Cultural Dimensions of Business in Mexico--Important or Not?

Abstract

With the passing of the North American Free Trade Agreement, the United States formally recognized Mexico as a country of great economic importance. In doing so, the United States opened the door to increased interdependence with Mexico; it already is our second largest trading partner. The Mexican economy has made significant progress in the past decade and has moved to deregulate its economy in an effort to increase efficiency and ease of trade (Newman 3). Though present political developments have sent the economy into temporary decline, Mexico continues to be important to the United States's economy. A fifty percent devaluation in currency and a national debt crisis have made conducting business in Mexico more difficult and risky, thus the importance of communication and cooperation has increased. If U.S. business is to continue to grow and progress in this increasingly difficult economy, U.S. businesspeople will need to recognize that cultural understanding often times has as much importance in international negotiations as do technical skill and company products. The cultural dimensions of business between the United States and Mexico have begun to play a larger role in negotiations, though many U.S. businesspeople have failed to recognize it. The cultural dimensions of business between Mexico and the United States have been largely ignored, and what academic work has been done on the subject has been largely antidotal. If both the U.S. and Mexican businesspeople are aware of the cultural differences in the other and how these differences are perceived, both will improve their intercultural communication skills and more successfully integrate their company strategies, personnel management, and marketing efforts into the foreign environment, thereby reaping economic dividends. Therefore, in this paper, the cultural dimensions of business between Mexico and the United States will be explored and defined via a literature review; in addition, a survey comparing the importance placed by U.S. and Mexican businesspeople on various cultural factors and culture in general will be explained.