英语论文网

ies will pretend to comply with head office directives, which leads to a kind of ritualistic corporate rain dance. They will go through the motions so long as they are under scrutiny, but they do not believe that rain will result. As soon as the attention of head office is diverted to other matters, normal life proceeds.
International marketing
The impact of culture has long been recognised by marketing professionals in internationally operating organisations. And it goes far beyond the recognition of the limitations of a universal language for use in advertising and branding. Notorious are the examples of the of GMs introduction of the Chevy Nova in Mexico, not realising the no va means doesnt go in Spanish. Another example was Procter and Gambles introduction of the US Pampers brand in Japan. Through this universal approach, it quickly gained market share of 10% but this was almost completely lost when Japanese competition came in with a much thinner version. Japanese mothers change their babies much more frequently and didnt think it was appropriate to leave their babies with thick and bulky diapers.
Professional marketers are probably the most experienced in how to adapt to cultural differences. However, with the increasing speed of globalisation, marketing policies are often laid down by head office and managers are required to apply them locally.
Reconciling universalism and particularism
There are a number of areas where the international marketer encounters versions of the universalparticular dilemma. Many believe, for instance, that international success depends on a company exploiting new global trends and factors. Just as English has become the universal business language, so no developing part of the world can remain unaffected by global markets, capital flows and world-class standards. Procter and Gamble translates many of its commercials into the local language. If the mouth isnt synchronised with the voice-over, who cares, we are buying America here.
Others, however, support the view that international success depends upon discovering special veins of excellence within different cultures. Just because people speak English does not mean they think alike. That no two cultures are the same is what brings richness and complexity to multi-nationalism.
We believe that one needs to be aware of cultural differences and on that basis respect the differences. The model we developed can be very helpful in this process. But we need also a methodology to manage the differences by reconciling them. This methodology is based on Charles Hampden-Turners definition of integrity, i.e. the reconciliation of seemingly opposing values.
A corporation that tries to reconcile universalism with particularism must make a conceptual leap. The answer lies in transnational specialisation, that is, allowing each nation to specialise in what it does best and be a source of authority and leadership within the global corporation for that particular vein of excellence. The reach is truly global but the sources of major influence are national. The corporation must recognise what each nation excels in and how these skills can be best brought together.
RECOGNISING THE DIFFERENCES
Universalist Particularist
1. Focus is more on rules than relationships 1. Focus is more on relationships than on rules
2. Legal contracts are readily drawn up 2. Legal contracts are readily modified
3. A trustworthy person is the one