Part I: Malaysia and Singapore
Southeast Asia is a geographically expansive and populous region, mainly characterized by fascinating social and cultural variation. The region now consists of ten countries: Indonesia, The Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Singapore, and Brunei, with the total population of 647.74 million inhabitants (Statista, 2020). The majority of the countries in this region are home to dozens of different ethnic groups, many with their distinct languages, cultures, style of dress, beliefs, even the way they do business.
We will now dive into different ethnic group cultures in Southeast Asia, particularly Malaysia and Singapore. We will highlight how the ethnic group influences the culture and the way they do business altogether.
Malaysians: Face-saving, High Context Culture, and Fatalism
Malaysia is an incredibly diverse country, containing more than 55 different ethnicities, a total of 137 languages, and 7 religions (Malaysia, Department of Information). People from each ethnicity have generally retained their ancestors’ cultural customs resulting in Malaysian accommodating a rich variety of lifestyles, beliefs, and values.
The majority of Malaysians (around 51%) are Malays. Almost all of them are Muslim, which explains why ethnicity is commonly referred to as ‘Muslim Malay’. Being the most populous ethnicity, they dominate the political sphere (Britannica). Malay culture perceives courtesy and respect as principal moral values that should take precedence over others. Prosperity is derived from nobility, not necessarily the accumulation of wealth. Because of these cultural attitudes, members of the Malay majority tend to be less focused on economic pursuits than other ethnic groups.
Save Face – A vital element of Malaysian culture, as with most Asian cultures, is the concept of face. In Malaysian society, to “lose face”, that is to lose control of one’s emotions or to show embarrassment in public, is perceived as a negative display of the behavior. Malaysians will use some methods to “save face”.
Laughter, for instance, is often used to mask one’s true feelings and can reveal numerous emotions including nervousness, shyness, or disapproval. Saving face is highly crucial in business contexts, as causing your Malaysian counterpart to lose face may influence the outcome of your future business dealings.
High Context Culture – In high context cultures such as Malaysia, the meaning is often more explicit and less direct than in many Western cultures. This means that words are less important and greater attention must be given to additional forms of communication such as voice tone, body language, eye-contact, and facial expressions.
In Malaysia, because business is personal and based on trust, developing relationships rather than exchanging facts and information is the main objective of communication. This also relates to the Malay cultural values of courtesy, tolerance, harmony, and face. Direct answers, particularly negative ones, are avoided to prevent disagreement and preserve harmony; two very important aspects of Malaysian culture.
Fatalism – Malays often have a fatalistic worldview, leading them to attribute successes, opportunities, and misfortunes to the will of God. Furthermore, care and attention to human interactions may be prioritized over deadlines or monetary success.
In a business context, when formulating ideas and making decisions, Malays, who are predominantly Muslim, will tend not to rely on empirical evidence or hard facts but prefer to be guided by subjective feelings combined with the Islamic faith. Consequently, negotiations may take longer than expected and your Malaysian counterparts will view decision making in a more personal light (Communicaid, 2009).
Work Ethics and Business Culture
The influence of cultural attributes in the work ethics and business culture of the Malays are apparently, the Malay traditional values that surround them. The traits include their humble personality, which forbids them from being extravagant, arrogant, egoistic, and proud as they go against the social norms practiced by the community.
The negative qualities are also frowned upon by the teachings of Islam, which prohibit its devotees from being vain and boastful as it could lead to one’s destruction. Hence, each Malay individual is expected to adhere to the norms of being modest and respectful to one another. Furthermore, the traditional environment of the Malay Peninsula which was sheltered and safe from destructive natural elements also influenced the Malays’ nature, making them easily content with whatever they have.
Moreover, personal relationships play a large role in Malaysian business culture, as trust is considered the key to good business for them, and therefore they will be looking for an honest commitment to the business relationship from their counterparts. Their business networks are often composed of relatives and peers, as nepotism is assumed to guarantee trust. They will often ask many questions about your family and personal life, which can sometimes come across as direct and overly personal. However, it is not intended that way. They will expect you to ask the same to them.
Consider that if you lose your temper or become aggressive at all during your interactions with a Malay, you may lose their trust in doing business with you. All matters of disagreement or conflict should be dealt with in the most diplomatic, private manner possible. Any kind of criticism can be seen as overly direct, and therefore, try your best not to criticize any colleague in front of others – it can be more tactful to use a third person to deliver bad news or criticism directly (IES 2020, The Cultural Atlas: Malaysia).
Considerations
There are several things to consider regarding Malaysians and their way of doing business. Some of them are the fact that workplaces in Malaysia are very hierarchical, based on age and position. Everyone has a distinct place and role within their business. Given how strongly tiered the system is, Malaysians’ subordinates may struggle to express opinions that differ from their leaders. It can be a good idea to gently encourage them to open any misgivings they have that haven’t already been mentioned.
Lastly, for the sake of saving face, many Malaysians avoid giving a flat negative response to proposals you make, even when they don’t agree with them. Therefore, you need to focus on the hints of hesitation, listening for what they say, but also paying close attention to what they subtly allude to. You can always double-check your understanding by asking open-ended questions (IES 2020, The Cultural Atlas: Malaysia).
Singapore: Collectivist, Meritocratic, and Hierarchical
To date, Singapore’s economic positioning is one of the four Asian Dragons of the global economy, thus making it a big expatriate hotspot. There are huge numbers of foreigners in Singapore, constituting 2.16 million immigrants (The Straits Times). Given the data, the permanent citizens of Singapore are also diverse. While 3 million of the residents are Chinese Singaporeans, there are also large populations of Malay, Indians, Eurasians, and Westerners. These different ethnic groups maintain the languages, histories, traditions, and religions that pertain specifically to them.
Singaporean culture is heavily influenced by Chinese values and one’s ethnicity is a strong social identifier. Singaporeans often attribute social behavior and characteristics that extend beyond religious or cultural customs to people’s race. For example, Chinese and Indian Singaporeans are generally regarded as business-savvy ethnic groups as they tend to be profit-oriented, dominating the political and economic facets of society. The Malay population is often considered to be less economically competitive and more content with making ends meet (IES 2020, The Cultural Atlas: Singapore).
Despite being socially organized to a degree by ethnicity, Singaporeans don’t consider entitlement to be inheritable through family or ethnicity. They like to think of their culture as ‘meritocratic’ where people aren’t privileged over others due to their background, but rather, if they are academically qualified, they can constitute an upper class.
Furthermore, harmony is also a guiding philosophy in Singapore, as it affects many aspects of society, particularly those of family and business. However, Singaporean culture is still hierarchical, where interactions between people are divided as a result of Chinese influences. Singaporeans are expected to give their parents and elders utter respect and should become unconditionally obedient to seniors.
Work Ethics and Business Cultures
Being one of the four Asian ‘Tigers’ or ‘Dragons’ of the world economy, modern-day Singapore has been shaped by its business culture. The Global Business Complexity Index ranked Singapore as the second country in Asia for the simplest places to do business in 2020, beating India, China, and Korea.
There is a shared focus on creating wealth throughout the country, particularly in the Chinese population. Singaporeans tend to consider Westerners experienced in business and have high expectations for them. However, your experience within Singapore’s business culture will vary depending on whom you are dealing with. Chinese and Indian Singaporeans are generally regarded as the business savvy ethnic groups as they dominate the economy, and Malays are considered to be less business/profit-orientated.
Singaporeans are very relationship-oriented in business. They prefer to cultivate partnerships that will last as opposed to sealing a ‘quick deal’. As a part of this long-term approach in business relationships, they generally want to know a great deal about their partners before building trust and loyalty. Some of the details and questions asked might be irrelevant or unrelated to the point at hand, but try to be tolerant and provide answers for the sake of the business relationship.
One thing to remember when doing business with a Singaporean person is that, though they are distinguished as an individual, they are a representative or spokesperson for their company and of Singapore. This group orientation means that an individual may not be able to decide on matters without first consulting their colleagues. The same thing goes with decisions; it is made through group consensus after referring back to the head office.
Another thing to acknowledge is that the workplaces in Asia are hierarchical based on age and position, including Singapore. Everyone has a distinct place within their business and must observe the tiering of positions during any negotiation. Understand that those who have superior positions will not want to deal with those much younger than them, as age became a large indicator of status in Singapore (IES 2020, The Cultural Atlas: Singapore).
Considerations
There are several things to consider regarding Singaporeans and their way of doing business. As an extension of the need to maintain harmonious relations, the Singaporean people rely heavily on indirect communication. They rely less on words and are more attentive to posture, expression and tone of voice to draw meaning. Speech is ambiguous as they may often understate their point. The purpose of this is to maintain harmony throughout the conversation and prevent a loss of face on either end of the exchange. The best way of navigating this rhetoric to find the underlying meaning is to check for clarification several times.
Furthermore, do consider that a ‘yes’ may simply indicate that the person comprehends what is being said, not necessarily that they agree with it. Lastly, the Singaporeans bargain hard and they are tough negotiators, so prepare for negotiations with several concessions in mind that you would be able to permit without hurting your business or your goals (IES 2020, The Cultural Atlas: Singapore).
Southeast Asia is a region of different markets, varying economic developments, and diverse cultures, making it one of the most competitive regions in the world today. The diversification lies within its people, as each country serves different cultures, customs, and traditions that influence their behavior, including their ways to do business.
In this case, Malaysia and Singapore serve different work ethics and business cultures; Malaysians with their Islamic norms and personal relationship values, and Singaporeans with their Chinese influence and collectivism.
As a side note, while this article provides generalized information of the ethnic groups in each country, they may not necessarily apply to individuals. Thus, it is important to get to know the person just so you won’t stereotype or be biased.
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