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.This is a matter of personal style.Thefact is that some cultures cannot convey information in a way that low-context, direct-communication cultures want to receive it.For example, we often hear about Western managers complaining thattheir Indian direct reports and colleagues won’t give them the “straightstory.” In a similar way, certain Germanic cultures will be confused by thesubtle way their English colleagues give them negative feedback and maymiss the core of the message.The English colleague is likely to cushion thebad news and sandwich it between positive messages.For example, upon completing a performance review with his Britishmanager, the American walked out saying,“Ah, that wasn’t too bad.”He never understood what the manager was telling him.Just a fewmonths later, he couldn’t comprehend why his salary wasn’t raised.154S O L O M O N - S C H E L LUsing Silence and “Yes” to Avoid ConflictThe use of silence may be difficult to interpret by those from direct-communication societies, but it is as much a part of the message as arethe words.As with other aspects of nonverbal language, the prevalenceof this behavior largely depends on the individual’s background.Perhapsone of the most misinterpreted aspects of communication, silence isoften a way of showing contemplation and respect for the speaker.Many societies consider it rude not to show that you are giving adequatethought to what has been verbalized to you.John, an American sales representative for a women’s clothingmanufacturer, recently called on one of the company’s customers inJapan.It was his second trip and meeting with Sato-san, and John feltthey had a nice relationship.Consequently, John felt it was a good timeto push the sale and ask for the order.To his surprise, as soon as hequoted the fee, Sato-san fell silent.In his discomfort with the silence,John assumed that he must have surprised Sato-san with the amountand, because he had some negotiating room, quickly lowered the price.To his chagrin, Sato-san remained silent.Uncomfortable but wanting the deal, John adjusted the priceagain, realizing that he now had no more margin for negotiating andcould do no more.Sato-san said he would let John know the next daybecause he had to speak with his team.Eventually, Sato-san indicatedthat he was willing to go ahead and place the order.Of course, by thetime the deal closed, it was much less lucrative for John and his com-pany, and he wondered how he’d gotten it so wrong.Sometime later,John and Sato-san’s British assistant were having drinks at a bar,and John commented on what a powerful negotiator Sato-san was.The assistant looked at him and asked why he kept lowering his price.He then commented, “All Sato-san was doing was contemplatingthe deal.” The moral of the story: Nonverbal communication affectsbusiness outcomes.M A N A G I N G A C R O S S C U L T U R E S155Hesitancy is another form of silence.Indian communication, whichvalues harmony and subtle communication, historically has reliedheavily on nonverbal language.When someone hesitates and then saysno after being asked to perform a certain task, that person may beexpressing willingness but may be concerned about his or her ability tocomplete the task.Indian society has a group culture that attempts toavoid giving an overt negative response, which could offend or disap-point the person with whom one is speaking.This consideration alsomay be seen in silence and reluctance to offer a dissenting position.It isa good idea to be alert for long pauses or other nonverbal cues, such asavoiding the eyes or evasive responses, as they may indicate a negativeresponse.As one would expect in cultures that prize harmony, such as manyAsian societies, people have difficulty giving an overtly negativeresponse.Communication is meant to allow both parties to retainface, which means that they avoid showing anger or other negativeemotions.At times people may respond with long silent pauses or theword yes even though they mean the opposite.In general, one shouldconsider responses such as “maybe,” “probably,” and “I’m thinkingabout it” as “perhaps,” whereas the response “I’ll consider it” is fre-quently negative.It is often a good idea to ask the same question severaldifferent ways to ensure that you have understood what the responseyou received actually meant.The Impact of LanguageIt was George Bernard Shaw who said that the British and Americans aredivided by a common language.Shaw’s quip cuts to the core: The factthat we use the same words doesn’t mean we use the same language.Thisis especially true in global business; the international language may beEnglish, but that doesn’t mean it’s understood universally.In fact, peoplewho make that assumption do so at considerable peril.If common156S O L O M O N - S C H E L Lexpressions differ between the United States and the United Kingdomand proper ways to ask questions also differ, how different must they befor individuals who are not native speakers of English.When operating in a multicultural environment, you want to besensitive to different levels of language fluency and comprehension.Even though people may speak well, their comprehension of Englishmay lag far behind their speech.It is more difficult to understandnative speakers of a language than to construct and speak that lan-guage oneself.No matter what language is being used, in internationalbusiness we’re often dealing with people whose native language is dif-ferent from the one being spoken
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