How Do Managers Work with Digital Communication Media in International Business Relationships? Focus Group Results of Managers’ Experiences of Digital Media Use for Relationship Building

In a qualitative study about international business negotiations and personal business relationships carried out a few years ago, results showed that relationship building and maintenance was something that occupied most international negotiators’ minds. It was stressed that meeting in person with due frequency was a requirement and that contact was kept in between meetings via telephone and email. However, some unexpected results were found indicating that the respondents experienced problems attached to developing and maintaining business relationships via email and video conferencing. With this in mind, the author participated in a focus group consisting of seven managers with vast experience of international negotiation, with the purpose of finding out whether digital business communication behavior has changed over the last ten years. The new results showed that struggling with heavy workloads, the participants welcomed communication technology that could save them a trip or two, but emphasized that for relationship initiation and building, meeting physically is still a requirement. The picture given about emailing was to some extent different compared with the older study, since it was no longer looked upon as a problem but as a part of everyday work. However, it became clear that the (in) formality used in emails was adapted to the stage of development of the business relationship, to the seniority of the counterpart and to his/her cultural background. The participants also discussed their experiences of videoconferencing, stating that after having tried new technology, they had to a large extent returned to traditional telephone conferences, only now those conferences took place via Skype. In conclusion, the results show that traditional marketing activities and communication media prevail: personal meetings, telephone conferences and emails are the preferred ways of communicating. Digital communication media is used whenever it allows for traditional B2B behavior. All communication, regardless of which medium is used, is adapted to the cultural background and seniority of the recipient, and to the stage of development of the relationship. Most likely, the choice of medium is determined by the preferences of the buying firm.