Business Card Etiquette Around the World

The significance of differing business card etiquette's around the world allows each countries cultural and societal norms to easily be shared in the business world with only one small piece of paper. Each country over time has instilled their unique cultural practices that have accumulated over many years into one piece of paper and one business transaction. A business card should not be seen as merely contact information, yet it should be thought of information from an individual that is upheld by the country he/she is representing. Not only are the business cards themselves important, so is the etiquette in which individuals handle the business card. Japan, Middle East, Africa, etc. all have different cultural norms when handling business cards making it key to understand and practice these professional standards that are expected of each business man/woman before hand.

As we have studied previously, Japan and China’s business practices has changed their societies culture as a whole. Along with the increase of production being shipped to these two overseas countries, so did the increase of demand for international businessmen/woman. For example, the Japanese business people are depicted as very hard working, there mind is always on the job, and precise. These cultural norms that are found within the working place of Japan have been incorporating almost eentirely with how they handle business cards. “Recipients receive business cards with both hands at the beginning of introduction. The Japanese hand their card to the other person while also accepting the other persons.” (Mente) These precise procedures in business etiquette for the Japanese correlate very strongly with Japan’s overall cultural practices.

Just as the Japanese business card reflects the cultural that they have developed, so has the United States business card etiquette. As many would say we are very “relaxed” with comparison to other countries, and it is just as easily seen in the way we do business with business cards. With comparison to countries such as Japan, Russia, and Germany we have created one of the most relaxed cultures that does not give strict rules or procedures pertaining to how business should be run. This easy going culture of ours has found its way into the United States business card etiquette that we use with one another. We have no high expectations or specifications for the ways in which we exchange business cards beside providing a clean unused card. This in some ways allows for business interactions to become more of a casual meeting rather than a formal setting.

Many countries in the Middle East pride their culture on the religion that they practice. Judaism and Islam are strong religious practices of individuals residing in the Middle East which heavily impacts how business is shaped in those countries. For example, “the workweek in most muslim countries runs from Saturday to Wednesday or Thursday morning and prayers are said five times a day, during which time business stops.” (Business) Foreigner business men/woman must know and understand these cultural differences in order to respect their religious practices. Also, in many Middle East countries it is culturally and socially normal for women to rarely be seen, and if seen they are very heavily covered up. It is very clear that the culture of a country can drastically change the business manners and use of business card etiquette that is practiced. It is as though each country has embedded their social and cultural norms within the cards that business men and women carry out in the professional world today.




Sources:

"Business Etiquette in the Middle East -Alibaba Trade Forums." Fashion Trends on Alibaba.com. 4 Apr. 2008. Web. 23 Feb. 2011. .

Mente, Boye. Japanese etiquette & ethics in business . 5th ed. Lincolnwood, Ill.: Passport Books, 1987. Print.

Alana Snelling

Research Progress Report #1 - Egypt

For this country-based research project, I wanted to look into Egypt. First, I had wanted to take a look at the social standing of the engineers in Egypt but then I thought the history would be more interesting to look at. It would be interesting to see the effects that the history had on the current.

So far my research about Egypt has shown me that there is influence from the French and the British, This is demonstrated in “Engineering and Engineering Education in Egypt”. This to me was interesting because as we learned in class and through the readings, France and Britain have different views when it comes to what engineering means, who is an engineer and the qualifications are also different. I have read one article on this topic and I’m actually pretty excited to see how the construction of engineering is today and how these two different countries together helped shape engineering in Egypt. The article also explains how after World War II nationalism also affected Egypt and the control of the British in Egypt. The article also goes on to explain why the British were there. They did not want to fully lose control of Egypt because then they would lose access to the Suez Canal (20). Even though they were not willing to part with that control they allowed Egypt to establish it as an “independent monarchy “ but they were still involved in Egypt. They allowed the monarchy because they saw the “… nationalist unrest of the 191 Revolution” (20) I also want to see how the Suez canal was involved in the Britain’s interest in Egypt. This also makes me winder if there were any other underlying motivations and what were the motivations of the French. I also want to investigate and understand why there was a Nationalist Revolution in 1919 and what acts led to it.

While researching the history of Egypt I also came across a lot of article the spoke of political protests in colleges and they involved mechanical engineers professors. That surprised me and I would be interested to see how the history of Egypt helped shape that as well. At the same time, I want to look into engineering before the French and the British became involved. The beginning of the article, “Engineering and Engineering Education in Egypt”, the beginning of the article begins with,” modern engineering education in Egypt…” (18) To me the raises the question what is pre modern engineering education in Egypt? Also, what makes the education “not modern”? These questions support my thesis question and will help me in my research. Did these views affect how the Egyptians saw themselves and their history?

Something that I would also like to look into would how the French and British impacted the culture. It is through education that the minds of the young people are impacted. Did this create a different generation with different ideas? How did this affect the community? The people of Egypt may have protested to the control of the British in Egypt and how all of these ideas tie into the history if engineering the Egypt.

Works Cited:

El-Sayed, O.L., J. Lucena, and G. Downey. "Engineering and Engineering Education in Egypt." IEEE Technology and Society Magazine 25.2 (2006): 18-25. Print.

Research Progress Report #1 Engineering in Turkey

For my country based research project I am going to take an in depth look at how the history of Turkey and its attempt at assimilation into the culture of Europe, has influenced the formation of engineering practices.

In large part the formation of Turkey's engineering education was in response to the Ottoman Empire's loss of power as the nations of Europe rose in world power in the 17^th and 18^th centuries. The French model of engineering highly influenced the blueprint of Turkish engineering, for example French became a required language in the military schools! After World War I the Ottoman lands were divided among the nations of Europe, increasing Europe's influence on Turkey. However soon after Turkey fought for its Independence and became the first republic in the Middle East in 1923. Quickly moving through its history, after World War II, the number of engineering students in Turkey continued to grow and therefore more and more universities were being established. One specific term I will be discussing in this project in the concept of liberalization. In the 1970's Turkey experienced one of its worst economic crisis, which included high inflation and unemployment rates. However what occurred consequently benefited the country exponentially. The government began a process of liberalizing the economy, which meant the economic focus became exporting instead of importing. The results of this shift in focus included, modernization in infrastructure (bridges, roads, etc. which calls for more engineers!) and an explosion of universities. These historical events play a prominent role in the development of engineering education. Turkey was prompted by Europe to engage in advancement for its engineers, but was also highly influenced by European methods, especially the French.

Another unique characteristic of engineering practices in Turkey is the inclusion of women in the engineering work force. After the establishment of the Republic, the government installed a series of legislation to "modernize" Turkey and the head of the country thought that reforms which gave women more rights was crucial. This not only paved the way for women in engineering but, began with a series of legislation to give women social rights. By 1930 women were given full political rights.

The European influence on Turkey has led the country to apply for acceptance into the European Union. Turkey's history as a former territory of the multiethnic Ottoman Empire sets it apart from the rest of its primary Islamic neighbors and its possible assimilation into the European Union would set it apart even more. I would like to examine how Europe influenced Turkey's engineering practices and how its movement towards European practices affects society as well. Turkey is a unique case because its engineering history includes the progressive notion of advancement of women in the field of engineering, which sets it a part from the engineering model of Europe. In an article by IEEE Technology and Society Magazine 2006, they examine "how the emergence of the engineering profession in different locations in the world tends to depend upon local ideas of societal development and progress…Because distinct images of progress are taken up within different countries, becoming key features of national identities, the emergence of the engineering profession becomes a key constituent feature of emerging nation states" (9). Therefore in this report I will look at how the engineering practices of Turkey have been formed by a conglomeration of ideas from Turkish society but also those of European societies. I will look into the question of whether this mix of engineering practices has addressed the needs of the Turkish people or whether it was simply a replication of that which was done in Europe.

Tantekin-Ersolmaz, S. Birgul and Ekinci Ekrem. "Engineering and Education Practices in Turkey" IEEE Society and Technology Magazine. Summer 2006: 26-35.