The Business Etiquette in India - Essay Example

There are quite a lot of cultural factors that could trigger internal conflicts or even drive a foreign company out of business. For example, the road condition in most of the rural areas in India is poor. In case of the urban areas, traffic congestion is common especially during peak hours (Gesteland & Gesteland, 2010, p. 23). Therefore, an American businessman should have enough endurance when dealing with Indian employees’ lack of punctuality, late deliveries, and issues regarding missed deadlines (pp. 24 – 25). Basically, becoming impatient with their lack of punctuality can only trigger misunderstandings between the business owner and the Indian counterpart.

With regards to religion, an American businessman should know that on top of Hinduism, there are some Indians who are Buddhists, Christians, Muslims, and Sikhs (Fox, 2008, pp. 293 – 294). Since Muslims are forbidden to eat pork, an American businessman should avoid offering pork meat when going out for a lunch meeting with an Indian Muslim.

To avoid conflict with Indian employees, an American businessman should know that all Indians are different from one another depending on their cultural background. Therefore, the inability of an American businessman to modify his behavior and business approach when dealing with a potential business partner will lead to poor business operations respectively (Fox, 2008, p. 294).

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