Recruitment, Jobs & Career USA-Germany

Welcome to the blog of the  Germany-USA Career Center! We provide search, personnel and career services for American and German companies and individuals in the US and in Germany. More about this blog here.

American and German companies  often approach marketing and communications differently. But what are the key differences, and how significant are they? Here’s a way to gain some important insights.

If you are an American involved in management, marketing or communications with Germany in any way,  you may be interested in a  US Business Communications Perceptions Study Survey, currently conducted by our friends at Michael A. Burns & Associates (Dallas, TX) and Frohmann Michael (Frankfurt/M., Germany).

Their goal is to identify key differences and give German and American companies a better understanding of how to market themselves abroad. The survey takes about five minutes to complete, and participants can receive a FREE copy of the research findings after the survey is completed.

Please complete the survey and request your free copy here. Your responses will be anonymous and will not be traceable to any individual who completes it.

Germany-USA Career Center guest blogger ArLyne Diamond, Ph.D. on the perils of communicating “the old way” in a new environment.

I am a displaced New Yorker living in California, often getting in trouble for being too direct and to the point. The cultural climate in which I was raised, the hustle-bustle business world of Manhattan, was managed by hard-driving, hard-working men (yes, they were all men in those days) who literally pulled themselves up by their boot straps. They said what they believed in the moment – and sometimes not too kindly.

I can remember a boss screaming at me, calling me a stupid idiot and other not-so-nice-words because of an accident I had. Yet, the next day he was all loving, supportive kindness. You knew where you stood with those bosses.

While still a kid in NYC, I worked for a company that had a manufacturing facility in the deep South. Every quarter or so, one of the senior vice presidents from our southern facility would come into New York and us “girls” would take turns being his secretary during his stay. We had an internal joke about him. We’d say:

In New York, when you want to stop payment on a check, you write a one line letter to the bank, saying, “Dear Banker, please stop payment on check #101, $100.00. Thank you.
In the South, when you want to stop payment on the same check, you write a two or three page letter to the banker, asking about his family, the weather, the latest sports events, and eventually you get to ask him to stop payment on the check.

Low-context vs. high-context cultures

When I work with executives from other countries, I am reminded of these stories, because there are so many cultural differences about how people interact with others. One general concept is the notion of low-context v. high-context countries.

In a low-context country, such as New York, most of the USA, Israel, some of the Middle Eastern countries, Germany and a few other European countries, the object is to do business as quickly and efficiently as possible.

In a high-context country, like most of Asia, the South in the USA, and the Romanic cultures, it is far more important to establish the relationship first, before moving on to finalizing the business. Relationship building happens in many ways, and varies from culture to culture. But in general, it is the honey that makes for doing business possible.

There’s also a second, not less important component to feeling comfortable in working together across cultural boundaries: How do people hear, and respond to, complaints or criticism? This, too, depends on cultural, age and gender elements.

For example, here in California, many managers tip-toe around employees, rather than addressing issues right-on. How does someone who has risen through the ranks in a work culture accustomed to more direct, in-your-face critique correct an employee who is used to a far less confrontational style?

Make yourself understood – the right way

How does, say, the new project manager from Germany suggest another way of doing something to a team member, while at the same time allowing that staff member to “save face”, as is of particular importance for so many people raised in Asian cultures?

Make no mistake about it: If you come from a culture and management style that prides itself on bullying others in public – chewing them out, telling them in no uncertain terms that they did it wrong, even earning bragging rights with your peers that way (in German: “Da habe ich den Meier aber mal richtig lang gemacht…”) – you really can get into trouble in most U.S. workplaces.

This kind of behavior will be perceived as unnecessary cruel and hostile. Instead of getting the intended reaction to the verbal whiplashing, at best some nasty passive-aggressive responses will be the result. At worst, the offending project manager is in for some serious face time with HR or his or her immediate superior.

The cutting remarks may have been intended as a “2” or “3” on a scale of 1-10. But by employees or co-workers not accustomed to this direct and confrontational style, it can be perceived as a “30” or “40” on that scale of 1-10.

In short: it’s self-defeating. As a leader/manager, you would be harming your own credibility and the needs – bottom line – of your company.

Efficiency is nice, but real leadership is about effectiveness

When trying to bridge cultures and communication expectations, we also need to look at the difference in cognitive styles. Granted, a busy executive wants to get the job done – and get it done right. He or she doesn’t really want to bother with all the niceties necessary to salve the ego of fragile employees. Yet – yet – if you really want to get it done, you need to find a style that will work.

Peter Drucker said that it is far more important to be “effective” than “efficient”. Effectiveness, in this context, would suggest that leaders and managers learn new styles of communication that work better in the countries/cultures in which they are working.

Effectiveness can be achieved by understanding the cognitive styles, cultural styles, ego-needs, and relationship needs of the people with whom you communicate. Especially in places as highly diverse as New York City or the Silicon Valley, a foreign accent, for example, should be the least of your worries (think “Aaanold”).

Much more important is taking the time to learn the culture – at least as well as the language! – and you will be building a much more effective organization or team.

***

About the author:

ArLyne Diamond, Ph.D. has extensive experience in a wide range of disciplines and has specialized in People and Processes in the Workplace, ArLyne describes her work as: Helping You Get the Most out of Yourself and Others.

Diamond is a Professional Development Consultant in Silicon Valley. Her firm Diamond Associates (www.diamondassociates.net) helps corporate leaders improve their interpersonal relationship skills, image, and management style, as well as their strategic decision making abilities.

In addition, Dr. Diamond teaches university courses in: Organizational Development, International Business, Quality for Organizational Excellence, Leadership and Organizational Behavior, Working with a Multi-Cultural Organization, Marketing, Mediation, Diversity, Conflict Resolution, Interviewing and Hiring Practices, Ethics and Expectations in the Workplace, Group Decision Making and Problem-Solving, and Career and Professional/Personal Development.

Her books Training Your Board of Directors: A Manual for the CEOs, Board Members, Administrators and Executives of Corporations, Associations, Non-Profit and Religious Organizations (With a special section on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which raises the standards for corporate governance, even if you are not legally bound by it)  and, The “Please” and “Thank You” of Fundraising for Non-Profits are available at  www.productivepublications.com .

Did you know? The Germany-USA Career Center provides a job posting and search services Comparison Chart. By comparing recruiting and job board services offered in our niche, the comparative overview can help your company make decisions about which route to take with your personnel search to find and recruit German-speaking employees.

Read more…

Time to share some feedback from users of our Career Adviser department! If you are not a “newbie” to working for companies in business between the U.S. and  Germany, Austria or Switzerland, you may already have heard about our career consulting services.

Many of its users are pointed to the Germany-USA Career Center by former job seekers, who have successfully used the Career Adviser in a past search. For Americans looking for work in Germany, or for German-speaking applicants seeking to make the next career step with a company based in the USA, our experts offer a personal consultation tailored to that person’s individual situation.

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Some of the (wrong) multiple choice answers to the short quiz below are, admittedly, offered tongue-in-cheek. All questions, though, address issues that come up frequently with candidates who are used to German-style job applications and the typical German “Lebenslauf” (CV/resume).

Unfortunately, for the respective applicants, we see by far not only job seekers who are fairly new to the American way of applying for a position making some – or all! – of the basic mistakes reflected in this test.

Over the past 12 months, we were initially puzzled to receive some CVs with such flaws also from some otherwise highly qualified applicants – executive assistants, engineers, even senior managers with German background – who have been working in the U.S. for a long time.

A quick scan of their respective work history helped explain what was going on here. Most of them had held their last position, usually with a subsidiary of a German company in the U.S., for a long time, and had been hired for that position – way back when – straight from Germany.

With the recession barely behind us, and employment opportunities as limited as they still are, it should be a no-brainer to update your CV, to be prepared for a very different job market. If you are still in Germany and just received your U.S. “Green Card”, or if you are in the U.S., and already have a long and successful track record of working with (German-owned) companies in America – the short test below is supposed to help. Enjoy!

CV Test (for Germans applying for work in the U.S.)

For individual and more complex questions regarding your resume, or for help with your current job search, ask the friendly specialists of the Germany-USA Career Center Career Adviser Service – wir sprechen Deutsch!

For American companies, Germany remains the most attractive business location in Europe. The majority (59 percent) of U.S. companies in Germany responding to a recent study expect the economic effects of the crisis to be mitigated within the next twelve months, according to the joint survey conducted by The Boston Consulting Group( BCG) and the American Chamber of Commerce in Germany (AmCham).

The survey was conducted at the beginning of 2010 among 102 US companies with a total of approximately €  150 billion in revenue and more than 350,000 direct  jobs in Germany. “Besides the high process and product quality, US companies value the high quality of employees in Germany,” said Christian Veith, Head of BCG Germany. “During the
crisis, the German domestic consumption, which is less vulnerable than other international counterparts, also had a positive effect on the propensity to invest.”

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On March 22nd-23rd, 2010 almost 400 energy industry executives, researchers and policy makers from both countries met in Berlin for the 2nd German American Energy Conference. A wrap-up.

(from left): Viktor Elbling (International Energy Policy Adviser, German Fed. Foreign Office), Dr. Axel Nitschke (Dep. General Manager DIHK), Josef Eichhammer (CEO Solar Millennium), Klaudia Martini (panel host), Michael Eckhart (Pres. ACORE), Jochen Homann (German Fed. Ministry f. Economics and Technology), Richard L. Morningstar (U.S. Special Envoy)

German solar / photovoltaics companies are well positioned to tackle the lucrative U.S. market for renewable energies and energy efficiency. That was the message American visitors took home from their two-day meetings in Berlin. The event was organized by the German Energy Agency (dena) and the German American Chambers of Commerce (AHK USA).

For German solar firm who have yet to enter the U.S. market, the conference provided ample opportunity to learn about current trends and support frameworks within the U.S. energy market, and how German companies and their American partners can benefit from them. The German energy industry looks across the Atlantic,” said Andreas Jung, the Managing Director of the German Energy Agency. “Energy efficiency and renewable energy are key industries for the 21st century. German companies have much to offer in these fields and therefore have good chances in the U.S. market. ”

Mr. Jung’s optimistic outlook was backed up by the results of a recent survey of roughly 300 German and American companies in the renewable energy and energy efficiency fields in the U.S, conducted by the German American Chambers of Commerce in cooperation with Roland Berger Strategy Consultants. Almost 40% of the responding U.S. companies indicated interest in working with German partners.

The 2nd German American Energy Conference was funded by the Federal Ministry for Economics and Technology (BMWi), and supported by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety (BMU), the Federation of German Industries (BDI), and Germany Trade and Invest.

U.S. speakers included Philip D. Murphy, United States Ambassador to Germany, Dr. Peter Ammon, State Secretary of the Federal Foreign Office, Richard L. Morningstar, Special Envoy for Eurasian Affairs for U.S. President Barack Obama at the U.S. Department of State, and Scott Gregory Minos, Senior Policy & Communications Specialist at the U.S. Department of Energy.

Participants who had traveled all the way from the U.S. were able to return home with a clean conscience. This being a German-engineered conference, the organizers had thought it through all the way: the environmental impact of the 2nd German American Engery Conference was offset, or at least compensated for, through a cooperation with atmosfair.

Resources:
German Energy Agency – Deutsche Energie-Agentur (DENA)
U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) – Solar
Germany-USA Career Center Solar-Jobs.com
Der Markt für deutsche Solar-Firmen in Florida (Florida-Stellenmarkt – in German)

PA Department of Community & Economic Development

Gut geplant ist halb gewonnen. Mit Hilfe des Germany-USA Career Center können Sie das Risiko beim Einstieg in den rapide expandierenden US-Markt für Solarenergie und Solar-Photovoltaik-Technologie minimieren.

Als internationale Personalberatung sind wir selbstverständlich auch vor Ort in den USA für Unternehmen der deutschen Solar- und Photovoltaik-Industrie tätig. Unter unseren Kunden befinden sich Tochterunternehmen deutscher Firmen aller Größenordnungen.

Seit mehr als zehn Jahren sind wir der Hauptansprechpartner für hochqualifizierte, zwei- oder mehrsprachige Fach- und Führungskräfte mit deutsch-amerikanischem Hintergrund. Mit Hilfe unserer umfangreichen Bewerberdatenbank, der größten und aktuellsten für die deutsch-amerikanische Wirtschaft, finden wir “voll kompatible” Kandidaten für Ihr Unternehmen, schnell und zielgenau.

Solar-Jobs.com, als Teil des Germany-USA Career Center, erleichtert Ihnen den US-Markteinstieg. Als erfahrener und renommierter Partner der deutschen Industrie in allen Fragen des Online-Personalmarketing und E-Recruiting sowie für die “traditionelle” Personalakquise helfen wir deutschen Firmen in den USA, Kosten zu sparen und Fallstricke zu vermeiden.

Wussten Sie schon? Das Germany-USA Career Center ist die einzige Personalberatung, die sich voll auf Personalbeschaffung, Personalberatung und Eignungsdiagnostik zwischen Deutschland und den USA spezialisiert hat. Wählen Sie also den kürzesten, effizientesten und sichersten Weg, geeignete Mitarbeiter in den USA zu finden – nutzen Sie unsere Erfahrung!

Nehmen Sie mit uns Kontakt auf, unsere Mitarbeiter sprechen Deutsch und freuen sich auf Ihre Fragen! Wir setzen uns dann umgehend mit Ihnen in Verbindung!