Brazilian Business Management Style

A manager’s personal style is considered to be of great significance and it could almost be said that his or her bearing is viewed as of great an importance as their technical abilities.

The respect which is afforded the manager by subordinates, is directly proportionate to the personality of the boss. Relationships are of key importance in this Latin culture and the boss and subordinates work hard to foster a relationship based on trust and respect for personal dignity.

First and foremost, managers are expected to manage. The boss is expected to give direct instructions and it is expected that these instructions will be carried out without too much discussion or debate (if there is debate it should be done in private to avoid showing public disrespect to the hierarchy).

If giving instructions to Brazilian subordinates, try to be as clear, precise and comprehensive as possible. If tasks remain undone after having asked for them to be done, start by questioning yourself. ‘Were my instructions given clearly? Was I too vague?’ If you only give partial instructions, only part of the task will be performed. (As in most strongly hierarchical cultures, subordinates will undertake the tasks they are given but no more — to do more might be seen as disobeying the boss!)

Author

This country-specific business culture profile was written by Keith Warburton who is the founder of the cultural awareness training consultancy Global Business Culture.  Global Business culture is a leading training provider in the fields of cross-cultural communication and global virtual team working.  We provide training to global corporations in live classroom-based formats, through webinars and also through our cultural awareness digital learning hub, Global Business Compass.

This World Business Culture profile is designed as an introduction to business culture in Australia only and a more detailed understanding needs a more in-depth exploration which we can provide through our training and consultancy services.

Author

This country-specific business culture profile was written by Keith Warburton who is the founder of the cultural awareness training consultancy Global Business Culture. 

Global Business culture is a leading training provider in the fields of cross-cultural communication and global virtual team working.  We provide training to global corporations in live classroom-based formats, through webinars and also through our cultural awareness digital learning hub, Global Business Compass.

This World Business Culture profile is designed as an introduction to business culture in Brazil only and a more detailed understanding needs a more in-depth exploration which we can provide through our training and consultancy services.