Similarities and Differences in Business Culture between China & Morocco (Part 1/6): According to the Hofstede 6-D Model
According to the Hofstede 6-D Model, the deep drivers of Moroccan and Chinese cultures in terms of Power Distance, Individualism, Masculinity, Uncertainty Avoidance, Long Term Orientation, and Indulgence are as follow:
(Summary at the end of the article.)
Power distance
Hierarchy in an organization is seen as reflecting inherent inequalities, centralization is popular, subordinates expect to be told what to do and the ideal boss is a benevolent autocrat.
China is definitely a hierarchical society. This means that people accept a hierarchical order in which everybody has a place and in which there is no need for further justification. Although it’s also the case in Morocco, it’s less obvious.
Individualism
China is a collectivist society more than in Morocco. It manifests itself in the close long-term commitment to the group a person belongs to based on loyalty and trust, which overrides other societal rules and regulations.
The difference between China and Morocco is in the origin of the social intragroup relationships. As I’ve mentioned before in my last article “Guanxi, or the rule of man that overrules the rule of law in China”, Chinese believe that they are dependent on 4 social groups: relatives, schoolmates, friends and the indirect relationship from the three.
In contrast, Moroccan are strongly dependent on relatives and to a lesser extent on friends, in certain settings such as family and tribe, Moroccans tend to be more collectivist. But in a business environment, individualism prevails.
Another interesting aspect is how offense is perceived, in collectivist societies offence leads to shame and loss of face. China and Morocco are pretty similar, in China offense leads to losing face (丢脸, diulian) while in Morocco any kind of offense is considered as shameful (حشومة, h’shouma).
Masculinity
A masculine society (high score) is driven by competition, achievement and success. It starts in school and continues to prevail in other organizations.
On the other hand, a feminine society (low score) is a society in which people care most about quality of life.
Morocco gets an intermediate score of 53 on this dimension, but China scores a bit higher (63). It is true that the Chinese society is a competitive one, however, its people still care about having a good life, exercising and staying in touch with their family as much as possible.
Uncertainty avoidance
Countries exhibiting high uncertainty avoidance maintain rigid codes of belief and behavior and are intolerant of unorthodox behavior and ideas. In these cultures there is an emotional need for rules (even if the rules never seem to work), innovation may be resisted and security is an important element in individual motivation.
Morocco has a very high preference for avoiding uncertainty, its scores 2 times higher than China. I personally think that it is mainly due to the role religion plays in Morocco.
Long Term Orientation
With the very low score of 14, Moroccan culture is clearly normative. People in such societies have a relatively small propensity to save for the future, and a focus on achieving quick results.
Although Moroccan prefer working with past acquaintances, they do not emphasize at the beginning on establishing a long term business relationship.
However, in Chinese culture long-term orientation is a crucial part in carrying on a successful business deal, and only time can help establish trust in business relationships.
Also, considering that Chinese have the highest saving rate compared to the rest of the world (50% of their GDP) it shows how its people are focused on long term results; as the Japanese say “一歩一歩” ( Ippoippo: step by step) they move toward their goals.
Indulgence
Morocco has a culture of restraint, same as in China. Restrained societies have the perception that their actions are restrained by social norms and feel that indulging themselves is somewhat wrong. The only difference that I can highlight, is the fact that in Morocco restrain has its roots in religion rather than simply social norms and tradition, as in China.
To sum up:
Chinese and Moroccan business culture are:
Similar regarding:
Power Distance: both hierarchical societies.
Masculinity: success driven.
Indulgence: social norms prevail.
Diverge regarding:
Individualism: Chinese are loyal to the four social groups to which they belong, while in Morocco family and tribe prevail.
Uncertainty Avoidance: more rigid codes of belief and behavior in Morocco compared to China.
Long Term Orientation: Long term relationships prevail over the achievement of quick results in making a business decision for the Chinese.
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