Russia: Let's Make a Deal! - Part 2
From ExecutivePlanet.com
What you should know before negotiating
Knock and wait for admittance before opening a closed office door. Also, when you leave a room, ensure that the door is closed behind you.
The first meeting is usually just a formality--a time for the Russians to assess the credibility of you and your company. The best strategy is to appear very firm and dignified, while maintaining an air of warmth and approachability; refrain from any displays of aggression or overbearing behaviour.
If you are from the West, Russians can sometimes place a great deal of confidence in your professional competence and experience. Consequently, you may be confronted with very high expectations--and demands--from the Russian side.
The Russian side may try to convince you that they have the necessary credentials and experience to succeed in their field. Further investigation may be needed to verify these claims, which sometimes turn out to be questionable.
Your Russian counterparts may insist that they understand something, when this is not actually the case. Moreover, they sometimes have a tendency to say things they think you want to hear.
Russia is currently going through a profound struggle to replace the values of Communism with those of a free-market economy and democracy.
Many Russians are still unfamiliar with, or misinformed about, concepts that are basic to Western business culture. It may be necessary for you to explain, and persuade your Russian counterparts to accept, ideas such as motivation, fair play, individual accountability and reward, profit and loss, turnover, proprietary rights, good will, public relations, and so on. Whatever you do, these terms should be used only with caution and tact.
Accepting outside information can be difficult for Russians and sometimes, out of frustration, they will fall back into the same old closed-minded patterns.
Presentations should be simple and easy to understand; given the lack of resources, there is no need for special visuals or other frills.
While you may conduct your presentation in English, it is essential that any promotional material and other documentation be printed in Russian. Moreover, it may be in your best interests to bring your own translator, rather than depending on one provided by the Russian delegation.
While strong empirical evidence and other factual data are important in any presentation, making a good overall impression should also be an important priority.
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