
are as follows:
1. Denial- The individual does not recognize cultural differences.
2. Defense- The individual recognizes some differences, but sees them as negative.
3. Minimization- The individual is unaware of projection of own cultural values and sees own values as
superior.
4. Acceptance- The individual shifts perspectives to understand that the same “ordinary” behavior can
have different meanings in different cultures.
 5. Adaptation- The individual can evaluate other’s behavior from their frame of reference and can
adapt behavior to fit the norms of a different culture.
6. Integration- The individual can shift frame of reference and also deal with resulting identity issues.

INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS

When you interact, negotiate or convey information in a multicultural setting, you apply your intercultural
communication skills. Simply, intercultural communication is the sending and receiving of information, ideas,
or messages across languages and cultures. According to Vulpe, Kealey, Protheroe, and Macdonald Vulpe
(2001) of the Centre for Intercultural Learning, one of the major competencies of an intercultural effective
person is intercultural communication, whose core skills include the following;

 Ability to express understandable and culturally sensitive thoughts, feelings, opinions and
expectations.
 Ability to engage and immerse in the local culture and language.
 Ability to establish shared meanings with the local people to avoid stereotyping and
miscommunication.
 Ability to develop a language capacity such as using local greetings and opportunities to use the local
language in other contexts.
 Ability to empathize with how the locals see the world.

Intercultural communication skills therefore, are those required to communicate, or share information, with
people from other cultures and social groups. While language skills may be an important part of intercultural
communication, they are by no means the only requirement. Intercultural communication also requires an
understanding that different cultures have different customs, standards, social mores, and even thought
patterns. Finally, good intercultural communication skills require a willingness to accept these differences and
adapt to them.

Once you have developed this knowledge and understanding, you can start to apply it to your communications
across cultures and even languages.
Some useful starting points may be:

 Demonstrate your willingness to meet others at least halfway by learning a few phrases
in their language.

This is easy if you know that you’re going on holiday somewhere, but it’s also important for expatriate
assignments and other business trips. A few phrases, even if it’s only ‘Good morning’, ‘good evening’,
and ‘thank you’, will go a long way.

There are plenty of free language resources available on the internet so there is no excuse for ignorance.

 Talk to people who know the culture about common traps and problems.

Before you go, find people who know the region to which you’re travelling, and ask their advice. Ask
your co-workers what people commonly do that’s just ‘wrong’, or what problems they have
encountered, and learn from it. Listen carefully to their answers, including what they don’t say, as this
can tell you a lot.

 Adapt your behavior, and don’t always expect others to adapt to you
 This includes not being offended if someone unwittingly does something that you find difficult to
accept. You don’t have to accept it, but it’s best to explain politely why you find it hard, not just go off in
a sulk.

 Check your understanding and that of others

The best way to avoid misunderstandings is to listen carefully and check understanding regularly in the
course of a conversation. Ask questions to make sure that you have understood, and ask others to recap
what you have said to ensure that they have understood you.

 Don’t be afraid to apologize.

You can usually see quite quickly if you have caused offence. The fastest way to manage that is to
apologize, and ask what it was that you did. A confession of total ignorance will often go a long way to
mitigate offence. Ignoring it will just offend further.

 Use local television to learn about behavioral issues and norms

You wouldn’t want to rely on television dramas as your only source of information, but they can provide
useful insights. In the UK, for instance, Coronation Street or East Enders could give you an idea of
what’s considered acceptable and unacceptable behavior. Comedies are perhaps less reliable as they
often use communication difficulties to generate laughs.

 Reflect on your experience

As with so many aspects of life, a little reflection about your experience can help you to put it in context,
especially if you are able to discuss it with someone else in a similar position.

(Skills You Need, 2020)

10 Tips for Improving Your Intercultural Communication Skills

How can you improve intercultural communications?

There are a number of strategies that can be used to better understand and improve intercultural
communications. And, while it depends on the situation and what component of culture you are dealing with,
the guidelines listed below can be used to help in any cross-cultural situation to make sure your message and
intention is clear, and that you understand what others are saying. 

Tips for Achieving Successful Intercultural Communications:

1. Do your homework.

If you know ahead of time who you will be speaking with or what country you will be visiting, it makes sense to
research cultural norms and standards, and communication methods for that particular place. Do not walk into
the situation unprepared if you can avoid it.

2. Ask.
It might be uncomfortable for you and the person you are asking, but by showing your willingness to ask when
you don't understand or when you lack the cultural knowledge necessary to avoid cultural faux paux, you are
demonstrating your willingness to learn more about a new culture and the prevailing communication norms
instead of rushing through unaware.

3. Accept that you'll commit errors.

Even with all the research you're going to do and the questions you're going to ask, you will still make mistakes.
Don't take it personally, rather do your best to be self-aware, actively learn from your mistake and apologize if
you offend anyone or cross boundaries. Mistakes will always happen; the problem begins when you don't use a
mistake as an opportunity to learn to avoid the same issues in the future.

4. Avoid colloquialisms, jokes, and idioms.

Humor is culture oriented and until you have spent significant months or years learning it, jokes should be
avoided as it can be easy to offend or belittle, and in professional situations that can spell disaster. Idioms
should be avoided for a different reason, and that is that they vary greatly by culture and often aren't
translatable. In Colombia, "Hacemos la vaca" means to collect money to buy something together. It has no
literal meaning and if you weren't with someone who could explain, you would be very confused as to why
people were making a cow.

5. Practice actively listening and observing.

Listening is a highly regarded skill. When communicating with others from another culture, it is incredibly
important to actively pay attention and listen to what people are telling you. Listening can help you understand
that there isn't one right way to conduct interactions. Additionally, varying viewpoints or ideas might
contradict your own, but you'll still need to listen respectfully.

6. Repeat or confirm what you think was being said.

It can be helpful to repeat or confirm what you believe to have been the objective of the conversation. This
process will help you avoid misunderstandings, especially when speaking different languages. Write it out if
you have to, but make sure you align everyone's understanding before moving forward.

7. Don't ask yes or no questions.

Instead, use open-ended questions to avoid confusion. With open-ended questions, the person with whom you
are interacting must explain or clearly outline their point, making it easier to understand their response and
the context surrounding it.

8. Pay attention to nonverbal communication.

Communication is also extremely nonverbal. Pay attention to nonverbal cues such as intonation, eye contact,
and posture. Observe how people conduct interactions with others from their same culture and follow their
lead. Certain cultures avoid strong eye contact when speaking, so you'll make someone highly uncomfortable if
you are trying to force strong eye contact they are not used to doing the same.

9. Speak slowly and clearly.

This will help you avoid mistakes and seeming nervous. Speaking slowly and clearly is often interpreted as
being confident. Additionally, taking time to think before you speak can help you to avoid communication
issues and words you might regret later.

10. Take a deep breath and enjoy it!

It can be a challenge to communicate effectively with people from other cultures, and you are bound to find
people with whom you can communicate more effectively and more enjoyably than others. Remember, that the
whole process is a lifelong lesson in empathy, understanding, and self-awareness which can translate to vastly
improve professional and personal interactions and successes beyond just intercultural communications. So,
take a deep breath and start communicating! 
(PSL Corp., 2020)