Inane Gurbuz, Executive Manager EMEA of Azkan Group and professional coach in Turkish Management, shares an excerpt “The world of work in Turkey” from his book “Doing business in Turkey: a guide to success”
The fifth P in Mix-Marketing
During negotiations, the Turks are not just buying a product, they
are taking advantage of the opportunity to develop a new relationship
with a person. So it is essential that there is a human connection as
well as appropriate product characteristics. We thus need to reprogramme our subconscious software of the Western workplace by adding a “5th P” to mix marketing: Price, Product, Place, Promotion + People!
The individual as a unique person is the cornerstone for the success
of yourbusiness activity. If your Turkish colleaguesdo not believe in
you, your negotiations will fail. In line with this reasoning, we need
to learn to put emotion intoour business language to strengthen the
ties between individuals.
Show your emotions in the world of work in Turkey !
When developing business on the Turkish market, you need to
“season” your business argumentswith emotion. Showing an attitude
devoid of emotion will be highly detrimental.
In many countries in Northern Europe, the Far East, and North America, rationality takes precedenceover feelings, a neutral stance
is expected, and self-control is a sign of professionalism. But in the Middle East, the Mediterranean, and South America, it is important
to show your emotions in the workplace, to amplify your feelings, and
to express yourself more strongly. Rationality and emotion go hand
in hand and your business partners expect as much of you.
In the world of work in Turkey, the Turks can produce a lot of momentum at the start of a new
project, too much even at times, and the “wildfire” effect is quite common.
But they deserve credit for their enthusiasm, and they expect
the same of you. Therefore, during negotiations, you need to express
how much the project means to you and show that it is consistent
with your values and your professional and personal goals. Businesses in southern Europe and the Mediterranean tend to
enjoy working together because they have similar expectations. Only
too often Turks have said to me that their German, British, or French
manager is too cold and heartless. For example, when a Turkish
employee falls ill, they expect their manager to show concern for
them, just as a father would with achild. They don’t expect you to take them to the doctor, but at least that you ask after them when they come back to work.
A Turkish employee working for an American firm in Istanbul expressed her disappointment to me about precisely this. When she came back to work on the Monday morning, she had beenupset to find that her manager had shown no concern for her welfare at all, and she had greatly resented him for it. From a different perspective, the American manager had perhaps wanted to show respect by not interfering in his employee’s private life. In any case, he hadn’t intended to come across as so distant.
The rest of this text is available in our book “Doing business in Turkey: a guide to success” . Since 2005, AZKAN Group has acted as a consulting firm for all your development projects in the Turkish market: consulting in implementation, detection of partners, market research, Recruitment Turkey, understanding Payroll Turkey ….
