Running A Business

[CymruAmByth]

Afternoon All,

Having been here 3 years now, I was wondering about others amongst us "Farangs" that have been running a business involving selling to Thai's, on a Business-to-Business basis.

We deal predominantly with other Farangs but have recently ventured in the Thai market place to suss out the demand. This has been a most intriguing - and exasperating - experience, due mostly to the ever-present demand for discount and the loss of a limb to make a sale.

Just wondered if any of you out there in CyberWorld have managed to crack this elusive "code"?

We have a product with little/no competition, that the Farangs we deal with deem as a 'necessity' for their business; not a luxury item. Therefore, one would think that it carries the same necessity for our Thai cousins. However, getting past the "we want discount" stage, which I refuse to give owing to the lack of competition, is becoming tedious to say the least!

Any comments or experiences from our members with maybe more longevity here in LOS would be most welcome. I am not looking for help with this issue, just some members experiences would be interesting to read.

[Maestro]

Of course you have to give a discount, and probably also a kickback to the purchasing officer. You must include these factors in the price you quote.

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Maestro

[Nawtilus]

So simply the answer is, put your price up.

[Gumballl]

Stick it to the Thai business. Charge them double what you would charge a Farang company, and when the Thai asks for a discount, give it to them. Tell them "... you very special customer, I make good deal for you". It works in the rest of the world, why not in Thailand?

[CymruAmByth]

Thanks Guys,

If I have got this right, the expert advice from the readership is to:

1) Double the price - then discount it

2) Bribe the Purchasing Officer

Wow....got some real captains of industry amongst us!

Thanks for replying though, but I will stick to the ethical way. It might not make a global difference, but at least I can sleep at night knowing that I try to guide my staff correctly and that being ethical can actually work.

Feel free to now pile in with equally sarcastic comments!

[simon43]

My only comment is that you will not be successful if you ignore the advice given to you You cannot change the way Thais see/do business, so if you want to sell to them you need to adapt to their way of thinking.

Simon

[Ulysses G.]

Good advice. When in Thailand and all that rot...

I run a retail businesss and something like 15% of my customers are Thais.

We have a strict no bargaining, set price, policy but - every blue moon - if a Thai person or an Expat chooses an item that has been on the shelves for a long time and is over-priced and I believe would be hard to sell to someone else, I will give them a discount and tell them why without them asking for a price reduction. If a tourist is polite I might give them a discount in this case as well.

However, if they choose something good and fairly priced - which is usually the case - I refuse to negotiate and I tell them that I can sell it easily for the price that is marked on it and I would be stupid to lower the price.

Educating the natives!

[Sing_Sling]

Thanks Guys,

If I have got this right, the expert advice from the readership is to:

1) Double the price - then discount it

2) Bribe the Purchasing Officer

Wow....got some real captains of industry amongst us!

Thanks for replying though, but I will stick to the ethical way. It might not make a global difference, but at least I can sleep at night knowing that I try to guide my staff correctly and that being ethical can actually work.

Feel free to now pile in with equally sarcastic comments!

I doubt you'll get many sarcstic comments as most posters here are not in the same position and couldn't comment.

The advice here is not illogical, immoral or illegal. (Except bribing the PO)

If you believe your pricing is just but you are having problems selling it to a certain segment of the market then raise the price and discount it down to your original required and fairly-valued price. Both parties benefit.

You benefit because you have not comrpomised your principles and sold your goods at a fair price.

The customer benefits because he believes he has received a good eal, which he has as you have sold it to him at what you believe to be a fair price.

I doubt the customer would think that you are giving him a massive discount anyway - they know very well, and probably do it themselves, that this is the way it's done.

Edited May 4, 2006 by Sing_Sling

[sfokevin]

Discounts and kickbacks are not just Thai. Here in the US everywhere from Walmart to Macy's regularly have XX% off... And where do you think all those "Rebate Checks" at Staples go?... back to the Company?... It is human nature at work and it is the same for all nationalities.

I understand your mixed emotions about this - you perceive your product to be above this technic - fearing discounts may reduce its perceived status... Then try another tactic to take advantage of human nature... offer a discount if the customer buys a bundle of products... give a discount for larger quantity or extended service...

Discounts are a fact of life... unless you happen to be in the oil business...

Edited May 4, 2006 by sfokevin

[Thaipwriter]

Thanks for replying though, but I will stick to the ethical way.

Try not to fall asleep.....

After a discussion of the theoretical underpinnings of conflict resolution

through negotiation, the main theme of the paper emerges: How non-Thais

can negotiate successfully with business and government executives in Thailand.

That country is the 21st nation whose favorite negotiating tactics have

been written about by the author in various proceedings, books, and conferences.

It is the latest in a continuing series of articles on negotiating styles of

different nations. After giving an overview of Thailand’s geography, climate,

population, religion, and business practices, important aspects of the socialcultural

environment which have a significant effect on the way Thais negotiate

are discussed. Then, body language, entertainment protocol, how to dress,

and favorite negotiating tactics used by buyers and sellers are shown. At the

end of the paper, conclusions and directions for future research are given.

Theoretical Underpinnings of Conflict Resolution Through Negotiation

In the natural and social sciences, scientists and practitioners tend to stereotype

each other, with the scientist viewing the practitioner as unscientific and

the practitioner viewing the scientist as impractical. However, Deutsch

(2000) quotes Kurt Lewin as saying, “There is nothing so practical as a good

theory.” The author of the present paper takes the position that negotiation is

part of the broader field of conflict resolution, and so in order to understand

negotiation better and to become a better negotiator, conflict theory must be

understood.

Firstly, 19th century scholars Darwin, Marx, and Freud dominated the

intellectual atmosphere during the infancy of social psychology and influenced

the writings of social psychologists on conflict. They emphasized the

competitive, destructive aspect of conflict. In the 1930s, Lewin’s field theory

(1935) emerged. He posited three types of psychological conflict: (1)

approach-approach (two good alternatives), (2) approach-avoid (one good alternative,

one bad alternative), and (3) avoid-avoid (two bad alternatives). In

the 1940s, von Neumann and Morgenstern (1944) formulated in mathematical

terms the problem of conflict of interest. While most emphasis since then

has been on zero-sum games (pure competitive conflict), game theory recognizes

that cooperative interested may be intertwined with competitive interests

in conflict (non-zero-sum games). Its mathematical formulations

facilitated precise definition of the reward structure encountered by both

sides in a negotiation. Game matrices were developed, and experimental

studies proliferated, because for the first time a convenient experimental format

was readily available.

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Building on all this, Deutsch (1949) formulated his theory of cooperation

and competition in the late 1940s and refined it over the next 51years.

His theory relates to two types of interdependence among goals of the people

involved in a given situation. It also relates to two types of action taken by

the people involved. Interdependent goals: If you are positively linked with

the other person (TOP), then both of you sink or swim together; and if you

are negatively linked with each other, if TOP sinks, you swim, and viceversa.

(It is also possible that independence occurs, that is, the activities and

fates of the people involved do not affect one another. There is no conflict

with complete independence. When there is some form of interdependence,

conflict arises. Furthermore, the degree of interdependence may be asymmetrical.

When this happens, one has greater power and influence in the relationship

than the other). Actions taken: Effective actions improve one’s

chances of obtaining a goal, while bungling actions worsen one’s chances.

Deutsch’s theory combines interdependence and action to posit how

these forces affect three social psychological processes—substitutability, inducibility,

and attitudes. Substitutability: How one’s actions can satisfy

TOP’s intentions. Positive substitutability permits one to accept TOP’s activities

in fulfilling one’s needs, while negative substitutability involves active

rejection and effort to counteract the effect of TOP’s activities. Positive

inducibility is one’s readiness to accept TOP’s influence to do what TOP

wants, while negative inducibility is one’s readiness to reject or obstruct the

fulfillment of what TOP wants. Attitudes: These are favorable or unfavorable

predispositions to respond evaluative to aspects of one’s environment or

self. One cooperates when one has a positive attitude (we are for each other,

we benefit one another), while one competes when one has a negative attitude

(we are against one another, TOP is out to harm me).

This theory of cooperation and competition predicts what happens

when both parties are in different stages of dependent or independent relationships

and take effective or bungling actions, as it concentrates on different

aspects of interpersonal, intrapersonal, intragroup, and intergroup

processes. Deutsch theorizes that cooperative relations (where the goals of

both sides are positively interdependent for the most part) exhibit more of

these six characteristics: (1) Effective communication. (2) Friendliness,

helpfulness, and less obstructiveness. (3) Coordination of effort, division of

labor, orientation to task achievement, orderliness in discussion, and high

productivity. (4) High agreement with TOP’s ideas, a sense of basic similarity

in beliefs and attitudes, and confidence that TOP values one’s own ideas

in return. (5) Willingness to enhance TOP’s power. (6) Conflict viewed as a

mutual problem to be solved by collaborative effort. On the other hand,

competitive relationships are predicted to have the exact opposite effectspoor

communication, unfriendliness, no coordination, disagreement, jealousy

over power, and coercion instead of collaboration. The latter is a destructive

process with a zero-sum-game mentality on both sides.

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While Deutsch’s theory cannot serve as a cookbook recipe for a practitioner

in the field of resolving conflict through negotiation, it is a general intellectual

framework for understanding what occurs in different kinds of

conflict and how to intervene in them. The author feels that negotiators need

to understand this framework in order to optimize their negotiating success.

Some 51 years after developing his theory, Deutsch (2000) posed 21

questions pertinent to conflict. Two of those, numbers 16 and 21, are especially

pertinent to this paper:

Question 16 - Culture: How does the culture in which an individual

group is embedded affect how conflicts develop and are managed?

What problems are faced by negotiators from diverse cultural

backgrounds?

Question 21- Culture and conflict: Is conflict theory, largely

developed in Western culture, applicable elsewhere? Can it be

usefully applied in China, for example? What modifications, if any,

are necessary?

The main purpose of this and preceding papers in this series is to bridge

the cultural gap and help negotiators from different nations to understand

their foreign counterparts. Let us begin by learning more about the nation of

Thailand and its inhabitants. This is especially important to North American

negotiators, more so than to European negotiators. Many European nations

do business with Thai firms, using Thailand as their steppingstone to the rest

of southeast Asia, but nations in the western hemisphere do not use the Thailand

steppingstone to such an extent. Therefore, Europeans have had more

negotiating experience with Thai executives. As a result, many Thais feel

more comfortable negotiating with Europeans than with North American executives.

Therefore, the findings presented in this paper will probably be

more valuable to North Americans who do not know much about negotiating

with their Thai counterparts. Hopefully, the insights will make all readers of

this paper better negotiators when dealing with Thai business and government

executives. And, hopefully, the insights will help Thais learn more

about themselves. Therefore, the main thrust of this paper managerial as opposed

to theoretical.

Introduction to Thailand

Thais enjoy reminding foreigners (whom they call farangs) that Thailand

means “land of the free.” Its citizens are proud of the fact that the kingdom

has never been a colony of Western nations. However, citizens never discuss

the fact that Thailand has been occupied many times over the centuries by invaders

from Cambodia, Laos, Burma, and other parts of southeast Asia.

These frequent invasions have occurred in part because the nation’s geographic

location is strategic, at the crossroads of many different civilizations.

In fact, an early Thai king deliberately chose Bangkok as the nation’s capital

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because it was below sea level. If an invading army appeared to be successful,

the Thais planned to blow up the dikes and flood the city, thus making it

of no value to an invader.

Today, Thailand’s strategic location has positive and negative aspects.

On the positive side, most European flights to southeast Asia make their first

stopover in Bangkok, and so it has first access to the European tourist market.

Also, the nation is an ideal base for regional business distribution in a

dynamic part of the world. On the negative side, when its economy declines,

other nations are affected. For example, the so-called Asian economic flu began

in early May 1997 when the Thai currency, called the baht, was freed

from its rigid exchange controls, and fell dramatically. From there, the flu

spread throughout Asia and negatively affected economies as far away as

Australia and South America.

Geography, Climate, Population, Religion, Government, and Business

Geography

Thailand covers 513,000 square kilometers and is located in southeast Asia.

It borders on Malaysia, Burma (Myannmar), Cambodia (Kampuchea), and

Laos. It has a long seacoast. It is rich in natural resources. Its good climate

and favorable soil conditions have kept the nation quite dependent on agriculture

and forestry until the present day. These industries occupy about

two-thirds of the nation’s territory. Its main exports are rice, rubber, tobacco,

and peppers. Agriculture accounts for almost one-third of Thailand’s export

earnings.

Climate

Although it is a hot tropical nation, male Thai business executives seem to always

wear coats and ties. In Thailand, the better dressed one is, the higher

social and business position one has. Therefore, farangs should also dress

well. The business climate is very formal, even during the hottest time of the

year (March to May). The best time to schedule a visit to Thailand is between

November to March. Most business people take vacations during April and

May. It is best to avoid the one week in April when Thailand’s water festival

is held, because almost all businesses are closed. During this time, many

city-dwellers visit their home province. Another time to avoid is the period

just before and after Christmas.

Population

Most nations in southeast Asia have a rather high population growth rate, but

Thailand is changing. Most Thais are young because of the 3.1 percent population

growth rate in the 1980s. However, by the late 1990s, the growth rate

fell to 1.7%. Changing demographic patterns are bringing Thais closer to

their western counterparts in terms of such things as declining birth rate, increase

in life expectancy, etc. The nation’s population in 2000 was 50 mil-

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lion. All are supposed to speak Thai, but this is not entirely true. Actually,

Thai is the dialect of the Central Region of the nation, and although it is the

national language, Chinese speak Teo Chew, Muslims speak Malay, and hill

tribes speak various dialects. Therefore, speaking Thai does not guarantee

good communication. Many executives in the larger cities and resort areas

speak and understand English. Still, their level of English is not that good.

Therefore, one should always use a local agent for complex negotiations.

Besides the ethnic Thais, there are Malays, Chinese, Indians, and many

hill tribes, especially near the Laos and Cambodia borders. The Chinese are

the largest minority and are estimated to be 10 percent of the population.

They follow the pattern of all overseas Chinese - they are successful business

people and control a large percentage of the economy of the nations in which

they reside.

Religion

Although 95 percent of Thais practice Buddhism, many of them practice it

jointly with other beliefs. Buddhism is the greatest religious influence in Thai

society, and its values pervade in every part of a Thai’s daily activities, both

personal and business. Thais generally refrain from developing specific expectations

whenever possible, because fate and luck play a major role in all

events. Thais cannot plan too far ahead because they cannot predict, so they

live with a great deal of uncertainty.

Government

Thailand’s government is a constitutional monarchy, similar to that of the

UK. In fact, although Thais like to remind farangs that they have never been

occupied by a western nation, in actuality, Thailand relied heavily on British

help in the late 1800s to maintain its territorial integrity, and the British received

special business concessions in return. Therefore, some British traditions,

such as high tea and driving on the left, prevail in the kingdom. Since

there have been so many coup attempts and threats of invasion since the

middle 1800s, the government evolved from an absolute monarchy (such as

in some of today’s Middle Eastern nations) to a constitutional monarchy, in

which the King reigns but does not rule. Even so, the King heads every department

of the government and wields much power, even though he lacks a

legal mandate.

The executive powers rest in the hands of the Prime Minister and his

cabinet, and the legislative powers belong to the parliament (House of Representatives

and Senate). Foreign executives need to know that the Thai administration

is quite decentralized. There are 73 provinces (changwats),

which are subdivided into 670 districts (amphoes). A governor and district

officer heads each respectively. Governors should be cultivated, because they

have powers that enable them to allocate funds and make recommendations

for placement of provincial officers. Since the success of a business negotia-

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tion in Thailand depends so much on government approval, it is very important

to have the governors on your side.

Business

Free enterprise prevails in Thailand, with not much government interference.

A large share of Thailand’s population is self-employed. So there are many

entrepreneurs involved in small businesses. The environment is attractive to

foreign investment. However, there are many large corporations as well. The

largest Thai firms have often diversified locally and abroad. Chinese families

are key players, and so are foreign and government investors. As in many

Southeast Asian nations, many Thai business executives are Chinese. However,

Ethnic Thais predominate in the government.

Titles are very important to Thais, and so farangs will impress them by

including more than one title on business cards. (It is preferable to have one

side in English and the other side in Thai.) Thai names are generally quite

long. Since the adoption of surnames in the 1920s, ethnic Thais generally

have two names - the first name is the given name, the second name is the

surname. When writing to them, use Khun as the title, followed by the first

name. Never use the surname. Since the first name is usually shorter than the

surname, this makes it easier for a farang to communicate.

Thais have a strong sense of hierarchy in business and in family matters.

Decision-making revolves around the hierarchical centralized nature of

authority and the dependence of the inferior upon the superior. Thus, the

typical supervisor is authoritarian, and he or she makes the decision autonomously.

Since Thais are generally unassertive, the inferior unquestioningly

obeys. A benevolent superior and respectful inferior is the Thai ideal.

Decision-making rests exclusively with top officials of firms, and delegation

is rare. Top officials do not expect challenging ideas and initiation from subordinates.

Management is autocratic and paternalistic. Therefore, very few

Thai workers can imagine themselves moving up the ladder of success. They

see themselves as generous, tolerant, and contented people, lacking in

worldly ambition. They seem to be unhappy about entering into situations of

direct competition. Please remember that because of the Thai deference to

rank and authority, all requests and correspondence must pass through many

layers before reaching top management. This means farang negotiators

should be flexible and patient in their negotiations with Thais. Farangs

should allow sufficient time to reach their goals. Finally, please remember

that because of Thais’ strong sense of hierarchy, you need to appoint only

one expatriate manager to serve as your spokesman (men are preferred to females)

in Thailand. This person must not serve only a public relations rolethis

person should be the top manager who actually is in charge of the business

enterprise. Having several people in charge of important functions only

confuse Thais.

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Thais are hard workers. Many people work long hours in that nation in

order to earn as much money as possible. The more money one has, the

higher one’s status. Quite often, Thais will ask for bribes. Money does not always

go to the top person in an organization. A junior employee who holds

an important role and has the chairman’s ear is an important person to cultivate,

and quite often this person will ask for bribes. The act of accepting

bribes in the Thai language is referred to as “eating,” and everybody has to

eat. Gifts, of course, are perceived differently than bribes. Bribes are always

in cash, while gifts are not. Some generally-accepted principles concerning

gifts include: Never open a gift in the presence of the giver. When invited for

a meal, bring flowers, cakes, or fruit. However, do not bring carnations, as

they are associated with funerals. Other acceptable gifts include women’s

cosmetics, perfume, brandy, neckties, tie clips, cigarettes, illustrated books

from your nation, dolls in native dress, and stationery.

The Social-Cultural Environment

The extended family is the basic social unit, and often the village and the wat

(temple) are also considered part of this basic social unit. The king is the primary

provider of social cohesiveness. Thais are a pleasant and tolerant people.

European travelers in the 19th century described Thais as respectful,

mild-mannered, hospitable, and fun-loving. Since then, little has changed.

Dealing with Thais can be a wonderful experience. In any given circumstance,

Thais strive to keep their moods at bay and refrain from displaying

emotions. Farangs should never lose control of their emotions, and they

should not be overly assertive. This is considered poor manners. Because

Thais avoid confrontation at all costs, they will usually try not to say “no.”

(This is similar to the Japanese negotiating style.) Instead of saying “no,”

they often make implausible excuses or pretend they do not understand English.

They may tell you they must check with higher authorities, even when

such precedent does not exist. Likewise, Thais find it difficult to accept a direct

negative answer from you. So when you have to say “no,” say it indirectly

whenever possible.

The national airline and the Thai Tourist Promotion Board have long

called Thailand the “land of smiles.” While anecdotal evidence suggests Filipinos

have the brightest smiles in southeast Asia, Thais are very likable people.

They use their smile as a communication device to convey both positive

and negative messages, and so this can confuse a farang. For example, Thais

will smile when they play down embarrassing situations, present requests,

turn down requests, etc. Asoft-spoken people, they dislike impulsiveness and

displays of anger, and so frank arguments are often counterproductive, since

they embarrass Thais. They are quite polite and expect you to be polite in return.

Because of their gentle demeanor and smiling countenances, Thais are

generally well-liked by other Asian nationalities, as Hendon (1999a) re-

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ported. Primary data was gathered in seminars given by the author to 2,648

business executives in seven Asian nations during the time period 1979-

1998. The seven nations are: Hong Kong (N = 216, all Chinese), Indonesia

(471, all Indonesians, no Chinese), Malaysia (349, all Chinese), Philippines

(903, all Filipinos), Singapore (160, all Chinese), Taiwan (395, all Chinese),

and Thailand (154, all Thai.) (Expatriates were excluded when constructing

these tables. On the average, expatriates make up about 5 percent of the audience

in most of the author’s seminars). Respondents were asked how much

they liked, trusted, and respected/admired 15 ethnic groups: Chinese in

China, Chinese in Hong Kong, Chinese in Malaysia, Chinese in Singapore,

Chinese in Taiwan, Indians in India, Indians in Malaysia, Indians in Singapore,

Indonesians, Japanese, South Koreans, Malays in Malaysia, Malays in

Singapore, Filipinos, and Thais. While Thais were liked the most, they

ranked fifth in being trusted and seventh in being respected/admired.

It is important to note that enjoying life is the major goal of many

Thais. Jobs should have some element of fun, and so Thais generally do not

like jobs that are difficult, monotonous, or high-pressured. On the other

hand, almost all Thais are Buddhist. Buddhism’s major tenet is that all life is

suffering. This contradicts the modern Thai’s view of life-life should be fun,

and people should enjoy it to the fullest extent. Furthermore, Thais’ attitude

toward spirits is very similar to their attitude toward people. Some spirits can

be trusted and respected, but others cannot and must be feared. So the best

way of dealing with an unfamiliar spirit is exactly the same way they deal

with an unfamiliar farang.

Negotiating with Thai Executives: Body Language, Entertainment Protocol,

and Manner of Dress

Body Language

Negotiating is both a social and business function in Thailand. To function

effectively, then, the farang must know more than social do’s and don’ts. For

example, Thais will show the “wai” sign often. This involves placing the

hands together in what westerners may interpret as a prayer-like gesture,

with the tips of the fingers under the chin. Similar to the Japanese practice of

bowing and the Indian practice of “namaste,” farangs should also offer the

“wai” sign in return, and they should initiate the “wai” sign when meeting

Thais who are older and/or who hold higher positions (business, social, etc.).

Other important information about body language includes the smile,

the head, the feet, the hands, pointing, and the eyes. The smile is a used to

thank somebody, but it also serves as an excuse of an intended inconvenience.

One should smile back, which indicates to the Thai that you are granting

a pardon for the inconvenience. It is also used to shield Thais from

embarrassment as well as a show of amusement that does not involve ridicule.

However, if a Thai begins laughing for no apparent reason in a business

meeting, the farang should change the subject. The Thai is embarrassed.

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Most farangs have heard that one should never touch the top of a Thai’s

head nor show the soles of the foot to a Thai. This is because Thais believe

that the top of the head is inhabited by the “spirit essence,” connected to

heaven by a “silver cord.” While the most important spirit inhabits the top of

the head, the least important and most dirty spirit inhabits the feet. So never

point your feet toward a person, nor should you cross your legs in front of an

older person. It is appropriate to cross your legs at the ankles, but not so that

one leg rests on the opposite knee.

Farangs should try to keep their hands hanging down inoffensively by

their sides. They should never be used to slap a person on the back. A polite

touch at the elbow is usually done to draw attention. Quite often, however, a

male Thai will take the hand of another and hold it. It is not a sign of homosexuality,

but rather a sign of friendship and helpfulness. On the other hand,

public displays of affection between men and women are not condoned.

Never wave your hands about in an attempt to make yourself understood,

for such action will create confusion and often will be interpreted as

anger. To get attention, beckon with the palm down, moving your fingers inward

in a sweeping manner. Never call somebody using the index finger with

the palm up. This insinuates that the person to whom you are beckoning is a

dog. Pointing with a finger, while less offensive than pointing with a foot, is

acceptable only for objects and not for people, even those of inferior rank.

Farangs will note that Thais seem to hold eye contact longer than most

westerners do. Thais use their eyes and eyebrows often in their daily communication.

While farangs should not fear prolonged eye contact, Thais will become

offended if they think you are staring at them.

Entertainment protocol

Thai negotiators expect to entertain you and to be entertained by you in return.

In fact, quite often your initial meeting with your Thai negotiating counterparts

may be over lunch or drinks, so that they can get to know you.

However, do not expect to discuss business over lunch. To entertain a small

group, it is best to take them to a western restaurant in a five-star hotel. Arrange

a buffet supper for a large group. Unlike in the Middle East, always include

Thai wives in your invitation. Expect to eat with western-style forks

and spoons - but not often with knives. It is quite important to keep the fork

in the left hand and the spoon in the right hand. (Reverse the process if you

are left-handed.) Cut with the side of the spoon, not with the fork. Use the

fork to push food into the spoon. Never take the last bit of food in a serving

dish. Wait until it is offered to you and then refuse politely the first time.

When it is offered again, accept it. It is considered an honor to have the last

bit of food. Drink tea or beer with your meals. Drink water only if you have

seen it being poured from a glass of mineral water. Although many Thais

smoke after dinner, do not be the first one to light your cigarette. Always pass

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cigarettes around to the men at the table. Although traditional Thai women

do not smoke or drink in public, it is acceptable for western women to do so.

Manner of dress in a negotiating setting

As stated above, Thai business and government executives are very formal in

their dress. The better dressed one is, the more successful one is - that is how

Thais think. For business functions, farang men should wear lightweight

suits with white shirts and ties. Slacks and jackets are not as acceptable.

Farang women should not wear black dresses, however, for Thais reserve

this color for funerals or mourning. However, black is acceptable to wear at

formal events if it is accented with other colors.

Favorite Negotiating Tactics Used by Thai Business and Government

Executives

Before discussing these tactics, please note that this part of the paper is based

on information gathered at seminars given by the author. The seven advantages

outweigh the four limitations. Advantage seven is the most important

one.

Seven advantages of gathering data from seminar participants

(1) High quality of the sample. For the most part, seminar participants

are successful executives who are prime prospects for promotion.

Demographically, their ages range from the late 20s to the very

early 40s. Most have a bachelor’s degree. Although their prior

level of knowledge of the subject matter of the seminar varies, most

seem to be very interested in the subject matter of the seminar,

especially when they have to make a report to their boss afterward.

(2) A sample of business executives, not students.

(3) Pre-selection. The executives pre-select themselves, based on the

topic of the seminar and so are already interested in and probably

involved in the topic.

(4) High response rate. The response rate is usually 100 percent if the

seminar participants have to turn in written responses personally to

the instructor. However, if data is gathered by counting raised

hands, about 20 percent of the participants usually do not raise their

hands.

(5) Seminar audiences can be compared by geographic region.

Cross-cultural studies result.

(6) Seminar audiences can be compared over time to observe changes

in managerial styles as the years go by.

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(7) Data gathered at seminars is often more accurate than data gathered

by traditional survey research methods because of a built-in

consultant-client relationship between the speaker and the audience.

This is a matter of trust. Hendon (2000) performed this experiment:

His MBA students surveyed 96 brand managers in a large Asian

metropolitan area. In these one-on-one personal interviews, each

respondent had to determine where his/her brand was located on the

product life cycle (PLC), using a 30-point scale. Afterward,

Hendon visited and interviewed each of the 96 brand managers over

a period of six months in 1998 and 1999. The follow-up in-depth

interviews revealed that almost all brand managers (79 of 96, or

82.2 percent) lied about their location on the PLC because they did

not trust the original interviewers to keep the information

confidential. All 79 told Hendon they would not lie if the

questionnaire was given to them in a seminar, because they were

then acting out the role of a client to the seminar leader’s role of a

consultant. Trust usually occurs in a seminar but often does not

occur in traditional surveys.

Four disadvantages of gathering data from seminar participants

(1) Only a very limited amount of information can be obtained at a

seminar because participants attend expensive seminars to learn, not

to become part of a research study. They will tolerate data

gathering under these four circumstances: (a) Data gathering should

be part of a learning experience. For example, when sales managers

are asked what percentage of their total time they estimate they

spend performing five different job activities, they should be told

that the results will be tabulated and placed on the whiteboard and

compared to percentages revealed by different groups of sales

managers in other parts of the nation or world (or at different time

periods). ( Exercises designed to reveal to participants something

about themselves they did not already know are best. © Exercises

should take a very short time to complete. (d) The results of the

entire audience should be revealed to them within a very short time

after the exercise has been completed.

(2) It is difficult to read many people’s handwriting at times, especially

numbers.

(3) The sample sizes at most seminars are rather small, and so it is

difficult to get statistically significant results. However, when the

results of several seminars are aggregated, this problem is resolved.

(4) Demographic breakdowns are extremely difficult to obtain,

especially if hand-counting is the methodology employed.

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Hendon (2000) discusses in depth these advantages and limitations of

collecting primary data at seminars and offers 11 suggestions on how to collect

primary data at seminars.

Data gathered during 15 seminars in Thailand

During the period 1981-1989, the author gave 15 seminars in Thailand. During

several of these seminars, the participants mastered a list of 186 specific

negotiating tactics he had developed over the years. Hiam (1990) and Kotler

(1997) list some of them. Toward the end of the seminars, he gave them 11

specific negotiating situations and learned their favorite tactics for each of

these situations. He grouped these tactics into five overall strategic areas:

assertive, defensive, cooperative, accommodation, and dirty tricks. Using

Deutsch’s framework given at the beginning of this paper, both assertive and

defensive strategies exhibit more of the characteristics of competition, not

cooperation. Cooperative tactics, of course, exhibit most of the characteristics

of Deutsch’s cooperative ideal. Dirty tricks are extremely destructive,

while accommodation occurs when one sacrifices something extremely important

in order to achieve other goals in the process of resolving conflict by

negotiation.

While the author has given more than 600 seminars in 33 nations on six

continents, mostly outside the USA during his summer holiday periods with

a cumulative size of approximately 12,000 executives, he has only 154 in his

Thai sample. See Hendon and Hendon (1991) for an in-depth discussion

about how data on negotiating has been collected. The situations are: (1)

Seller: Get buyer to pay more. (2) Buyer: Get seller to lower the price. (3)

Ask the boss for a raise. (4) Ask the boss for a promotion. (5) Ask the boss to

change already-scheduled vacation date at the last minute. (6) Dealing with a

hostile attorney. (7) Buy a house. (8) Sell your car. (9) Get out of paying a

traffic ticket. (10) Get your children to pick up their clothes. (11) Sexual favors

(from a friend, not a prostitute). Situations (3), (4), and (5) were discussed

elsewhere (Hendon and Hendon, 1997). Furthermore, since tactics (7)

through (11) do not deal with business negotiations, only findings from situations

(1) and (2) are presented here. Tactics (3) through (11) were presented

at the 1999 Cross Cultural Research Conference. (Hendon, 1999b)

Seller: Get buyer to pay more (Thailand)

General strategy:

38.5% assertive

31.7% defensive

10.6% accommodation

10.6% dirty tricks

8.7% cooperative

Specific tactics: These 13 favorite tactics accounted for 48.6% of all

tactics picked. (43 others were also picked.) In descending order, they are:

Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics 52

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6.7% Turn tables on buyer

5.7% Big pot (asking for much more than you expect to get)

4.8% Funny money (using percentages or unit numbers instead of total

dollars or baht)

3.8% Let us look at the record

3.8% Do not give in

3.8% Be patient

2.9% Take it or leave it

2.9% Remind the other person (TOP) of competition

2.9% Shill: Inventory is in short supply and subject to prior orders

2.9% Two-step fall-back

2.9% High-balling (making unreasonably attractive first offer so that buyer

will not deal with any other vendor)

2.9% Limited authority

2.9% Whipsaw-auction

Buyer: Get seller to lower the price (Thailand)

General strategy:

43.0% defensive

32.7% assertive

16.8% dirty tricks

4.7% cooperative

2.8% accommodation

Specific tactics: These 13 favorite tactics accounted for 53.7% of all

tactics picked. (38 others were also picked.) In descending order, they are:

11.1% Remind TOP of competition

7.4% Big pot

4.6% Take it or leave it

4.6% Limited authority

3.7% Faking

2.8% Keep the pressure on TOP

2.8% Destroy a straw man

2.8% Doomsday

2.8% Funny money

2.8% My well is dry

2.8% Low-balling

2.8% Lying with statistics

2.8% Whipsaw-auction

What can a farang do with this list? Fore-warned is fore-armed. It is

highly probable that Thai negotiators will use these specific tactics when they

negotiate with farangs and with other Thais. Anticipate the use of these tactics

and develop countermeasures in advance to use when your Thai counterparts

use them. Specific countermeasures which executives have found to be

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valuable to use in response to these tactics can be found in Hendon and Hendon

(1989).

However, please look at the “big picture” - the overall strategies usednot

just the individual tactics preferred. First note that Thai sellers are generally

aggressive, while Thai buyers are generally defensive. On the other

hand, for example, Americans sellers and buyers are equally aggressive, as

you see here:

Seller: Get buyer to pay more (U.S.A.)

46.6% assertive

30.2% defensive

10.7% cooperative

7.9% accommodation

4.6% dirty tricks

Buyer: Get Seller to Lower the Price (U.S.A.)

46.3% assertive

33.3% defensive

8.0% cooperative

6.2% accommodation

6.1% dirty tricks

Thai sellers are significantly less aggressive than American sellers (p =

.05), but there was no significant difference between American and Thai

buyers. Note also that Thai sellers use dirty tricks 10.6% of the time, while

Thai buyers use them 16.8% of the time. The author has given this “favorite

tactics used in 11 situation” exercise in 26 nations, and only Indonesians,

Filipinos, and Malaysians use dirty tricks more often than Thais. Australians,

Kiwis, and Canadians use dirty tricks the least. Both Thai sellers and buyers

use a significantly greater amount of dirty tricks than do American sellers

and buyers (p = .05). And while Thai buyers are significantly less accommodating

and cooperative than American buyers (p = .05), there is no significant

difference between American and Thai sellers in their choice of

accommodation and cooperative tactics. Neither was there a significant difference

between Americans and Thais in defensive tactics (both sellers and

buyers).

Exhibit 1 compares the strategies used by sellers to get buyers to pay

more in Thailand, the United States, and seven more nations in the Asia-

Pacific region-Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines,

Australia, and New Zealand. Exhibit 2 compares the strategies used by buyers

to get sellers to lower their prices in these same nine nations. Future

articles will present hypotheses which would account for similarities and differences

among these nine nations and several other nations. (For example,

patterns in New Zealand and Uruguay are quite similar, while patterns in the

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United States and Brazil are also quite similar. Looking at the two exhibits,

an important finding is that buyers use dirty tricks more than sellers in Hong

Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the United States, while sellers

use dirty tricks more than buyers in the Philippines, Thailand, and Australia.

Kiwi sellers and buyers use dirty tricks very seldom.)

Conclusion and Future Research

This is the latest in a series of articles in proceedings of academic conferences

by the author on how foreigners can negotiate with executives in different

nations. Nations previously written about include Australia, Canada

(abstract only), China (People’s Republic), Indonesia, Korea (South), Malay-

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Exhibit 1: Favorite strategies used by sellers to get buyers to pay more in nine nations (%) _____________

Strat-

egy

Hong

Kong

Singa-

pore

Malay-

sia

Indo-

nesia

Philip-

pines

Thai-

land

Aust-

ralia

New

Zealand

United

States

Assert-

ive

38.6 55.2 43.7 43.1 48.9 38.5 53.7 39.7 46.6

Defens-

ive

44.3 25.8 28.2 27.0 37.8 31.7 26.9 35.6 30.2

Cooper-

ative

5.7 11.0 12.6 12.4 5.6 8.7 8.2 19.2 10.7

Accom-

modate

7.1 4.3 7.8 8.8 2.2 10.6 5.2 2.7 7.9

Dirty

Tricks

4.3 3.7 7.8 8.8 5.6 10.6 6.0 2.7 4.6

Exhibit 2: Favorite strategies used by buyers to get sellers to lower their price in nine nations

(%)

Strat-

egy

Hong

Kong

Singa-

pore

Malay-

sia

Indo-

nesia

Philip-

pines

Thai-

land

Aust-

ralia

New

Zealand

United

States

Assert-

ive

38.0 57.4 41.6 46.4 38.5 43.0 50.0 38.4 46.3

Defens-

ive

42.3 25.9 29.7 26.1 49.4 32.7 29.0 41.1 33.3

Cooper-

ative

4.2 3.7 8.9 8.0 5.5 16.8 11.6 11.0 8.0

Accom-

modate

7.0 4.9 5.9 3.6 4.4 4.7 8.0 8.2 6.2

Dirty

Tricks

8.5 8.0 13.9 15.9 2.2 2.8 1.4 1.4 6.1

sia, New Zealand (abstract only), Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, and

Taiwan. The author has also written articles comparing nations (Australia

and New Zealand, Brazil-Chile-Uruguay, Indonesia-Malaysia-Singapore,

and Thailand-UK-USA). The Thailand-UK-USA article was about subordinates

negotiating with supervisors only. He presented articles about Hong

Kong and Japan at academic conferences with no proceedings, while his article

about Germany appeared in a book. He has also written two articles on

how executives in 12 nations make price concessions while negotiating, as

well as two books on international negotiating. (These were published in

eight nations.) Five general articles about negotiation appeared in academic

journals, while six general articles appeared in trade journals. Exhibits 3, 4,

and 5 present this bibliography.

Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics 56

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APJML 57

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Exhibit 3: Bibliography of articles in academic journals on international negotiating by

author, using the methodology of gathering data during seminars

1 Thailand: Hendon, Donald W. (1999b), “How to Negotiate with Thai Executives,” pre-

sented at 7th Cross Cultural Research Conference, organized by Association for Consumer

Research and American Psychological Association (Section 23), December 12-15, 1999,

Cancun, Yucatan, Mexico. Paper available on CD-ROM only.

2 South Korea: Hendon, Donald W. (1999a), “How to Negotiate with South Korean Ex-

ecutives,” in Luis Maria R. Calingo, Erdener Kaynak, Harvey Arbelaez, Victor V. Cordell,

and Gary N. McLean, Global Business in the Age of Technology: Proceedings of Eighth

World Business Congress. Monterey, California: Monterey Institute of International Stud-

ies and International Management Development Association, pp. 168-176.

3 United States, United Kingdom, and Thailand: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca An-

geles Hendon, (1997), “How Business Executives Negotiate with Their Bosses for Raises,

Promotions, and Changing Already-Scheduled Holiday (Vacation) Dates: USA, UK, and

Thailand,” in Mohamed Sulaiman, Daing Nasir Ibrahim, Zainal Ariffin Ahmad, and

Mohd. Shafie Ariffin, editors, Toward Management Excellence in the 21st Century Asia:

Proceedings of the Second Asian Academy of Management Conference, December 12-13,

1997, Langkawi, Malaysia. Penang: Universiti Sains Malaysia, pp. 305-309.

4 Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon,

“How to Negotiate with Business Executives in Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia,” in

Kip Becker and Dana-Nicoleta Lascu, editors, The Structure and Process of Globalization

in Business and Education: Proceedings of the International Management Development

Association (IMDA), November 8-11, 1995, Hyatt Orlando, Orlando, Florida (Hummel-

stown, Pennsylvania: IMDA, 1995), pp. 125-134

5 Indonesia: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with Indo-

nesian Business Executives,” in Chang-Soo Kim, editor, Proceedings of the Asian Busi-

ness and Economics Conference: Asian Focus on Business, Economics, and Education in

the Global Environment (New York: St. John’s University, 1994), pp. 69-76

6 Mexico: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with Mexican

Business Executives,” in Facing North/Facing South Conference on NAFTA (East Lans-

ing: Michigan State University, May, 1994). (Abstract only)

7 South Africa: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with

South African Business Executives,” in Erdener Kaynak, editor, Proceedings (Penang,

Malaysia: International Management Development Association, 1994), pp. 233-243

8 Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How Busi-

ness Executives in Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay Negotiate,” in Gerald Albaum, editor,

Fourth Symposium on Cross-Cultural and Business Studies (Honolulu: Society for Con-

sumer Psychology of American Psychological Association, Association for Consumer Re-

search, and Pacific Basin Region of Academy of International Business, 1993)

9 New Zealand: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with

New Zealand Business Executives," in Thomas Irby Kindel, editor, Association for Global

Business: Proceedings of the 1992 Conference, New Orleans, November 5-7, 1992

(Charleston, South Carolina: Center for International and Regional Development, The

Citadel, 1992), p. 409. (Abstract only)

10 Taiwan-R.O.C.: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with

Taiwan-R.O.C. Business Executives,” in Proceedings: Fifth International Conference on

Comparative Management, June 7-9, 1992, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Republic of China (Kaoh-

siung: College of Management, National Sun Yat-Sen University, 1992), pp. 127-131

Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics 58

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Exhibit 3: Bibliography of articles in academic journals on international negotiating by

author, using the methodology of gathering data during seminars (continued)

11 Australia: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with Aus-

tralian Business Executives,” in Khosrow Fatemi, editor, International Trade and Fi-

nance in a Rapidly Changing Environment, Volume 4 (Laredo, Texas: Laredo State

University and International Trade and Finance Association), pp. 1087-1101

12 Singapore: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with Sin-

gaporean Business Executives,” in S. Kerry Cooper, editor, Southwest Review of Inter-

national Business Research: Proceedings of the 1992 Academy of International

Business, Southwest Regional Meeting, March 4-7, 1992, San Antonio, Texas (College

Station: Texas A&M University, 1992), pp. 85-91

13 Malaysia: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with Ma-

laysian Business Executives,” in S. Kerry Cooper, editor, Southwest Review of Interna-

tional Business Research: Proceedings of the 1992 Academy of International Business,

Southwest Regional Meeting, march 4-7, 1992, San Antonio, Texas (College Station:

Texas A&M University, 1992), pp. 205-211

14 China-P.R.C.: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with

the People’s Republic of China,” in La Gerencia para el Desarrollo: Talleres de Tra-

bajo, Ponencias, XXVI Asemblea de CLADEA, Lima, 23-26 de Septiembre de 1991

(Lima, Peru: ESAN-Escuela de Administracion de Negocios para Graduados, y

CLADEA-Consejo Latinoamericano de Escuelas de Adminstracion), pp. 751-767

15 Saudi Arabia: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with

Saudi Arabian Business Executives,” in John Thanopoulos, editor, Southwestern Review

of International Business Research: Proceedings of the 1991 Academy of International

Business Southwest Regional Meeting, March 13-16, 1991, Houston, Texas (Akron,

Ohio: University of Akron, 1991), pp. 139-147

16 Japan: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “The Japanese Negotiating

Style,” Association of Japanese Business Conference, sponsored by Japanese-American

Institute of Management Studies and University of Hawaii. Special invitation to appear

on panel, “International Business Negotiation: Give and Take in a Cross-Cultural Set-

ting.” Presented at Honolulu conference, January 5, 1991. (No Proceedings)

17 Canada: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with Cana-

dian Buyers and Sellers: Speculations in the Light of the Trade Pact Between Canada

and the United States,” in John Thanopoulos, editor, Southwest Review of International

Business Research: Proceedings of the 1990 Academy of International Business South-

west Regional Meeting, February 28-March 3, 1990 (Akron Ohio: University of Akron,

1990), p. 261. (Abstract only)

18 Hong Kong: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with

Hong Kong Business Executives,” Association for Global Business. Presented at Or-

lando, Florida, conference, November 9, 1990. (No Proceedings)

19 Australia and New Zealand: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How

Australian and New Zealand Business Executives Negotiate,” in Sang M. Lee, Robert J.

Coombes, and Kenneth J. Doyle, editors, 1989 Papers and Proceedings of the Pan-

Pacific Conference VI: A Business, Economic, and Technological Exchange (Sydney,

Australia: Pan-Pacific Business Association and Kuring-gai College of Advanced Edu-

cation, 1989), pp. 377-379

20 Several nations: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “Price Concession Pat-

terns in 12 Nations on 4 Continents,” in Robert L. King, editor, Marketing in an Envi-

ronment of Change: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Southern Marketing

Association, Atlanta, Georgia, November 12-15, 1986 (Charleston, South Carolina: The

Citadel), pp. 148-151

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Exhibit 3: Bibliography of articles in academic journals on international negotiating by

author, using the methodology of gathering data during seminars (continued)

21 Several nations: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How Negotiators in 12

Nations Make Concessions,” in Chin Tiong Tan, William Lazer, and V. H. Kirpalani, edi-

tors, Emerging International Strategic Frontiers (Chicago: International Marketing Asso-

ciation, 1987), pp. 178-182

22 General: Hendon, Donald W., “Eight Characteristics of the Skillful International Nego-

tiator: An Ideal Toward Which to Aspire,” in Robert D. Goddard, III, editor, Proceedings

of the 1999 Conference of the Association for Global Business, Volume 11 (Boone, North

Carolina: Association for Global Business and Appalachian State University, 1999), p.

386 (Abstract only)

23 General: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with Foreign-

ers,” in David H. Hold, Mee Kau Nyaw, Carolyn R. Dexter, and John N. Yanouzas, edi-

tors, Managing in a Global Economy III: Proceedings of the Third International

Conference (Hong Kong: Eastern Academy of Management and Chinese University of

Hong Kong, 1989), pp. 131-133

24 General: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “Negotiating and Marketing,” in

Thomas D. Jensen, editor, 1986 Proceedings: Southwestern Marketing Association Con-

ference (Fayetteville: Southwestern Marketing Association and University of Arkansas,

March 1986), pp. 164-168

25 General: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “A Brief Survey of International

Negotiating Styles,” in Charles F. Keown and Arch J. Woodside, editors, Comparative

Consumer Psychology: Proceedings of the 1984 Conference, Division 23, Consumer Psy-

chology, American Psychological association, December 19-23, 1984 (Honolulu: Ameri-

can Psychological Association and University of Hawaii, 1984), pp. 64-67

26 General: Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “A Brief Survey of International

Negotiating Styles,” in Duane Kujawa and Tan Chin Tiong, editors, Proceedings of the

Academy of International Business International Meeting in Singapore, June 14-16, 1984

(Singapore: Academy of International Business and National University of Singapore,

1984), pp. 1035-1047

27 Negotiating in a specific industry: Hendon, Donald W., “How to Negotiate with a Book

Publisher,” in John C. Crawford and James R. Lumpkin, editors, 1983 Proceedings:

Southwestern Marketing Association Conference (Denton: Southwestern Marketing As-

sociation and North Texas State University, March 1983), pp. 101-104

Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics 60

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Exhibit 4: Bibliography of articles in trade journals on international negotiating by

author, using the methodology of gathering data during seminars

1 General: Hendon, Donald W., “Negotiating Tactics of Overseas Chinese,” New Straits

Times (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: August 6, 1997), Appointments Section, p. 12

2 General: Hendon, Donald W., “The Great Professor’s Business Negotiating Tech-

niques,” Strategic Productivity (Taipei: China Productivity Center, September 1993, no.

415), pp. 23-30. (Chinese language only)

3 General: Hendon, Donald W., “How to Negotiate with Foreigners,” PODfolio (Singa-

pore: POD Group of Companies, Second Quarter, 1993), pp. 25-28

4 General: Hendon, Donald W., “Managing Across Cultures: Negotiating Price with

Asian Executives,” World Executive’s Digest, vol. 10, no. 3 (Manila and Hong Kong:

March 1989), pp. 56-57

5 General: Hendon, Donald W. “Negotiating to Win,” Hong Kong Productivity News,

vol. 8, no. 2 (August 1985), pp. 11-13

6 General: Hendon, Donald W., “Twenty-Five Ways to Make Anyone See It Your Way,”

Sales and Marketing Management, vol. 131, no. 4 (September 12, 1983), pp. 72, 74, 76

Exhibit 5: Bibliography of books on international negotiating by author, using the meth-

odology of gathering data during seminars

1 General plus Germany, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Hong Kong-China, Indonesia,

Philippines: Hendon, Donald W., Rebecca A. Hendon, and Paul Herbig, Cross-

Cultural Business Negotiations (Westport, Connecticut: Quorum Books, 1996), 257

pages. 6 specific chapters on how to negotiate with executives in Germany, Saudi Ara-

bia, Australia, Hong Kong/China, Indonesia, and Philippines

2 General plus USA, Canada, Hong Kong, Taiwan-R.O.C., Singapore, Malaysia, In-

donesia, Philippines, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa: Hendon, Donald W.,

Rebecca A. Hendon, and Paul Herbig, How to Negotiate Worldwide: A Practical Hand-

book (London: Gower Publishing, 1989 hard cover, 1996 soft cover), 270 pages. Ap-

pendix gives favorite business negotiating tactics in these 11 nations. Gower licensed

the book for publication in the following 6 nations-USA, Norway, Italy, Taiwan-R.O.C.,

Indonesia, Sweden, and Mexico

3 World Class Negotiating: Dealmaking in the Global Marketplace (New York: John

Wiley & Sons, 1990), 270 pages

4 Internasionale Forhandlinger: Kulturforstaelse for Ledere (Oslo, Norway: Dagens

Naeringsliv Forlag, 1990), 258 pages. (Name of publisher changed in 1992 to Univer-

siteforlaget)

5 L’Arte di Negoziare in Qualsiasi Paese del Mondo: Guida Pratica (Milan, Italy:

Franco Angelli, 1991), 296 pages

6 Zong Heng Tian Sia: Kua Guo Sang Tan (Taipei, Taiwan: Commonwealth Publishing,

1992), 307 pages

7 Negosiasi Berskala Global (Jakarta, Indonesia: Binarupa Aksara, 1993), 267 pages

8 Lar Dig Forhandla Over Hela Varlden Nen Handbok (Malmo, Sweden: Richters Forlag

AB, 1996), 294 pages

9 Spanish-language version to be published shortly by Editorial Limusa Noriega, Mexico

City

References

Deutsch, Morton, “Cooperation and Competition,” in Morton Deutsch and

Peter T. Coleman, editors, The Handbook of Conflict Resolution: Theory and

Practice (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2000), pp. 7-9, 31

Deutsch, Morton, “An Experimental Study of the Effects of Cooperation and

Competition Upon Group Processes,” Human Relations, vol. 2 (1949), pp.

199-321; Morton Deutsch, “A Theory of Cooperation and Competition,” Human

Relations, vol. 2 (1949), pp. 129-151

Hiam, Alexander (1990), The Vest-Pocket CEO: Decision-Making Tools for

Executives, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, pp. 448-450.

(Chapter is entitled “Hendon’s Negotiating Tactics.”)

Hendon, Donald W., “Data Gathering During Seminars from Participants: A

Valid Alternative Survey Research Method,” in Dawn R. Deeter-Schmelz

and Timothy P. Hartman, eds., Marketing Advances in the New Millennium

(Athens, Ohio: Society for Marketing Advances), pp. 158-162. Presented at

Orlando, Florida, conference in November 2000.

Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca Angeles Hendon, (1997), “How Business

Executives Negotiate with Their Bosses for Raises, Promotions, and Changing

Already-Scheduled Holiday (Vacation) Dates: USA, UK, and Thailand,”

in Mohamed Sulaiman, Daing Nasir Ibrahim, Zainal Ariffin Ahmad, and

Mohd. Shafie Ariffin, editors, Toward Management Excellence in the 21st

Century Asia: Proceedings of the Second Asian Academy of Management

Conference, December 12-13, 1997, Langkawi, Malaysia. Penang: Universiti

Sains Malaysia, pp. 305-309.

Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca A. Hendon, “How to Negotiate with Foreigners,”

in David H. Hold, Mee Kau Nyaw, Carolyn R. Dexter, and John N.

Yanouzas, editors, Managing in a Global Economy III: Proceedings of the

Third International Conference (Hong Kong: Eastern Academy of Management

and Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1989), pp. 131-133

Hendon, Donald W. (1999a), “How to Negotiate with South Korean Executives,”

in Luis Maria R. Calingo, Erdener Kaynak, Harvey Arbelaez, Victor

V. Cordell, and Gary N. McLean, Global Business in the Age of Technology:

Proceedings of Eighth World Business Congress. Monterey, California: Monterey

Institute of International Studies and International Management Development

Association, pp. 168-176.

Hendon, Donald W. (1999b), “How to Negotiate with Thai Executives,” presented

at 7th Cross Cultural Research Conference, organized by Association

for Consumer Research and American Psychological Association (Section

23), December 12-15, 1999, Cancun, Yucatan, Mexico. Paper available on

CD-ROM only.

APJML 61

__________________________________________________________________________

How to

Negotiate with

Thai

Executives

_____________

Hendon, Donald W., and Rebecca Angeles Hendon, (1989), How to Negotiate

Worldwide: A Practical Handbook London: Gower Publishing.

Hendon, Donald W., an

[Tippaporn]

Actually, quite good, Thaipwriter. I'm not asleep yet. Where did you dig this up, BTW?

[CymruAmByth]

Many thanks guys. Some good stuff there, most appreciated.

Of course...another thing I could do - and am contemplating - is take myself out of the selling-loop altogether and employ a full time Thai sales exec (female of course).

That way I can hide behind the scenes and be produced as and when it is 'good' to have a Farang boss at the scene.

Anyhoo...once again, thanks for your help, especially the novel!

[chanchao]

> Of course...another thing I could do - and am contemplating - is take myself out of the

> selling-loop altogether and employ a full time Thai sales exec (female of course).

She'll want to do the same thing: Be able to offer a discount, either to the purchasing company, or to the person buying personally, or both.

I fail to see how that is unethical from YOUR point of view. I guess it represents an accounting challenge to account for the part to the buyer directly. "Sales Costs" I suppose. It's not that different from taking a person to dinner to discuss options.

Cheers,

Chanchao

[Chang_paarp]

You could try the prompt payment discount method.

Put your prices up 11%

Offer a prompt payment discount of 10% if paid within x days/weeks.

If they pay promptly, you get your original price (111-10%=100 or very close) and good cash flow.

If they take too long to pay you have an invoice with the cost of recovery built in to the price.

I hope this helps your ethical challenges.

Just remember that if you want to offer a discount the mark up must be a larger % than the discount.

eg. 100+50%=150 150-33.3%=100. Your customer will happily take 50%, but you might not like it.

[OlRedEyes]

Many thanks guys. Some good stuff there, most appreciated.

Of course...another thing I could do - and am contemplating - is take myself out of the selling-loop altogether and employ a full time Thai sales exec (female of course).

That way I can hide behind the scenes and be produced as and when it is 'good' to have a Farang boss at the scene.

Anyhoo...once again, thanks for your help, especially the novel!

I'd stay with the original dealing directly, sharply increasing the price and discounting deeply. You'd probably make a lot more sales. Business dealings with farang still carries a certain status here.

Western business morals? (if they exist in the west). Heard of Don Quiote?

[CymruAmByth]

Many thanks guys. Some good stuff there, most appreciated.

Of course...another thing I could do - and am contemplating - is take myself out of the selling-loop altogether and employ a full time Thai sales exec (female of course).

That way I can hide behind the scenes and be produced as and when it is 'good' to have a Farang boss at the scene.

Anyhoo...once again, thanks for your help, especially the novel!

I'd stay with the original dealing directly, sharply increasing the price and discounting deeply. You'd probably make a lot more sales. Business dealings with farang still carries a certain status here.

Western business morals? (if they exist in the west). Heard of Don Quiote?

Thanks once again for going to the effort of throwing some good advice up here for me guys. Greatly appreciated!

As for Western Business Morals...well, I am just an honest old fashioned type, trying to do it right; however, your advice has been taken on board and let's see if we can devise an 'amended' price list for our Thai cousins that reflects the above advice!

[sfokevin]

Can we have a hint of what product you sell?

[The Skipper]

Everybody expects a price break in Thailand.

If you want to sell, you have to work with the customer.

[CymruAmByth]

Can we have a hint of what product you sell?

The product is an innovative piece of high-powered electrical equipment that rids hotel rooms of smoke (and all other) odours in about 15 minutes. Clears damp and musty smells too.

As an aside - and we have documented proof - it also clears e-coli, salmonella AND the H5N1 virus in a very short period of time.

Sorry if that sounded like an advertisement, and I hope it helps!

[elkangorito]

Can we have a hint of what product you sell?

The product is an innovative piece of high-powered electrical equipment that rids hotel rooms of smoke (and all other) odours in about 15 minutes. Clears damp and musty smells too.

As an aside - and we have documented proof - it also clears e-coli, salmonella AND the H5N1 virus in a very short period of time.

Sorry if that sounded like an advertisement, and I hope it helps!

I'd love to see the documentation.

I remember back in 1998 when I tried to use water ionisation as a disinfection technique for cooling towers, I had documentation...but from Hong Kong, which was NOT recognised in Australia (but was in HK). Consequently, the process was not approved until the TESTING methodology was validated in Australia, which is still NOT validated (for good reasons). As a result, I tend to ignore 'proof' from certain areas of the globe with regard to marvellous new products. One question...can e-Coli be removed by air filtration/treatment? Can air ionisation kill it? Can e-coli exist in air? What is the difference between 'contagious' & 'infectious'?

BTW, there is nothing like 'old school' honesty. So many salesmen rely upon 'lipservice' to clinch a sale. These lies are easily seen through by most & if not, are eventually realised by the ones 'cheated' by them. An old saying, "The cost of a bad sale is long remembered compared to that of the cost of a good sale". If the product is real & affective, stick with the reality of it...including cost. Education is the key here. I would never forego my scruples to make a sale. Honesty guarantees future sales. The 'fast buck' attitude' will work for a while but is never a 'stayer'.

Good luck.