The concept of global intercultural communication
Discuss about the Global Intercultural Communication Reader.
A building defines business that a company does its operations in, that a workplace is an employee’s desk and that working hours range between 8 am to 5 pm is a notion we have heard for so long. All these have changed with industrialization which brought about the necessary technology that led to the rise of globalization thus making the whole world a global village. This global concept incorporates individuals that come from different cultures, continents and have different ideas. This person, however, can relate well to the various mechanisms that are present to ensure success in their needs and wants.
According to Archetti ( 2015), Global communication is the art of relating, sharing and connecting different individuals who are from different parts of the world and cultures. The information that is passed through global communication is relayed through voice messages, i.e., speaking, reading and writing. Global communication has been brought about by globalization which has been enhanced by the use of the internet. Most companies currently are moving from a locally based system and adopting a more global perspective through the use of Global communication forms which have been made even more popular with the use of the internet and the presence of applications such as Skype, Facebook, and Twitter which enable real-time communication.
Global communication as a concept, however, is not something new. According to Binder, (2016) the need to create mechanisms and technologies that enable international communication came up during the cold war period where communication and international relations were put to the test. It was due to that that the two forms of global communication came into existence. These forms have over the years been taken up mainly by businesses which want to have a more significant global market presence. The two types are the internal and external communication. The internal type of global communication entails all forms of communications that an enterprise does with all the individuals in its domestic setting. An example is where a CEO relays a message to all its employees. On the other hand, the external form of global communication involves what the company communicates with its external environment worldwide. An example here is an advertisement for the company’s product that is made and placed on YouTube (Bbc.com, 2018).
The fact that global communication is gaining popularity at a very high rate means that numerous advantages are associated with it. From a business point of view, the main advantage of global communication is that it provides a broader market for businesses to sell their products. This is because with global communication a local business is able to both advertise and sell its product to people who are located in other countries (Cordeiro, 2013). An example here is through the website creations whereby with an online presence customers from Africa can view products that are being sold by a manufacturing company in Asia. The very same products can be purchased by someone who is in Europe and even South America. In addition to that, the ability to communicate overseas saves money for the businesses in the long run as businesses can identify raw materials which are both cheaper and of a greater quality that is being produced by other specialized manufacturers as opposed to the ones that are available which might not suit the business. Global communication has not only enabled the firms to be able to locate where they may get better facilities but also negotiate for better deals than the ones that local providers offer (Crystal 2013).The increase in the use of digital and electronic communication for example email, social media, and instant messaging has directly impacted the global communication and the society at large.The fact that the society has become more global it has reduced the distance as a communication barrier.Thus, a global society has made the world a much smaller place n further an increase in business opportunities and also cultural education.
Globalization and its impact on communication
Global communication is not only communication among employees in any organization.Cheaper rates on labor, raw materials, or finished goods can be searched in other countries.One can be in a position to locate similar products or services at a much more competitive price than in their region of operation.This type of saving can make a difference to the whole company eventually.Further one can be able to purchase and resell previously unavailable products.An example is when one a product that’s not available in their county they can quickly ship it to their resident country and even sell at a premium price.Due to the opening of barriers and fewer language impediments and the internet, this is even easier to achieve.
The increase of global communication has led to improved tools for educating children about different cultures.Children get to learn about the diverse cultures directly from kids who are living in different countries through social media such as facebook, twitter, and Instagram. When they become workers from different cultures through effective global communication, they work together in peace (Khaldarova and Pantti, 2016).
However, there are also some challenges that are brought about by the presence of global communication. One of the drawbacks is the fact that the presence of global communication can lead to a collapse of the local manufacturing industries. This is mainly because with global communication companies will always be looking for global suppliers of their raw materials yet in some instance, some local suppliers can give the very same products if not even better who will end up to be overlooked (Kunelius, Eide, Tegelberg & Yagodin, 2017). Another major point of concern in the global communication system is that people are of different cultures. This means that when a particular company wants to give a message that is to be transmitted globally, their communications department ought to be cautious of the different meanings and the interpretations that people from other countries might have on it (Wilkins 2013).
Other top challenges to global communication in the business world include the pressures of the 24/7 new cycle.Companies need to be in a strong position to be able to manage the global capabilities of 24/7.Developing more content for marketing capabilities to explain the company’s narrative. The competition for global talent is also another challenge in global communication. Last but not least is embracing and measuring results.Having people on the team who can embrace date measurements and analytics is very important.These demonstrate the return on investments because that’s the bottom line for any company end game.
Types of global communication
A great example of a company that identified embraced and now is reaping the great reward of global communication the Coke A Cola company. The CEO of the company once in an interview on BBC News said that, whether your business is small or big, local or international, Retrieved from https://www.maximumhit.com/product_marketing.html currently for one to succeed being able to connect with others is quite vital. The reward is seen as the coke a cola company itself strives to ensure that they have the global presence even though it is already one of the leading companies that have a presence in virtually all the corners of the world (Boyd-Barrett 2013).
The CEO of the company noted that every time the company is looking for future leaders that poses a more significant worldview and can move seamlessly top other borders of different companies and fit well. By this, he meant that the workers at the company should be able to work in Africa as well as the work in America. It is for that reason that the company has enjoyed massive success in all the continents (Hermida, 2018). The evidence of this has been seen in the revenues that they have been collecting over the past few years and the fact that they have been associated with global events such as the FIFA world cup and even Santa Claus during the Christmas period (Helsen 2014). The clear evidence of this has been the different advertisements that the company uses to market its product. These advertisements are considered as global communication tools as they not only market the refreshment drinks but also interact with the customers on a personalized and cultural level.
List of References
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Jin, D.Y., 2015. De-convergence of global media industries. Routledge.
Kunelius, R., Eide, E., Tegelberg, M. and Yagodin, D. (2017). Media and Global Climate Knowledge.
Khaldarova, I. and Pantti, M. (2016). Fake News. Journalism Practice, 10(7), pp.891-901.
Hermida, A. (2018). BBC World Service | World Agenda – Communications Revolution. [online] Bbc.co.uk. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/specials/1238_wag_comms/index.shtml [Accessed 11 May 2018].
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Wilkins, K.G., 2013. Mobilizing global communication: for what and for whom?. In Global communication (pp. 110-128). Routledge.