Under German law, whoever proposes a contract to another is bound by that proposal — unless he has expressly excluded the binding. The provision is § 145 BGB.
The default is commitment. Once the offer has reached the other side it cannot be withdrawn, and the recipient can bring the contract into existence by saying yes.
A German who makes an offer has already given something away.
Despite German reluctance to use follow-up, there are situations in which it is unavoidable: In order to stick to a well-defined plan; when the customer requests information; if work results are not delivered on time. The Germans prefer the term 'nachfassen' – literally, after hold. Or 'nachhaken' – literally, after hook or check.
Follow-up in Germany can be either negative or positive. Negative in the sense of control. Positive in the sense of support. Follow up – negative – questions one's ability and willingness to produce good work results. At the same time – positive – it is essential to checking technical details, getting necessary information, verifying due dates.
Organizations which are time-driven rely on follow up. News organizations are just one example. Any and all forms of logistics is another. Timing is critical. Schedules need to be met. Employees are under pressure. Deadlines are deadlines.
Follow-up can be supportive. An older, more experienced colleague can inquire in a friendly way about the status of another's work. A team lead who coaches her team well knows when and how to follow up by simply asking "How are things going? Can I help in any way?"
Follow-up by colleagues on a report, speech, or published article is positive. It means that they have taken sincere interest in your work. It also gives them an opportunity to demonstrate their competence by asking intelligent questions.
In German team meetings follow-up is the rule, not the exception. Open action items can be addressed directly. Team members establish a common baseline of information.
Finally, there is another very legitimate reason to use follow-up in Germany: If things are not going right, if an error has been detected, if the work is being performed improperly. In such cases there is only one course of action. Follow up, and fast!
Follow up in Germany is a sign of mistrust, of doubt in one's reliability, in that person's ability to deliver what they have promised. For Germans typically only commit if they are close to absolutely certain that they can execute.
Germans are very sensitive about mistrust, and do not deal with it well. A fictitious example: Small team. The members have their individual tasks, but need to collaborate at certain points. They work well together. The team lead can pay less and less attention to them. A new team member, though, begins to take advantage of the lead's hands-off management style by looking for personal advantage.
The other team members become a bit unsettled. A few others also begin to think only of themselves. Mistrust creeps into the team, the points of contact become strained, collaboration more difficult. Their boss sees the signs and reacts by scheduling team meetings more frequently, checking on each team member's work. Then come the emails and phone calls going into more detail.
The increased follow up strains relations. Several of the team members begin to look for alternative jobs within the company. A top performer is gone within a month. Others have sent out their resumés. Follow up can lead to mistrust, a virus with potentially deadly results.
Companies with a monopoly are the only ones who don't need sales and marketing. All others need to fight for new customers on a daily basis. In Germany, too. But Germans don't feel comfortable "knocking on doors", even less so following up on an initial contact if the first response was skeptical.
Follow up means making that second or third call, writing that second or third email, reaching out again. What's the problem? Germans don't like pushing their product or service, especially if they sense that the other party may not be interested. Often Germans are too polite, too slow, not aggressive enough.
Perhaps this is related to Germans identifying themselves strongly with their work. They want to "stand fully and totally behind what they do." Sales also involves uncertainty, unpredictability, and situations for which one cannot fully prepare. The interactions can be short, spontaneous, shallow. Germans prefer predictability and depth.
To be given a task in Germany is a form of advanced praise. It signals that one has the ability to complete it properly. It is a sign of competence. Every new task is also an opportunity to demonstrate that ability, perhaps even to surprise the boss and other colleagues with exceptional work results.
For Germans define themselves very much through their work. Recognition for solid work is for many just as important as compensation. "A job well done" in the German context, however, is work done independently, on one's own. Help now and then from the team lead or advice from colleagues are seen as bothersome, unnecessary, possibly even hostile, as a form of doubt that the personal can do solid work, on their own.
'Lästig,' bothersome. Germans find follow up annoying, both for the team member who has to report on the status of their work, as well as for the team lead who has to ask if the work is being done properly. Both parties believe that they have better things to do. Namely, their work.
Figures of speech: 'Viele Köche verderben den Brei.' Too many cooks ruin the porridge. 'Dazwischen Funken.' Literally, to radio in intermittently. Figuratively, to stick your nose in someone else's business.
In 2011 “Spiegel Online” published an article on how to write a job application for the American labor market. The beginning of the article points out differences between Germany and the US.
“Asking additional questions is not considered bothersome and the marital status should not be in your resume- if you apply at an American company it is easy to trip over cultural differences. Here is an overview over the most important concepts.”
After turning in your application, the article suggests: ”You should not expect that he or she will get back to you on his/her own.”
Conversely, asking additional questions is interpreted as annoying in Germany. The potential employer should get back to you on their own if they are interested. Asking further questions is considered as obtrusive in Germany.
Americans and Germans have very different expectations about how to manage interpersonal conflicts when they arise, which can lead to huge misunderstandings. As part of an ongoing series of articles, an American consultant living in Germany offers some advice.
When Germans and American collaborate, there will be conflict. This is normal. However, their respective approaches to conflict resolution differ. These differences, if not understood and properly balanced, can hinder just and lasting conflict resolution. And unresolved conflict threatens collaboration and success.
The concept of cult is common in American society. A cult figure is a popular individual who has strong appeal, someone whose reputation is inflated in contrast to their success. The cult of personality or charismatic authority arises when an individual employs mass media in order to establish an idealized image of oneself to the public.
Many American companies – especially those operating globally – link their CEO personally with their products and services. These CEOs are the first and most important salesperson of the company. They maintain a personal dialogue with investors, customers, and key suppliers. They are a constant presence in the media. CEO as CMO – Chief Message Officer.
Some strive for and achieve a kind of cult status. See the late Steve Jobs – Apple, Bill Gates – Microsoft, Jeff Bezos – Amazon, Sergey Brin and Larry Page – Google, a few years back Jack Welch – General Electric, Lou Gerstner – IBM, further back Lee Iacocca – Ford.
The American comedian Bill Burr challenges this in a humorous and entertaining way:
An additional purpose of follow up in the American context is to signal to the other parties that the agreement is still of high priority. No or late follow up can be interpreted as a signal that the agreement is no longer important to the other party.
Americans place a very high value on flexibility, on the ability to respond to the needs of the market, of customers, of changing situations. Big decisions are broken down into smaller ones. Isolating individual decisions allows for rapid reaction as well as rapid revision. Up to the minute overview of agreements is essential.
Follow-up is omnipresent in American life. The preference setting of email programs, social network accounts, as well as information sources can be set so that information is pushed immediately to the user.
Most doctors offices send out reminders to patients of their upcoming appointments via traditional mail, email and even voicemail. When one turns on the television five minutes prior to the show they want to watch, one sees a reminder indicating that the program they are want to watch is about to be shown. Banks offer depositors the option of immediate notification via email or text message of any changes to their balance.
Follow-up is in many cases simply a reminder.
Under the title Optimum Follow-up Frequency for New Leads Samuel Smith, a consultant and blogger on business and online marketing, posted the following advice:
„A good e-mail marketing effort doesn’t inundate your customers with hard sales pitches. Following up quickly is the first step. Schedule your first follow-up email to go out two hours after your customer submits his or her information.
From here, you may want to gradually slow your e-mail frequency and aim for about three content emails for one purely promotional email. Depending on your budget, you could aim, at the high end, for sending four emails a week, but with a smaller budget, you can send an email every two or three days and have similar success.
Once a potential customer has been receiving email from you for a couple of months, it’s okay to drop off the number of emails to once a week. The optimum e-mail frequency reminds customers several times over that your product has value to them.“
They’ll remember your product.