Agreements – Page 10 – understand-culture

Verkaufsscheu

Verkaufsscheu. Sales shy.

Companies with a monopoly are the only ones who don’t need sales and marketing. All others need to fight for new customers on a daily basis. In Germany, too. But Germans don’t feel comfortable knocking on doors, even less so following up on an initial contact if the first response was skeptical.

Follow-up means making that second or third call, writing that second or third email, reaching out again. What’s the problem? Germans don’t like pushing their product or service, especially if they sense that the other party may not be interested. Often Germans are too polite, too slow, not aggressive enough.

Perhaps this is related to Germans identifying themselves strongly with their work. They want to stand fully and totally behind what they do. Sales also involves uncertainty, unpredictability, and situations for which one cannot fully prepare. The interactions can be short, spontaneous, shallow. Germans prefer predictability and depth.

Peace of Augsburg

The Peace of Augsburg (1555): This treaty ended religious conflict within the Holy Roman Empire by allowing rulers to choose their territory’s religion. The agreement was reached only after protracted negotiations and careful consideration of the political and religious context. The resulting yes was highly binding and respected, reflecting the German preference for thorough context before agreement.

Das Boot

Das Boot (1981). Plot: This classic war film follows the crew of a German U-boat during World War II as they face life-and-death decisions in extreme conditions. The submarine’s captain and crew meticulously analyze every situation, weighing risks and gathering all available information before making critical decisions. Their survival depends on only committing to actions they are certain they can carry out.

“They pay their bills“

The German newspaper, Die Welt, complimented the Chinese highly when it wrote that they pay for their Mercedes Benz automobiles on-time. Zahlungsmoral literally means payment morals.

Zuverlässigkeit is not only a human, but also a product characteristic. Germans expect dependability and durability, especially in technical areas. German power producers constantly stress the Zuverlässigkeit of their nuclear power plants.

Infrastructure in Germany is expected to have 100% Zuverlässigkeit. Brown- or blackouts of the electricity grids occur very rarely. The telephone network almost never fails. Lack of reliability in Germany quickly leads to protests by customers and citizens.

Tausend gute Taten machen keine schlechte gut. A thousand good deeds don‘t make up for one bad one. Wenn ich mich auf Dich verlasse, bin ich verlassen. To be dependent on you means to have been abandoned.

Unzuverlässigkeit is the opposite of Zuverlässigkeit. In the German context, to be labeled unreliable or undependable is a serious criticism, a flaw not easily removed. Unreliable people are not trusted, their reputation is damaged. It is the same for unreliable products.

If commitments are not met it is imperative to prove that external factors were the cause. Unzuverlässigkeit – unreliability – costs time and money and increases risk, which Germans do their best to keep at a minimum.

A German reporting from a state in the former Soviet Union: “The same problems keep repeating themselves. Aspects of important agreements are changed suddenly, which is not a problem as long as everyone is informed quickly. In team meetings we agree to a schedule, which shortly thereafter is not held to due to delays in the delivery of material, which had been ordered two weeks late. When we then contact other sources we find out that they are out of stock. Our work processes get written down, but within a month or two no one knows where they are or what they mean.”

Germans have great difficulty dealing with lack of reliability. Even with their own high standards do they have their problems. Compared to other countries, public transportation in Germany is very reliable. But not dependable enough for the Germans. The same goes for weather forecasts, an imprecise science. Not reliable.

Gundermann

Gundermann (2018). Plot: The biopic of East German singer-songwriter Gerhard Gundermann explores his double life as both a celebrated musician and a Stasi informant. The film delves into Gundermann’s internal struggle with the commitments he makes, showing how he seeks to understand the full context and consequences before giving his word.

Knowledge and Integrity

Integrity is valued very highly in Germany. And the German are considered to be of high integrity, especially when it comes to their work.

German integrity was damaged by recent scandals in academia and medicine. The German Minister of Defense, Carl-Theodor Guttenberg, resigned from office after well-grounded claims cited him of plagiarism in his doctoral thesis of years ago.

Since then, another high-ranking German politician has resigned from office for the same reason. And a second member of Angela Merkel’s cabinet has resigned under investigation for plagiarism in her Ph.D. thesis. The German academic community is enraged. The integrity of their work has been called into question. The German public is no less disgusted.

A network of medical physicians is also under investigation for corruption. Surgeons have been paying bribes to general practitioners – family doctors – for referring their patients to them for operations, many of which were unnecessary.

Shocking for the German public. At a minimum, Germans expect the highest standards of integrity from the academic and medical professions.

Conscientious, diligent: Organizations with flat hierarchies rely on conscientious and diligent employees. These are people with very high standards, who under no circumstances tolerate suboptimal work, shortcuts or easy approaches, even those which could benefit them personally and professionally. The Germans take pride in being known for their diligence, scruples, honesty.

Figures of speech: Etwas mit seinem Gewissen vereinbaren. To be in agreement, in line with one’s own conscience. Mit bestem Wissen und Gewissen. With best knowledge and conscience. Gewissensbisse. Literally conscience bite.

Skepticism. German have a reputation for being skeptical. But the term skepsis is positive in Germany. It means to first ask critical questions before agreeing to something. And until those questions are answered, Germans remain doubtful. Their skepsis is often misunderstood as rejection. It is simply distance, reticence, reluctance, caution.

Figures of speech: Bedenken in den Wind schlagen. To toss doubt or misgivings to the wind. Den Tag nicht vor dem Abend loben. Don’t praise the day before the night has arrived. Nicht auf die leichte Schulter nehmen. Literally don‘t accept things on a light shoulder, meaning don’t underestimate the situation.

Ostpolitik and Inter-German Agreements (1970s)

During the era of Ostpolitik, several treaties and agreements were signed between West Germany and East Germany, as well as with other Eastern Bloc countries. These agreements, such as the Basic Treaty (1972), focused on normalization and were executed with the expectation that both parties would fulfill their commitments without constant follow-up, in line with the German value of reliability in agreements.

“Get skeptical!“

Skepsis is a commonly used word in German. The media, for example, uses it often: “German skepticism about the future of the Euro is increasing.” German skepsis here. German skepsis there. The broad population is always skeptical about things new.

To be skeptical from the outset is a legitimate approach in the German culture. To be skeptical is to be critical-minded. It means to take an objective, distanced view of things. It is neutral. One doesn’t have to take sides.

Germans are critical especially when it comes to their health: gene manipulated food products, electronic smog, chemical fertilizers, technical products which may or may not function properly.

It can appear as if Germans were fearful of all things new. Not true. They are simply aware, perhaps over-aware, of what they don’t know or of which questions remain unanswered. Germans will often say “Let’s not badmouth everything. Let’s just remain skeptical.” So how do Germans view the future? With a healthy portion of skepsis.

“Communicate immediately!“

Germans expect to be informed immediately about any changes which impact the agreements they have entered into. From their perspective all agreements, large and small, involve interconnected activities among colleagues, including at times business partners and customers. A change in one area has immediate effect on the others, thus helping or hindering those colleagues in their work.

Although the majority of German work is based on time, they do not like to work on anything which will not be used. They expect to be informed as soon as possible about any changes to an agreement which affect their work. There is also the potential that they will suspect people of being political with important information. The sooner changes to an agreement are communicated to all parties, the better.

Figures of speech: Etwas ist zwecklos. Something is purpose-less. Ohne Sinn und Zweck. Without meaning and purpose. Für den Papierkorb arbeiten. Working for the trashcan.

Germans also strive to understand their work in the broader context, what impact their results have on those of other colleagues. They often say Alles hängt mit allem zusammen or everything is connected to everything else. If a colleague is on vacation, their tasks are divided up among a few other team members. Potential problems are discussed and prepared for beforehand. Responding to inquiries with the colleague is on vacation is a sign of incompetence and unprofessionalism.

Information Overload

Much more than Germans, Americans suffer from a condition they call information overload. If Americans receive all of the information about a project right from the beginning, they’ll try to reduce the information by ignoring anything that doesn’t seem immediately important. Ultimately they will typically only remember the pieces that seem most pertinent to them.

When information is important, Americans tend to give it away in small pieces, stressing each item individually. This way, no matter how much the other person suffers from information overload he/she is certain to remember the material.

Information overload: an excess of incoming information, as might confront a pedestrian on a crowded city street, that forces one to be selective in the information received and retained; an overwhelming feeling upon the receipt or collection of an indigestible or incomprehensible amount of information, the feeling of being faced with an amount of data that one has no hope of completely processing.

This phrase was popularized by Alvin Toffler in 1970.