ANALYTICS 2.0

Significant communication differences between Germans and Latinos

Normally people form different cultures think they are able to handle a negotiation with a different culture counterpart. When I was living in Germany finded out that negotiating with people from a different culture is so much hard than what we normally think.

In my personal experience I lernt that if you need to require something, you should go straight to the point, otherwise they will no undestand that you are asking something. Normally Latinos are very indirect so people should understand what they are trying to say, actually I think that we have (as latino) like a sixth sence that allow us undestand the very indirect counterpart. For example, when a German says “I’d like to suggest a small improvement” what the German really means is “I agree in principle” while the Latino understands “He wants to throw my idea out”.

Germans are one of the most MONOCHRONIC cultures, followed by Americans between others, while Latinos are one of the most POLICHRONIC culture. A Monochronic culture is based on a linear flow of task, where the task two follows the task one just after task one is finished, while a Polichronic culture is represented by different task running in parallel, but this topic diserves a complete post.

According to German perception, Latinos negotiators shown an inclination -verbally- to exaggerate. They like hyperbolic expressions, while Germans avoid them.

In a meeting or in personal discussions, the German who speaks most softly is the one to pay attention to, not the one who makes the most noise. Latin People’s behavior is quite opposite. Their tendency to speak with emphasis depends not only on the character or temperament, but also on their mother tongue - especially the italian language- which allows speakers to make hyperbolic comments. German, on the contrary is a nüchterne sprache (sober language).

Latin negotiators are inclined to discuss contemporaneously and interrupt interlocutors with extreme facility without problems. Their language allows this, because they know at the beginning the meaning of the discourse.

With the verbs or prefixes/suffixes at the end of the sentence it takes a while for Germans to get to the point, they just take longer than their Latino colleagues. To interrupt a discourse in German is very unpolite and makes it impossible to follow and understand meanings.

On the other hand Deutsch possess a faculty to compound several words. While Latinos need a long explanation and a large use of periphrasis -this could increse ambiguity-, Germans are able to explain in a few words a clear idea in a very short time. This characteristic of the German language permits a direct and precise communication style. Latin negotiators should keep in mind that communicating with the Germans they should repeat their main point at the end of the listener may miss it. Also, the negotiator should remember that it is important to give Germans much more detailed background data than they are use to give. 

Juan Manuel Damia