NETHERLANDS AND SINGAPORE

Cultural Dimensions of Netherlands and Singapore



Abstract

The cultural dimensions of every country are different from the other. To open a subsidiary in a foreign country, the home country expatriates and mangers need to understand the cultural differences between the two countries. Netherlands and Singapore are very different countries in terms of their culture and these differences have to be considered while opening a subsidiary, negotiating a business deal or managing the foreign employees.

Abstracti

Introduction1

Discussion2

Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions2

Trompenaars Cultural Dimensions3

Application of Hostede's Cultural Dimension on Netherlands and Singapore4

Power Distance4

Individualism5

Masculinity/Femininity6

Uncertainty Avoidance6

Long term Orientation6

Negotiation of Business Deal with Singaporean Team7

Adaptation of Dutch Staff in Singaporean workplace8

Management of Employees in Singapore8

Conclusion8

References9

Cultural Dimensions of Netherlands and Singapore

Introduction

In order to understand the way culture and its values affect the meanings which the members of a society characterize to working environment, one must focus on the cultural level value dimensions rather than the individual level dimension. The proper unit of analysis for the assessment of the cultural level is the cultural group or the society instead of the individual person. The cultural values show the explicit or implicit shared ideas that are abstract regarding what is bad, good or required in a society. These cultural values provide a basis for the norms that inform the people about what is appropriate in specific situations. Societies that place more value on the individual success and ambition is more valued, the organization of legal and economic system will be more competitive. In contrast to this, when the society focuses on the well being of group, the legal and economic system will be more cooperative (Schwartz, 1999, p. 24).

Every country has culturally different from the other country. Therefore, in order to open a subsidiary in foreign country the members of the home country should try to understand the cultural differences between the two countries. This report is focused on highlighting the difference between the Singaporean and Dutch culture to assist the Dutch company in understanding the workplace implications of the differences in the cultural dimensions.

Discussion

Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions

One of the most widely used frameworks that categorize the national culture was developed by a Ditch management scholar and social psychologist, Geert Hofstede. The most important dimension that he identified is power distance which is related to the degree to which culture reinforces and accepts the fact that power is unevenly distributed in the society. The cultures that have high power distance such as Malaysia and Singapore show that proper respect needs to be given to the superiors. On the other hand, the cultures that highlight lower power distance such as Denmark are less comfortable with the difference in the social class or organizational ranks and they are also characterized by higher level of participation and in decision making.

The second dimension is individualism and collectivism. The cultures that encourage individualism have more preference to the individuals as compared to the groups. The members of these cultures show that they have relatively loose social structures which are characterized by the emphasis on the rights ...