tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3154569229380760325.post92418225846083436..comments2023-10-10T17:07:36.114+02:00Comments on cross-cultural moments: Free to failElizabeth Abbothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09763064258020825441noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3154569229380760325.post-64650019688442537182008-07-14T18:29:00.000+02:002008-07-14T18:29:00.000+02:00Hi Steven in NYC. Good questions! Gosh, let me thi...Hi Steven in NYC. <BR/>Good questions! Gosh, let me think about this one. I am not sure about the specific mechanisms in place (and I should find out), but in any case, there is very little venture capital out there and few "angel investors" while the traditional credit channels are quite rigid and require a high level of equity and guarantees. Getting access to these channels can often require being presented and having a guarantor (who does not want to make a "brutto figura"). There is also social stigma to a failed business attempt, maybe it puts you "out" of your "in group". Your personal failure is reflected on the group. Anyway, there are some very subtle nuances at work in this area. I will get back to this. <BR/>Thanks for stopping by.Elizabeth Abbothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09763064258020825441noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3154569229380760325.post-47527548926939712182008-07-12T18:39:00.000+02:002008-07-12T18:39:00.000+02:00Ambassador Spogli makes an interesting observation...Ambassador Spogli makes an interesting observation and his advise should be well heeded.<BR/><BR/>But it seems to me that this speech is contrary to some of the observations that you have made in this blog. Namely, the "group mentality" that permeates in Italian culture (e.g. a teacher not singling out a bad apple in a classroom) and by extension, how blame/success is not attributed to a single individual but rather to the entire group to which he belongs. How does this cultural phenomenon jive with the assertion that "a business failure is punished by a sort of social emargination that leads to the impossibility to access new capital for a new project"?<BR/><BR/>Also, how does this emargination take place? Are the credit ratings of the owners behind the failed business venture irreparably harmed? Do the banks share names of borrowers that failed to pay?SteveNYChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00979232068423532535noreply@blogger.com