Cultural differences in EU projects–Part III. France

“We in France do not have energy, we have thoughts” (someone in a French radio)

“In France, when we think, we do nothing” deputy mayor of St. Louis

It is extremely hard not to write one stereotype after another when talking about French people.  I think we all had experience with French and we love them one minute and hate them another minute. Our feelings are never neutral, because they have such a fascinating culture.

 To know the history of this country is just as important as in the case of Hungary, but in case of France you already probably know all what is there to remember. Think of the English-French or French-German relations. I had a project with two French (P1, P2) and one UK partner (P3). P1 and P3 hated each other from the beginning, there was no understanding, working towards a common goal. P2 and P3 on the other hand worked very well together, even confronting together P1. By the end of the project the situation changed and P1 and P3 found the compromise and stood by each other, while P2 and P3 had an argument and they are not talking to each other ever since. I am sure that all three partners would explain the story in three versions. Not to mention that P1 was based in Paris and P2 in the countryside. Such a relation has a historical route we are not really able to understand, just accept it.

French are highly intellectual and they have very good argumentative skills. But sometimes, what they arguing about, is not logical at all, or rather, not realistic. Do you know cognitive dissonance? It is the feeling of uncomfortable tension, which comes from holding two conflicting thoughts in the mind at the same time. You have to find a logical link between these two and eliminate the conflict. It is part of the human nature, but some of us are more serious about it. Assessing things and self-assessments are important for French people, and they will come up with an explanation. Maybe in reality it will not work, it will be enough that the theory is well justified . Thinking and talking in circles thus is very normal. One reason for doing that is not to be forced to make a decision quickly, to show the real emotions and take unnecessary risks. You should respect that.

They like arguing, normally in a very positive and entertaining way. Their contribution in a discussion can create the needed friendly atmosphere in the meeting. French like to show their skills. They like to be unique and cleverer than others and they are convinced that they are both. Therefore it is hard for them to accept that they were wrong. This is when a moderator receives an important role. You have to find the balance and catch the point where the entertaining argument will turn into arrogance and generate serious conflict. Who is right, has to win the argument, but if the French person was wrong, help him/her to exit the situation with pride (tell how extremely useful his/her contribution was to find the solution).

French are not lazy and are not light-minded. Especially in an official surrounding they will not smile all the time and they will take the meeting seriously. They want to be recognized, not liked by others. But they are also quite emotional people and their instant change in the mood might be very shocking for others. The need for recognition mixed with the tendency to be arrogant and/or cynical can be a dangerous combination in an EU project. But they like new, clever ideas, they are curious, open, flexible, so when a dangerous situation is approaching, you should come up with a new, interesting topic, maybe tell a joke and count on their sense of humour.

French may not build the things from scratch, using the basic elements, but try to implement the  “grand vision” right away. This may be annoying for nations like Germany, the Czech Republic etc. You have to raise their attention to go step by step, starting with the first, instead of the last step.

Their individualism is also something you need to consider. When having two-three representatives in the project from the same organisation, you have to know the hierarchy between them.

Do not expect that they will share all information with each other; certain information will not be forwarded, it will be a matter of status in the organisation. So, do not choose one contact person on the mailing list, copy all of them into an e-mail.

The symbiosis of the private and governmental sector is highly interesting in France and I am sure there are a lot of papers examining the structure and the connections. What we might need to consider is that the governmental support (not necessarily financial) is an important factor for any research, technological organisation to succeed.

Other Europeans find French annoying and seductive in the same time, that will not change in an EU project.

Source: Richard Hill, We Europeans (1997)

Do you have any experience? What do you think about cultural differences in EU projects? Share your opinion with us!

Cultural differences in EU projects– Part II: Denmark

When more Danish people participate in a meeting, it is not clear who is the boss, who is the subordinate. They are and seem equal, which does not mean that the subordinate will make decisions of course, but it might be hard to find out who you should address when asking for a decision. You should note that Denmark is the oldest kingdom in the world. Danes love their country and are proud of it.

Their thinking is pragmatic and independent. Independency is not necessarily a positive thing in an EU project, so stay attentive. You have to ensure teamwork and that everyone will follow the common path, the contract.
In Scandinavia they are the happiest nation. Dance, good food and good jokes are well appreciated. They are the Italians in Scandinavia. I can definitely confirm that after dining with several Danish participants and project partners, they are a great company.
They are resourceful, inventive (just consider design). They like to plan things, taking an initiative. When you need an idea, you can ask for their help. They might not come up with the perfect solution, but generating a discussion by them can achieve the result you need.
Once you are part of the society, they are friendly, informal. In an EU project meeting formality will be kept. Some research concluded that their distant behaviour is because of their lack of confidence. It is a small country with great history, but that greatness is in the long past.
They are a modest nation, but do not be mislead by it. They tend to be resistant, they do not accept to be pushed, reminded. If you do so, they can become extremely stubborn.
As Jante-Law says: Don’t think you are somebody, translating it to: Who do you think you are? Or: Don’t think you are better than us! Note that when you have Danish and French partner as well in the project.
Danish are polite and honest. When negotiating, they are not bargaining, so do not ask for more when they offer something. Be aware of the links between Norwegians, Danish and Swedish cultures. How many jokes have you heard about it?
Well, when having representatives in the project from more Scandinavian nations, you might consider these. e.g. Swedish and Norwegians tend to say that Danish are not upright, trustworthy. Norwegians are very ‘sober’, do not always accept the less serious nature in Danish people. They have a strong entrepreneurial mindset, so if you need to develop the business perspective in a project, you might think of the Danish partner.
I do not remember seeing a Danish partner having conflict with another European partner. What about you?
In summary:

• Find out in advance who is the person with decision-making rights.
• Discuss their tasks with them, do not give instructions. They are your partner and they take seriously the equality between the coordinator and the partner who are both beneficiaries.
• Do not push your Danish partners when you need extra work. Ask their opinion on the issue. Accept what they offer to do.
• If you need activity, initiatives, you can ask the Danish partner.
• Business plans might be well written by the Danish partners.
• When it comes to social events, they will be open to participate and will enjoy it.
• Be polite with them all the time.

Source: Richard Hill, We Europeans (1997)
Do you have any experience? What do you think about cultural differences in EU projects?

Share your opinion with us!

Cultural differences in EU projects

In every training course, we mention that cultural differences have to be taken into consideration and communication channels and work processes should be tailored to the habits and needs of your partners coming from different countries. What works for Germans and Hungarians might not work for Italians. We share examples from meetings, reviews, etc. all based on real-life experiences. Participants do the same and we laugh together, or in extreme cases, we receive complaints, saying we should not use stereotypes.

The coming series of posts on cultural characteristics will share some stereotypes, always with the note that each individual is different and a researcher from Germany does not have to work and react as a typical German person. He might have a Spanish heart and you have to adjust accordingly as a coordinator or a partner when you work together.

When you set up your communication channels and decide on the management processes to be followed by all partners, should you forget the cultures of the represented countries in the consortium? Should you set up one system and follow that in each project? I am convinced that understanding the main characteristics and business ethics of a certain culture is quite useful.

To prove a point, let’s start with Hungarians, my own culture. You are welcome to share your agreement or on the contrary, your very different experience with Hungarians.

 

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Hungary

“Hungarians have a significant verbal redundancy when using a concise language, such as English. This might be annoying for English natives.” (a Hungarian sociologist)

The Hungarian language is rich and complex, one of the reasons why it is hard to learn and speak it. It also means, it is hard for us to say exactly what we want in English. We speak in longer sentences, expressing well ourselves, and English does not allow that for us. One aspect you might consider useful when working with Hungarians in a project. Would you think they said little, did not contribute enough? Small talk with them might help. Did you think they talked too much, saying much less? Maybe they just wanted to make sure they said all what was needed.

We have an analytical mind, which researchers say is connected to the language.

Some other researchers say it is because of our history, “long torn by ill fate” (anthem). Teachers say it is because of our educational system, the pedagogy, which is laying on Prussian traditions. This however does not mean that we see the shortest or most logical route between point A and point B. We are a little bit crazy; just consider the several genius minds of Hungary. Foreigners living in Hungary said that even if we hit a wall, we still get to the other side somehow. Associative thinking, creativity, call it as you want. Do you need a solution to a problem in the project? Hungarians should be able to find it.

We are a mix; I am not sure that there is one person in Hungary who could be considered genetically Hungarian. (Turkish, Croatian, Kraut, Armenian, Gipsy and so on – research show 17 different races) So do not even try to put us in a Slavic, Mediterranean or any other cultural group in your head. We are diligent, clever people, and also proud, sometimes too proud to listen to others, emotional, individualists but our society is relationship oriented. Our emotions are strong; we are sentimental people, that is visible also in our general negative, melancholic attitude. We do not want to see the whole picture, especially if the whole is more favourable than the part. We can stop and argue on one small topic for hours instead of seeing the scope of the whole project. We need guidance and reminders because of that in any project.

We can get used to any situation, problematic, bad circumstances; but when we have enough, we riot. If you see a Hungarian arguing strongly and insisting on a change, you should take that seriously.

Respect is a key issue. We believe saying ‘no’ is disrespectful, and we will be indirect, so saying nothing rather than saying no. Decision-making procedures are normally slow, but that is not really only a Hungarian characteristic of the business cultures in Europe.

In summary:

• Be aware that expressing ourselves in English is not easy for us.

• Relationships are important. If you allocate time to get to know the person and earn his/her trust, you can be sure of the delivery of the tasks and more importantly expect future collaboration. It does not mean personal relations; we keep that separate.

Tip: If you consider learning about the Hungarian history and mention in small talk a famous Hungarian, we will melt. (Politics nowadays might be tricky, we have very heated discussions, much less common understanding within Hungary.)

•  Hungarians need guidance to see the whole picture.

Tip: Be diplomatic when doing so.

• Our working habits are similar to those of Germans; we are diligent, most of the time we keep the deadlines.

Tip: Early reminders of deadlines coming might be useful.

• At the meetings we arrive in time and we expect the others to do the same. We arrive to a conclusion when we have all the facts.

Tip: Send all information, all details available before the meeting.

The same with tasks we have to do, give us all information, clear instructions, otherwise we might do something different you expect.

•  We are emotional and sensitive, like Italians e.g., but when we feel offended, we remain offended – “we remember”,

Tip: Take disputes, conflicts seriously.

Use the Hungarian partner for:

• Solving a challenge. We are very good in details and solving problems that require creative solutions.

• Organise a meeting. We love to entertain people and we know how.

Source: Richard Hill, We Europeans (1997)

Do you have any experience? What do you think about cultural differences in EU projects? Share your opinion with us!