A . Fuat Fırat is professor of marketing at the University of Texas—Pan American. He completed his Ph.D. degree in marketing at Northwestern University. His research interests cover areas such as macro consumer behavior and macromarketing; postmodern culture; brands and branding; transmodern marketing strategies; gender and consumption; marketing and development; and interorganizational relations. His has won the Journal of Macromarketing Charles Slater Award for best article with co-author N. Dholakia, the Journal of Consumer Research best article award with co-author A. Venkatesh, and the Corporate Communications: An International Journal top ranked paper award with co-authors L.T. Christensen and J. Cornelissen. He has published several books including Consuming People: From Political Economy to Theaters of Consumption, co-authored by N. Dholakia, and is the founding editor of Consumption, Markets & Culture.

Professional Communication in a Global Business Context: The Notion of Global Communicative Competence

Leena Louhiala-Salminen and Anne Kankaanranta, Aalto University School of Economics, Department of Communication

Abstract

On the basis of an extensive survey study conducted among business professionals engaging in global communication, this paper discusses communicative competence. Rapid changes in work environments, particularly advancing globalization and new technology, have highlighted the need for expanding our knowledge of the elements that constitute communicative competence in global encounters. Competence has been investigated by several researchers; however, the language perspective, particularly the language used for international communication, that is, English as a Lingua Franca (ELF), has largely been ignored. Our findings indicate that global communicative competence (GCC) consists of three layers: multicultural competence, competence in English as a Business Lingua Franca (BELF) and the communicator’s business know-how. Based on our findings, we present a model for GCC, which includes language as a key component. Implications for theory, practice, and education include the need for a multidisciplinary approach and the acknowledgement of ELF/BELF as the language of global interaction. ELF/BELF assumes a shared “core” of the English language, but focuses on interactional skills, rapport building, and the ability to ask for and provide clarifications.

http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/freeabs_all.jsp?arnumber=5985498

Louhiala-Salminen, Leena and Anne Kankaanranta (2011) Professional Communication in a Global Business Context: The Notion of Global Communicative Competence. EEE TRANSACTIONS ON PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION, 54 (3), 244-262

Narratives on Chinese colour culture in business contexts

Kirsi Kommonen, Aalto University School of Economics, Department of Communication

Abstract

Purpose – This research is interested in how dynamics in negotiating cultural meanings in the globalizing market place in China become visible in one particular aspect of culture: colour culture. The purpose of this paper is to explore the provenance of some of the many potential meanings invested in colours in contemporary China, and how and why these influence international business, communication, design and marketing management in particular. Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative empirical study with ambition for an emic cultural approach to Chinese colour culture. Narrative analysis of accounts by Chinese colour professionals participating in a focus group interview, and by individually interviewed managers with extensive experience in Sino-Finnish business are reported in narrative format.

Findings – The findings support the proposed existence of a phenomenon which the author has named “Colour culture” – a cultural set of meanings that are invested in colours. Unexpectedly, the empirical study proposes a strong tendency towards these meanings being value based in China. Visual manifestations of cultural values appear to be dynamic and dependent on context. Research limitations/implications – The current study does not offer generalizable prescriptions for contextual colour usages. The explorative, qualitative nature of this study serves as a basis for contextual and quantifiable future research on the phenomenon.

Practical implications – Since, for the Chinese, colours manifest cultural values and are highly emotional, not only linguistic, but also visual translation of communication is needed. For international communication, design and marketing managers, this further implies a need for contextual understanding of local colour culture.

Originality/value – Recognizing the existence of colour culture and its value-based proposition in China opens up new research avenues and practical considerations for cross-cultural studies.

http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?articleid=1944362&show=abstract

Kommonen Kirsti (2011) Narratives on Chinese colour culture in business contexts -The Yin Yang Wu Xing of Chinese values. Cross Cultural Management, 18(3), 366-383

Organizational dynamics and complexities of corporate brand building–—A practice perspective

Rita Järventie-Thesleff, Johanna Moisander, Aalto University School of Economics, Department of Communication

Pikka-Maaria Laine, University of Lapland

Abstract

The paper introduces a marketing-as-practice-approach to the domain of corporate brand management and presents findings from an empirical study that illustrates this approach in the context of a large transnational corporation. Conceptualizing corporate branding as some- thing that occurs within and as part of a field of socially instituted practices, the paper focuses on the patterns of routinized activity through which corporate brands are built in organizations. By means of a 5-year ethnographic study, the aim is to identify a set of trans-subjective organizational practices that govern the praxis of brand building as well as to analyze the steering effects that these practices may have on the collaborative production and delivery of the brand promise in the day-to-day of organizational activity.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0956522110000588

Järventie-Thesleff, Rita, Johanna Moisander and Pikka-Maaria Laine (2011) Organizational dynamics and complexities of corporate brand building – a practice perspective. Scandinavian Journal of Management, 27, 196—204