From my last post, I received amazing comments and in some of those comments, I was told that some people do not negotiate because of the environment they find themselves (Geographical region). Well, this got my interest and I decided to write this post and go further a little so as to ascertain some facts. Do not forget that Negotiation is a game of analyzing and evaluating a deal so both parties win.
Negotiation and Culture
From my research, I realize that there is a place for negotiation in every part of the world either directly or indirectly. One thing you have to understand is that in other to get a win - win result in negotiation, both direct and indirect negotiation process must be considered. Negotiation starts from the very first word in a meeting which could either make the bargain become a win – lose or a win – win.
Do multinationals do business in your country? Do you think they negotiate? How do they come to a conclusion when they negotiate? How do negotiation take place since cultures are different? I will be doing justice to this questions and I hope you enjoy it
Negotiating with a Japanese
Unlike the westerners, the Japanese find it very difficult to associate with new people and this is because of their hierarchical status. It is believed that there are superiors, inferiors and equals when status is concerned. Getting into a business negotiation with a Japanese can be a little difficult. I will give certain dos and don’ts that you should consider when negotiating with a Japanese.
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First, going into a business meeting room with a Japanese and extending hands to greet seems very embarrassing to them unlike in western countries where handshake in business is a sign of mutual understanding. Do not be surprise that as a Westerner, you lose your business negotiation from the first day because of a simple handshake. Japanese read a lot to body signs and facial expressions so in doing business with a Japanese, body signs need to be limited. Also, for the first few minutes, do not discuss business and never call a Japanese business person by their first name. Never forget to bow when talking to a Japanese and always accord the respect to the superior person in the group. They believe in respect so much and lack of that could lead to a loss in negotiation even before it began.
Unlike a business representatives from the west who comes as a person representing their company or group, the Japanese come as group representing their company, they never send a person. Not forgetting, a representatives from America can decide on what is best for his/her company since he/she is there to make the deal happen (Westerners hold this believe that we placed the ball in your court so play it well) while the Japanese will always go back to give report to a superior before making a decision. So as a foreigner, be sure that you are going to meet for up to 3 times and the second meeting will be just the same as the first meeting.
If a business discussion takes five meeting to conclude, a regular business person in the west will continue from where the previous meeting ended but the Japanese want a proper explanation of the previous meeting. For the westerner it could be time consuming and not necessary but for the Japanese, this is important. As a foreigner, you expect to meet with one set of people throughout your business negotiation but this isn’t true with the Japanese. The first person you meet will always be at the meeting but there will be continuous change in faces of the team members including the interpreter. Japanese are long term oriented so they take their time to decide on a deal. Being polite can make a Japanese change the terms, to better the negotiation process in your favor you which leads to a win -win for the both parties.
Now that you know a little about how business deals are being concluded and negotiations are carried out with a Japanese counterpart, you could also tell us how culture affects Negotiation both in business deals and in market places.
I will be drawing the curtain on negotiation here but might bring it up in another post (definitely not my next post) if I find something catchy in my comment.
