Trompenaars' four value dimensions in intercultural management

Fons Tropenaars researched value dimensions in his work. There are some of the dimensions such as individualism that have been discussed by other people. A lot of what takes place in places of work can be explained by the innate value systems that people have as Tropenaars describes it. Being aware of such differences which are in existence and how they can influence the behavior in workplaces is very useful to an individual who aspires to be an international manager (Coburg, 20O8). The paper will look at the four value dimensions developed by Trompenaars and also placement of particular countries along specific dimensions.

Universalism vs. particularism

The main focus on this dimension is obligation. Universalistic approach puts into application rules and systems in an objective way without taking into consideration individual circumstances .on the other hand a particularistic approach has its first obligation as relationships and for this reason it is more subjective. This approach is more common in Spain and Asia.Tropenaars came to the conclusion that people who live in a particularistic society have a more likelihood of passing insider information to their friend as opposed to those living in universalistic societies. Therefore we can come to the conclusion that when it comes to obligation, universalistic is high in the United States, Germany, Sweden, United Kingdom and Italy but particularistic is common in Japan, Spain and china (Deresky, 2011).

Neutral vs. effective

These dimensions primarily focus on how a relationship is oriented in terms of emotions. When looking at Mexicans, Italians and Chinese it is observed that these people can express their emotions openly even in a business situation. On the other hand the British and Japanese would perceive these expressions as being unprofessional; they would regard them as hard to read. Looking at emotional orientation in relationships, this is neutral in japan, United Kingdom, Germany and Sweden whereas affective is common in china, Italy, Spain and France.

Achievement vs. ascription

The question that comes up in this dimension is where power and status comes from in the society. Achievement societies have their source of status and influence from the achievements of an individual. This depends on how well one does their job, the level of education they have and the experience they can offer in that particular job. Therefore, women, minority people and the young all have opportunities which are equal when it comes to attaining positions on the basis of their achievement.in societies which are ascription oriented, status is ascribed on the basis of age, gender, class and so on.in this societies people are likely to be born in positions where there is a lot of influence. For instance in Indonesia hiring is done on the basis of whom one is which not the case in Australia or Germany is. When looking at source of power and status, personal is common in United States, United Kingdom, Sweden and Germany while society is common in China, japan, Spain and Italy (Deresky, 2011).

Conclusion

Looking at the different culture variables one is able to identify particular variables which are culturally based that can be the frequent cause of problems. The most important variable is those which involve conflicting orientations in time, material factors, individualism and change. Therefore it is important to understand operational value differences since they usually influence the attitude on e has and how they respond to various work situations.