FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS
I am standing at the third floor railing of an atrium building that houses 4000 US employees of the company that has recently merged with my German client’s firm. I’m here designing intercultural teambuilding initiatives to help the two firms work together more effectively. But moments ago my work was interrupted by the sound of a deeply resonating bell that echoed throughout this building. I saw the American employees finding a spot to look down into the atrium where on the second floor I could see the source of the sounds. The American boss was ringing a large bell which looked a little like the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia except for the absence of the crack.
There were lights and video cameras and several employees were standing next to the top boss. He began speaking: “Good morning colleagues. It is once again my great pleasure to ring the Good News Bell announcing to everybody some great achievements of the people lined up next to me. First is X who received word of the acceptance of the 15th patent for the company that he developed.”
At this point a certificate was presented as the hands were shook and applause erupted from all floors of the building. The same procedure transpired two more times acknowledging other milestone accomplishments that were recognized.
Standing next to me it so happened was the head of one of the German factories of the newly merged company. Knowing the Germans are more forthcoming with their criticism than their praise, I asked him what he thought of the Good News Bell and the ceremony he was watching. His response was short and to the point: “I will have a bell also in my factory.”
Several months later my work brought me to his factory in Germany and I had the opportunity to meet the assistant to the director. I asked whether there was a Good News Bell. “Yes we have a bell but in the last two months it only rang once to tell us that we missed a quota.”
I don’t know whether a true Good News Bell would have been a good idea in the German factory. But it highlights the complexity when two cultures work together who have a different approach to motivation. Allow me an example from the private sphere to illustrate the point.
AUTUMN LEAVES
I have an American friend who is happily married to a German. They live in Germany where they have a lovely older home set on a large piece of property with numerous mature trees. On that day in late October, Becky was home and enjoying the warm sunny Thursday. The trees were bare and their property was covered deeply in leaves. Becky heard on a weather report that an unusual early snowstorm would be hitting the area the next day. They have a gardener but he was only due to come the following Monday and she figured the snow on top of the leaves would make quite a mess.
So she decided to take things in her own hands. She spent the whole day raking and bagging the fallen leaves. When her husband came home at the end of the day she was anxious to show off her achievement. He immediately showed that he was impressed, until he came to the spot underneath the stairs where she did not remove leaves because of her fear of spiders that might live there. When he pointed his finger in the direction of that little spot, she looked him in the eye and said, “I will never touch that rake again as long as I live.”
In a perfectionist culture you focus on what can be improved. But the lesson Becky learned from her encounter with her husband is that you can never satisfy a perfectionist.
WHAT IT MEANS FOR US
Before we start getting analytical, you might enjoy this collection of clips from the wildly successful comedy TV series “The Big Bang Theory”. Conside it my attempt at positive reinforcement for you reading this far down the page.
Giving feedback across cultures can be a tricky matter. Managers are faced with a multitude of issues around when, how much and how to give feedback that motivates and guides employees
Something I’ve noticed in working with Germans is that many are very reluctant to give praise if the job is not completely done, whereby in some other cultures praise is given for effort and motivates the person to feel that they are on the right track and that they should keep going. Imagine your hiking up tall and steep mountain. Fatigue is setting in and you’re tempted to give up and turn around. When do you need the praise? Probably not when you reach the top because the achievement speaks of its own reward. When you’re three quarters of the way up and think you can’t lift your feet for one more step, that’s when it’s nice to have someone comes along and says, “look how well you’re doing. You’ve come a long way. You’ll make it. It won’t be long now.” Is that how we encourage people in our workplace?
Herb
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