Studying Abroad in Japan, Research Paper Example

As a government contractor, we have been tasked to provide the company’s business executives with a report detailing key insights into conducting business in Siberia Russia. The report will be gear towards the primary audience of senior level decision makers as well as a secondary audience of middle management employees.In our premlinary research of Siberia Russia, we have found that your organizations must understand and learn the overall Siberian customs. The majority of your time with the Siberia leadership will be spent dining, communicating, or dining in home, restaurant, or outside venues. The business division that is task for visiting Siberia must be adapt at dining customs, including food preferences, which are from several different cultures. Here are some of our initial Detail Key Insights:

• Challenges: Our business research found, that Siberian respond better to businesses that speak their language, which is a sign of respect. Our recommendations, is to hire local talent in that Siberia region to represent your company. Siberians are not very trusting however; investing in their community will help business negotiations. According to Quirk(2014), it is a competitive advantage to learn and visit the potential overseas business location before making business decisions. Management must travel with a contractor that speaks the Siberian language.
• Challenges: Our business research found, the energy opportunities are vast in Siberia including carbon, oil, iron, copper, cobalt, and natural gases(Yekaterinburg.US Consulate, 2014). Siberia is willing to support new business ventures with start-up offices and e-support, and administrative help. However, the assistance is only in Russian. Our research has found that your business units should hire Russian contractors on your payroll to support your business initiatives. Upper management must become must determine if any sanctions that would prevent entry into the business market in Russia.
• Challenges: Our business research found, the Siberian culture believes in eating in the home with potential business clients because they want to bond with them and see how they interact with their culture. The business unit that resides in Siberian must visit for at least 3 or 4 months to become acclimated to the Siberia culture and ethic dining etiquette. We recommend that several upper management teams should visit Siberia communities, towns, and business sector to become adept at Siberia customs. The decision makers that signed the contracts must be present to close deals not middle management.

Our business reach has found that understand the food choices will help the business team integrate into the Serbian culture. The Serbian influences in food are a mixture of Hungarian, Turkish, Bulgarian and Greek origins (National Tourism Organization of Serbia, 2014). The dining culture of Serbians is completely different from the United States. The Serbians have their cuisine cooked over a hot open fire and grill. The Serbians serve an appetizer as the first meal called slatko, which is a strawberry dessert but be prepared to eat sparingly before the man course meal as they serve multiple appetizers. The refusal of any food or appetizer could be considered an insult that the food is not good, just make sure you taste in small portions before dinner.

The Siberia custom that must be acknowledge is they allow others to join their table to eat, its acceptable for someone eating alone to join. The Serbian cuisine is a national dish called pljeskavia, which is made of ground beef and pork patty. In addition, they prefer grilled minced meat called sarma. The enjoy sausage, grilled minced meat and patty dishes as the primary preferred cuisine. The cevapi patty is made of either beef, pork, lamb or mixed dishes. This dish is accompanied by red pepper, salt, sour cream and chopped onions (Belgrade My Way, 2014).

The employees need to understand how to dine in the restaurant with Serbian hosts. There is a different between dining at a restaurant and dining at the home. The traditional dining with a group allows any person that is eating alone can join the table at any restaurant. The person does not have to be a friend or family, it can be a complete stranger that can eat at the table. The Serbians are natural hosts because they enjoy delivering hospitality of meals in the home. The Serbians expect the guest to thank the hosting family with a small gift such as wine. If the dinner is served, at the Serbianshome they expect all guest to remove their shoes at the front door (Safari Globe, 2013).

In order to understand, the dining etiquette and preferred food the employees must understand the Russian customs as well as, the dining etiquette, food preferences and dining customs (Kwintessential, 2014). The employees may spend time eating in the home, restaurant or outside while spending time with the Russian Ambassador for New Business Initiative. Thesebusiness and personal encounters will include greeting, handshakes, lunch and dinner meetings, communication, and business meeting etiquette. The handshakes must be firm for men and when they shake hands with a woman, the grip is not as tight. The communication is direct in business meetings no need to banter; Serbian’s are very direct and will respect your promptness with time.

The research found that Siberian people are a very proud country however, learning the local customs would be impressive to your host. The Russian people who do not trust easily therefore, the employees must limit the number of misunderstandings of customs may appear to the Serbians that the personal and business do not respect the customs of Russia. It is important to be very sincere with your communication. The sincerity with personal interactions with Russian people is important; any detection of lack of honest feedback could result in losing the business opportunity.

It will be a challenge to keep up with the family drinking celebration with meals. We recommend that any participating with the dining meetings should very careful not to overdrink. The Serbian meals during dining include Serbian drinks normally served at dinner. The Serbian people religiously toast however, the guest must keep eye contact when toasting. The partaking a drink with Serbians is a careful proposition because they serve a number of very strong drinks called sljivovica (plum juice) and rakija (grapes mixtures ((Safari Globe, 2013). (The best way to keep from getting drunk is to always leave some in your glass because if it is empty that will continue to refill repeatedly.These key insights have been outlined in a letter memo that has captured all the necessary research for the company to succeed in Siberia.

References

Belgrade My Way. (2014).Serbian food and drink guide. Retrieved November 26, 2014 from http://belgrademyway.com/experience-belgrade/eating/food-drink-guide/

Kwintessential. (2014). Russia – language, culture, customs and etiquette. Retrieved November 23, 2014 from http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/russia-country-profile.html

National Tourism organization of Serbia. (2014).Food. Retrieved November 25, 2014 from http://www.serbia.travel/about-serbia/typically-serbian/food/

Quirk, V. (2012, Nov).The 7 things you need to know before doing business abroad. Retrieved November 27, 2014 from http://www.archdaily.com/291679/the-7-things-you-need-to-know-before-going-abroad/

Safari The Globe. (2013).Food, dining,& drinks in Serbia. Retrieved November 25, 2014 from http://www.safaritheglobe.com/serbia/culture/food-drinks/

Yekaterinburg.US Consulate. Consulate General of the United States: Doing business in the Urals  and Western Siberia. Retrieved November 27, 2014 from http://yekaterinburg.usconsulate.gov/bus-urals-w-siberia.html