“It appears to us German colleagues that our American colleagues give their customers far too much information about how we do our work, about or internal processes. And, they are eager to permit customers to influence how we do our work. Why do our US-colleagues do this?”
“We can’t do that”
“Here in U.S. the customer is at the center of what we do. Our German colleagues do not think that way. They actually say: ‘You need to stand up to the customer re: what they need and how they should buy from us.’
Our response: ‘No, we are customer-centric. We cannot do that.’ The German response is then: ‘Tell the customer that they should just try our product. They will like it.’ It comes down to who customers want to work with. Coming in cold, calculating, factual, analytical does not work with Americans. Every relationship is personal first. How can we get our German colleagues to understand this?”
Respond more quickly
“In the U.S. market everything is done in a hurry. Shipments come from Germany. We in the U.S. want to know when the shipment will arrive. Germany: ‘I did my part, can’t help you.’
We have to chase down the shipment. Where is it in the process? Our minds explode. Germany: ‘Just trust the system.” U.S.: ‘That is not an answer for us. Please, show me where it is in the process.’ How can we get our colleagues in Germany to respond more quickly to our needs?”
