Israel: Let's Make a Deal! - Part 1
From ExecutivePlanet.com
Let’s Make A Deal Part 1: Doing Business in Israel
Israeli business style and culture is primarily American/West European and visiting businesspersons will encounter few challenges and cultural anxieties while interacting with Israelis.
While connections, business acquaintances and referrals are always an asset in every business environment, Israelis are globally oriented and value international relationships to a degree that rarely requires third party “introductions” as a crucial facilitative mechanism.
During meetings, seating arrangements are not governed by cultural norms and are at the discretion of both visitor and host. Israeli business card etiquette is generally Euro-American, cards are printed in English and routinely exchanged during meetings and informal get-togethers. Visitors should note the titles of Israelis since frequently terms for management positions differ from American standards. For example: In Israel, Presidents and CEO’s of companies are sometimes defined as General Managers. Visitors should feel free to inquire about the specific job functions of their Israeli hosts.
Sales brochures, corporate portfolios, meeting agendas and other documentation including routine email communications should be in English, the core global business language in Israel. Presentations should also be composed and delivered in English. As mentioned above, foreign businesspersons should ascertain that their Israeli hosts grasp more complex contexts and terminologies. Agreements and contracts should typically be supervised by legal experts fluent in both language and international law.
The concept of “Time Is Money” - is evolving as Israeli companies privatize, increase productivity, and adopt competitive strategies. The art of scheduling, prioritizing and allocating time is relatively undeveloped. Business schedules are therefore rather crowded and somewhat cluttered befitting Israel’s hurried environment. Deadlines are correspondingly flexible.
Israeli employees and executives, at all hierarchies, are typically very individualistic and expressive, seeing themselves more as important corporate assets rather than as “functional parts” in a greater organization. In Israel it is therefore not surprising to encounter an environment where “Every employee regards himself as manager”.
The degree of an Israeli employee’s subordination to his employer is markedly less than in the West where hierarchy is enforced and formal, and even less than in countries like Japan where total dedication to the company is a derivative of culture and lifestyle.
As mentioned before in the feature on the Israeli Business Mindset, Israelis are fiercely driven, independent, patriotic, and proud individuals. Whereas these traits sometimes lead foreign guests to view their hosts as egocentric, Israelis, who are avid “learners”, are actually very open and receptive to ideas and insight provided by global partners. Having said that, business visitors should consider that an authoritative demeanor can have a strong de-motivating effect on Israelis. Israelis are intensely analytical thinkers, emotionally sensitive, reward driven achievers who thrive when allowed to function in more entrepreneurial, less frameworked environments that foster expression, creativity and self fulfillment.
Foreigners doing business in Israel who are equipped with comprehensive insight on the Israeli Business Mindset and with an adequate measure of flexibility, are almost always assured a rewarding result and a pleasant experience in Israel.
