Increasing the chances of success for usa and south korea partnerships

Increasing the Chances of Success for USA and South

Korea Partnerships

Catherine Mercer BingManaging Director,

ITAP Americas, Inc. (w) 1.215.860.5640

http://www.itapintl.com

©2014 ITAP International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.1

http://www.itapintl.com/

Going Global Can Lead to Failure

• “Companies spend more than $2 trillion on acquisitions every year. Yet study after study puts the failure rate of mergers and acquisitions somewhere between 70% and 90%.”

SOURCE: Christensen et al. “The Big Idea: The New M&A Playbook,”

Harvard Business Review, March 2011


Differences That Could Derail the Partnership

• Areas of difference that could derail a partnership:1. Attitudes toward people who are different

2. Gender and travel overseas

3. Hiring and promotion

4. Communication

5. Attitudes toward conflict

©2014 ITAP International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 3

1. Attitudes Toward People Who Are Different

• Koreans tend to judge individuals who do not conform to group norms – for example, who are vegetarian or exceptionally curious — more harshly than US Americans.

• Non-conformists are perceived as selfish.

SOURCE: Kinias et al. “Standing out as a Signal to Selfishness:

Culture and Devaluation of Non-normative Characteristics,”

Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 124:2:190-203 July 2014.


2. Gender and Travel Oversees

• “Korean firms have a stronger preference for sending men on business trips and more overall discriminatory atmospheres than foreign firms.”

SOURCE: Gress et al. “Differential Spaces in Korean Places?

Feminist Geography and Female Managers in South Korea,”

Gender, Work & Organization, 21:2:165 – 186. March 2014


3. Hiring and Promotion

• “..informal networks figure more predominantly into hiring and promotion at Korean firms” than at foreign firms doing business in Korea.

SOURCE: Gress et al. “Differential Spaces in Korean Places?

Feminist Geography and Female Managers in South Korea,”

Gender, Work & Organization, 21:2:165 – 186. March 2014

6©2014 ITAP International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

4. Communication


US American Korean

Impersonal – act as own agent – will move on when business does not serve his/her needs or when a better opportunity arises.

Focus Relationship to

Business

Personal – a department is a cohesive unit. Employees have strong tendency to remain with the company even in times of trouble.

Need to be liked – expressed through informal address and gestures.

Personal Need Need to be liked. “Let their hair down” only in an informal non-business setting.

Short term – largely informal – many procedures changed or modified while in progress.Based on accomplishment and image – underlying drive toward equality.

Orientation to Corporate Status

Short term – if the upper management changes, new rules may need to be learned.Based on education and credentials – underlying drive toward hierarchy.

Assertive, tempered with fair play - give the benefit of doubt or handicap.

Confrontation Assertive to subordinates.

Discussion about sports, weather, occupation, what you do, what you feel about someone.

Common Social Interaction

Discussion about sports, weather, occupations, technological advancements.

Written by Sullae Shoe, resource expert, ITAP International, Inc.

5. Attitudes about Conflict

• “[in collectivist cultures]… Conflicts should be avoided or at least formulated so as not to hurt anyone.”

• Maintaining harmony is a virtue.

SOURCE: Hofstede, et al.,

Culture and Organizations: Software of the Mind, p.118. 2001


Framework for Discovering Similarities and Differences

• To bridge gaps between USA and South Korea, businesses need a neutral, non-judgmental framework.

• Geert Hofstede’s research offers a framework for bridging differences.

• The Wall Street Journal ranked Hofstede as the 16th most influential business thinker.

SOURCE: http://wingedspur01.wordpress.com/2008/08/15/the-top-21-most-influential-business-thinkers/


http://wingedspur01.wordpress.com/2008/08/15/the-top-21-most-influential-business-thinkers/

Hofstede’s Framework

• Endorsed by Hofstede, ITAP offers tools that help companies visualize commonalities and differences.

• ITAP licenses from Hofstede a tool that assesses five cultural values, known as dimensions.

• See the differences between the country scores of the USA and South Korea…


Individualism……the degree to which action is taken for the benefit of the individual or the group.

INDIVIDUAL ORIENTATION

GROUP ORIENTATION

Look out for #1.If you want something done right, do it yourself.

Two heads are better than

one.Many hands

make light work.

©2014 ITAP International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.


INDIVIDUALISMGROUP

INDIVIDUALISM Individual Orientation versus Group Orientation

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Individualism

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Sample Question: The pursuit of individual goals is more important than maintaining harmony and consensus in the workplace.

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USA United Kingdom Germany Japan South Korea

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Individual Orientation vs. Group Orientation When working with,

managing or working for those who have an Individual Orientation:

Appeal to their self-interest. Focus on how the results will be good for them

Allow individual work and competition between individuals

Delegate to individuals

When working with, managing or working for with those who have a Group Orientation:

Appeal to the common interest. Focus on how the results will be good for the group

Work with team/partnering approaches – small groups with reporting to the larger group

Allow for group discussion before individual work starts


Power Distance……the degree to which inequality or distance

between those in charge and the less powerful (subordinates) is accepted.

HIERARCHICAL ORIENTATION

PARTICIPATIVE ORIENTATIONEven better than respect is obedience.The highest duty is to respect authority.

Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do

and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.The key to

successful leadership

today is influence, not

authority.©2014 ITAP International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.


HIERARCHICAL STYLE

POWER DISTANCE Hierarchical Orientation versus Participative Orientation

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Power Distance

Country Sample Question: Employees should tell managers their views even if those views challenge those of the manager.

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South Korea Japan USA Germany United Kingdom

Hierarchical Orientation vs. Participative Orientation

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When working with, managing or working for those who have a Hierarchical Orientation:

Invite senior staff to make

announcements, communicate expectations.

Use legitimate power (management or seniority) to exercise authority.

Be the expert – the most knowledgeable person on the subject.

When working with, managing or working for those who have a Participative Orientation:

Use influencing skills.Refer to those who might have

more expertise than you do.Ask for input and perspectives

from different employee levels.Allow for questions and

challenges.


Certainty……the extent to which people prefer rules,

regulations and controls or are more comfortable with unstructured, ambiguous or unpredictable situations.

NEED FOR CERTAINTY

TOLERANCE FOR AMBIGUITY

Do it by the book.Better safe than sorry. Rules are meant

to be broken.Nothing ventured,

nothing gained.



STRUCTURE/RULES

CERTAINTY Need for Certainty versus Tolerance for Ambiguity

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Certainty

Country Sample Question: One can be a good manager without having precise answers to most of the

questions that subordinates may raise about their work.

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Japan South Korea Germany USA United Kingdom

Need for Certainty vs. Tolerance for Ambiguity


When working with, managing or working for those who have a Need for Certainty:

Provide specific rules and formal structures/formats. Give complete instructions with context (no surprises)

Provide them with examples of others who have used the approach successfully. Recognize their need for information

When delegating, include timelines and clear deliverables. Review progress often

Focus on compliance with procedures and policies. Use a logical flow to your interactions. Describe the logic

When working with, managing or working for those who have a Tolerance for Ambiguity:

Provide rules and allow for changing them with discussion/rationale. They may not need to know how it is going to work as long as things make sense

Challenge others to try new things in a “safe” environment

Recognize creativity in completing the deliverables, if different from the stated directions

Focus on creativity and allowing time and interactions to flex as necessary

Achievement……the degree to which we focus on goal

achievement and work or quality of life and caring for others

ACHIEVEMENT ORIENTATION

QUALITY OF LIFE ORIENTATIONNice guys finish last.Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.

All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.

It is nice to be important, but it

is more important to be nice.


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ACHIEVEMENT Achievement Orientation versus Quality of Life Orientation

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Achievement

Country Sample Question: Competition between employees makes for a better organization.

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Achievement Orientation vs. Quality of Life Orientation


When working with, managing or working for those who have an Achievement Orientation:

Stress and reward performance, getting work done on time or early.

Allow others to show drive or ambition for completion of tasks and meeting of deadlines.

Communicate and respond with a sense of urgency.

A good colleague should be decisive.

When working with, managing or working for those who have a Quality of Life Orientation:

Allow for building interdependence.

Emphasize humility and modesty in your approach.

Resolve conflicts by compromise and negotiation.

A good colleague should be intuitive.

Time Orientation……the extent to which members of a society are

prepared to adapt themselves to reach a desirable future, or the extent to which they take their guidance from the past and focus on fulfilling their present needs and desires.

SHORT TERM ORIENTATION

LONG TERM ORIENTATION

Dripping water can eat through a stone.Diligence is the basis of wealth, and thrift the source of riches.

One today is worth two tomorrows.Keeping up with the Joneses…


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TIME ORIENTATION Long-Term Orientation versus Short-Term Orientation

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Time Orientation

Country Sample Question: Tomorrow's profits are more important than today's profits

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Long-Term Orientation vs. Short-Term Orientation

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When working with, managing or working for those who have a Long-Term Orientation:

Understanding is seen as a long process that requires considerable mental effort.

Learners prefer a slow, accurate, systematic approach. Memorization is a way to deepen understanding.

Use clear delineation of concepts. Reinforce use of processes with repetitive practice.

When working with, managing or working for those who have a Short-Term Orientation:

Understanding is seen as a process of sudden insight.

Learners prefer an approach which incorporates investigative and analytical thinking. Use questioning and probing, and encourage learners to prove intellectual points by using logical arguments.

Use abstract thinking and open discussions.


ITAP’s Assessment of Cultural Differences

• The Culture in the Workplace QuestionnaireTM (CWQ) enables USA and Korean managers to visually: – Learn about their cultural preferences– Compare their scores to their group score– Compare their group scores– Compare their group scores to country scores


Comparison Chart

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Individualism

Power Distance

Certainty Achievement

Time OrientationKorea

US

Company A

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If you were from a Korean company (see the scores for Korea) and were considering acquiring a US

American company (Company A), what difficulties might you expect to arise?

Just one way in which ITAP helps managers visualize their scores: A spidergram


Catherine Mercer BingManaging DirectorITAP Americas

The Atrium at Newtown353 Nassau Street, 1st floorPrinceton, NJ 08540 USA(W) 1.215.860.5640http://www.itapintl.com


http://www.itapintl.com/

Increasing the chances of success for usa and south korea partnerships

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