Submitted by: Submitted by ykosareva
Views: 10
Words: 702
Pages: 3
Category: Business and Industry
Date Submitted: 11/25/2015 01:47 PM
Week 3 – Case Study
Differences in Culture
Keller Graduate School of Management
INTL 500
International Business Perspectives
Professor: Jerry Lulejian
September 2015
Pros and Cons of doing business in Saudi Arabia
Pros:
• Saudi Arabia’s market is one of the biggest in the region
• On average, population has very high income
• Oil and gas extraction creates wealthy nation
• Government is favorable to foreign businesses
Cons:
• Vast differences in business practices with Western cultures.
• Anti-American tendencies due to conflict with Iraq and other Arab nations.
• Security issues linked to terrorism.
• Ethical issues on doing business with country that not favorable to United states policies in the region.
• Additional costs incurred in employees search and training because of limited resources.
• Additional costs incurred in management training for bridging a cultural gap.
Possible steps to improve business relations between Americans and Saudis
First and foremost, any businessmen entering Saudi Arabia market would be willing to learn and accept local culture as it is. It doesn’t mean that we have to support diminished rights of women but we would have to play by the rules if we don’t want to offend anyone and have successful business in the country. We need to learn before we judge and accept people as they are.
It is important to train the management and employees on the cultural differences between two countries. Ideally invite a person native to Saudi Arabia to educate and create learning materials.
Another step we can take is to employ Saudi nationals with western background to help facilitate business discussions. The differences are so big that no matter how many books we read and how willing we are to understand the habits and rules of Saudi Arabia, we are very likely to step into uncharted territory if we don’t have a knowledgeable guide. This role might be filled by Westerner who spend...