10.4南非商务实践在线视频

Hello dear students

Welcome back

So

after learning all the cultural etiquette

it is time to practice

We are now going

to have an in-depth tour

in companies or business

enterprises of South Africa

It is good to know

more about greeting culture

Structure and hierarchy in companies

of South Africa

appointment and meeting culture

and finally how to

maintain a good business

relationship with your South Africa counterpart

Firs Greetings

In most cases

the common communication

gesture is a handshake

Maintain eye contact

when shaking hands in meetings

to help build trust

When the other person speaks

you should look the other

person in the eye

and show that

you are listening by nodding your head

The presence of

women is acknowledged

but not greeted with a handshake

in a traditional setting

Sometimes they just nod

their heads in greeting

so it’s highly recommended

to wait until the woman

holds out her hand before shaking it

If a man knew the woman

he was greeting well

he could kiss her on the cheek

Structure and hierarchy

in South African companies

Dominated by large corporations

the traditional South African business

organizational structure is regarded

as a pyramid

However

past structure has been

flattening under the influence

of global management trends

Therefore

centralized decision-making

turned out to be decentralized

decision-making and more responsibility

would be pushed onto the

lower organizational levels

Although South Africa

is a somewhat egalitarian society

business people in the country

have a great deal of respect

for senior managers and colleagues

who have gained positions

through hard work and perseverance

Appointments

In most cases

South Africans prefer to do business

with people they have met before

Therefore

having a formal letter

of introduction from a reputed

third party can help you reach key

decision makers with ease

thus speeding up the business process

There is also a need to get an appointment

a month or two in advance

and call the day before to confirm

Additionally

it would be impossible to meet

with top managements at first

a meeting would have to be

made with lower-level managers

from the very beginning

Business should be avoided

from mid-December to mid-January

or the two weeks surrounding Easter

as these are major holiday break

Meetings

Some research that related

to the differences across population

in South Africa should be

conducted in advance of the meetings

exhibiting that

you have accustomed your behavior

opinions and policies to local conditions

A fancy slide presentation is not recommended

but some good

self-explanatory visuals

are suggested for the talks

Silence is viewed

as a sign that the situation

is becoming uncomfortable

Humor is generally used

to defuse tensions

Interrupting a speaker during

a discussion is considered

rude and impatient with the decision-making process

After the meeting

it is suggested that a letter be

sent out summarizing

what has been decided

and what the next steps are

And business card is often

exchanged before or at the very end

Business Negotiation

In commercial negotiations in South Africa

reaching general

consensus is the overall objective

South Africans prefer to see a fair

win-win situation where all

parties get something out of

the deal and should therefore

avoid confrontation

coercive behavior and excessive

bargaining on price issues

The responsibility of decision-making

is usually passed up the hierarchy

Disregarding this tradition

would mean to challenge the established

order of things

and is not necessarily

an advisable move

Any unnecessary delay

should be avoided

since it is prudent to argue

with person who has the right

to make final decisions

Working Relationships

Team work

informality and open communication

are highly valued by South African

business partners under

the strong influence of a collectivist culture

Therefore

South Africans tend to share

South Africans tend to share

ideas and celebrate success

as a whole team

rather than an individual

Be aware that the

existence of apartheid

tensions and conflicts sill

happen between blacks and whites

of South African.

Hence

it is not surprising that

you find South Africans business

partners are still censoring

others based on race

An important part of African

culture is respect for

one’s ancestors and elders

If no respect has been

shown to the elders

especially in rural areas

it is considered as very rude

behavior for most South Africans

Okay

after learning all about South Africa’s

business intercultural communication

knowledge above

we hope you may

enjoy successful contact

with your counterparts

So much for this part

See you