About Germany
Culture vs. Stereotype
A talk for
with Mo Moubarak
Stats
Germany is a key player in international
economic relations:
• Germany is a second largest exporter of goods
and the fourth biggest economy worldwide
• The per capita income in Germany is 51,760
PPP dollars
• Women earn on average 23.1% less than men
• The urge to simplify the world around us leads
to statements like: “Americans are superficial”,
“the British are arrogant”, “Germans are
pedantic and boring”
• Recommended reading:
http://www.asprea.org/imagenes/GIZ-
_How_to_do_business_with_Germans_Kavalchu
k-angles-1359942678515.pdf
Meet & Greet
When meeting a German: Etiquette:
• Germans shake hands in greeting — firm and brief, conveying • Dress like an MP
confidence and reliability
• Business, not personal
• Germans answer the phone with their surname instead of "Hello!"
• Knock first
• Business cards
• Keep your distance
• Gifts are usually opened when received
• Say what you mean
• Never put your hands in your pockets while speaking
• Plan ahead
• Guten Appetit
Adapt your message
Make sure your tone matches your audience: Got the joke?
• Adjusting is necessary, can’t think and speak the same • Dutch humor is ”in-your-face”,
way as back home (common mistake)
• British humor is more sarcastic,
• Addressing people formally in Germany is a norm
• Americans have more wisecracks,
• Pay attention to age and profession, young hipster is
going to respond differently than an older school • German humor is based on wordplay or context,
teacher easily misunderstood
— What is the name of this German who always hides my glasses?
— Alzheimer, grandpa!
Be aware of regional differences
Historical differences make for different behaviors:
• It hasn't even been 30 years that the eastern part of Germany was a
communist country
• This is an important reason why Germans care so much
about privacy and data collecting
• Southerners value traditions and take a lot of pride in their
prospering industry with companies such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW,
Siemens and Bosch
• Northern Germany has the reputation of being very down-to-earth,
direct-communicators
“I take pride in the words Ich bin ein Berliner.”
— US President John F. Kennedy, June 26th 1963, West Berlin
Act like a German
Depending on your industry, it could be better to act German
• There are multiple examples of Dutch companies who have
emphasized their Dutch-ness towards their German audience — and
haven’t been very successful with it
• Germans value their western neighbors for their creativity and
openness, but have a tendency to stick to home-grown products for
other qualities
• If you’re a manufacturer trying to sell machinery, it might be a better
idea to have a Germans to carry out business
German Language: First you need only respect it, later you can learn to like it.
Emphasize relevant aspects
Traditional means more than just old:
• Being a family owned company that was founded 100 years ago
might not be something you would emphasize, as people might
associate this with slow movement with less innovation
• In Germany, however, having a rich tradition is proof of
trustworthiness and industry knowledge that is invaluable
• Watch German television commercials to get an idea of which
product features or company values are being emphasized across
industries.
These "Made-in-Germany" products are not only synonymous with advanced
technical standards, superior workmanship and benchmarking – quality, but
are also symbols of the German nation.’
— Zhou Jianxiong, Beijing Review, 28.09.2007
Avoid Uncertainty
Germans hate uncertainty.
• German contracts cover just about every tiny detail that could
ever possibly cause a discussion later on
• Quality and reliability are valued so highly
• Germans are always on time (and expect you to be so as well)
• Also, reason why they prefer their own language
• Sales cycles in Germany can be lengthier than in other markets
”Punctuality is the politeness of kings."
SWOT Analysis
Strengths Weaknesses
Increasing consumer consumption High tax rates
Efficient and educated work force Slow negotiations
Largest European economy Demanding employees
Opportunities
Threats
Location
Mature market
Tax incentives
Competition
Introduction into European market
Culture as an Iceberg
Exercise: Five Definitions of Culture
Below are five alternative definitions of cultures. Which definition(s) of
culture do you prefer? You can choose as many as they wish.
1. Objective visible artefacts such as rituals, superstitions, heroes, myths,
symbols and taboos
2. Basic truths about identity and relationships, time and space, ways of
thinking and learning, ways of working and organizing, and ways of
communicating
3. Ideals shared by group members to which strong emotions are attached
4. The 'right' and 'wrong' ways of doing things. The rules people live by in
practice
5. Subjective behavioral orientations to do things in one way, rather than
another. They are most noticeable in relationship styles, thinking and
learning styles, organization and work styles and communication styles
ABOUT US
GENERALIZED APPROACH REINFORCEMENT LEARNING
feeding neural networks reams making neural networks learn
and reams of data and telling more naturally by a system of
them what to do reinforcements, learning from
experience
Geoffrey Hinton Richard Sutton
HR data sets
more accurate results = bigger reward
THE PROMISE
If you want to work, we will find you a job in which you can progress.
Machine learning allows us to fulfil this promise
Building the neural network allows us to provide
a sports agent approach to the whole market place
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Q+A
