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Review focus: Lifestyle, Korea, business relationships, business ethics, virtue, Korean, business in Korea, networks, cultural differences, American, European, Westerners
Asian Business Code Words Index NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company Asian Business Strategy & Street Intelligence Ezine
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Morality in Korea traditionally has been based on Confucian concepts of "virtue" rather than universal principles. Confucian relationships - the family, clan, home town, ties, school ties, and military ties; generally in that order - came before everything else. In the Western sense, Korean morality is therefore often irrational and unethical because it ignores the very foundation of Western thought: rational behavior based on universal rules of conduct that transcend personal feelings and personal relations. Until Westerners get a good grip on the emotional factors that control and motivate Koreans, it is difficult or impossible for them to anticipate what Koreans will do in any situation and to work with them smoothly. Among the more obvious and important "Korean" characteristics that result from their emotion-centered system are extraordinary goodwill, cooperation, and hospitality toward family members and close friends, and a callous, often hostile attitude toward all others. Another key factor in the Korean way is the role of respect to older members. Within companies, particularly among management and white-collar workers, seniority is generally equated with rank and authority, and demands strict conformity to a minutely prescribed protocol. At the same time, Koreans are usually much more amenable to adopting Western concepts than the Japanese or Chinese, and one finds a much wider variety of management philosophies and techniques in Korea. This does not mean, however, that a foreign company can come in and operate on strictly Western management principles. Western managers in Korea must consider how the traditional Korean social structure affects their employees. Social class is still important in employee relations. Putting a lower class person in charge of higher class people causes problems. It is still a serious breach of social etiquette, and invariably causes endless problems, to put a young person in charge of older people. Employees expect companies to be paternalistic. Since most Koreans still base their conduct on personal values and relationships rather than objective reasoning, their attitudes and behavior often conflict with the Western way of management. Obviously there is some merit in the purely Korean way of conducting personal and business affairs, as evidenced by a number of Korean companies that are now among the world's leading enterprises. The challenge facing foreign enterprise in Korea is to achieve a balance between Western and traditional Korean behavioral patterns - a merging of the best of the two systems. The foreign company that successfully harnesses the extraordinary labor and loyalty ethic of Koreans is in and enviable position.
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Boye Lafayette de Mente is one of our regular monthly columnists at the 
| This month's column is excerpted from Korean Etiquette & Ethics in Business, by Boye Lafayette De Mente available from NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company |
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