Devin McGrewMU ID # 901473547 (mcgrew16)Assigned Country: Romania

Table of Contents:

Executive Summary..........................................3Country’s Geography........................................4People ....................................................6Type of Government ........................................7Economy ...................................................8Communication Infrastructure .............................10Transportation Infrastructure ............................11Common Business Customs/Etiquettes .......................13Opinion ..................................................15Exporting ................................................20Bibliography .............................................21

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Executive Summary: This report provides an analysis and evaluation of Romania

in terms of geo-politico-socio-economic backgrounds, business customs and etiquettes, and potential exporting problems. Analysis was performed based on comparisons between Romania and the United States of America in determining compatibility in terms of culture. The report finds that both Romania and the United States of America have many similarities in terms of culture, while also displaying some drastic differences.

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1) Country’s Geography : a. Location – Romania is located between Central and

Southeastern Europe bordering the Black Sea.

b. Land area – 92,043 square miles (slightly smaller thanthe state of Oregon)

c. Border countries – Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, Ukraine,

Moldova

d. Climate – Temperate-continental; ranges between hotsummers and very cold winters with lots of snow frommid-December until the end of March. Romania's averageannual temperature is 11C (52F) in the south and on thecoast, 2C (36F) in the mountains. In June, July andAugust, the hottest places in Romania are near theBlack Sea coast, where average temperatures reach 24-30C. In summer, there are frequent showers andthunderstorms in the mountains. The mild, sunny days ofautumn linger from early September until late October.Spring starts in mid-March in most of Romania'sregions, April in the mountains and in the north partof the country. Annual rainfall is 600 mm to 700 mm,much of it in spring. Precipitation is heaviest inTransylvania and in the Carpathian Mountains, where anaverage of 53 inches of rain and snow fall each year.Dobrojea is Romania's warmest and driest region, withless than 15 inches of annual rainfall.

e. Terrain – The Carpathian Mountains (the tallest peak isMt. Moldoveanu at 2544 m, 8346 ft) cross Romania fromthe north to the southwest. The Carpathians wereglaciated and in Fagaras and Retezat Mountains areglacial lakes and mass of rock created when the icemelted circa 10,000 years ago. Around Transylvania, themountains formed Europe's longest volcanic chain; theonly remaining volcanic lake is St. Ana. The centralTransylvanian Basin is separated from the Plain ofMoldavia on the east by the Carpathian Mountains and

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separated from Walachian Plain on the south byTransylvanian Alps. The Carpathian Mountains accountfor about a third (31%) of the country's area (easternCarpathians - Pietrosu Peak 2303 m; southernCarpathians - Moldoveanu Peak 2544 m; westernCarpathians - Cucubata Mare 1849 m). Another third ofRomania (33%) is covered by hills and plateaus full oforchards and vineyards. The final third is a fertileplain of dark chernozem soil where cereals, vegetables,herbs and other crops are grown. Dobrogea region isseparated from the rest of Romania by the Danube on itsfinal northern fling to the sea; it is divided in twoparts by a low, stegasaurean spine of hills, which areolder than the Carpathians, and the Danube Delta's reedbeds formed from the massive quantity of sedimentsbrought down the river. It is Europe's most extensivewetland and the world's largest continuous reed bed.Lowest point is Black Sea 0 m.

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2) People: a. Population – 21,790,479 (July 2013 est.)

b. Population and Birth Rates - Birth rate; crude (per1,000 people) in Romania was last measured at 9.4/1,000population in 2013

c. Ethnic Groups – i. Romanian 89.5%, ii. Hungarian 6.6%, iii. Roma 2.5%, iv. Ukrainian 0.3%, v. German 0.3%, vi. Russian 0.3%, vii. Turkish 0.2%, viii. Other 0.4%

d. Major Religions – i. Eastern Orthodox (including all sub-denominations)

81.9%, ii. Protestant (various denominations including

Reformed and Pentecostal) 6.4%, iii. Roman Catholic 4.3%, iv. Other (includes Muslim) 0.9%, v. None or atheist 0.2%, vi. Unspecified 6.3% (2011 est.)

e. Official Language; Other Major Languages Spoken – i. Romanian is the official language with 89.5%. ii. Other languages are Hungarian 6.7%, Romany (Gypsy)

1.1%, and other 1.2%

f. Literacy Rate – i. Youth females (% of females aged 15-24) 97.44%, ii. Youth males (% of males aged 15-24) 97.16%, iii. Youth total 97.29%, iv. Adult female (% of females over age 15) 97.08%, v. Adult male (% of males over age 15) 98.32%, vi. Adult total 97.68%

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3) Type of Government: a. Political System – Republic, a country that is governed

by elected representatives and by an elected leader(such as a president) rather than by a king or queen

b. Main Political Parties – i. Christian-Democratic National Peasants' Party or

PNT-CD, ii. Civic Force or FC, iii. Conservative Party or PC (formerly Humanist Party

or PUR), iv. Democratic Liberal Party or PDL (formerly

Democratic Party), v. Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania or UDMR,vi. National Liberal Party or PNL, vii. National Union for Romania's Progress or UNPR, viii. People's Party - Dan Diaconescu or PP-DD, ix. Right Romania Alliance or ARD (a center-right

electoral alliance that includes PDL, FC, PNT-CD),x. Social Democratic Party or PSD (formerly Party of

Social Democracy in Romania or PDSR), xi. Social Liberal Union or USL (an alliance of the

PSD, PNL, and PC)

c. Legal System – Civil law system which is a legal systemoriginating in Europe within the framework of lateRoman law. The most prevalent feature is that its coreprinciples are codified into a referable system whichserves as the primary source of law.

d. Diplomatic Representation in the US – i. Embassy – The US Embassy in Romania is located in

Bucharestii. Consulates – Chicago, Los Angeles, New Yorkiii. Ambassador – Adrian Cosmin

e. Country’s Capital City – Bucharest

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4) Economy: a. Gross Domestic Product ($ & growth rate) –

i. Amount = $277.9 billion (2012 est.) ii. Growth rate = 0.3% (2012 est.)

b. Current Economic Condition - Romania, which joined theEuropean Union on 1 January 2007, began the transitionfrom Communism in 1989 with a largely obsoleteindustrial base and a pattern of output unsuited to thecountry's needs. The country emerged in 2000 from apunishing three-year recession thanks to strong demandin EU export markets. Domestic consumption andinvestment fueled strong GDP growth, but led to largecurrent account imbalances. Romania's macroeconomicgains have only recently started to spur creation of amiddle class and to address Romania’s widespreadpoverty. Corruption and red tape continue to permeatethe business environment. Inflation rose in 2007-08,driven by strong consumer demand, high wage growth,rising energy costs, a nation-wide drought, and arelaxation of fiscal discipline. As a result of theincrease in fiscal and current account deficits and theglobal financial crisis, Romania signed on to a $26billion emergency assistance package from the IMF, theEU, and other international lenders. Worseninginternational financial markets, as well as a series ofdrastic austerity measures implemented to meetRomania’s obligations under the IMF-led bail-outagreement contributed to a GDP contraction of 6.6% in2009, followed by a 1.1% GDP contraction in 2010. Theeconomy returned to positive growth in 2011 due tostrong exports, a better than expected harvest, andweak domestic demand. In 2012, however, growth slowedto less than 1%, partially due to slackening exportdemand and an extended drought that resulted in anexceptionally poor harvest. In March 2011, Romania andthe IMF/EU/World Bank signed a 24-month precautionarystand-by agreement, worth $6.6 billion, to promotefiscal discipline, encourage progress on structural

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reforms, and strengthen financial sector stability. TheRomanian authorities announced that they do not intendto draw funds under the agreement.

c. Major Exports; Percentages – i. Cars (5.3%), ii. Insulated Wire (5.3%), iii. Vehicle Parts (4.9%), iv. Refined Petroleum (4.2%), v. Broadcasting Equipment (4.1%)

d. Major Imports; Percentages – i. Crude Petroleum (5.0%), ii. Insulated Wire (4.7%), iii. Cars (4.4%), iv. Vehicle Parts (4.3%), v. Refined Petroleum (2.7%)

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e. Major Trading Partnersi. Exports –

1. Germany 18.9%, 2. Italy 12.3%, 3. France 7.1%, 4. Turkey 5.5%, 5. Hungary 5.5%

ii. Imports – 1. Germany 17.5%, 2. Italy 11%, 3. Hungary 9.1%, 4. France 5.7%, 5. Russia 4.4%, 6. Poland 4.3%, 7. Austria 4.2%, 8. Kazakhstan 4.1%

f. Currency and Rate with US $ -

i. Currency – Romanian Leu (RON) ii. Rate (US $) – 3.4682 (2012 est.)

g. Major Industriesi. Electric machinery and equipment, textiles and

footwear, light machinery and auto assembly, mining, timber, construction materials, metallurgy, chemicals, food processing, petroleum refining

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5) Communication Infrastructure: a. Telephone System –

i. International direct dialing service available throughout

ii. Domestic automatic fixed-line teledensity exceeds 20 telephones per 100 persons

iii. Mobile-cellular teledensity roughly 110 telephonesper 100 persons

b. Radio Broadcast Stations – i. State-owned public radio broadcaster operates 4

national networks and regional/local stationsii. More than 100 private radio stations

c. TV Broadcast Stations – i. Mixture of private and public TV stationsii. Public broadcaster operates multiple stations;

roughly 100

d. Internet Country Code - .ro

e. Internet Service Providers – RCS & RDS, Romtelecom, UPCRomania

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6) Transportation Infrastructure: a. Railways – 10,785 km; 4th largest in Europe by total

track length

b. Highways – 82,386 km; does not include urban roadsi. Paved – 71,154 km (includes 371 km of expressways)ii. Unpaved – 11,232 km

c. Waterways – 1,731 kmi. Includes 1,075 km on Danube River, 524 km on

secondary branches, and 132 km on canals)

d. Airlines, Major Airports – i. Airlines –

1. Air Bucharest2. Alfa Air3. Atom Airways4. Blue Air5. Carpatair6. Eurojet Romania7. Fly Romania8. Regional Air Services9. TAROM10. Ten Airways11. Tiriac Air

ii. Major Airports – 1. Henri Coanda International Airport2. Cluj Avram Iancu International Airport3. Traian Vuia International Airport4. Transilvania Airport5. George Enescu International Airport6. Iasi International Airport7. Sibiu International Airport8. Mihail Kogalniceanu International Airport9. Craiova International Airport10. Arad International Airport11. Oradea Airport12. Stefan cel Mare Airport13. Baia Mare Airport

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14. Satu Mare International Airport15. Aurel Vlaicu International Airport16. Danube Delta Tulcea Airport

e. Major Ports (if any) – i. Brailaii. Constantaiii. Galati (Galatz)iv. Mancanului (Giurgiu)v. Midiavi. Tulcea

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7) Common Business Customs/Etiquettes with regard to: a. Customs when dealing with foreigners –

i. Romanians are friendly people and very welcoming to foreigners. Upon meeting, a handshake is the most common form of greeting. Men will kis a woman’s hand, while strictly avoiding her eyes. Romanians like to keep business ventures reserved and formal, at least in the beginning. They preferto do business with people who don’t put on airs about their finances or accomplishments. They are very proper in business situations and will expectthe same out of foreigners. It takes them a while to warm up to foreigners as they are usually shy and quiet. Once trust has been gained, they are generally open and warm towards foreigners. The business environment is governed by a large amountof bureaucracy which can make conducting business a timely process requiring dedication. Creating personal relationships with possible business partners would be encouraged as it can help ease some of the red tape. These personal relationshipsare viewed as being between each other and do not translate over to the company which you are representing. If you would leave the company, the new person would have to go about establishing allnew relationships. Upon meeting a Romanian, alwaysstart out in a formal style and allow them to set the tone in the relationship. Romanians are considered to be the friendliest and most hospitable people in Europe.

b. Punctuality – i. In Romanian business dealings, appointments are

necessary and punctuality to said appointments is expected. Appointments should be scheduled two to three weeks in advance, preferably by letter. Scheduling appointments during the months of July and August is not advised as most are gone on vacations. Also, Romanians are generally not

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working the week before and after Easter and two weeks before and after Christmas as well to observe the holidays. Punctuality is more common in places that do business internationally. Otherwise, you should arrive on time to the meeting and be prepared to wait, especially when dealing with state-run companies. Once the meetingbegins, expect to spend some time getting to know one another before formal business proceedings begin.

c. Giving and receiving gifts – i. Gifting is not an everyday, normal practice in

Romanian business culture. However, gifting is encouraged if you are invited to a Romanian home. Typical gifts for home invitations include flowers, chocolates, or liquor. Interestingly, flowers should only be given in odd numbers and chocolates are only given to women. Even numbers of flowers are only used for funerals.

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d. Dealing with women managers – i. Gender bias is prevalent in Romania, specifically

as it relates to women managers. Men greatly outnumber women in these roles. Romania follows a patriarchal society role where men are viewed as more important than women in terms of business dealings. Women are perceived as being less credible than male counterparts in business. Male business partners lack confidence in women’s capabilities and are resistant to subordination bywomen in the business world. There are associations working to combat the issues of gender inequality and raise awareness of women’s rights issues, as they are related to the businessworld. In Romania, the Romanian Coalition of Business Women Associations is one such group. However, patriarchal customs and traditions are still forcing today’s women into traditional rolessuch as wife or mother.

e. Business negotiations – i. Romanians are known to be very tough negotiators.

They are concerned with being taken advantage of by foreigners in business dealings. Romanian businesses are based on a hierarchal system with decision-making power concentrated at the top level. Most business decisions require multiple layers of approval. It can take several visits to accomplish what may seem like a simple task. Decisions made can be easily reversed resulting infrustration. During negotiations, use an indirect style as being direct is viewed as having poor manners. Avoid high-pressure sales tactics and anytype of confrontational behavior. Foreigners should hire their own interpreters for all meetings and negotiations. Sales should be based on confirmed, irrevocable letters of credit using local banks that correspond with western banks. Avoid changing members of the negotiation team

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before an agreement has been reached. Doing so will start the relationship-building process all over again.

f. Business-related superstitions and taboos – i. The only superstition/taboo I could find which

may relate to business was the instruction to onlygift bouquets with odd numbers of flowers. The even numbered bouquets are for funeral ceremonies or cemeteries. This may be applicable if you plan to give a female a gift upon meeting them, or if you were invited to a business associate’s house.

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8) Your Opinion: Romania and the United States of America do not have many

things in common when comparing the two countries. Their culturesare very different as well as their geographical locations. One important thing to remember when comparing these two countries istheir vastly different sizes. Romania is roughly the size of the state of Oregon which is located within the borders of the UnitedStates of America. So when comparing things like transportation technologies, it will be important to remember this as it could be a major factor in why there are such vast differences.

a. Technology: In terms of technology, the United States of America is

advanced when compared to Romania. A simply analysis comparing the two countries telephone line systems would show that the United States of America has over ninety-six times the amount of telephone lines as Romania. The greater the amount of telephone lines, the greater the amount of communication among people in the country. This leads to better business ideas which would generate better marketing ideas. Also, a better telephone line system would mean the United States of America would have easier access to overseas communication which would also increase their value in terms of technology. In terms of cellular telephone usage, the United States of America has ninety-one times the amount of cellular use. The United States of America’s telecommunication system is far more advanced than Romania’s. Their cellular system is as well. However, Romania’s system is currently growing and becoming more modern.

When comparing the two countries based on internet usage, the United States of America comes out ahead once again. They have ninety-six times more users than Romania and ninety-nine times asmany internet hosts. Internet usage in Romania is growing with the on-set of its growing information technology markets. Romaniais also becoming a leader in terms of Information Technology specialists. Outsourcing services related to information technology is big business there. In fact, Romania is becoming a challenge to India in terms of snatching up outsourcing jobs. Allof this outsourcing means the United States of America is, in fact, losing out in terms of their information technology advantage. I believe the pull of cheaper labor and fewer

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regulations is a driving force behind this move towards outsourcing. It’s also creating challenges in the outsourced countries. Depending too heavily on outsourced work could result in economic losses when, if that work is ever moved out of the outsourced country. It’s essentially a putting all your eggs in one basket move that could result in economic collapse if these information technology workers aren’t also trained in other industries.

In terms of television usage, the United States of America hasthousands of stations broadcasting over various network, cable and satellite stations; whereas, Romania has hundreds of stationsbroadcasting over public or private television stations. To me this would mean that Romanian people would be more inclined to bereceiving biased news and/or information when compared because their stations are more apt to be controlled by like-minded people. The United States of America in comparison offers multiple television stations which are controlled by various cultures of people which can disseminate information as they see fit. This allows for more unbiased news and/or information. Also,access to the internet helps out a lot when looking for unbiased information.

Romania and the United States of America are also quite different in terms of transportation technology. Romania has forty-five airports compared to over thirteen-thousand in the United States of America which places it as number one in airports in comparison to the world. Romania falls behind in all categories of transportation when compared to the United States of America. Transportation technology is more advanced there but Romania is also much smaller in size comparison which could account for some of the large gaps. Romania has fewer paved roadways and fewer waterways. This would certainly cause them to have decreased technological advances as they don’t have the samemeans to transfer goods and services throughout their country.

b. Cultural Values: Culture and cultural values between these two countries are

quite different. Beginning with population size with Romania showing around twenty-one million people compared to the United States of America showing three hundred seventeen million people.

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Their religions are also quite different. Romania is predominantly Eastern Orthodox Christian versus the United Statesof America as predominantly Protestant Christian. Eastern Orthodox and Protestant Christians differ in their beliefs even though they are from the same religious basis. Orthodox belief recognizes both the Holy Scriptures and Holy Tradition as divine revelations of truth. Also, Orthodox followers believe in an ideaof purgatory and pray to God through Saints instead of believing they can have an open communication themselves. Protestant believers deny the idea of purgatory and believe the Bible is theonly source of divine revelations of truth. These few differencesin belief could cause a world of difference in terms of their cultural values. In fact, these somewhat simple differences of opinion have been known to inspire religious wars which have raged on for centuries.

The ethnic makeup of the two countries is also vastly different. Romanian people make up over eighty-nine percent of the population. In contrast, the majority ethnic group in the United States of America is white. What does that even mean? The United States of America has been known as the melting pot of theworld since its inception. It is made up of various ethnicities. However, I find it disturbing that those ethnicities have been watered down to encompass terms such as white or black. Why do they not celebrate their various ethnicities? I’m sure some do not even know their entire ethnic makeup. I feel that Romanian people take pride in their Romanian heritage and ethnicity versusthe United States of America people not really even knowing what all they are made up. I believe the Romanian culture would certainly be greater than the United States of America when comparing ethnicity.

Romania and the United States of America have roughly the sameage structures with their biggest group being people age twenty-five to fifty-four. The second largest group would be age zero tofourteen. This would lead me to believe they both appear to have strong family bonds as the two biggest ages would appear to be parents and children, or at least their ages would lead one to believe that. Birth rates in the United States of America are only slightly higher than those in Romania. The mean age of mothers at times of birth is around the same for both and the

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life expectancy rates are also around the same. The United Statesof America has a slightly higher contraceptive prevalence rate over Romania. This leads me to believe that parenting choices in the two countries could be similar as well in terms of choosing when to have children and also in terms of living their lives to age of death.

In terms of health care, the United States of America has a much higher expenditure rate than Romania. However, Romania has better physician density & hospital bed density rates. This wouldgo along with the theme of differences based on size and population. The two countries have different rates in terms of HIV and AIDS in their countries with the United States of Americahaving increased rates in terms of adult prevalence, people living with the disease and death rates of HIV and AIDS. Obesity rates in adults are significantly different with Romania being the lowest. The United States of America has been battling obesity issues for quite some time with what appears to be no endin sight to the growing problem. In looking at these things, it would seem that Romania’s culture in terms of their view on health care would be equal to or greater than the United States of America. They would seem to care about their health and appearto be working towards creating a healthier population.

In terms of education, Romania and the United States of America are pretty evenly matched. Their educational expenditure rates are very close and literacy rates across all ages and genders are about the same. This shows that both countries are dedicated to education and ensuring their youth populations have access to education. The difference between the two is the schoollife expectancy of youths; the United States of America youth population spends more time in school when compared to Romanian youth.

One major difference in terms of culture between these two countries is the fact that Romania has a child labor force, whereas the United States of America has laws which do not allow child labor to be utilized. To an outsider this would appear to show that Romania devalues their children since they allow them to be put into the workforce at a young age. However, in Romanianculture child labor could be used to assist the family in paying for their way of life. So the child labor would be viewed in a

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positive instead of negative way. The United States of America has criminalized child labor within its borders; however, they doimport goods which have been created using child labor. To me, that seems worse because it would seem they devalue children being forced to participate in labor all to keep costs down.

When it comes to urbanization, the United States of America issignificantly more urbanized. This, of course, makes sense in terms of both the population and geographical sizes of the two countries. Greater urbanization means more cultural influences inthe United States of America versus Romania. I would think that people in the United States of America would be exposed to a greater amount of people from difference cultures versus the people of Romania. The United States boasts five major urban areas compared to Romania’s one. In these major urban areas, the people would be exposed to various cultures and would participatein different types of activities such as eating foods; they may not normally participate in.

The United States of America also boasts greater access to improved drinking water sources as well as sanitation facility access when compared to Romania. In urban areas, this figure is one hundred percent access for both water and sanitation versus ninety-seven percent and eighty-eight percent in Romania. Even though Romania’s rates are lower, it’s still important to note they are pretty high for such a small country. Access to these things leads to healthier people which could lead to increased cultural values.

c. Economy: In terms of economy, Romania and the United States of America

come from vastly different areas. Romania started out as a Communist nation; whereas, the United States of America was builtupon as a Capitalist nation. Recently, Romania joined the European Union and began to move away from their previous Communist tendencies. Romania has widespread poverty and a very small middle class population. Romania has recently undertook a bail out type package from the International Monetary Fund, the European Union as well as other international people to try and bounce back from recessionary periods. Romania is working towardsbuilding up their export base to help increase their overall economic outlook.

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The United States of America is the leader when it comes to economics. Their market-oriented economy provides greater access to goods and services in the marketplace. Their Capitalist society has built upon itself to propel them towards the number one spot in terms of economy. Various recessions, stock market collapses and downturns have done little to slow economic growth in this country. While they have poverty within their borders, they also have a huge middle and lower class population which helps create the goods and services that continue to help the country grow economically. This huge labor force allows the United States of America to continue cranking out goods and services which they export to other countries. One issue here is that foreign firms have much easier access to entry within the United States of America than the opposite. US firms face greaterbarriers to entry when trying to enter foreign markets. I feel this stems from other countries fear that US products will infiltrate their borders and they will no longer be able to compete in terms of marketability. The United States of America is a world leader in terms of technology and technological advances. This alone would help propel them beyond Romania in terms of economics. However, they also are ranked as the second largest industrial output in the world. These two factors alone leave little to be done for Romania to reach the same levels of economic advancement. The United States of America has been the leader in many things for quite some time and do not appear to beslowing down. Their dedication to technological advances will continue to propel them into the future race for economic advancement.

Romania hasn’t done too badly for themselves in terms of economy, especially in light of their size and population. They have a relatively low unemployment rate; in fact, their unemployment rate is lower than the United States of America. Romania also has a better distribution of household income and consumption when compared to the United States of America. This isn’t surprising because the United States of America is quite well known for their unequal distribution of the proverbial pot of gold. There is often talk of the top one percent receiving waymore and distributing way less than everyone else in the US. Romania has a lower budget deficit than the United States of

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America as well. Public debt percentage is also lower in Romania which isn’t surprising either.

d. Business Customs: Romania and the United States of America appear to be very

similar in terms of their business customs. Romanians are known as the friendliest and most hospitable people in Europe. I think the same could be said of Americans in terms of hospitality. Bothcountries are very welcoming to business dealings with foreign partners. The United States of America fosters relationships withcountries all throughout the world and is a leader in terms of offering aide and assistance to others. In the business world, both countries like to keep things very formal in the beginning; generally, starting out with a handshake upon introduction. Both countries prefer to speak and do business in a direct and formal manner while being polite as well. Americans tend to prefer to keep some personal space between one another when communicating with little to no touching during the conversations. Eye contact is strongly encouraged in dealing with Americans as they value itand view it as a sign of respect.

Punctuality is ranked very high for both countries in terms ofbusiness customs. Appointments are also expected if you plan to conduct business. Scheduling in Romania is done around lengthy vacations and holidays. In America, vacations are usually shorterand there is less time taken off for holidays and, or religious celebrations. Americans are known for their strong work ethic andgenerally work longer hours for longer periods of time than do their Romanian counterparts.

Women managers are viewed differently between the two countries. Americans offer multiple work settings for women and advancement throughout the ranks is encouraged. American familiesgenerally have both the man and woman in the household working, earning dual incomes. Family life, at times, takes a hit because of this but Americans tend to value material things as most important. Romania follows a patriarchal society in which men dominate management positions and also call the shots at work as well as at home. Males lack confidence in women managers’ capabilities in the workplace. While America does value women’s roles in the workplace, there are also still issues that exist. Inequalities exist in terms of pay when comparing men and women

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in similar or identical roles, as well as inequalities in terms of advancement opportunities with men and women who are similarlyqualified for advanced positions.

Business negotiations are approached in similar ways by both countries. Romania and the United States of America both work on a top down approach when making final decisions. Romanian negotiation approvals often require multiple layers of approval. Because of this, multiple visits are often required in order to accomplish what may seem at the time as a small task. Also, Romanians are known to reverse settled decisions which can resultin frustration on both sides. Both are known to be tough negotiators while using a direct style approach. One difference between the two countries is that Americans will often use hard selling tactics during negotiations; while Romanians view those types of tactics and confrontational behavior as having poor manners. Americans hold the actual contract or agreed-upon deal as most important above and beyond any type of personal relationship which may develop during negotiations. Romanians, onthe other hand, view the personal relationship as important and it can also assist in removing some of the red tape involved in business negotiations. In fact, it’s widely known in Romanian dealings that once those personal relationships have been established they are held in the highest regard. Should the relationship be broken by an employee leaving the company, the new partner would have to start at the very beginning in terms ofbuilding trust and establishing the relationship.

Gift giving is viewed much the same in both countries. It is discouraged upon initial meetings in business dealings but encouraged if invited to the personal home of business associates. Both countries view flowers, chocolates and alcohol as potential gifts to bring to personal homes. Romanians have a superstition in terms of flower gift giving; only odd numbers should be used as gifts as even numbers are reserved specificallyfor funerals. Also, chocolates should only be given to women in Romania.

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9) Exporting: There are multiple problems or barriers you may come across

should you decide to export a product or service to Romania. First, location would be a huge factor in deciding to export. Romania is a very small country with a small population. Your export would have to be something that would be beneficial to allmembers of the population in order to create a profit. Another issue would be finding an export that would be popular among Romanian people. Their ethnic beliefs as well as their religious practices could create barriers to entry when exporting. One way to combat this issue would be to perform an in-depth study on cultural issues and things that Romanians view as important. Then, use that information to decide on a product or service which would offer the most benefit to Romanian peoples. In turn, this would help you determine the best value of products or services and how you could make the most money in exporting said product or service.

Government regulations and red tape could also create barriersto entry. Romanian law is based on a Roman civil law system whichis codified versus the American system of English common law. These differences in legal systems could create issues should anyproblems arise during negotiations for exportation. One way to combat this would be to establish personal relationships with thebusiness partners to help along the long process of government regulations.

The current economic system in Romania would be viewed as decent but not great. Their financial markets are worsening and austerity measures have been put into place to help alleviate thedebt they have incurred in terms of bail out agreements and aide packages received. This would certainly constitute a red flag in terms of choosing to export a product or service to the country. The economic system should be better if you choose to do so. To overcome this issue, I believe coming up with a product or service the Romanian people simply can’t live without would be best as stated in paragraph one. This would ensure that regardless of the current economic system, people would still want your product/service.

Romania’s communication infrastructure would also create some potential barriers to entry for a new product or service for

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exporting. While they are certainly making changes and increasingthe current communication infrastructure, they are still lagging behind when compared with other locations. Determining how to market your product in terms of this current infrastructure wouldbe an issue. They have limited availability in terms of television broadcast stations as well as radio stations. A study of how home market products combat this same issue would be important here. Then, structure your marketing plan based on whatothers have found to work the same.

Transportation infrastructure in Romania would also pose as a barrier. They have limited port availability which would create issues with shipments. Also, they have limited airports which create much the same problem. How are you going to get your product inside the country? The Danube River would be one solution as it appears to be used for similar things with home product transportation.

Business negotiations should be approached while obeying Romanian customs. Specifically, arrive on time at a previously scheduled appointment, participate in tough negotiations without resorting to high-pressure tactics, and be ready to make multiplevisits for negotiations to close the deal. If you follow these tactics, business negotiations shouldn’t be a problem.

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Bibliography

"The Observatory of Economic Complexity." OEC: Romania (ROU) Profileof Exports, Imports and Trade Partners. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.

"The World Factbook: Romania." Central Intelligence Agency. Central Intelligence Agency, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.

"The World Factbook: United States of America." Central Intelligence Agency. Central Intelligence Agency, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.

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