MEMORANDUM備忘錄

MEMORANDUM

To: The Studio Classroom Audience
From: Businessman Bob
Re: American Business

American business is fairly straightforward. Like this memo, it has no hidden agendas. Rather, it puts everything out on the table—what you see is what you get. If this direct approach makes you uncomfortable, I'm sorry, but we might as well be up-front about things. I'm here to tell you about American business, and you're here to learn. Any questions so far?

備忘錄

收件人：空中英語教室讀者
發件人：生意人包伯
主題：美國企業

美國企業是相當直接的。如同這份備忘錄，沒有暗藏的議程。反之，它把所有東西都清楚寫明——你看到的就是你所收到的。如果這種直接的方式令你覺得不舒服，我很抱歉，但是我們也該坦率的面對事情。現在我要告訴你美式企業文化，你呢，就是要學習。目前為止有沒有什麼問題？


Business　美國的企業文化(Part 2 of 8)

1. Parochialism
Some experts consider American business professionals to have a parochial or ethnocentric perspective. They claim that Americans don't consider things from other cultures' points of view. They even attribute to us attitudes of superiority and arrogance. Whether or not that's true, many factors contribute to this perception:

Item 1: America has a large domestic market, minimizing the need for a global business orientation.

Item 2: America is a world leader, both politically and technologically. As some have said, since the world follows us, why should we follow them?

１. 地域觀念
有些專家認為美國的企業家有地域觀念，或是以自我種族為中心。他們主張美國人不會從其他的文化觀點來考慮事情。他們甚至讓我們戴上優越感和傲慢的帽子。不管這是不是真的，造成這種看法的因素有許多：

第一：美國擁有廣大的國內市場，因此全球商業導向的需要便減到最小。

第二：在政治和科技兩方面，美國都處於全世界的主導地位。如同有人說，既然世界是跟著我們走，我們又何需跟著世界走呢？

Business　美國的企業文化(Part 3 of 8)

Item 3: America is the seat of capitalism, and most major schools of business management are located within its borders.

Item 4: English (in particular, American English) is the language of international business.

In recent decades, however, more American business people have come to recognize the need to be more international in their perspective. With the development of an increasingly interdependent global community, the lack of cross-cultural communication skills can severely limit one's business success.

第三：美國是資本主義的大本營，而且大多數主要的企業管理學校都位於美國境內。

第四：英語（特別是美式英語）是國際貿易上通用的語言。

然而，近幾十年來，有更多的美國企業人士開始認識到，他們需要有更具國際性的眼光。隨著全球共同體相互依賴程度漸增的發展方向來看，缺乏跨文化的溝通技巧將嚴重限制一個人在企業上的成就。

2. American Business Values
Business in America reflects American values. After all, American business is American business. Let me give you a few examples of what I mean:

a. Individual Achievement
In some cultures, people may attain their positions through family connections or having influential friends rather than solely through personal qualifications. But in America, while nepotism does exist, most people believe a person should stand on his own merits.

２. 美國的企業價值
美國企業反映了美國人的價值觀。畢竟，美國企業就是美國人的企業。讓我舉一些例子說明我的意思：

a.個人成就感
在某些文化中，人們想達到高位，可以透過家族關係或者有權勢的朋友，而非單憑個人的條件資格。但是在美國，即使裙帶關係確實存在，大部分相信一個人應該靠著自己的才幹自力更生。

b. Equality
America is an egalitarian society. We don't worry so much about titles and status differences. We often address our professional contacts by their first name. And if we feel that our boss is wrong, we tell him so. We might even go over his head to appeal for what we think is right. We don't get hung up over trying to save the boss' face.

b. 平等
美國是個講求平等的社會。我們不太顧慮頭銜和地位的差異。與專業人士接觸時，我們通常稱呼他們的名字。而且如果我們覺得老闆有錯，我們會據實以告。我們甚至會越級上報，以爭取我們認為對的事。我們不會為了替老闆保留顏面而躊躇不果。

Business　美國的企業文化(Part 6 of 8)

3. Quality Control
Let me share with you my own business philosophy: The bottom line isn't money; it's quality. As Ford Motor Company puts it, "Quality is Job 1." Why focus on quality? Because quality leads to customer loyalty, which will increase profits in the long run. Quality control means not just weeding out bad products before they go onto the market, but also in-process quality control. That means checking the total process of manufacturing to guarantee excellence at all levels.

３. 品質管制
讓我告訴你我自己的企業哲學：最重要的並不是錢，而是品質。如同福特汽車公司所標榜的「品質第一」。為什麼專注於品質呢？因為品質帶來顧客的忠誠，長期而言將會增加利潤。品質管制的意思不只是在不良產品進入市場前將之淘汰，也是指生產過程中的品管。意即檢查整個製造過程，以確保在每個階段的完美。

4. Responsibilities and Privileges
Owning a business is a big responsibility. In America, business owners have to meet rigid safety standards. Even then, they face the risk of litigation if somebody gets hurt on the job. In addition, many companies have to deal with labor unions. Besides that, managers have to satisfy affirmative action laws, which require them to hire a certain number of minorities. Now many of these issues pertain more to big companies than to small businesses. But with any size firm, it takes a lot of work to stay afloat.

４. 責任與特權
擁有一家企業肩負很大的責任。在美國，企業擁有者必須符合嚴格的安全標準。即使如此，如果有人在工作中受傷，他們仍得面對被起訴的風險。此外，許多公司必須應付工會。還有，經營者必須遵守「肯定行動」的法律。這項法律要求他們必須雇用一定數目的弱勢族群。現在這些事項大部分是針對大企業，而非小公司。但是不論公司大小，想要保持穩定的盈收，需要很多的努力。

Business　美國的企業文化(Part 8 of 8)

Of course, along with the responsibilities come some great privileges. I don't mean perks like stock options and club memberships, although those have their place. Having a business allows you to make a contribution to society. Some businessmen give large donations to educational institutions or charities helping needy children. For me, that's really what makes it all worthwhile.

Well, that's about it. If you have any questions, see my secretary, and she'll set up an appointment.

當然，極大的特權伴隨責任而來。我指的不是額外的津貼，或股票購置優先權或俱樂部的會員資格，雖然它們也有一席之地。擁有企業使你能對社會有所貢獻。有些企業人士捐贈大筆金錢給教育機構，或幫助貧窮兒童的慈善團體。對我而言，這才是經營企業有意義之處。

好吧，就是這樣了。如果你有任何問題，去找我的秘書，她會替你安排會面時間。