The Business Culture of Poland

Business culture is an important characteristic to understand when one is considering a business deal across national boundaries. In May of 2004, Poland entered into the European Union, making it an ideal candidate for business ventures interested in entering a new market within the EU. Its contemporary historical experiences and cultural behavior patterns make it an ideal place for labor-intensive industries. These main criteria will be used to evaluate the business culture of Poland, allowing for smoother relations with citizens of the state.

The contemporary history of Poland has done a lot to shape the behavior patterns present in its citizens. What this means as that the impact of World War II and the events of the Cold War era have left a lasting impression on the Polish people. The prominent historical experiences of Poland during this period will be briefly discussed in this paper.

Poland was the first site of Nazi invasion in 1939, marking the beginning of World War II, they were also the first to fall. During this time, millions of Poles were incarcerated in concentration camps, many died there or while fighting to defend Polish soil. During this time, Polish resistance movements were active and flourishing both within the state and outside of it, even though they had little success. This pride and passion for their state marks a key trait of Polish character, and it will be further elaborated upon in the coming pages. Following the war, Poland was yielded to the Soviet Union in the Tehran (1943) and Yalta (1945) Conferences. Following a rigged election in 1947, Poland finds itself to be a formal Soviet satellite state. During Soviet rule, it is apparent that Polish nationals are disenchanted with their situation. Starting in 1956 with organized worker strikes and protests, one can observe the pride and discipline of the Polish. It was not only laborers that were discontented, the academics and other sectors often held protests in defiance. The most obvious manifestation of this personality trait is best found in the rise of the Solidarity labor movement. Solidarity amassed a national following, they organized protests and a political ideology that eventually led to the fall of the Soviet Union. On Jul 29, 1989 Poland once again became an independent state, the Republic of Poland.

Economically, Poland was forced to undergo a form of "shock therapy" to quickly modernize its economic system following its independence. One important aspect was the idea of employee ownership. A system of self-management was already in place; worker councils and management teams had already been developed under the Soviet system and utilized in the formation of the Solidarity movement (Greider 1997). Even though the shock therapy led to a rocky start, Poland is one of the more advanced former East Bloc states, due to this success it was able to join the European Union on May 01, 2004.

Geert Hofstede is well-known for gauging certain cultural dimensions within states. The first section of cultural patters in this paper will surround Hofstede's research; please refer to Figures 1 and 2 (Hofstede 2003) for visual reference. Beginning with the Power Distance Index (PDI), Poland has about a 50 of 100 score. In comparison to the world average, this is very similar. One can observe that the Polish people, while not tremendously close knit, are neither very hierarchical. On example of this is in the ability of the citizens to band together against their oppressors during WWII and in the Cold War. Another instance is in workplace relations; as a part of the shock therapy of the early 1990s, many Polish citizens were given vouchers for stock ownership, under a type of trust; within their places of employment or in local companies to protect their jobs. This stock option allowed for better workplace relations between managers and employees. Although no information was found about the family in Poland, from my own experiences within my family it may not be so tight that extended family is living together, generally family members share close ties and associate often.

Next comes Individualism (IDV) rating, Poland ranks around 55%, which is around 15% higher than the world average. From these numbers it can be assumed that the Polish nature is to praise individuality, while also understanding and accepting fairly close interpersonal relationships, most likely in the familial sphere. One might presume that individuality is praised in areas of academics and invention; the ability to streamline the production process or to gain international recognition are two cases that come to mind. Most importantly, the goal would be to achieve a feat that would promote Polish national pride.

Masculinity (MAS) is the third measure of the Hofstede system. Here Poland is given a score of 60, while the world average is around 45. The presumption here is that because Poland is still a fairly labor-intensive country, that the traditional masculine work role is still vaguely prominent. However, because it is not higher, it can be inferred that the Polish are not adverse towards the role of women outside of the household. While women maybe still a bit unfavorable when compared to men in the workforce, they are being integrated into the workforce with only a little resistance.

The fourth measure of the Hofstede study is the Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI). Poland ranks very high at 75, whereas the world average is around 62. It is obvious from their very high score that Poland is a highly rule of law oriented society. It might be concluded that this is due to the situation experienced during the trauma of WWII and then the very high worker organization scheme instituted by the Soviets during the Cold War era.

Finally, the last measure of the Hofstede analysis is Long-Term Orientation (LTO). Here Poland is below the world average of around 43, with a score of about 32. This low score indicates that traditional values do not stand in the way of change. The Polish people are able to embrace new ideas and principles with little impediment to change; consider, for instance, their ability to rapidly transform from a communist centered economic system to a free market orientation. It was quite a change, in a very short amount of time.

Polish business practices are to be the next set of topics in this paper. Proper address of colleagues, time practices, and negotiation customs will all be included in this section. Poland is a proud country and they are very warm when they realize that foreigners are honoring their traditions.

When first introducing oneself, it is customary to shake hands and, often, Polish men will kiss a woman's hand in lieu of a handshake. Here business cards are warranted also, plenty should be brought to a meeting to hand out to each attendee. Topics of conversation are important to note because the Polish like to have an open rapport with their business associates. Some accepted topics of conversation are the traditional introductory topics, including personal experiences, one's trip to Poland, and the weather. Beyond that, topics of discussion that should be completely avoided are politics and money, as they tend to interfere with open personal relationships. One last note, eye contact should always be maintained when maintaining a direct conversation.

The Polish are generally a punctual populace, and if one cannot be on time they expect tp be notified promptly of the circumstances that have detained their colleague. There are a few interesting facts in the area of business-time orientation that one should take note of when doing business in the country. When one is invited into a Polish host's home for dinner it is generally expected that one is around 15 minutes late, but anything more than 30 minutes is considered impolite. Also, the Polish do not like to be contacted after working hours, which are usually from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm Monday through Friday, and Sunday is reserved for meeting with family and friends.

Business etiquette dictates that proper titles (Pan meaning Mr., Panni for Mrs. or Panna for Miss) may be used when first meeting, but it is not all that uncommon for first names to be used instead (Poland business). If proper titles are used, then after a few meetings first names generally become more widely used. One good rule of thumb is to follow the host's example. Topics of discussion, as listed above, should be used to establish a relationship with the Polish counterpart. Often a cup of coffee and a pastry between colleagues is a great way to do this, but among the more enterprising youth it is becoming more common to meet in a pub for a beer.

Poland is a beautiful country with a rich culture. Before making the trip there if one takes the time to learn the general customs and some key words, one's experience will be enjoyable and satisfying. Often the reward includes a newfound friend(s) and a successfully brokered business deal.

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Greider, William. (1997). One world, ready or not: the manic logic of global capitalism. Touchstone: New York.

Hofstede, Geert. (2003). Poland Cultural Dimensions Explained. Accessed on Apr 11, 2005. http://www.geert-hofstede.com/hofstede_poland.shtml.