There are many cultures in the world but there seems to be two differences that really stand out. There are cultures that base decisions in business or personally on the idea of family. Their business is their family. They base decisions holistically rather than individually. Other cultures base business ideas individually or for profit only. Mass sackings so as to get better profits and returns are not uncommon in Australia. These large organisations are not necessarily at the brink of bankruptcy. Could or would a CEO or GM or director take a pay cut in order to save an employee? This is not unheard of in countries where the culture is to see the organisation as a family. The matriarchs give up their entitlements so that their employees are able to stay on and in turn look after their families. They believe it is their responsibility to look after their employees until the company is prosperous once again. They believe that if the organisation is failing then it is their fault for not managing the business correctly.
So what happens when a family based culture tries to go global and open up in a country with a different culture system or vice versa? Historically a large number will fail at there attempts. It is much more beneficial to everyone to try to understand each others culture and customs. Someone else's culture can not be pushed onto someone else. There needs to be the ability to find a happy medium. This I think should be taught at a young age. The idea of multiculturalism should be taught as a part of the school curriculum at a young age. Maps of the world could be put in every classroom so that students actually see how many countries and cultures there are in the world. The cultures and landscapes of different cultures could be taught through the school life. When studying a Certificate, Diploma or Bachelor of Business there should be a module of business customs and cultures of the world especially of the countries nearest to them. Diplomacy should not just be taught in diplomatic courses but as a part of a general business course. It's a very different world out there than the ones just in books.
The world is becoming smaller. The idea of working out your target market doesn't necessarily mean just the 3 closest suburbs around you. It is possible for the entire world to be your target market. Look at companies like Air bnb, Alibaba, Apple, Google and Amazon. These companies are doing business all over the world and are recruiting staff from different countries to run their divisions. You cannot succeed if you enforce one culture onto another one. This is another reason to promote understanding of each other's culture. Respect of each others culture is paramount in doing global business. Again this would benefit from cross culture understanding being taught in school.
There are currently studies that show countries that have similar cultures work best together. But the world is a large place and there are so many opportunities out there. The answer may lay in the education of Cross Cultural understanding in the young for a chance at a country to have future economic success.
