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Nowadays, it is crucial to define and analyze the cultural differences between countries in order to manage a business in a global environment. Multinational enterprises have to design a proper strategy and management type taking into consideration cultural dimensions to operate on external markets. Cultural dimension theory, introduced by Hofstede, is a great tool designed to determine and assess cross-cultural differences in order to distinguish how business is done across the world (Beugelsdijk, Maseland, and Van Hoorn, 2015). This essay is aimed to use the “individualism versus collectivism” dimension to compare Saudi Arabia and Poland in terms of management approach. Those particular countries were chosen based on the idea to compare representatives of Arab and European cultures. Whereas Saudi Arabia is a collectivistic country and requires group-based management, Poland’s culture is more individualistic and requires the management of individuals.
In terms of Hofstede’s cultural dimension of individualism (IDV), Saudi Arabia scored 25 (The Hofstede Insights, 2020). IDV generally shows how an individual perceives his/her place in society and the quality of interpersonal bonds within particular cultural settings. This low percentage of individualism means that the Saudi Arabian level of group integration is closer to collectivism. In a collectivistic society, people are ready for a long-term commitment to the special group, including families and other extended relationships. In such cultures, loyalty becomes the supreme value among society that even overpowers some regulations and rules. There are strong ties between members of a particular group encouraged by society, so every member is obliged to take responsibility for others. That is why, people perceive relationships at work, such as employee-employer relationships, in a similar moral way, as they do with family links (The Hofstede Insights, 2020). HR departments of companies are expected to pay attention to employees’ in-group when making decisions on their employment or promotion. In that case, the most suitable managerial approach is group management.
Collectivism is deeply rooted in Saudi Arabian religion and history. Arab society is established on the mutuality of personal relationships, support, favors, loyalty, and obligation. According to Ourfali (2015), Arab traditions and Islamic teaching highly contribute to societal collectivism. Arab people follow such principles as being humble in communication, loyal to the group, respecting group members, which should be considered by managers in organizations. The Quran insists on the presence of feelings of altruism, compassion, and cooperation within society. Arab culture fosters participative and consulting approaches in business affairs. Saudis usually conduct consultations, demanding modesty from others (Ourfali, 2015). However, the Arab work setting does not usually require a rational explanation in the decision-making process, while Arab managers are still reluctant to apply theory and research and are unconcerned with time.
In contrast, Poland scored 60%, which means that it has an individualistic society. Pols are focused on their own well-being because of a loosely-knit social framework (The Hofstede Insights, 2020). Individualistic society builds more on laws and regulations, so any offense induces a loss of self-esteem and forces an individual to feel guilt. In terms of business, citizens of Poland tend to set relationships based on a contract, which usually brings advantages for both sides. HR managers are expected to make decisions on promotion or hiring, taking into consideration an individual’s performance level, skills, and results (Wackowski and Blyznyuk, 2017).
Nevertheless, Polish culture is not so westernized, as it seems to be. Despite being ranked as highly individualistic, Pols used to have strong authorities and operate within a hierarchy. According to Wackowski and Blyznyuk (2017), Poland is more collectivistic than other members of the European Union. Pols always were inclined to create a group with strong relationships in order to have a victory over the enemy. For instance, there was a successful political consolidation process in Poland after gaining independence from the Soviet Union in 1989. It means that Polish culture fosters a delicate but intensive relationship in order to manage employees to effectiveness. Of course, it is not possible to make all staffers feel equal, but the HR department will be better off transferring the idea of equal importance to every employee within the personal communication channel.
Poland is considered an individualistic society compared to Saudi Arabia, with a score of 60 and 25, respectively. In Saudi Arabia, affiliation and the aim to be a part of the group are the main attributes for the members of society. Despite being more collectivistic than other Western cultures, Polish culture is based on a loosely-knit social framework. In terms of business relationships, loyalty is more critical for Saudis, while Pols prefer contract-based relationships. Managers in Saudi Arabia should consider employees in-group for promotion or hiring. On the contrary, in Poland, the emphasis should be put on individual achievements. Despite being opposite to each other, both cultures enjoy similarities. For instance, in both countries, decision-making relies on collective decisions, and both nations strive for strong leadership.
To conclude, the cross-cultural comparison has shown that Saudi Arabia and Poland have contrasting cultures. Companies that want to operate in those markets have to apply totally different styles of management in order to be successful. Saudis perceive organizational interests to be more important than their own, while for Pols, individual goals are above the company’s interests. Management in Saudi Arabia should be focused on team performance, whereas in Poland, it requires an individual approach.
Reference List
Beugelsdijk, S., Maseland, R. and Van Hoorn, A. (2015) ‘Are scores on Hofstede’s dimensions of national culture stable over time? A cohort analysis’, Global Strategy Journal, 5(3), pp. 223-240.
The Hofstede Insights. (2020) Country comparison: Saudi Arabia and Poland. Web.
Wackowski, K. and Blyznyuk, T. (2017) ‘Modern Ukrainian and Polish business cultures: G. Hofstede’s classification’, Economic annals-XXI, pp. 71-74.
Ourfali, E. (2015) ‘Comparison between Western and Middle Eastern cultures: Research on why American expatriates struggle in the Middle East’, Otago Management Graduate Review, 13, pp. 33-43.
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