When Cultures Collide: Managing Successfully Across Cultures [Hardcover]

Richard D. Lewis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 23, 1999

Richard Lewis provides a truly global and practical guide to working and communicating across cultures, with penetrating insights into how different business cultures accord status, structure their organizations, and view their role of leaders.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Instructive and highly entertaining, an invaluable insight for the global business manager... highly recommended. As indispensable as your passport. -- Chartered Secretary

Nobody knows better than Richard Lewis, Chairman of a company with offices in more than 30 countries, that people have different cultural characteristics that affect the way they do business... An authoritative roadmap to navigating the world's economy. -- Wall Street Journal

Richard Lewis has been crossing cultures for 30 years and knows the secret of success when East and West do business. -- Asia Magazine

Simply the finest book on the market to date. -- Dr John L Keifer, Director, Centre for International Business Education & Development, Ohio University

From the Publisher

In this completely revised and expanded new paperback edition, Richard Lewis has built on the international success of the first edition to provide a rich and enlightening global guide to working and communicating across cultures and countries. From India to Ireland, Mexico to Malaysia, Belgium to Brazil, this classic look at what it takes to succeed in international business exmaines in-depth how our own culture and language affect the ways in which we organize our world, think, feel, and respond. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Nicholas Brealey Publishing; First Edition edition (February 23, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1857880862
• ISBN-13: 978-1857880861
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #797,471 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The most helpful book I have seen on the subject!, August 31, 1999

By 

Andrew Mayo [e-mail] (UK, Europe) - See all my reviews

This review is from: When Cultures Collide: Managing Successfully Across Cultures (Hardcover)

Richard Lewis is a speaker of 12 languages and herein lie some clues to his understanding of intercultural communication.His book avoids the complex academic distinctions seen elsewhere and concentrates on practical understanding of each nation's "collective programming". It has helped me to understand how to deal and work with people of other nations with much increased effectiveness. Lewis explains why there are differences, and how we should approach them, using many simple diagrams and patterns. A must for anyone interacting internationally, or indeed with different ethnic groups within their own country.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, July 30, 2005

By 

Rory Morty "Rory Morty" (Giessen, Germany) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: When Cultures Collide: Managing Successfully Across Cultures (Hardcover)

This is an excellent book. From its marketing, I thought that "When Cultures Collide: Managing Successfully Across Cultures" pertained specifically to dealing with people of different nationalities in the business place. And indeed, it is a most useful book for that purpose. However, I was struck by how much one could apply Lewis' analyses to other situations, for example, dealing with people of other nationalities on a social level. Indeed, I have many aquaintances, and some close friends, from diverse backgrounds, and this book sometimes occupies us for entire evenings, discussing our experiences with one another. The chapter on Hungarians I found particularly accurate, and entertaining. I believe that Lewis would have enjoyed hearing some of these discussions (and arguments). My point is: don't dismiss this book thinking it is a businessman's tool. It's a good read for anybody who encounters people of other nationalities and cultures, irrespective of the context.

21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Recommended!, March 14, 2001

By 

Rolf Dobelli "getAbstract" (Switzerland) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: When Cultures Collide (Paperback)

Richard D. Lewis, an expert on cross-cultural and language training who has tutored clients from Swedish corporate executives to the Japanese Imperial Family, discusses the need to consider cross-cultural differences in managing any company in today's global world. He suggests a broad model you can use to characterize different national characteristics as linear-active, multi-active, and reactive. These traits shape attitudes toward time, leadership, team building, and affect a range of organizational behaviors. Lewis includes brief national profiles you can refer to when doing business away from home. This in-depth book covers common patterns in different cultures, and offers many examples of how different groups act under different situations. We at getAbstract recommend this book to top executives, managers and anyone who works in a multicultural business environment, as well as to general readers with a yen for informed people watching.