Download Communication in Finnish Workplaces

Communication in
Finnish Workplaces
Tampere 14.11.2013
Outi Katajamäki
Certified International Business Coach
Stereotyping
(or generalisation)
  A valuable tool but
• 
it must be consciously held
• 
it should be descriptive rather than evaluative
• 
it should be managed
Cultural layers
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© 1998, 2007 Richard D Lewis
Cultural Factors Influencing on
Communication
  Different values and attitudes (based on religions and
philosophies)
  Right and wrong
  Good and bad
  Money, work and free-time
  Beautiful and ugly
⇒  Morality
⇒  Behaviour, diet, alcohol, drugs, holy days etc.
  Social relationships
  Gender, men and women
  Individual vs. group
  Age, status, politeness, respect, addressing, personality, guanxi ...
  Differences in the material culture
  Houses, food, infrastructure, technology
  Concept of time
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Communication
  Verbal communication
7%
  Non-verbal communication 70-93 %
  Paralinguistics (study of the human voice)
  Kinesics (body movements like gestures and
postures)
  Proxemics (space)
  Chronemics (defining time)
  Artefacts (man-made environment, clothing etc.)
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Language
  Language barriers
”lentokonesuihkuturbiinimoottoriapumekaanikko-
aliupseerioppilas”
”Lääkäri määrää väärää päänsärkylääkettä.”
  Paralanguage
  Indistinct voice, vocal lip control, articulation
  Stress, strain, power, intonation (pitch) and rhythm
of the voice
  Laughing, sighing, whispering etc.
  Vocal segregates (”um”, ”uh-huh”)
  Silence
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Differences in Verbal
Communication
  High and low context cultures
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What is said and what is not
Number and meaning of words, exaggeration
Negative phrases, indirect communication
Interpretation situation-specific
  Tolerance of silence/noice
  Seeking for consensus
  Accent and understanding
  Speech delivery, missing vowels/consonants
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Body Movements
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Body Movements
(Language)
  Attitudes (liking, disliking), gestures, warmth
  Status (superior, subject roles)
  Affective states or moods (intensity of affective
experience)
  Approval-seeking (smile, nodding etc.), courtship
  Inclusiveness (positional cues of individuals towards
others), leakage and deception
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Space (proxemics)
  Spatial relationships (distance)
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intimate-close (touch to 6”)
intimate-far (6” - 18”)
personal (18” - arm’s length, friends, lovers)
official (4’ - 12’, business meetings)
public (12’ - 25’, one-way, speaker - audience)
  Territorial rights
  size of the office
  protection of the territory /entry restrictions
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Defining Time
Monochronic cultures
Polychronic cultures
  Patient
  Impatient
  Plans carefully in advance
  Plans approximately
  Sticks to plans
  One project leads to another
  Focuses on one issue at a
  Works on several issues
  Follows procedures
  Mixes systems, procedures
  Punctual
  Unpunctual
  Work & Fact-centred
  Human-centred
time
simultaneously
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Black spots of
Communication at work
-  Defensive communication culture
-  Importance of communication is not
regognized
-  Incorrect form or channel of communication
-  Ambiguous communication
-  Values, beliefs and attitudes on the
background
Black spots of
Communication at work
-  Lack of interaction
-  The MUM effect and filtering
-  Lack of Intercultural sensitivity and awareness
-  Lack of communicative skills
-  Unconcious communication styles
Valued in Finnish
Business Life
  Reliability
  Precision
  Punctuality
  Initiative
  Frankness
  Equality
  Teamwork
  Modesty
Basic Rules for Interacting
with Finnish colleagues
  Talk and listen in equal proportions
  Be polite but direct
  Partly conceal feelings
  Use logic and rationality
  Interrupt only rarely
  Stick to facts
  Concentrate on the deal
  Prioritise truth over diplomacy
  Follow rules, regulations, laws
  Speech is for information
Basic Rules for Interacting
with Finnish colleagues
  Maintain word-deed correlation
  Complete action chain
  Stay results-oriented
  Stick to agenda
  Compromise to achieve deal
  Respect contracts and both spoken and written word
  Reply quickly to written communication or e-mails
  Restrain body language
  Be punctual
Some Concepts of Culture
  Hofstede
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Power Distance
Masculinism - Feminism
Individualism - Collectivism
Uncertainty Avoidance
Long-term – Short-term
Orientation
  Terpstra - Sarathy
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Material Culture
Education
Language
Religion and Philosophy
Aesthetics
Values and Attitudes
Social Organisation
  Trompenaars & Hampden-
Turner
Relation to other people
  Universalist - Particularist
  Individualism Communitarianism
  Affective - Neutral
  Specific - Diffuse
  Achievement - Ascription
Time orientation
  Sequential - Synchronic
Relation to environment
  Internal - External Control
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