Addressing others with respect
Only people who are very intimate friends or relations refer to one another by the first name.
It is perfectly appropriate, when meeting someone, to simply state your family name without any additional greeting.
Ensure that you learn the titles of everyone you plan to encounter, as these distinctions are extremely important in this culture.
Usually, Russians have three names. The first name is a given name, while the last name is the father's family name. The middle name is a version of the father's first name, known as a patronymic; for a man, it ends with the suffixes “vich” or “ovich” meaning “son of.” For a woman, the patronymic is also the father's first name but with suffixes “a” or “ovna” added, which means “daughter of.” When you become well acquainted with a person, you may be invited to refer to him or her by the first name and patronymic.
As a visitor, it is appropriate to refer to your Russian colleague by either “gaspodin” [a courtesy title similar to “Mr.”] or “gaspazhah” [similar to “Mrs.” or “Miss”] plus his or her surname. When using a person's full name and patronymic, an honorific is unnecessary.
General Guidelines
Generally speaking, Russians take pleasure in giving and receiving gifts. Be sure to bring an assortment of gifts, so that you will always have something appropriate to give.
Cheaper gifts do not have to be wrapped, while more expensive ones should be.
Gifts for children are usually opened in private, while gifts for adults are generally opened in the presence of others. If your gift was a hit, you will hear many 'thank-yous.'
Russians spend a lot of money on gifts. Avoid giving gifts such as pencils, pens, lighters (unless they are expensive ones), cheap wine or vodka, notebooks, etc.
When invited to a Russian home, bring a gift of chocolates, dessert items, good wine, or other alcohol [try to select something other than vodka, which is widely available].
Bringing a bouquet of flowers (not too expensive though) for women you are visiting (doesn't really matter how many of them are in the family you're visiting) is a good idea. Make sure you have an odd number of flowers. Even numbers usually are for funerals.
Gifts are expected for social events, especially as “thank-yous” for private dinner parties or overnight stays in someone's home. Thank-you notes and holiday cards are not considered appropriate because they have no practical use.
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If there are children in the family, it is thoughtful acknowledge them with a small gift, such as a toy or candy.
It is considered bad luck to give a pregnant woman a baby gift until after the baby is born.
Selecting Flowers
In Russia, flowers are a gift given almost exclusively for women. The only few exceptions would be male teachers, doctors and visiting celebrities.
If you are visiting a family home, it is quite customary to bring along a bouquet of flowers for a wife, sister or mother. These female relatives are likely to be present at the time of your visit.
Pink, cream-coloured, orange, and blue flowers are rarely awarded any special meaning and, thus, are quite acceptable selections.
Avoid yellow flowers [unless you picked them up yourself on a trip to the countryside]. Some white flowers should also be approached with caution.
As in many other countries, flowers are an essentially romantic gift. Red flowers, especially in rich and dark shades, will be perceived as a display of love or strong affection.
The handshake is common. The Russian version is a firm grip with several quick shakes between two men. This is a daily procedure and saying 'hello' isn't enough, even if you know somebody really well. Between men and women or two women, however, the handshake is much softer. Men should wait until a woman extends her hand before reaching for it. Between women, the older woman extends her hand first.
Eye contact during the introduction is very important, and must be maintained as long as the individual is addressing you.
Only during greetings do Russians display affection in public. Relatives and good friends will engage in an animated embrace and kiss each other on the cheeks.
Generally speaking, Russians are most comfortable with third-party introductions. Consequently, wait a moment before introducing yourself to a new group. If, after a few minutes, no introduction is made, you may then take the initiative.
The “thumbs-up” sign can be an acceptable gesture of approval.
If you need to beckon a server, discreetly raise your hand with your index finger outstretched.
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Official currency in Russia is a 'ruble', however, it is still common for businesses to make their calculations in US$. This doesn't mean that you actually have to pay in $--most of the stores, restaurants, and hotels will accept only Russian rubles. Unlike 5-10 years ago, a one dollar tip is not welcome any more since sometimes it's hard to exchange it to rubles. If you want to leave a gratuity to a waitress or a taxi driver, make sure you give rubles. A tip can be anywhere from 10 to 30%
Smoking in public places is still a common occurrence, although the Russians are slowly becoming aware of the need to impose some restrictions on this activity.
Behaviour Considered “Nyekulturny” [Uncultured]
The Russian word “nyekulturny” is popularly used to refer to anything considered uncultured, bad mannered, or otherwise socially unacceptable. The following points are examples of behaviours regarded as “nyekulturny.”
Wearing your coat and/or winter boots in theatres, office buildings or similar public spaces is considered unacceptable. Cloakrooms are usually available and should be used. And sitting on your coat during a concert or while at a restaurant is also frowned upon.
Speaking or laughing loudly in public is discouraged.
Whistling in a home or other indoor spaces is considered “nyekulturny”, and there is even a superstition that it will cause a grave financial loss. Moreover, when attending a concert or other performance, refrain from including whistling in your applause.
Do not sit with the legs apart or with one ankle resting upon the knee.
It is insulting to summon someone with the forefinger. Instead, turn your hand so that the palm faces down and motion inward with all four fingers at once.
Many common hand gestures popularly used in the West, such as the “O.K.” sign or shaking the fist, are considered very rude.
18) How to be a great manager
· Managers need to be connected to one another. Make a daily practice of talking to each other manager at your level about what is going on in his area. You will garner good information and build rapport with others. Sure it is fine to talk about non-work stuff too, and socialize if you have things in common.
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· 2
Treat everyone on the job with respect and courtesy at all times. This does not apply just to other managers. You need to set the example for everyone else. You need not be best buddies, but give others their due.
· 3
You should have meetings with your people on a regular basis and in some cases, where time sensitivity is paramount, daily meetings to ensure that everyone's priorities are in line. Encourage questions and be courteous in answering them so as to encourage others to come forward if they don't understand.
· 4
Learn to give out tasks to each of the people you manage. Some of them, like the older gent who has been there for 10 years, may not need close supervision and can be trusted to meet his quotas and deadlines. Still others, especially new people will need to be monitored periodically to ensure that they know what to do and how to do it.
· 5
Keep everyone in your group aware of the priorities and the order of priorities so they will do first things first. Avoid telling one employee and expecting him to communicate it to his work mates, unless he is a qualified lead person. This presents the impression of favoritism, which you want to avoid at all costs.
· 6
Allow each to talk about problems to you and be sympathetic. Giving them a hearing once in a while is good, and shows you are understanding. If the same person has personal problems all the time, however, beware. You may have a problem employee on your hands.
· 7
New employees often come to the company from other places where they have been trained to do work in a superior way. Take note and learn from these new folks. You might have a chance to do things better or faster than before. Be open and flexible.
· 8
Impose the same standards on all employees in the same way. Don't favor anyone. If it is vital to the job, non-performance needs to be addressed with a structured disciplinary program. Train your supervisors to handle these situations.
· 9
Get your people ready to be promoted to higher levels by training and developing their skills. Even if it means a good one will be transferred to another part of the company, by developing your people, you are building a stronger base and your managerial achievements will be readily apparent to all.
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· 10
Your effort to be positive is a gift that can make you a better manager. Strive to see the good side of things and point these out to your staff. Never talk bad about the company or people in higher level positions or you will lower yourself in the eyes of your people.
19) Banking.
What is a bank?
According to Britannica.com, a bank is:
an institution that deals in money and its substitutes and provides other financial services. Banks accept deposits and make loans and derive a profit from the difference in the interest rates paid and charged, respectively.
Banks are critical to our economy. The primary function of banks is to put their account holders' money to use by lending it out to others who can then use it to buy homes, businesses, send kids to college...
When you deposit your money in the bank, your money goes into a big pool of money along with everyone else's, and your account is credited with the amount of your deposit. When you write checks or make withdrawals, that amount is deducted from your account balance. Interest you earn on your balance is also added to your account.
Banks create money in the economy by making loans. The amount of money that banks can lend is directly affected by the reserve requirement set by the Federal Reserve. The reserve requirement is currently 3 percent to 10 percent of a bank's total deposits. This amount can be held either in cash on hand or in the bank's reserve account with the Fed. To see how this affects the economy, think about it like this. When a bank gets a deposit of $100, assuming a reserve requirement of 10 percent, the bank can then lend out $90. That $90 goes back into the economy, purchasing goods or services, and usually ends up deposited in another bank. That bank can then lend out $81 of that $90 deposit, and that $81 goes into the economy to purchase goods or services and ultimately is deposited into another bank that proceeds to lend out a percentage of it.
Loans, Checks and Savings
Aside from checking accounts, they offer loans, certificates of deposits and money market accounts, not to mention traditional savings accounts. Some also allow you to set up individual retirement accounts (IRAs) and other retirement or education savings accounts. There are, of course, other types of accounts being offered at banks across the country, but these are the most common ones.
- Savings accounts - The most common type of account, and probably the first account you ever had, is a savings account. These accounts usually require either a low minimum balance or have no minimum balance requirement, and allow you to keep your money in a safe place while it earns a small amount of interest each month. In standard practice, there are no restrictions on when you can withdraw your money.
- Money market accounts - A money market account (MMA) is an interest-earning savings account with limited transaction privileges. You are usually limited to six transfers or withdrawals per month, with no more than three transactions as checks written against the account. The interest rate paid on a money market account is usually higher than that of a regular passbook savings rate. Money market accounts also have a minimum balance requirement.
- Certificates of deposit - These are accounts that allow you to put in a specific amount of money for a specific period of time. In exchange for a higher interest rate, you have to agree not to withdraw the money for the duration of the fixed time period. The interest rate changes based on the length of time you decide to leave the money in the account. You can't write checks on certificates of deposit. This arrangement not only gives the bank money they can use for other purposes, but it also lets them know exactly how long they can use that money.
- Individual retirement accounts and education savings accounts - These types of accounts require that you keep your money in the bank until you reach a certain age or your child enters college. There can be penalties with these types of accounts, however, if you use the money for something other than education, or if you withdraw the money prior to retirement age.
Electronic banking
When it comes to payment options, nothing is more convenient than electronic payment. You don't have to write a check, swipe a credit card or handle any paper money; all you have to do is enter some information into your Web browser and click your mouse. It's no wonder that more and more people are turning to electronic payment -- or e-payment -- as an alternative to sending checks through the mail.
In this article, we'll look at the types of electronic payment, discuss its benefits and limitations and explain how to add e-payment capability to your Web site.
Types of Banks
There are several types of banking institutions, and initially they were quite distinct. Commercial banks were originally set up to provide services for businesses. Now, most commercial banks offer accounts to everyone.
Savings banks, savings and loans, cooperative banks and credit unions are actually classified as thrift institutions. Each originally concentrated on meeting specific needs of people who were not covered by commercial banks. Savings banks were originally founded in order to provide a place for lower-income workers to save their money. Savings and loan associations and cooperative banks were established during the 1800s to make it possible for factory workers and other lower-income workers to buy homes. Credit unions were usually started by people who shared a common bond, like working at the same company (usually a factory) or living in the same community. The credit union's main function was to provide emergency loans for people who couldn't get loans from traditional lenders. These loans might be for things like medical costs or home repairs.
Now, even though there is still a differentiation between banks and thrifts, they offer many of the same services. Commercial banks can offer car loans, thrift institutions can make commercial loans, and credit unions offer mortgages!
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