What could you do to help a multi-cultural team of Americans, Italians, Germans and Swiss to open and run the store in Zurich? Identify (please use real world examples) and describe seven cultural problems that the team might run into and provide solution for each of these problems.
Here are two examples, I just need more scenarios. They don't have to be this long.
Thank you
Punctuality. For Americans, Swiss and Germans punctuality is important; however, it is not a priority for Italians. Yasha Williams, Budget Officer for World Bank, worked to schedule a series of project planning meetings with teammates from Italy. For each meeting, her teammates were over 15-minutes late. Yasha's frustration led to contentious team meetings. Naturally, as an American, 'time is money'. As the team lead I will need to adjust my perception of time with regards to the Italian team members. The delay is not a sign of lack of respect (Lewis, 2014). I will encourage the team to be timely, in Zurich punctuality for meetings is taken seriously.
Hours of Business. Diane Bach, a former executive at the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA), worked to plan meetings in Switzerland and Germany. Diane noticed that these relationships were often strained but could not determine why. Finally, Diane confronted her Swiss counterpart who shared her frustration that Diane consistently scheduled calls after 5 p.m. in Switzerland and Germany. Switzerland and Germany share a six-hour time difference with the U.S. East Coast. To reduce any potential friction, Diane's case is a reminder to schedule all meetings during business hours in Zurich. The average work week in Zurich is 35 hours and I should not expect to reach anyone in the office after 5 p.m. (Kurtz, 2013).