Summary of Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner's individualist and communitarian cultural dimensions.

1. Cultural dimensions based on
relationships
Individualism & Communitarianism

2. Individualists
 Oriented towards own objectives
 Autonomous
 Modern?

3. Communitarians
 Common goals
 Satisfaction from role in group
 Which community?

4. Significance in Business
 Recognition
 Pay-for-performance
 Negotiation
 Decision-making

5. Recognition
 Individualists
 Reward for individual skill and effort
 ‘Rugged individual’ intrinsic reward
 Communitarians
 Success is group effort
 ‘Love of community’ intrinsic reward
 Pay-for-performance may backfire
 Group finds way of rewarding key performers

6. Negotiations
 Communitatians
 Group representation
 Delegates may refer to home
 Unaccompanied people lack status
 Translator part of team
 Individualists
 Lone delegates empowered to make decisions
 Translator is ‘black box’

7. Decision-making
 Communitarians
 More time-consuming
 Consultation
 Consensus
 Individualists
 Rapid
 Implementation delays

8. Reconciling
Promote
individual
responsibility ..
Want to avoid
self-
centredness...
Promote
consensus to
group goals...
Want to avoid
conformism
so...
Clear objectives
needing individual
initiative &
accountability to
succeed

9. Dealing with individualists
 Lone delegate has high esteem
 Quick deal
 Might not need to refer to HQ
 Difficult to change their minds
 Needs individual praise and incentives
 Needs freedom to act
 Expect high job mobility

10. Dealing with communitarians
 Be patient
 Expect tentative agreements
 Large retinue = high status
 Aim to build relationships
 Reward of belonging to cohensive unit
 Group praise
 Group goals
 Identify with leader
 Low job mobility

11. The End
Based on the work of Fons Trompenaars & Charles
Hampden-Turner: Riding the Waves of Culture.
Bachelorinternationalmanagement.eu
Michael Medlock MBA