They came, they saw, they adapted : How Swedish firms adapt when managing cross-cultural business relations with Japanese customers

Abstract: Culture is a strong part of people’s lives. When you are working with people and building relationships with them, it helps to have some perspective and understanding of their cultures. In the Japan business culture, there are several things that differentiate them from Swedish their way of conducting business. The purpose of this thesis is to explore how Swedish firms adapt in order to manage business relationships with Japanese customers. By investigating this, important components of cross-cultural differences have been identified and a deeper understanding of the cultural obstacles of doing business between two cultures that has great differences in their business cultures. A qualitative research method, with an abductive approach, has been conducted to this thesis to provide a deeper understanding of the topic. The literature review starts with presenting the concept of cultural differences between Sweden and Japan, then continuous with cultural adaptions and business relationship management. A theoretical framework is presented to illustrate the relationship between these concepts. The analysis discusses and compares the theoretical concepts with the empirical findings in order to understand the relation to each other. In the final chapter, a conclusion is made where the authors present answers to the research question, theoretical- and policy implication, limitations and suggestions for further research. The findings of this thesis have narrowed down the research gap regarding how Swedish firms manage business relationships with Japanese customers. We suggest that, in order to succeed on the Japanese market as a Swedish firm, one must adapt towards their cultural values and be open-minded regarding their business management when establishing a new relationship with a Japanese customer.