Michael Richarme, Ph.D. Senior Vice President Decision Analyst, Inc.

Two Main Items of Discussion How are people doing economically around the world? How are people similar or different?

Monthly Economic Index Conducted in the last week of each month for over 11 years Sample of over 30,000 consumers each month Nine economic indicators measured Results in a forward-looking index of 9-12 months in the future

United States in February

United States by Census Division Decision Analyst U.S. Economic Index by Census Division (Three-Month Moving Average*)

Major Global Economies North AmericaIndexSouth AmericaIndex Canada100Brazil131 United States95Argentina84 Mexico90 EuropeIndexAsia-PacificIndex Germany97China139 Italy95India117 Spain88Australia99 Great Britain87 France81

Trading Blocks Suffer Together Major trading blocks (North America, European Union) are suffering similarly in this economic recession Some areas of the world are countering that trend

The BRIC Economies Brazil, Russia, India, China Economic growth engines All but Russia doing very well in this recession China and India are major exporters Brazil is heading toward energy self-sufficiency and has a trading agreement with the EU

China Over the Past 3 Years

India Over Past 3 Years

Brazil Over the Past 3 Years

A Study of Cultural Differences Geert Hofstede, the Netherlands Large scale study in the 1980’s Over 116,000 questionnaires About 150 questions in length Twenty different languages 50 countries Adults

Fundamental Issues Examined Ways in which organizations are structured Motivations of people within organizations Issues people face within their society

Four Dimensions Power Distance Uncertainty Avoidance Individualism/Collectivism Masculinity/Femininity

Power Distance Defined as the degree to which power is exerted in either an autocratic manner or a democratic manner Autocratic – what the boss says, goes Democratic – let’s discuss it before deciding

Typical PDI Statements Low PDI – “Inequality in society should be minimized; the system is to blame for things going wrong; cooperation among the powerless can be based on solidarity” High PDI – “Everyone has his rightful place; power is a basic fact of society; the underdog is to blame for things that go wrong”

Countries PDI CountryPower Distance IndexWorld Rank Austria111 Great Britain3510 Canada3915 United States4016 Japan5421 Korea60 Chile6329 India7742 Philippines9447 Highly Autocratic Highly Democratic Low scores High Scores

Uncertainty Avoidance Degree of risk acceptance and tolerance for uncertainty Low Uncertainty – not a lot of anxiety about the future High Uncertainty – need reassurance about what is going to happen

Typical Uncertainty Statements Low UAI – “hard work is not a virtue; more acceptance of dissent; authorities there to serve the citizens; belief in common sense” High UAI – “Uncertainty is a continuous threat; time is money; strong need for consensus; ordinary citizens are incompetent compared with the authorities”

Countries UAI CountryUncertainty Avoidance Index World Rank Austria7027 Great Britain356 Canada4812 United States4611 Japan9244 Korea8534 Chile8636 India409 Philippines4410 Highly Comfortable Highly Anxious Low scores High Scores

Individualism/Collectivism Individualism is the relative importance of freedom, challenge, use of personal time Collectivism is the relative importance of training, use of skills, physical conditions, and benefits This dimension indicates the degree to which a person “goes it alone as an entrepreneur” or “feels at home in the pack”

Typical Individualism Statements Low IDV – “Belief in group decisions; expertise, order, duty, security provided by organization or clan; identity is based on the social system” High IDV – “Self-orientation; everybody has a right to a private life and opinion; belief in individual decisions; identity is based on the individual”

Countries IDV CountryIndividual Collectivism Index World Rank Austria5533 Great Britain8948 Canada8046 United States9150 Japan4628 Korea1811 Chile2315 India4830 Philippines3221 Highly Collective Highly Individual Low scores High scores

Masculine/Feminine Masculine is the relative importance of earnings, recognition, advancement, challenge, assertiveness, self-reliance Feminine is the relative importance of cooperation, desirable living area, job security, nurturing, responsibility This index shows the degree of the gender gap

Typical Masculinity Statements Low MAS – “Service ideal; sex roles in society should be fluid; small and slow are beautiful; differences in sex roles should not mean differences in power” High MAS – “Money and things orientation; performance and growth are important; decisiveness; sex roles should be clearly differentiated; men should dominate”

Countries MAS CountryMasculine Feminine IndexWorld Rank Austria7949 Great Britain6641 Canada5228 United States6236 Japan9550 Korea3913 Chile288 India5630 Philippines6439 Highly Feminine Highly Masculine Low scoresHigh MAS scores

Things to Consider Don’t make value judgments – it is OK for people to have different cultural values Think about their cultural values before trying to do business with them Go more than half-way to accommodate differences between cultures

Questions or comments? Michael Richarme, Ph.D. Senior Vice President Decision Analyst, Inc. 604 Avenue H East Arlington, TX