How important is intercultural behavior and what should foreigners know about German culture when doing business in Germany?

Essay from the year 2022 in the subject Business economics - Economic Policy, grade: 1,7, University of Applied Sciences Stuttgart, language: English, abstract: This essay aims to explain the importance of intercultural competencies and to describe the specific characteristics of German culture and values, which need to be considered by foreigners when doing business in Germany. Working in and managing international teams became an integral part of today's corporate world. Over the last few decades, the number of cross-border business activities increased, and global business structures became more difficult to manage. Nowadays, companies not only have to deal with foreign legal standards, markets, and languages, but they must also take intercultural matters into account. Especially in cross-border collaboration, in which colleagues and partners from diverse backgrounds and nationalities work together, the variety of cultures and values can become a complex matter. Therefore, when it comes to doing business abroad, factors like lack of cultural awareness, misunderstanding of non-verbal signals, and not showing respect appropriately, can affect the outcomes of business relations tremendously.