There is no need to elaborate on the fact that there are many countries in the world. There are many different people and different groups with their own unique identity and culture. It can be argued that culture is both invisible and visible. The visible part is the expression of culture which can include how people prepare and consume food, how people build societies. This also includes the way they celebrate weddings as well as other rituals in life such child dedication or infant baptism or burials. But more importantly culture is seen in the way they conduct business. It is therefore important to remember the principle embedded in a statement made by a business guru who said that, “The business of international business is culture” (Hofstede, 1994, p.1). If an investor is willing to go overseas and establish a company it is important to understand differences in culture. Hofstede’s The Five Dimensions of Culture is a helpful guide for multinational companies, corporate leaders, and even employees working overseas. The invisible part of culture is something that could not be captured with a picture or a painting. But those who are living within a particular culture are well aware that there is something in that society that makes it different from the rest of the world. The invisible side of culture dictates not only the social norms but also how people within that culture tend to perceive the outside world and how they relate to each other. Understanding Cultural Differences The importance of having an awareness of cultural diversity is very important in the 21 st century. They say that the world is getting smaller and that more and more people are interacting through the use of technology such as the Internet (Steger, 2009, p.1) But still there are many regions that are in conflict and to some extent this is also true when it comes to international business. A company will set-up a factory or an office half-way around the world and experience problems when it comes to managing the people. It is important to have some kind of a guide to help navigate the complex world of international business. This is why Hofstede’s research is an important tool that businessmen, investors, and even employees will find helpful when it comes to dealing with other people with a different worldview than their own. The Five Cultural Dimensions Holfstede’s five cultural dimensions is an amazing framework that is very helpful in the context of international business. This is because the five dimensions cover important aspects of business operations such as corporate leadership, teamwork, how to deal with employees and how employees will interact with their supervisors. It is even helpful when it comes to gender issues. It also give leaders the ability to develop systems and company policies based on the local culture and not on what they believe is true according to their own culture. The framework developed by Hofstede is a helpful tool when it comes to devising strategies for developing human resources. The first dimension labeled as power and distance is an important contribution in the study of international business. This is because for the first time ,someon was able to measure the effect of the perception of power when it comes to