Austrian Business Management Style

As would be expected in a mainly hierarchical business culture, managers are less consensual than would be the case in countries where a more inclusive, matrix-style approach is employed.

Therefore, managers can tend towards giving direct instructions to subordinates who will, by and large, carry them out to the letter.

This also means that managers are expected to make the decisions and would involve their colleagues in the decision-making process to a much lesser degree than might be the case in a consensus-oriented countries such as Sweden or the Netherlands. Managers are expected to be sector/function experts and as such should know the answers to problems.

This directive management approach goes hand-in-hand with an almost old-fashioned sense of politeness and courtesy. Do not imagine a tyrannical boss barking orders at frightened subordinates. Everything is done with great charm and warmth. In fact charm would be seen as one of the attributes of a good manager.

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 Austria only and a more detailed understanding needs a more in-depth exploration which we can provide through our training and consultancy services.