German Business Culture

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

In this Level V undergraduate course students will gain insights into some of the underlying historical and cultural dimensions of the world of business in today’s Germany and simultaneously refine their language use within an academic business context. The course explicitly emphasizes cross-cultural awareness and encourages students to draw on their background knowledge in related fields. The content focus of the course is closely coupled with language acquisition at an advanced level and as such goes beyond the mere acquisition of business terminology. The course follows a theme and genre approach where each thematic unit emphasizes a particular genre. Theme 1: Wirtschaftsgeschichte: 19th Century to Today Genre Focus: Book and Film Reviews Documentary films and written texts on German industrial dynasties such as the Krupp and Oetker families provide insights into the intersections of history, economics, and politics in the 19th and 20th century. Theme 2: Labor Relations Genre Focus: Public Speech Labor relations differ greatly in the U.S. and Germany. Initially, we will compare the historical and cultural contexts for these differences. In a second step, we will turn to the current situation of labor unions in Germany and explore challenges to their relevance in an increasingly post-industrial society. Theme 3: Business Ethics Genre Focus: Interview In the last few years, large German companies such as Siemens and VW have had their share of corruption, management and accounting scandals. Based on a few case studies, we will investigate the conditions that led to these scandals and the companies’ responses.