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Homework answers / question archive / Michael has taken over a handful of prospective clients from his colleague, Roger Small
Michael has taken over a handful of prospective clients from his colleague, Roger Small. Richard has been moved from International Sales to Domestic Sales in an attempt to improve the lagging national sales.
With this addition to Michael's workload, he is under enormous time pressure to get the new accounts signed and underway. He has a meeting with Norio, who had already worked out all of the details of the sale with Richard, and has come to sign the contract.
]Michael Pratt is the Director of Foreign Sales at Mustang Jeans, a U.S. company. After working at Mustang as a real estate attorney for six years, acquiring property for retail and manufacturing, Michael moved into sales at an executive level. Michael is very much a no-nonsense straight-ahead kind of guy. He is friendly, but not big on small talk. He fits the stereotypical American businessman in many ways: informal, a little loud, all about money, very direct and forthright.
I would have tried to schedule a meeting with Norio sooner, in order to get a better understanding of the situation and the account. I would also have tried to get more information from Richard about the account, in order to be better prepared for the meeting.
No, Norio was very direct in his communication with Michael, and did not seem to take into account the fact that Michael was new to the account. I think Norio should have been more understanding and patient with Michael.
Step-by-step explanation
Norio should have had a better understanding of the situation and the account before meeting with Michael. He should have been aware of the fact that Michael was new to the account, and should have been willing to take the time to explain the situation to Michael.
If I were Norio, I would have been more patient with Michael, and would have taken the time to explain the situation to him in more detail; as he was new to the post and thus needed some adjustment period.
The cultural values of Japan and the United States are very different, and this affected the interaction between Norio and Michael. Norio was very direct and forthright in his communication, while Michael was more informal and less direct. This cultural difference led to a misunderstanding between the two men, and resulted in an unsuccessful meeting.
Neither man should have the primary responsibility of changing their interaction style. Instead, they should both be willing to adapt to the other's culture in order to have a successful meeting.
