Global Business Cultural Analysis Canada

On the international stage, Canada is often viewed as a secular and multicultural nation. Throughout the history of the country, immigrants have come to Canada seeking a country which is accepting of diversity in ethnicity, language, religion, and culture. Especially since the 1970s, when multiculturalism was introduced by former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, thus becoming an official policy of Canada, the diversity of the nation has increased greatly, (Wang & Handy, 2014, p. 1561). However, while Canada has become a more multicultural country as a whole, it has not necessarily become more religiously pluralistic. In fact, it has been argued that Canada remains and will continue to be an overwhelmingly Christian country and many immigrants

Citizens all around the world want to be able to think and feel the way they want. In Canada, you have the freedom to think, feel, and express yourself in the way you want as long as it doesn’t harm others. In Canada, you have the right to think with a clear conscious and express your opinions without having to worry about people getting angry with you for feeling or believing something different from them. Your choice of religion is your to make without judgement. Everyone is different and everyone has different beliefs and in Canada, those beliefs are accepted and cherished. Take our government for example, some citizens believe the Conservatives should still be running the government and others believe that the Liberals should remain in control. In Canada, you have the right to gather and assemble without people trying to shut you down. Our government believes that if Canadians can express their opinions and believe their own thoughts then there will be less

When it comes to interacting with people, France and the United States differ greatly. The people of France tend not to smile or have an expression when meeting new people. In the United States, we tend to smile and greet people as we have known them for a very long time. Edward MacNeal talks about growing up in a bicultural environment and noticing the differences between French and American interactions. He states in his journal French-American Misunderstandings, “…the French don’t smile at people they don’t know. They think it’s hypocritical” (2003). This nature is why many Americans view French people to be rude or snobbish. MacNeal also says that the American assumption is that we are all friends and the French assumption is that we are all strangers. This very assumption could hinder interaction between people of the two nations. So with that being said, when doing business with

Being Canadian is so much more than just the cliché stereotype of living in igloos, playing hockey 24/7, and drinking Tim Hortans coffee every day. Being a part of the Canadian culture means that all Canadians are unified as one big family. Culture is defined as “a set of human made objective and subjective elements that have increased the probability of survival, and resulted in satisfaction for the participants” (Samovar, 1991). Every culture has their own attitudes, customs and beliefs that differentiate one culture from another. Canadian culture can be very distinctive from other cultures. Usually the first impression of Canadians is that we are very polite and we live in an extremely friendly and accepting country. Being Canadian is about having big hearts and appreciating our diverse environment. Our country shares a wide variety of different ethnic backgrounds which makes being Canadian unique.

Although Tremblay talks about the American culture’s influence on Canada as a whole, his main concern in this article is Quebec, which is in a separate league than the rest of Canada due to its different linguistics. Tremblay

Many ethnic groups live and work in peace as proud Canadians. In Canadian home non-official languages are widely spoken. In two of Canada’s biggest cities, Chinese languages are the second most spoken language at home. Canadian has a wide range of religion, the majority of Canadians identify as Christians. The largest religious affiliation is Catholic, followed by various Protestant churches. Other religions are slowly growing.

Second there is English Canadians who are the descendants of English, Welsh, Scottish, and Irish settlers, soldiers and immigrants who came to Canada from the 17th to the 20th century. Generations of these pioneers helped to bring British political institutions and traditions to Canada” ("The government of Canada," n.d., para. 1). However there is a ton of diversity and different religions that has expanded across their region. In the last 200 years many travelled and arrived there (The government of Canada," n.d.).

Canada has been known by many as country of diverse culture, people move from all over the world to live here. There is certain traditions/objects that are thought of as being Canadian, although that would just be a matter of opinion for the most part. While all

Canada has two official languages: English and French. Almost half of the population can speak both languages. The majority of Canadians speak

important characteristic in the overall makeup of the culture. Status is a key element in the success of a person in the region.

Which is cost difference determines the patterns of international trade. Absolute advantage is trade benefits when each country is at least cost producer of one of the goods being traded. In the 1800s, David Ricardo developed the theory of comparative advantage to measure gains from trades. This theory is based on comparative advantage and it states each nation should specialize in production of those goods for which its relatively more efficient with a lower opportunity cost.

What is the major religion? Christianity is the largest religion in Canada, with the Catholic Church having

Global Business Cultural Analysis: South Africa Raymond J. Landis BUSI 604-D06 LUO – International Business Professor – Dr. Stephen P. Preacher Liberty University May 13, 2011

“Business communication is quite direct in Canada; there will be no need for you to decipher and read into messages. Emails and telephone calls should also be direct and succinct” (Doing Business in Canada, n.d.). Not only are Canadians expected to be direct, they also expect to heard and listened to regardless of their rank and status. Business usually operates from 9:00am to 5:00pm, Monday to Friday with meetings being held first thing in the morning. “Canada is officially bilingual in French and English-be prepared to use these languages in meetings. An interpreter might be required” (Doing Business in Canada, n.d.). It should be noted Canadians consider it rude to speak in a foreign language in the presence of other people who do not understand the language. Prior to business meetings, Canadians enjoy small talk about sports or general topics, however todays translations advise to avoid conversation about conflicts with the French and comparing Canada to the U.S (Doing Business in Canada, n.d.). Business meeting dress code is conservative with Canadians dress according to the weather. Punctuality is a priority for business meetings and it’s considered rude to decline an invitation out for drinks unless you have a very good reason for not going. Before Henry Inc. can conduct any business the employees must learn how to speak French and the company should obtain a credible

The five weeks of the Cultural aspects of international business course have been a truly enriching life experience for me. I must admit that I was a little skeptical about the value proposition of the course as I thought this was going to be one of those purely theoretical pro-diversity lectures with no potential for practical application. However, the fact that Professor Lane co-authored the textbook intrigued me so much (I have never had a Professor who actually wrote the textbook for the course) that I decided to give it a chance and sign-up for the course.