The Culture Map - by Erin Meyer (Hardcover)

About the Book

"As today's business world becomes ever-more global and virtual, executives and managers are expected to work harmoniously together with counterparts from a broad array of dramatically different cultures and backgrounds, often without leaving their desks. But when you throw people together who come from starkly different backgrounds and cultures-- from Americans who precede anything negative with three nice comments to French, Dutch, Israelis and Germans who get straight to the point ("your presentation was simply awful"); from Latin Americans and Asians who are steeped in hierarchy to the Scandinavians who think the best boss is just one of the crowd-- the result can sometimes be disastrous. In Culture Map, renowned expert Erin Meyer offers highly practical and timely perspective on one of today's most pressing business issues: how do different cultures influence the way to do business when working globally? And she explains how to dramatically increase business success by improving one's ability to understand the cultural drivers of colleagues, clients, and suppliers from different countries. Culture Map provides a new way forward, with vital insights for working effectively and sensitively with one's counterparts in the new global marketplace"--

Book Synopsis

An international business expert helps you understand and navigate cultural differences in this "enlightening" (Foreign Affairs) and practical guide, perfect for both your work and personal life.

Americans precede anything negative with three nice comments; French, Dutch, Israelis, and Germans get straight to the point; Latin Americans and Asians are steeped in hierarchy; Scandinavians think the best boss is just one of the crowd. It's no surprise that when they try and talk to each other, chaos breaks out.

In The Culture Map, INSEAD professor Erin Meyer is your guide through this subtle, sometimes treacherous terrain in which people from starkly different backgrounds are expected to work harmoniously together. She provides a field-tested model for decoding how cultural differences impact international business, and combines a smart analytical framework with practical, actionable advice.

Review Quotes

"A helpful guide to working effectively with people from other cultures...Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business."--Kirkus Reviews

"Amusing."--Financial Times

"Erin Meyer provides us with a brilliant guide to what all business leaders need to know right now: How to succeed in managing across the diverse cultural contexts of today's workplace!"--Marshall Goldsmith, author of the New York Times and global bestseller What Got You Here Won't Get You There

"In a relaxed, entertaining, but always knowledgeable style, Meyer draws on numerous examples from her experiences to explain how to detect the invisible barriers in the global business world--and how to get past them."--Siemens Industry Journal

"The book abounds with well-chosen anecdotes to illustrate the misunderstandings that can arise from clashing cultural assumptions, making this enlightening book a pleasure to read."--Foreign Affairs

"This readable book explains how to dramatically increase organisational success by improving our ability to understand the behaviour of colleagues, clients, and suppliers from different countries."--Professional Manager (UK)

"Whether you are sitting at a desk in Boston or eating at a restaurant in Beijing, communicating across cultures is the great challenge of the global economy. Getting it right will be the difference between success and failure. Erin Meyer has written a very important book. Managers everywhere should read it." --Des Dearlove and Stuart Crainer, founders of the Thinkers50

"Whether you're a corporate or traditional diplomat, global traveler, government official, or passionate world citizen, this is the one book you should not miss. Chock-full of real-world examples and a simple framework that can be utilized in any cross-cultural context, Meyer's work is characterized by a fresh and relevant voice, distilling down the essentials of communicating, persuading and working effectively around the globe. It is rare that I pick up a cross-cultural book and can't put it down."--Cari Guittard, Huffington Post

"With business becoming ever global, there are a raft of books available on dealing with cultural differences. If you only read one, make it INSEAD professor Erin Meyer's...Skillfully blend[s] real-life examples...with an analytical framework... What brings this book to life are the numerous examples Meyer has encountered, both in her own life as an American living in Paris, and in her experience as running the Managing Virtual Teams module at INSEAD."--HR Magazine, 5 star review

About the Author

Erin Meyer is a professor at INSEAD, one of the world's leading international business schools. Her work focuses on how the world's most successful global leaders navigate the complexities of cultural differences in a multicultural environment. Living and working in Africa, Europe, and the United States prompted Meyer's study of the communication patterns and business systems of different parts of the world. Her framework allows international executives to pinpoint their leadership preferences, and compare their methods to the management styles of other cultures.

Her work has appeared in Harvard Business Review, Singapore Business Times, and Forbes.com. In 2023, Erin was listed by the Thinkers50, as one of the fifty most impactful business writers in the world and in 2018 she was selected by HR magazine as one of the top 30 most influential HR thinkers of the year. With Reed Hastings, she is the co-author of No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention. Follow her on Twitter: @ErinMeyerINSEAD