South Africa

1
South Africa

• An Overview By

2
Statistics

• Population 2001, 44.6 million
• 11 Official Languages Afrikaans, English,
  Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana,
  Venda, Xhosa, Zulu (all official languages).
• Three Major Groups

3
Chronology

• 1488 Portuguese reach Cape of Good Hope
• 1652 1st Dutch Settlement
• 1795 British seize control of cape
• 1803 Dutch control cape
• 1807 British end slave trade
• 1814 Dutch formally cede to British
• 1910 Self-governing Union within British
  Commonwealth

• 1925 Afrikaans recognized as an official language
• 1935 Black voting rights revoked
• 1961 UN General Assembly refuses to recognize
  South Africa
• 1985 Britain blocks Commonwealth sanctions
• 1994 1st democratic elections

4
Sense of Time and Space

• Large companies are more formal
• Small companies are more casual
• Expect to wait
• Length of wait indicates your perceived status
• Efficient, but approach to deadlines is casual
• Special handshake
• Very physical when talking

5
Roles and Status

• Respect of elders
• Masculine society
• Old boys network
• Very few women in senior management
• A womans rank and title mean little
• Women are unseen in black businesses

6
Power

• Old boys network
• Importance of Status White business elite share
  background and usually attend 3 top universities
  (similar for Afrikaans) Black business elite have
  gone through the School of Hard Knocks
• Legal system is fair

7
Social Values

• English-speaking South Africans
• Reserved
• Proud of cultural heritage
• Education
• Afrikaans
• Blunt
• Blacks
• Proud of their ancestry

8
Decision Making and Ethics

• Establish rapport
• Dont be overly aggressive
• South Africans will be well prepared
• Get consensus
• Bribes and gift giving
• Deals sealed with handshakes

9
Summary