Anne Egros is an intercultural trainer specialized in supporting international managers working with Russians. The document provides an overview of Russian history, culture, and business practices. It discusses Russian cultural values such as collectivism, perseverance, and networks. It also covers communication styles, time perception, and tips for managing meetings more effectively with Russian counterparts.

1. WORKING WITH RUSSIAN PEOPLE
Presenter: Anne Egros
Date: April 5, 2015

2. Trainer Bio
• Anne Egros, a French national, is a certified professional coach and
intercultural trainer specialized in supporting international managers to
develop their intercultural leadership skills.
• Anne Egros has over 25 years’ experience as an expat herself and has lived
and worked in France, Belgium, the UK, Switzerland, Germany, Japan, the
U.S. and Russia. She has an extensive experience in helping expatriates
and their families during their relocation process.
• Anne Egros has a PharmD degree and has worked in the pharmaceutical,
cosmetic and chemical sectors. She has held various managerial positions
in R&D, marketing, business management including manufacturing and
finance. During this time she led and managed virtual and multicultural
teams across more than 25 countries.

3. Objectives Of The Program
Understanding Russian culture and values that
impact mindset and behaviors of Russian people
Identifying potential challenges of doing
business with Russians
Developing ways to communicate and
collaborate more effectively with Russians

4. Program Contents
• Section 1 Introduction to Russia
• Section 2 Russian Cultural Values
• Section 3 Russian Social Customs
• Section 4 Russian Business Culture
• Section 5 References

5. SECTION 1
Introduction to Russia

6. Russia Today: Geography
Russia is the largest country in the world with total area17,098,242 sq km
1.8 x size of the US. It spans 11 time zones
Picture Source : Academic Perspective Institute

7. Russia Today: Demographics
• Population: 142.5M (2013).
190 ethnic groups
Declining Population: -0.03% (2014 est.)
Urban population: 73.8%, Moscow (capital) 11.6M,
• Life Expectancy:
Male: 64.37 years, Female: 76.3 years (World rank 151)
Median age: 38.9 years
• Russian Language
81% of the Russian population speaks Russian
• Religion :
Russian Orthodox 15-20%, Muslim 10-15%, Other Christians 2%
• Education :
Russia has a Highly educated workforce 88% of Russians have upper secondary
education and 54% have a tertiary
Sources: World bank , OECD

8. Introduction To Russian History

9. Russia History(Pre-Soviet)
• 882-1237: “Kievan Rus”
East Slavic tribes, Monarchy, Capital Kiev
• 1237-1613: The Tatars Invasion, Moscow Emergence, Tsar Ivan The Terrible
• 1613-1825: The Romanovs,
• Peter the Great moved the capital to St. Petersburg
• The Great Catherine
• Napoleon Invasion (1812),
• Nicolas II
• 1825-1920: The Path to Revolution:
• 1905: Russo-Japanese War, Failed Revolution
• 1914-1916 World War I
• 1917 Bolshevik Revolution
• 1918 Romanov Family shot
• 1918-1920 Civil War
• 1921-1928 USSR is born, 1924 Lenin dies
• 1928-Stalin takes over

10. Russia History (Soviet Union)
• 1928-1953: Joseph Stalin
• Collectivization, Cultural Revolutions, Cult of Personality, Purges
• 1941-1945 WW II ‘The Great Patriotic War’
• 1946-1952 Cold War, Atomic Test
• 1953-1964 Nikita Khrushchev
• 1953-1963 Warsaw Pact, Berlin Wall
• 1964-1982 Leonid Brezhnev:
• Oil Crisis, Afghanistan War
• 1985-1991 Mikhail Gorbachev
• 1986-1988 Glasnost, Perestroika
• 1989-1991 Berlin Wall falls, USSR ends
Source: BBC Russia profile

11. USSR & European Satellites

12. Russia History:1991-Present
1991-1999 Boris Yestsin
Privatizations, Chaos, State Oligarchs, First Chechen War (1994-1996)
2000-2008 Vladimir Putin
Centralisation, Oil Enrichment, Economic Growth,
Confidence, Second Chechen War (1999-2006
• 2008-2012 Dmitry Medvedev
2008 Russo-Georgian War, Global economic crisis
2012-Present Vladimir Putin
2014 Sochi Olympic Games, $51bn,
2014 March Annexation of Crimea by Russia

13. • Russia
• Azerbaijan Republic,
• Republic of Armenia,
• Republic of Belarus,
• Georgia,
• Republic Kazakhstan,
• Kyrgyz Republic,
• Republic of Moldova,
• Republic of Tajikistan,
• Turkmenistan,
• Republic of Uzbekistan
• Ukraine
• CIS are former Soviet Republics. Many of
these people use Russian language in
social, political, scientific, technical and
cultural spheres.
Russia and CIS

14. Russia and Europe

15. Russian Economy (I)
• Russian Federation has 85
federal republics or regions
• GDP $2.097 trillion
• GDP Per Capita $14,591
• GDP by sector of origin:
– agriculture: 4.2%
– industry: 37.5%
– services: 58.3%
Sources: CIA World FactBook. World Bank Data for 2013
Russia is the 12th-largest market in
the world

16. Russian Economy (II)
High reliance on commodity exports and global oil prices
Source: World Bank

17. Russian Economy (III)

18. Russian Economy: Forecasts
• 2014 Western Financial Sanctions and falling oil prices lead to
drastic Ruble devaluation (from 33$ in 2012 to 62$ in 2015)
• General inflation 16.7% (Q1 2015)
• Food Inflation 20.7% (Q1 2015)
• GDP growth forecast for year 2015 at -3.8 % with a projected
oil price of US$53/bbl
Source : Russia Monthly Economic Developments February 2015, World Bank

19. The Russian Middle Class
• Employees with salaries of more than $6,600 a month are
considered Middle Class income
• The Russian Middle Class as a social group is younger,
better educated than average Russian population.
Lives in big cities
• Actively involved in innovative economic sector,
Entrepreneurial mindset
• Consumption far exceeds that of other strata of Russian
society
Source:Lilia Ovcharova: Russia’s middle class: at the center or on the periphery of Russian politics?

20. SECTION 2
Russian Cultural Values

21. Three Russian Co-Cultures
Russian Cultural Values and Workplace Communication Patterns-Mira Bergelson, Moscow State University

22. What do You Feel About Russians ?
What Russians Think About Your
Culture ?
Russian vs Western Stereotypes

23. How Russians See Themselves
• Can Survive all hardships
• Patient
• Loyal
• Wide Thinking Horizon
• Well Educated
• Flexible
• Mobile
• Not Goal-Oriented
• “I don’t care” Orientation
• No Discipline
• Politically Passive
• Depressed
• Hierarchy
• Authoritarian

24. Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions
1. Power Distance: 93 High inequality of power, Centralization
2. Individualism: 39 Russians value relationships and group
rather than individual success (although great variations within
age groups)
3. Uncertainty Avoidance 83: Russians are very uncomfortable
in unstructured situations.
4. Masculinity: 36 Russia may be a feminine society which
values caring for others and quality of life. But it depends on
contexts, highly male dominant behavior politics or business
5. Long-Term Orientation 81: Russia is scoring very high as a
long term oriented society that fosters future rewards, in
particular saving, persistence, and adapting to changing
circumstances

25. Russian Values and Attitudes
• Collectivism
• Emotionality
• Not Having Control
• Irrationality
• Judgmental
Powerful Instinct of survival
Importance of Relationships,
Irrelevance of Material World,
Expressing Emotions is OK
Destiny is only partially under their
control, external factors have a big
impact on their wellbeing.
Unpredictability
Expressing moral judgement, Sharing
Opinion in Public

26. Russian Values: Friendship
• Russians form very intense, deep,
and loyal personal friendships.
• Friendships take up much more
“space” in personal life than in
some other cultures
• Russians form support networks
(svyazi) to exchange resources and
influence.
Druzhba

27. Russian Values: Networks
• A Russian’s world is
separated into: insiders and
outsiders.
• Friends are totally in and are
treated with consideration,
caring and loyalty that is
unparalleled.
• Outsiders, receive very little
attention or assistance
Insiders

28. Russian Values: Soulfulness
Dusha
• Most Russians believe that an important part of their personal
and national identity is a profound capacity for spiritual depth,
expressed in many forms: love of nature, religion, and
friendship, as well as poetry, art, and music.
• The opposite of this value is shallowness and materialism.
Accusing someone of being bezdushny (bez-DOOSH-ny, “without
dusha”) is a serious insult in Russian culture.

29. Russian Values: Fatalism
• Most Russians believe that they have very little, if any,
control over the course of life events
• Younger generation show more ownership over their
circumstances in life.
• Russians have the ability to accept the given circumstances
and keep going.

30. Russian Values:Perseverance
• Russians are famous for, and very proud of, their ability to
endure.
• The history of invasions, famine, political repression and
gulags, along with legends of survival and perseverance, are
a deep part of the Russian psyche.
• Russians have high potential limits of patience and
acceptance; in a situation that might be unacceptable for
someone from another culture, the Russian will act as if
nothing is happening.
Westerners live to enjoy; Russians live to endure.

31. Russian Values: Self-Reliance
• Self-reliance means rejection of the system’s bureaucratic,
incompetent, or controlling form of problem solving.
• Integrity is seen as a mutual rather than an individual
quality—being true to those who are also true to you—rather
than to rules or to a system
• Taking the official route to get things done is considered folly.
With insider networks this attitude can be powerful and
display impressive creativity.

32. SECTION 3
Russian Social Customs

33. Russian Pride
• Russians are VERY proud of their
country.
• Russians expect the rest of the world
to admire its cultural heritage: famous
artists, writers, scientists etc.
• Russians pride themselves on being
able to flourish in conditions that
others could not.

34. Russian Greetings
• Firm handshake with direct
eye contact
• When female friends meet,
they kiss on the cheeks
(three times)
• When close male friends
meet, they may pat each
other on the back and hug.

35. Russian Smiles
• Russian smile is often performed with
the lips, not showing the teeth.
• In Russia, a smile is not a sign of
respect and it is not conventional to
smile at strangers.
• Among Russians it is not acceptable to
smile while performing one’s job or
important business including customs
agents, waiters or cashiers
• The smile must be a genuine reflection
of a good mood and good relationship.
Source: 10 Varieties of Russian Smiles, RBTH

36. Russia: Gift Giving
• Gift giving to family and close friends on birthdays, New Year, and
Orthodox Christmas.
• Gifts are also common on the working place: Don’t forget to bring flowers
to your female colleagues for their birthday or on March 8, the
International Women’s Day
• If you are invited to a Russian home remove your shoes ! Bring a small gift.
Flowers is always a good choice
• Do not give yellow flowers.
• Do not give even number of flowers. Traditionally, even number of flowers
associates with death because on the funeral people bring 4, 6, 8 flowers
• Do not give a baby gift until after the baby is born. It is bad luck

37. The Russian Superstitions
• Look in the mirror, if you had to go back.
• Avoid gifts of sharp objects, like knives or
scissors
• Don’t put money into someone’s hands
• Don’t put empty bottles, keys or change on
the table
• Don’t sit on a table
• Don’t stand, talk or hand anything across
the threshold of a house or apartment
• Do not carry an empty bucket
•
Source: http://rbth.com/articles/2010/09/07/twelve_russian_superstitions04931.html

38. The Russian Family
• Dependent upon all its
members.
• Most live in small apartments,
often with 2 or 3 generations
sharing little space.
• Families are small, often only
one child as women work in
addition to bearing household
and childrearing chores.
For 70% of Russians, family and
marriage are among the five most
important life goals.
88% of Russians support the anti-Gay
legislation

39. Personal Space
• Russians usually stand very close to each other for
conversations or when standing in line.
• It is considered rude to speak loud, so standing close to each
other allows you to speak more quietly and privately.
• Touching, hugging, and kissing friends and close acquaintance
is common.
• You may find this closeness uncomfortable

40. Topics To Avoid
• Do not talk on the topics of homosexuality: Russians think that the West
are in part in the decline of their civilization especially in legalizing Gay
marriage
• Avoid extensive discussions on the history and science unless you really
know it. General knowledge of Russians are much more advanced than you
can imagine, especially those who studied during the soviets.
• Don’t talk about Soviet gulags, “Democracy” or Ukraine “invasion”
• Do not insist on Russian corruption. Russians are much more aware and
bothered by it than you and think it is a national shame
• Never say that the Russian WW2 was won by the Americans! Russians are
strong patriots and believe Russian Red army defeated the Nazis as the
Soviet Union sacrificed more to defeat Hitler than any other country at that
time.

41. SECTION 3
Russian Business Culture

42. Russian Communication Style
• Ты: TY “Familiar You”Solidarity Politeness
• Вы: VY “Polite You” Hierarchical Politeness
• No Deference Politeness
• Direct Communication
• Not reaching Consensus “nyet”
• Judging/Advice Giving
• Mix of High and Low Context
• Bad Listening at Meetings

43. Personal Connections
• You need to develop a network
of personal relationships to
achieve your goals
• Tendency for teamwork, which
has its fundamentals on a
history of collectivism (not
necessarily true for younger
generations)
• People work for you because
they like you and enjoy what
they do

44. Russian Leadership Style
• Leaders have a top-down approach to
solve conflicts and take important
decisions. Hierarchy and status are
important. Russians respect age, rank
position and technological expertise.
• Extrinsic rewards and pressure to
perform increase performance
• Participative techniques decrease
performance
• Russians see negotiations as win-lose and
compromise as weakness.
Negotiation Style

45. Time Perception In Russia vs US
Americans
Time is “material”
• “Time is money”
• Being late is very rude, deadlines
are fixed.
• “Time is the scarcest resource and
unless it is managed nothing else
can be managed” (Peter Drucker)
Russians
Time is “elastic”
• “People” come before time
• Being late is not perceived as rude
• Planning is not rigorous
• Deadlines are flexible
• Multi-Focus: Russians do several
things at once
• Interruptions are considered as
standard
• Problems are solved under pressure
at last-minute

46. Managing Meetings, Tips
• Spend more time than usual to establish personal connections before
talking business. Frequent contacts should then be maintained.
• Do not rush the call and make sure to allow extra time for unplanned
topics that could emerge during the discussion.
• Always send minutes or a summary of what’s been said just after the
meeting. However, with Russian partners what has been discussed and
perceived as agreed by their foreign counterpart may be challenged and
rejected at any time.
• Often employees work late until 11 pm or 1 am (the direct consequence of
dealing with things at the last-minute), They arrive late in the morning at
work too. Don’t be frustrated but plan accordingly

47. Attitude Toward Women
• We say sexual harassment, they say gallantry…
• Russian women managers are perceived by foreign firms as
more serious, harder working, more creative than Russian
male counterparts
• Foreign businesswomen should dress conservatively, modest
demeanor and a serious attitude
• Women should keep a certain distance and avoid being too
friendly with Russian men at work

48. Russian Women and Power
• Russia, has 40% women in
senior management
• The U.S. is among the bottom
10 countries with just 22%,
along with
• Spain (22%),
• the UK (20%),
• Denmark (14%)
• Germany (14%).
Source:
http://mic.com/articles/84601/the-countries-with-the-highest-number-of-female-executives-are-not-the-ones-you-d-expect

49. Other Manners & Politeness
 Don’t swear, don’t forget to leave your coat in the cloakroom
 Don’t stand with your hands in the pockets
 Do not shout in public
 Do not start a presentation with a joke
 Keep your presentation serious, include facts and technical
details.
 Keep Constant communication through visits and phone calls
 Monitor performance frequently
 Re-negotiations are always present, so even though you will
have a contract, expect the unexpected.
 Bring gifts with you: Good gift ideas are brand-name products
of high quality.
 Avoid cheap products, they can have a negative impact in
your relationship

50. Questions ?
 What Was Your Best Experience
With Russians ?
 What Was your Worst
Experience ?
 Can You Explain How You
Resolved A Conflict ?

51. • BBC Russia Profile
• History Channel: Russia
• Russian Monarchy
• Understand Russia (http://understandrussia.com/)
• Russian Cultural Values and Workplace Communication Patterns MIRA BERGELSON
2012
• Russia — Insights from a changing country European Union Institute for Security Studies
2012
• Viewing the Ukraine Crisis From Russia’s Perspective FLOYD RUDMIN, MARCH 2014
References