Successful Progect Management Gido, Jack & Clements, James 6th edition ( Principle Management ) Case study 2 "International Communication" from Pg. 430 - 432. 

Questions base on case study are and should be answered in 4 paragraphs per question:

1. What are the communication errors Samuel made?

2. What should Angelique do when she gets the phone call from Penny asking her to come to Dallas to meet with Samuel?

3. Is there anything more Michael could have said or done in his conversation with Samuel about Angelique's phone call? Should Penny do anything about Samuel's communication style and insensitive comments?

4. What would be the elements of a good communication plan for managing a multinational project such as this?

Answer:

1. What are the communication errors Samuel made?

His principal error is thinking that people will respond to his lack of communication by doing exactly what he wants them to do. Interesting theory. (Also, he’s an egotist and a misogynistic jerk, but those are more character than communication issues.) Secondly, he seems to think that dissatisfied customers, contractors, and employees aren’t problematic for his bottom line (which is all he cares about, again a different sort of error). This is almost spectacularly short-sighted. I’m surprised Michael was so gentle with him. Thirdly, and I can only guess that this is a reading and probably listening error, he thinks that the bonus gets paid if the deliverables don’t meet the latest specs. (This would seem like a very odd way to write a contract.

Fortunately, we don’t have to talk much about Samuel’s poor listening skills and inability/disinterest in reading conversational cues, because he’s not actually communicating with his stakeholders. That’s a pretty broad problem across both the client and the subcontractors. Beyond that, from the top: bouncing his emails and ignoring phone calls (from the client!). He thinks—and says—that ‘Boston and Ireland are no different than Dallas’, and he refuses to ‘negotiate’ (aka talk to) the Japanese and German firms. He wants to play ‘hardball’ with subcontractors and be ‘tough’ on changes from the customer. He unilaterally decides ‘everyone should pretty much know what needs to be done, so we shouldn’t have to spend a lot of time in meetings’.: ‘don’t bog me down with paperwork and emails’, being a misogynistic jerk, and snapping at his secretary. He ignores phone calls while asserting that people can contact him without email. He belittles employees behind their backs; he blows off his boss’s concerns. He’s a being a misogynistic jerk (again ordering his secretary to write ‘short and firm’ letter in response to Japan’s concerns, and targeting his project team over talking to the client or their subcontractors. He then ‘requests’ the client fly to Dallas because he doesn’t want to talk to her, and thinks he can charm her. That last one is more personal obtuseness than a communication error.

2. What should Angelique do when she gets the phone call from Penny asking her to come to Dallas to meet with Samuel?

I would call Michael and blow up again. And I don’t make a habit out of deliberately losing my temper at someone twice in as many days. This is a huge project for Thompson Industries, and the VP needs to get a handle of his team, because I have no intention explaining to my boss that we’re paying for this. I’d also review the contract and figure out what my options are. I’m surprised I let this go on for several weeks, but I’d think Samuel is creeping up on a breach of reporting requirements. I would not book a plane ticket.

3. Is there anything more Michael could have said or done in his conversation with Samuel about Angelique’s phone call? Should Penny do anything about Samuel’s communication style and insensitive comments?

For Michael, I can’t understand how the response to ‘because she wants to make a whole bunch of changes…’ is ‘I told her you’d call her back’. The response is, ‘they’re our customer, so negotiate a way to give them the product they want for a price that’s good for us’. (As a side note, I find it totally bizarre that Samuel is so obsessed with the bonus clause when he’s presumably sitting an opportunity to negotiate higher fees across the board.) Also, I’d confirm his behavior—which he’s helpfully admitting to on the spot—and add ‘if she calls be upset about your behavior again, you’re done as a project manager’. I’d also add considerably more spittle behind ‘I don’t want an unhappy customer’, because that point doesn’t seem to make sense in Samuel’s calculations. I’d start out visibly (by the color of my skin) upset about his attitude, and would end with a more translatable explanation of why our firm needs clients [to be happy].

For Penny, I’d go to EEO (or the civilian equivalent for equal opportunity reporting, probably HR) about the sexist comments. I’d also at least tell a senior secretary what’s going on. I’d also be afraid for my job, though (and be looking for another one). Depending on my current workload, I’d consider screening his emails until Michael knocks some sense into him, which should hopefully be within the hour. I’d CC Michael on the draft of the Japan letter. That’s heavy-handed and dangerous, but I think I’m within a year of losing my job or at least ending up in a secretarial pools when my boss loses his or the firm’s reputation crashes.

4. What would be the elements of a good communication plan for managing a multinational project such as this?

1. Schedule and keep regular videoconferences with subcontractors, plant, and client. These can be done separately (and logistically should be, though recommend 7am EST for full calls).

2. Answer phone calls. And leverage other Web 2.0 tools to communicate rather than to avoid communication by bouncing your emails. I’m not sure why Japan is faxing him, and the tracking of new spec documents should be simple and known.

3. Determine a reporting plan, schedule, and database system up front. This should be a principally web-based system that’s easy and organized to populate and can thus be accessed by any relevant party at any time.

4. When stakeholders have concerns, talk to them. This isn’t so much a plan as a character trait.

5. To be honest, I don’t know what the details of an Ireland-Germany-Japan-Dallas-Boston communication plan for an electronics plant should be. So I’d talk to the involved parties about what they need and would appreciate in terms of communication and feedback. Hold that negotiation up front. This would happen in a meeting: the kind where you discuss things and figure them out, because people don’t just naturally know what to do when confronted with situations for which they have no experience. (Like, say, becoming the PM for a huge multinational project.)