Question

Selected Country: NIGERIA

This is a Collaborative Learning Community (CLC) assignment.
To better understand cultural differences and how these differences influence global management, as a group, create a
PowerPoint presentation that addresses the following:
1. Compare how the United States differs from another country of your choice (within the african region ) on Hofstede’s six dimensions of culture.
2. Explain how your knowledge of these differences would influence you as a global manager if you were doing business
in the selected country.
3. Explain the challenges and opportunities associated with leading in your selected country.

Answer 1

1. This model of culture consists of 6 dimensions and represents independent preferences for one state of affairs over another that distinguish countries rather than individuals from each other.

Dimensions	United States	India
Power Distance Index	High preference for power Index and people expresses their achievements.	Less preference for maintaining power distance. People feel free assembly of people of different ranks
Individualism vs Collectivism	Individualism is rewarded	Society rewards collective activity.
Masculinity versus feminism	Masculine culture is practised	Masculine culture is practised
Uncertainty avoidance index	People learn to operate in uncertainty.	People prefere less ambigous and certain environment.
Long term versus short term orientation	People prefer long term gain	People looks for short term gain
Indulgence versus restraint	Society is free and indulgence is way of life	Society is restrictive and restraint is way

2. Understanding of local cutlture helps an organisation scale great heights and sucessfully operate. There are examples where company failed to understand local culture and incurred heavy losses. For example- Accenture in 2004 operated under heavy losses due to lack of understanding of Indian culture.

3. Oppourtinity associated with leading in India are as-

a. Easy to understand local culture

b. Governmental support to new organisations

c. Society respects businesses and their contribution

Challenges are following-

1. Learning of culture

2. Developing team

3. Guiding a change

4. Managing stakeholders

5. Brining effectiveness and efficiency