Business Culture in Spain: Customs, Communication, and Negotiation

Business culture in Spain is rich, diverse, and full of nuances that can influence the success of business relationships. Understanding these customs, communication norms, and negotiation strategies is essential for any company looking to establish or do business in Spain. In this article, we will explain key aspects of business culture in Spain and how they can affect business relationships.

What is understood by corporate culture?

Corporate culture is the set of values, actions, beliefs, goals, or norms that define an organization.

Corporate culture reflects the personality of the organization as it is seen in every action of the company’s personnel, such as customer service or how to onboard a new colleague joining the company.

What is the company’s mission, vision, and values?

Next, let’s look at the elements that make up corporate culture:

Mission: The mission of a company reflects the reason for its founding and what it aims to achieve. It also reflects the company’s value proposition and is very useful for making decisions and establishing short- and long-term objectives.

Vision: The vision defines the company’s objectives and goals and where it is heading. Therefore, it is important to establish realistic goals and objectives to avoid frustration and demotivation among the staff.

Values: Values are the principles that dictate the culture and the way of being of the company. It is essential to define the company’s values well as they dictate how to treat customers, employees, and how to make decisions.

What does organizational culture mean and what is its function in companies?

The organizational culture of a company sets the boundaries and defines how employees should behave within the company. Its function for companies is to improve engagement, make employees feel valued and that they are an integral part of the company, fostering teamwork and unity.

There are three metrics that help measure the organizational culture of a company:

• Efficiency metrics: This metric serves to understand the return on investment between effort and cost. It is important to consider this metric when determining how to capitalize on the resources invested in each project.
• Outcome metrics: Measures the impact of the company’s products or services.
• Feedback metrics: This metric is usually internal and is typically conducted at least once a year. Its purpose is to understand how employees feel.

Types of Organizational Culture

Currently, there are four types of organizational culture that we will define below:

• Family Culture: This type of culture aims to create a pleasant and optimistic work environment. It is characterized by employees who share similar characteristics. This culture seeks to build strong bonds with employees and foster good communication. The leader is seen as a paternal figure, with employees showing great respect. Team-building is emphasized, and employees are given a voice in decision-making processes.
• Adhocratic Culture: This culture emphasizes flexibility, innovation, and success. It is often found in the technology and aerospace sectors, where companies constantly focus on the future and strive to create and develop new products. Innovation, decision-making autonomy, and risk-taking are encouraged in this culture.
• Market Culture: This culture is markedly different from the others, as it prioritizes meeting objectives regardless of their difficulty. Employees are expected to work hard to achieve set goals. In this culture, leadership is directive and demanding.
• Hierarchy Culture: This culture prioritizes efficiency and adherence to procedures to ensure smooth operation. Strict rules are enforced, and managers closely monitor employees’ work. This type of culture is the most commonly used in organizations today.

What is Negotiation Culture?

Negotiation culture encompasses all aspects related to the diverse cultures worldwide, including traditions, customs, aesthetics, religion, and more. It’s crucial to consider these details in negotiations because ignoring them could lead to a clash of cultures and break down the negotiation process.

Aspects to Consider in Negotiation Culture:

In international cultures, there are two essential rules: trust and information. To define and differentiate one culture from another, two types of cultures have been established: high-context and low-context.

Trust: Low-Context Cultures:

• Trust doesn’t require maintaining close relationships to be earned.
• Honesty is crucial.
• Be clear and direct in the first meeting.
• Be honest.
• If they detect any hint of doubt, they tend to distrust.

High-Context Cultures:

• It’s necessary to know the other person in a closer way.
• Focus on common points.
• As they get to know the other person, they tend to show trust.
• Don’t go directly into negotiation.
• Personal questions often help determine if they can trust the other person.
• Negotiation isn’t discussed in the early meetings.

Information:

Low-Context Cultures:

• They are simple and quick.
• They are direct.
• They are very precise as they deal with realities, not assumptions.
• Ask direct questions.
• Meetings are structured and quick.

High-Context Cultures:

• They are very reserved.
• They don’t show their intentions.
• They avoid direct questions.
• They make proposals and respond favorably to them.

To have an effective negotiation culture and achieve desired objectives, the following aspects should be taken care of:

• Punctuality
• Attitude
• Negotiation approach
• Customs
• Greeting
• Be cautious with your gestures.
• Meaning of colors
• Numbers
• Customs related to titles

Aspects to Consider for Negotiation:

In this section, we will outline the steps to follow for a successful negotiation.

1. Prior Research: The first step in any negotiation is research. It’s essential to thoroughly understand who the person is with whom we are negotiating, their objectives, conditions, and any other relevant details. If you manage to gather this information and do so before meeting with them, you can even conduct simulations that will be very useful for the actual negotiation, allowing you to anticipate possible objections.
2. Set Clear Objectives: The second step to having a successful negotiation is to establish the objectives desired during the negotiation. It is essential to know what we want to achieve and obtain from this negotiation. Therefore, setting a maximum and a minimum to which one is willing to concede at the negotiation moment is crucial. Doing so will allow you to begin the negotiation with a set goal, and if you see that it is not reached, it will allow you to withdraw from the negotiation.
3. Have Multiple Options: The third aspect to consider for negotiation is to have several options. During the negotiation, each person will defend what they want to achieve, so it is common for them to compare with the interests that each one wants to achieve and how far they are willing to concede. That is why it is so important to have several options for negotiation because once one is accepted, everything will flow more smoothly.
4. Emotional Awareness: The fourth step to consider is emotions, as negotiations often extend, and there are usually moments of tension. Therefore, it is essential to know how to control emotions and be empathetic with the other person.
5. Closing the Negotiation: The fifth and final step is the closure of the negotiation. Once all the objectives that are wanted to be achieved have been exposed, and the conditions of each party have been accepted, the negotiation will be considered concluded. It is highly recommended to create a document with everything agreed upon and signed by all parties.