How Italian can approach business development in USA starting from understanding the diversity of the culture, characteristics and differences. Expectation and potential Mistakes Italian should consider.

1. The Challenges of Cross Cultural Business
between Italy and America
BY FRANCA FOLIGATTI

2. Understanding the Cultural ID
• In cross cultural business it’s key to have
an understanding of the two country’s
identities.
• The identity of the country defines its
assets and its leadership.
• Differences have value, but create
challenges.

3. Italian and American Cultures
• America and Italy are a case of “opposites
attracting” each other.
• America thinks globally. Italy tends to be more
focused on thinking locally.
• America has been about changing through
innovation, Italy is about conserving through
innovation.
• Like Fred and Ginger, they have so much passion
for each other… and much to learn from each
other.

4. The American Culture
• Because it is a nation that was built by immigrants, America is more open than most
countries to other cultures and products.
• The country has a can-do attitude, based on a culture (almost a religion) of strategic
thinking and planning.
• It has been more a culture of innovation, efficiency, standardization and consumption
rather than tradition. No Italian would have invented McDonald’s.

5. Leadership of America
• “Yes, I can” attitude. Their economic, social and
political system is based on individual initiative and
self-realization.
• “Yes, we can” - communities, whether corporate or
social, come out of this impulse, leading to
strategic thinking and planning.
• Marketing is the most dominant force in human
culture according to Geoffrey Miller. It’s not an
accident that North America invented the
methodology of marketing, starting in the 1920’s.

6. Marketing a Key Component of American Culture
• Why are Americans so marketing oriented?
• Through marketing, potential clients discovered
products and services that appeal to their desires
and resolve their problems.
• The delivery will arrive at the right time in the right
place with the right price.
• With the right message the product will be
anticipated and understood.
• The client’s first order is an investment. An effective
marketing strategy will generate reorders and build
business.

7. Branding is a fundamental part of Marketing
• Branding is an old english word that meant burning
stick = branding iron.
• It was used to mark animals, criminals and slaves with
a unique mark. Eventually, it was used to mark wine
and other commodities.
• Branding in modern times is about presentation. It
makes what you offer easily identifiable, recognizable,
associated with a group and allows a sense of
ownership.
• Branding in today’s market prepares the ground for
good communication, performance and sales.

8. The Role of the Media in America
The Media plays a very important role in marketing; it conveys the necessary information
about what the next product is and the experience that you want to have.

9. Social Media and Traditional Media

10. How much do Americans know about Italy?
• Culture and History: Tuscany, Venice, Vito Corleone, Mussolini,
Berlusconi, Socialist and Welfare, Political Instability.
• Cinema: Fellini- La Dolce Vita. Movie stars of the 50s, like Sophia
Lauren and Gina Lollobrigida.
• Great monuments and artists: The Colosseum, Vatican,
Michelangelo, Da Vinci.
• Italian food: Pasta, Espresso, Super Tuscans Wine, Parmiggiano,
Bruschetta.
• Fashion: Armani, Versace, Zegna and others.
• Sport Cars: Ferrari, Maserati.

11. How America looks at Italy
• America looks to Italy for quality and lifestyle.
• Americans long to know how to obtain the effortless
style that Italians seem to receive as a birthright.

12. Why America loves Italy
Italian lifestyle and leadership is based on:
• Persistence and richness of local traditions.
• The feeling that history is all around you.
• Artisanal mentality, pride and passion for making
top-quality products.
• Hand Made “Fatto a mano”.
• Italians know how to enjoy life with “L’arte di
vivere”.

13. "Made in Italy" is a Brand
• ‘Made in Italy’ – is a well established brand in North
America.
• In the investment goods sector, it means precision,
functional and great quality of design.
• In the consumer goods sector it means artisan
quality and design.
• Today’s challenge: “Made in Italy” has a blurred
image. All that is ‘made in Italy’ is no longer entirely
manufactured in Italy. But it still has a strong brand
perception.

14. Media Professionals Perspectives about
Italian Lifestyle & Leadership
Geoffrey P. Sauders, President GSPR Public Relations, said:
“Care, respect, and appreciation for natural ingredients, whether
cashmere, cotton, or cheese, is what sets the sense of Italian
style apart. Living in an environment with over 2,000 years of
history, art and culture, the underlying pride in being a part of
this legacy and culture, and the passion to preserve it, is
paramount to the Italians and that reflects in their personal style.
But Italy is not just a living museum, it is a center of vibrant
creativity.”

15. What is “Made In Italy” in the minds of American
Luxury Connoisseurs
Laurie Kahle and William Kissel, contributing editors of The Robb
Report:
“Italian style is unique and strongly identifiable, from cuisine to fashion to
art. Italian codes are always recognizable and are interwoven throughout
the culture”.
Gary Walther, a veteran luxury lifestyle magazine editor:
"Think about the phrase 'made in.' Made in America is almost an
anachronism. Made in China means 'low-cost.' Made in India often implies
'outsourced.' Made in England doesn't have the cachet it once did. But
'made in Italy' still carries the connotation of craft, care, and quality. That's
why Italian luxury products command a premium."

16. The Hallmarks of Italian Style
• Quality—both in materials and execution, whether it’s fresh
ingredients or fine cashmere knitted on a 36-gauge machine
into a supple sweater.
• Quality is directly related to attention to detail.
• Craftsmanship—which is highly valued in Italy. Italians are
great critics, with an innate ability to evaluate the finer points
that determine quality, whether they are reviewing a meal or
a garment.
• Design and Style is another Italian strong suit, The Italian
aesthetic sensibility, and sense of proportion and beauty is
very finely tuned. It’s Elegant.

17. The Gap and the Opportunity
For the international business manager, understanding intellectually the method of cross
cultural business is the easy part. The hard part comes next – getting Italian and American
Business people to understand one another.

18. American Italian Cross Cultural Challenges
• The Italian business person is an artisan and creator – he knows how to do things, to
create, with art and imagination.
• The American business person – is primarily a marketer. He knows how to take a
product and bring it to the public.

19. The Challenges
• The challenges of doing business with Italians are based on history and natural conditions
that shapes fundamentals differences
• Religion: Italy is Catholic, America is mainly Protestant
• Natural conditions that shape economic systems: Scarcity of resource for Italy, abundance
for America.

20. The American Perception of Italian Business
• Great quality is an Italian trademark
• Quality often takes precedence over efficiency
• Italian companies are mostly family run and have a strict
hierarchy
• Italian companies compensate for the country’s lack of
venture capital by turning to family members for
financing
• Italian companies are not quick decision makers

21. What Expectations Need To Be Fulfilled
In Order To Be Successful
• Price has to reflect quality, values and romance.
!
• On-time delivery. Americans expect prompt service.
!
• Have a story to tell. Be ready to convey your product’s
identity.

22. Common Mistakes Italian Companies Make
• They don’t take the time to know US culture.
• They try to export without a comprehensive marketing plan and strategy.
• They don’t establish the infrastructure to fulfill orders and customer service.
• They neglect branding, and want to market before laying the groundwork through
communication.

23. Is Italy too Italian?
• David Segal writer for the The New York Times in 2010
reports Italy's cultural characteristics in this way:
• Italy's ‘highly idiosyncratic’ business culture is largely
defined… by deep-seated mistrust-not just of the
government, but of anyone who isn't part of the
immediate family.
• It is also characterized by a widespread aversion to risk
and to growth that to American eyes looks almost
quaint.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/01/business/global/
01italy.html?pagewanted=all

24. Perception of Italy’s Economy and Politics
Protectionist guilds and something approaching tenure policies, even for non-union
workers, have led to a "sclerotic" job market, while "roughly one-quarter of Italy's G.D.P. is
off the books,” a result perhaps of little habituation to national taxation and a low sense of
national identity.

25. Family is at the center of the Italian way of life
Then comes the family issue...
Most Italians live less than a mile or two from their parents and stay there, often for financial
benefits like cash and in-kind services like day care. It's an insularity that runs all the way up
to the corporate suites.
This can explain the suspicion of Italians when it comes to extra-familial institutions, why
many here care more about protecting what they have than enhancing their wealth.

26. Italian Entrepreneurship and the Global Game
The first goal of many entrepreneurs in Italy isn't growth, so
much as keeping the business in the family.
For a company to really expand, it needs capital, but that
means giving up some control.
Companies in Italy remain stubbornly small - all of which
means Italy is a haven for artisans but is in a bad position to
play the global domination game.

27. In Conclusion
• To overcome the challenges in cross cultural business is to
meet on common ground.
• Create participation and strategy where there is room to
lead and acknowledge both sides.
• It takes the creation of a team from both countries. It takes
two to create a bridge to unite their two different mind
sets.

28. Remember: America leaves a mark with Branding
AMERICANS have a natural ability for Branding
• From concept to business plan, the work of getting your story out into the world has to be
done in a way that is:
• Consistent
• Memorable
• Articulate
!
• That is where branding comes into play, and how you can bring your brand to life, whether
the brand is a product, a service or your profession.

29. Remember: Italy leaves a mark with style
ITALY has Style
• The word style is derived from the Latin word ‘stilum’.
• Originally the word indicated a bone with a point that one
could use to write on wax or wood, much like one would
carve initials into a soft surface.
• Having a style means knowing how to express oneself in
way that leaves a mark; it’s recognizable and memorable.

30. Sense of Style and Elegance are Uniquely Italian
Style comes from elegance — literally:
The word elegance is derived from the Latin word ‘eligere’: to
choose; to know how to make a choice.
So having a style means knowing how to express oneself in a
way that leaves a mark making the most appropriate choices.

31. Style & Fashion
• Style requires an understanding of elegance, that is the result of
the ability to choose, to arrange elements and ingredients to
deliver a creation.
• Style is also a language that tells a story through design, food and
fashion, and covers every aspect of a person’s life.
• John Fairchild said: "Style is an expression of individualism mixed
with charisma. Fashion is something that comes after style”.
• Your creation will leave an elegant mark if you deliver a solution
with grace, beauty and harmony. Whoever has style and visibility in
the media sets the trends of fashion.

32. The ‘Italian Way’ is very much in Fashion
• In the US, especially in New York, the perception of Italians is very fashionable.
• Be clear about fashion, as Coco Chanel said: "Fashion is not something that exists in
dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we
live, what is happening."

34. Style & Marketing
• Italian designers (Missoni, Versace, Armani, etc.) in Milan teamed up with Coke to design
bottles for an Auction to support the earthquake stricken region of Abruzzo.

35. • Challenges are also opportunities to create new ways to do business
• The reality of today’s global market demands being open to change, and to be creative to
survive
• It’s critical to embrace the diversity of cultural identity and learn from cross cultural
encounters.
• It’s a critical choice