1.Why did Wal-Mart have such a difficult time connecting with consumers in Germany?
Wal-Mart had difficulties in approaching to consumers in Germany because it used a style of different culture, a US culture, in both managing business and connecting with the consumers. For the management, the managers imposed to use English at management level in Germanic Wal-Mart and ignored cultural differences between Germany and the U.S., such as paying a low basic wage to managers, moving the managers to other positions after a few years, sharing rooms of the executives, nor establishing unions of employees. For the consumers, Wal-Mart made to mislead that a low-priced merchandise are low-value, being an advantage for rivals to identify with American junk. Some Wal-Mart's different behaviors over consumers caused unfamiliar effects because of the cultural differences, such as greeting shoppers when they enter or exit a Wal-Mart store, bagging groceries which customers bought, smiling at shoppers after they checkout. Clearly, in struggling to make familiar with consumers, but imposing a way of behavior, and ignoring cultural differences, Wal-Mart made a serious contrast to its consumers.
2. What could Wal-Mart have done to better meet the needs of German consumers?
To better meet the needs of consumers in German, Wal-Mart should understand and apply proper behaviors over managers, employees, and consumers. What is right or wrong, accepted or unaccepted is different from American habits and culture, so the best way it should spend more time to learn and to adapt to Germanic culture. For its employees, the ethics code is different from different cultures, so Wal-Mart cannot impose the code over its employees if not to be adjusted properly.
Closing Case: Culture and Business in Saudi Arabia
1.What kinds of misunderstanding are likely to arise between an American company and a Saudi enterprise, neither of which has experience dealing with the other?
The kinds of misunderstanding between American companies and Saudi enterprises stem from cultural differences. The Saudi Arabia culture is strictly tied to Islamic values and Bedouin traditions, which lead to habits and customs differences from American's. Those cause misunderstandings which are difficult to deal with. First, Saudi enterprises operate based on the family and friend relationships, rather than the managerial and technical competence. Second, Saudi enterprises make business decisions based on the relationships, rather than experts. Otherwise, American companies behold the relationships negatively. Moreover, the misunderstanding comes from Saudi habits of evaluating trust and the value of time, which also stems from Bedouin tradition. For example, a Saudi enterprise only trusts its partner after a lot of times to meet face to face, or it uses time for meetings and business decisions without precise and hasty. Those cause more embarrassment for the American companies.
2. If you were in a position to advise a Western company that was considering doing business in Saudi Arabia for the first time, what would your advice be?
Surely, a Western company should spend more time learning the Saudi culture and habits of doing business to avoid any misunderstandings which can emerge. The Western company should be patient, rather than evaluating the value of time, because time in the Saudi Arabia is not the best value for the business. Especially, women are less free, so they cannot participate to make a business decision. Therefore, the Western company only talks about business with men. Finally, the Western company should also spend some time to understand Islam, exchange ideas and perceive the pulse of the business and social environment to prepare for a long run of doing business.
