French Culture

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French Culture

Hofstede Dimension 2 - Power Distance

-I believe that this Hofstede Dimension is important when it comes to French workplace culture because Power Distance talks about how lower members in organizations accept that they have lesser power than higher members -The idea of hierarchy is important to French culture; French people are raised to be attached to people of power and to listen to them, and this continues on into the workplace -Decisions are made by people on higher levels, and people on the lower levels are expected to listen to the desires of these powerful people -Thus, power is centralized in French companies and workers only act on the instruction of higher-ups; initiative from lower workers would be seen as overstepping their boundaries -It has been found that French companies have more hierarchical levels in their companies, and this showcases the importance of power distance in France

-The Hofstede score France received was a 68, which is relatively high and showcases the importance of hierarchy in all aspects of French society

Hierarchy is an important principle seen in French culture, and plays a large part in the workplace.

Hofstede Dimension 1 - Uncertainty Avoidance

-I feel that this Hofstede Dimension is important when it comes to French workplace culture because Uncertainty Avoidance talks about how threatened a culture feels about the idea of unknown situations and how often they try to prevent these situations -French work culture heavily revolves around this idea of wanting to avoid unknown situations, and they do this through lots of organization, structure and planning -This is seen in the workplace, where there are lots of rules, regulations and structure to business activities -Appointments are necessary in order to have meetings, there are rules like dress codes in place and French people like to have all the information possible before making their decisions (which is why they take their time making decisions, in order to consider all aspects of the decision) -This idea is implemented in their society and is clearly seen in their workplaces

-The Hofstede score France received was an 86, which is very high and reflects it's importance to French society

Scheduling and structure help in order to keep everything in order and stop unknown situations from occurring by having a plan.

Business Etiquette - Don'ts

-Being over-friendly can be detrimental to a meeting with a French person; staying relatively friendly but getting straight to the point does much better as when it comes to business in France, people are able to divide their work and personal lives

Staying concise with what you talk about during a meeting is crucial, and being over-friendly may seem "fake" to the other party.

-Do not attempt to rush a meeting, as business is conducted slowly in France: patience is a virtue and allowing them to take their time will show that their decision making process is respected

Rushing a meeting does not show respect to the other party, and will often lead to negative results if used.

-If negotiating with the other group, do not use pressure tactics to attempt to convince them; this is more than often counter-productive, as French people like more of a logical, calm presentation that shows an intellectual grasp on the situation

Pressure tactics are despised by French people: they are more methodical in their thinking process and like logic.

Business Etiquette - Do's

-While greeting someone else, you should always refer to them as Madame or Monsieur (unless stated otherwise by the other person to call them by their first name) -When shaking hands, make sure to do so lightly and briskly while maintaining eye contact: eye contact is important while speaking -Introduce yourself using your first and last name

A proper greeting with a handshake, eye contact and introduction is needed to show respect to the other party.

-You should always wear formal business attire; on top of this, you should look well-groomed and have good quality clothing, as appearance is judged quite heavily in France

Formal business attire is a necessity in French business culture, as you will be judged based on appearance.

-Appointments are needed in order to meet someone; they should be made 2 weeks in advance at the very least to maintain a level of respect with the other party

Organization and scheduling are important in French culture, so adhering to this is necessary.