Hi guys. Welcome back to Global Business Environment. This will be module four of this course, Global Business Environment, and I'll have a brief introduction to this particular module. We've been talking about globalization and its role in the global business environment, in the first two modules. We're going to expand upon that and try to understand the important role of cultures and institutions in the global business environment. And so, I want to provide some kind of ground rules or definitions to help us get our feet wet so that we're speaking the same language and we're on the same page, when we talk about things like culture and institution. The goal is to try to understand, a little bit better, what we mean by culture and its impact on business in the global business environment. And so, to get started, let me use a word institutions, to try to frame our discussion today. I've got a slide here which defines institutions in a global business environment as the rules of the game which are assumed and understood by everyone in a certain environment. So in any country or society or even subregion of a country, like a state or a province there are ways that things get done. There are certain rules of the game of business that need to be followed in order to be successful. And these institutions can range from formal ones such as legal frameworks regulations, they can be things like, financial systems and judicial systems. And they are very important to be aware of for companies or entrepreneurs or small businesses, when entering a new market, or when operating in an existing market, because if the rules of the game are not followed success may not be accomplished. And so, culture, when we talk about culture, is a type of institution. Culture is the way that things are done in a particular place or by a particular people, and it's their collective behaviors norms, their attitudes about business, about life, their values their beliefs of this particular place or people. And so, it's very important to understand this collective programming of the, of the mind. I, it's sometimes defined as, of a particular people in order to succeed in business. And so these behaviors, norms, and values are reflected in things that you might think of when you, when you talk about culture, such as food the arts other entertainment and history and language and other things like religion and, and values related to religious or other belief systems. Those are all important, but they reflect these collective beliefs and behaviors and norms and values that are, are shared by certain groups of people. So, let me give you an example of an aspect of culture which is an informal institution, and an informal way of getting things done. Let's look at the simple idea of a handshake. This is actually a relatively universal institution or rule of the game. Most people know that when you stick your hand out, that there is a return hand extension expected, and that there should be this grasp of the hand and a handshake. And that has meaning. It has lots of behavioral norms and historical values embedded in it and behind its existence. If you go into a business meeting or perhaps just a social setting, and do not respond to someone who extends their hands with a handshake it may be awkward, first of all, but it reflects a violation of the way that things get done, the assumed and just taken for granted way that, that we interact. Now in some societies, a handshake may mean more than others than in other, other societies. In some places a firm handshake might mean more than a, a less firm handshake. In some societies a kiss on the cheek or a kiss on each cheek might be important in certain settings or not important in other settings. And so it's very important, an embrace or a hug might be important in some business settings. A bow and so these are very important to understand, of course, and as a business person you can learn about that quite easily. But, more importantly than learning specific cultural elements, what my goal is for you in this module is just to understand that these things are taken for granted and they're assumed that you understand and, it's the way things get done. And understanding things much broader than handshakes are very important to conducting business in a global business environment. So, that's an introduction for you. We will delve into this deeper in the parts that will follow this module, and we'll develop a deeper understanding of what culture means and give you some very specific examples of culture and its impact on business. And also we'll give you some ways of categorizing or understanding cultures around the world. Thank you very much.
