The Use of Conflict Management Styles Across Different Cultures Term Paper

The Use of Conflict Management Styles Across Different Cultures - Term Paper Example The paper has highlighted that individualistic cultures that have low power distance, high sense of individualism and achievement will encourage competing while collectivism cultures prefer to avoid conflicts in order to maintain relationships. Korea and Malaysian cultures will accommodate conflicts while Brazilian and Argentine cultures will compromise conflicts due to equal power distance. Multicultural societies like Britain can consider different views and collaborate in order to manage the conflict. Conflict is a contest or struggle between people with opposing views, ideas, values and goals and usually leads to adverse outcomes (Ting-Toomey, 2012). Conflict management refers to the process of limiting the negative aspects of conflicts through enhancing the positive aspects of conflict. Conflict management recognizes that conflicts are inevitable and cannot be resolved and thus should be managed to minimize the adverse effects of conflict escalation. The conflict management styles differ across cultures since the norms, belief systems and values influence the appropriateness of the style in conflict management. Avuruch (1998) outlines the five major conflict management styles that include competing, compromising, accommodating, avoiding and collaborating. Various research studies have identified cultural differences in conflict management styles since high context cultures are less assertive and confrontational while Western cultures that are low context are mainly confrontatio nal (Yu & Chen, 2008, p 153). Some studies concluded that Chinese executives display avoiding and compromising behaviors while dealing with conflicts unlike British executives who prefer competing and collaborating styles in managing conflicts in their organizations. Asian cultures such as Japan, India and China prefer non-confrontational strategies in dealing with conflicts due to the collectivism, close

TESCO PLC Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

TESCO PLC - Essay Example As the business grew, the company decided to diversify its products into areas like retailing clothing, electronics, furniture, books, software and petrol. It also offers financial services, internet services, telecoms, music downloads and DVD rentals (Tesco, 2013). The growth that the company has is down to the strategies that the company operates on. Current Strategy Used By the Company Now A check of the company’s procedures and activities, one strategy that is clearly visible is the digitization of its every operation and department. The company has extensively embraced technology and this has been its chief cause for its continued growth. It employs people who have the ability of utilizing technology to the maximum and come up with products that will foster its sales. One of the most recent technological developments that the company has made is the creation of its own-brand hardware. The hardware is installed in the Hudl tablet, which is sold at the numerous stores. The tablet was created to cater for every need of its customers. The tablet also is installed with all the digital services offered by the company making it an all in one gadget where people can find the companies music and Blinkbox movies. It also has Clubcard TV shopping for clothing, groceries, general merchandize and banking. ... g the company as much near as it can to people and this has made it to come up with the scan as you shop and drive-thru click-and-collect services (Tesco, 2013). Approximately 300,000 of its worldwide customers use the scan as you shop services. The drive-thru collection points have been widely opened within and a person living far from the company’s branch can order what he or she wants then goes and collects them at this points. This strategy has seen it open shops of different sizes and having different products. The largest stores opened are the Tesco Extras stores, mainly the hypermarkets, which are meant to serve its out of town customers. The Tesco Extras have all the products and services range that the company offers to its customers. The Tesco Superstores are normally the standard supermarkets and store a fewer non-food goods in them. To create harmony of its operations and ensure it is flexible in its operations, the company uses the strategy of having different org anizational structures in the different countries it is located in. the structure a certain branch is to adopt, should help in its operations as different regions and environments bring about different needs ( Mcloughlin & Aaker, 2010). These organizations structures determine the people who the branches hire to help reach their goals and contribute to their growth. The company also has a website that is managed around the clock. The website helps in online selling of its product, answering any queries some of its customers have and dealing with any complaints from them. This website greatly helps in the advertisement of the company and its branches and in the collection of valuable data from its customers that help in its operations (Fernie, 2005). The Positives of the Strategies The used