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Cross CulturesMasters12 m+140 XP
Negotiating across cultures: The Culture Map in practice
Erin Meyer's eight scales, disagreement styles & closing deals across cultural lines
Erin Meyer's Culture Map plots cultures on 8 dimensions: Communicating (low vs high context), Evaluating (direct vs indirect negative feedback), Persuading (principles-first vs applications-first), Leading (egalitarian vs hierarchical), Deciding (consensual vs top-down), Trusting (task vs relationship-based), Disagreeing (confrontational vs avoids confrontation), Scheduling (linear vs flexible time). Understanding where your counterpart sits on each scale before a negotiation is the highest-leverage preparation you can do.
Key Points
- ▸The 8 scales are independent — a culture can be hierarchical and egalitarian on different dimensions
- ▸Relative positioning matters more than absolute position
- ▸Feedback style varies most — prepare carefully before giving negative feedback cross-culturally
- ▸Trust-building requirements differ dramatically: some cultures want task results, others want personal relationship first