INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS COMMUNICATION MANUAL:
ITALY

The following is an excerpt from my portion of an International Business Communication Manual.

4. Italy

Many people are aware of stereotypes associated with Italy – Italians are sometimes assumed to be loud, emotional, and physical individuals. While some of these beliefs may not be true, it is important for professionals to be knowledgeable about differing cultural practices between Italy and the United States. In order to be successful conducting business in Italy, a businessperson should familiarize themselves with the typical Italian communication styles. Italy is a higher context culture than the United States, which means that Italians value personal relationships and collective decision making more than their American counterparts. Thus, Italian professionals are interested in establishing relationships of trust with their colleagues as they perform business practices. Conversely, Americans tend to favor delving right into business, without establishing a personal relationship with their colleague. Such behavior may come off as cold to an Italian.

Italian business relationships may differ from those of Americans in the way professionals handle physical contact, speech volume, and hand gestures. For example, people can expect an Italian to engage in more physical contact and raise their voice during a business meeting more so than would occur during a business meeting in America. In order to avoid unfortunate miscommunications and potentially loose a business deal, Americans professionals conducting business in Italy for the first time should take the time to address the following communication and etiquette norms of Italy, which point out dissimilarities in the way Italians and Americans handle things such as touching, eye contact, and negotiation – all in a business context.

4.1 Face-to-Face Communication

Because Italy is a high context culture, creating a comfortable environment between business partners is essential. In order for an Italian to feel at ease negotiating with you, they must feel like they can trust you. Gaining this trust begins with a good first impression, which can be done by greeting your business counterpart correctly.

4.1.1 Greetings

Italians handle greetings differently than many other cultures. The main distinction for Italian culture is that they engage in more physical interactions. Professionals should note that the best way to greet an Italian is with physical contact such as a firm handshake and eye contact. When meeting someone for the first time, professionals should wait to greet the other person until that person is within earshot. For example, if two people were meeting for a business lunch, it would be considered rude for an individual to yell across the room before the other person reaches the table.

Physical Contact

When greeting a business associate, especially for the first time, it is important to firmly shake the person’s hand – sometimes, an Italian will grab the other person’s arm for emphasis. In general, physical contact is more apparent in Italian culture, so one should not be offended or confused if he or she feels they are being touched more than they would in a professional setting of their own culture. While Italians do kiss on either cheek when greeting people, this is more of a social practice than a professional one. Normally, a handshake is what would occur upon first introductions. Once two parties established a more personal working relationship, kissing on either cheek is more appropriate. Both men and women partake in this practice; people first press their cheek to the right side of someone’s face, then the left.

Another important practice for businesspeople to keep in mind is that one should stand up to shake hands. For example, if individuals are meeting over a table or desk, they should rise to greet every member in the group before they are seated. This same practice would occur when concluding a meeting; everyone would rise and shake hands.

Personal Titles

When greeting someone for the first time, a professional should refer to their Italian counterpart by their title. Upon the second or third meeting, titles become less common in verbal communication. However, businesspeople should not refer to an Italian by their first name unless they have been explicitly told to do so.

Eye Contact

Looking someone in the eye is important not only upon introductions, but throughout an entire interaction with an Italian – whether this is a business meeting or casual interaction with a coworker. Eye contact displays interest in the conversation. If a professional were to look away during a business meeting, for example, this could signify that he or she is not focused on the discussion.

Italians have their own idiom to denote the importance of eye contact: sempre negli occhi. Literally translated this means, “always in the eyes.” This phrase is often said during a toast as individuals are touching beverage glasses. 

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4.1.2 Business Card Exchange

When exchanging business cards, professionals should be sure to read the other person’s card before putting away – as it would be considered rude not to do so. Additionally, individuals should ensure that one side of their card is in Italian. Italian professionals would expect foreign businesspeople to include any outstanding educational qualifications and titles on their business card.

4.1.3 Business Relationships

Italians value strong relationships between colleagues when conducting business. If a foreign professionals want to conduct business in Italy, it is important that their Italian counterpart not only trusts them, but also genuinely likes them. It is normal to treat an Italian businessman in a manner that might seem casual to a foreign professional, by engaging in physical contact or speaking in a raised voice.

Business meetings are likely to occur over a meal, in order to provide an opportunity to get to know the other person. An Italian businessperson will likely ask personal questions about an individual’s family or background, to get a sense of who he or she is as a person. Italian professionals want a mutual relationship of trust, and regard this relationship just as highly as the discussion of business proposals.

4.2. Business Meeting Etiquette

Business meetings in Italy revolve around analyzing and discussing a topic more than they do reaching a quick decision. This is typical especially at initial meetings, as decisions are reached over the course of multiple meetings. Because Italy is a high context culture, Italians want to understand and reflect upon the pros and cons of a business decision. Professionals should be aware that business meetings might take longer in Italy than in other countries. Additionally, a professional from the U.S. could view an Italian business meeting as informal due to the raising of voices or colleagues talking over one another. However, this is normal in Italian culture: using hand gestures and a louder tone of voice displays passion about the discussion.

4.2.1 Punctuality

Italians do not value punctuality the way other cultures do; a professional should not be surprised if their Italian counterpart is late to business meeting. However, Italians expect their foreign business colleagues to arrive to meetings on time.

4.2.2 Professional Attire

Whether a meeting takes place in a conference room or over a meal, formal dress is required. Not only this, but because Italy is a center of European fashion, Italians enjoy fashionable and well-tailored clothes. In a business setting, attire is conservative. While women accessorize with jewelry and makeup, pant suites are typical of both men and women.

4.2.3 Business Meetings

Meetings between foreign businesspeople and Italians are normally an opportunity for the exchange of ideas. Consequently, agendas are not often closely followed. To allow the discussion of new topics, interrupting a speaker in a group meeting could be appropriate. In fact, multiple conversations can occur among meeting participants in order to address different aspects of a topic at the same time.

To show engagement in the conversation, it is recommended that professionals turn off their cellphones. Additionally, note taking is rare, as the focus of the meeting should be the business discussion.

Business Meals

If the business meeting itself does not occur over a meal, it is often that a business meal will accompany a business meeting. Business meals normally occur over lunch, as most Italians would consider lunch to be the most important meal of the day. Business meals are vital because they provide professionals the chance to get to know each other on a more personal level, which is important to Italians when conducting business. Consequently, businesspeople should accept an invitation to a meal, as Italians may be otherwise insulted.

As previously mentioned, meetings provide an opportunity for discussion and analysis of business topics. Thus, professionals should expect a meeting to last longer than they may be accustomed to; a business lunch can last up to three hours.

Foreign businesspeople should be patient during a business meeting, as it can take longer amounts of time for Italian professionals to address business topics than their foreign counterparts are used to. Personal conversations usually occur first, before discussing a business proposal. If a foreign professional appears impatient, this may hurt his or her chances of completing the business deal. The more crucial the negotiation, the longer it will take for a decision to be reached. Consequently, professionals should expect that not only will business meetings be lengthy, but most likely multiple meetings will need to occur before both parties reach an agreement.

Whoever hosts the business meal is customarily the one to pay the bill. A foreign professional who is invited to eat may offer to pay, but normally, the host will decline. Hosts may be offended if they are not allowed to pay, especially if they have already insisted.

Negotiation Process

Similar to business meetings, negotiations are also a prolonged process. Because Italians are a higher context culture and are thus more intuitive, they want to be sure that they are making the best decision for themselves. They won’t initially make any definitive statements, and will instead prefer to make vague, general assertions.

Multiple people in an Italian company may be included in the negotiation process, whether or not they have authority to make official decisions. Generally, foreign professionals should expect high-ranking businesspeople to ultimately make the final decision, regardless of who is present in the negotiation process.

For negotiation purposes, verbal commitments are equally important, if not more so, than written forms of commitment in Italy. A final written contract is often based on informal verbal agreements. For this reason, evaluating and discussing the pros and cons of a business proposal is crucial for all meeting participants. The final decision will rely heavily on previous conversations and meetings.