Culture and International Business

National culture is still an important factor in managing a wide spectrum of areas and forms of international business. The understanding of the concept of culture, respectively the values and practices of foreign business partners, is instrumental in achieving effective intercultural communication and international business. The notion of culture as a set of schemes and codes (culture-as-a-code) gives ground to the context dependent concept of culture (culture-in-context). Although the context dependent paradigm of culture is not a new phenomenon, the international business practice has not capitalized on its contributions yet. The paper does not aim at comprehensively revealing the nature of culture and its components. The focus is on those issues which have proved its significance for international business practice. The thesis states that culture is dynamically enfolded in international business practice and its specific context. That’s why contemporary international business players should be knowledgeable about both the traditional postulates about the culture factor and the dynamic aspects of cultural, including intercultural, matters. On the basis of a literature review and analytical reasoning, the paper strives to shed light on the topical debate on culture and its implications for international business.