The article Business must rise up to meet the Asian Century has revealed an increasing phenomena that Australians are appealed to demonstrate Asian skills in workplace, given the fact that Asian countries have become the primary trading partners, most important markets as well as significant investment partners to Australia. In this context, Australians are challenged with cross-cultural barriers, and required to endeavor efforts to the cross-cultural communication and business negotiation in order to contribute to economy and work collaboratively. Further, the article has given clear implications on how to raise the Asian skills and overcome the barriers during the cross-culture communication after revealing the phenomena. The authoritative advice has been given both to the organizations and individuals. Last but not the least; the author encourages every Australian to take the responsibility to build a more Asia-capable Australia and to seize the chances with Asian century.
In terms of the implications to cross-culture, it is important to overcome the cultural barriers and to acquire the knowledge and networks. Basically, a good competence of languages of Asian countries is a good beginning (Kanungo & Rama, 2006). However, the efforts to overcome the barriers brought by cross-culture are more than just languages. Asia capability is more than language skills. On the one hand, individuals can gain the specialized knowledge on market, experience the life within the country on one’s own, create the relationships with local people and so forth. On the other hand, the individuals may introduce the brains and talents from Asian countries and pour the Asia elements such as leadership and enterprises culture to the organization. In detail, suggested by the Board member from Asia Link Board who has ten years’ experience with coping with China, Australians should first and foremost, demonstrate empathy with people from Asian countries in order to create the relationships, secondly, try to consider the problems from the perspective of others instead of oneself, and last but not the least, keep making a genuine attempt to understand and even avoid the cultural difference (Jenny, 2013).
