MGMT2102 - Cross-Cultural Management: A Case Study of Medscope Ltd

This case study examines the challenges faced by Bob Underwood, an American manager working at Medscope Limited, an Australian company, due to cross-cultural differences. It highlights the superficial familiarity that led to adjustment difficulties, emphasizing the importance of understanding cultural nuances in management styles. The analysis discusses the flat organizational structure of the Australian company compared to the American hierarchical approach, and the impact of cultural misunderstandings on team dynamics. The case suggests using a creative problem-solving (CPS) approach to address these issues, considering its strengths and weaknesses in the given context. Ultimately, the case underscores the need for cultural awareness and adaptation for effective leadership in global organizations, with references to relevant academic literature.

Case Study Analysis
Student’s Name:
Student’s ID:

1
Management
Table of Contents
Answer 1.....................................................................................................................................................2
Answer 2.....................................................................................................................................................2
Answer 3.....................................................................................................................................................3
Answer 4.....................................................................................................................................................3
References...................................................................................................................................................5

2
Management
Answer 1
Bob Underwood works in an Australian company named Medscope Limited but he is an
American by birth. During one his journey, he was observing the passengers in the waiting
lounge but he saw nothing that would show him that he is a foreign nation. The accents of the
Australians are different from the Americans, but the medium of communication is English and
so it is easily understood. This is the superficial familiarity that was the primary cause of his
difficulty in adjusting his job in the Australian company. It is important for managers like Bob
Underwood to realize the culture and the cultural differences. Every culture has its own
individual themes and values which differs in other nations (Haldorai et al., 2018). An American
manager like Bob has the tendency of higher authority and co-operation that is the eagerness to
put the company ahead of every other firm and always ready to adjust in a hierarchy. It had been
noticed that foreign managers do not try to adjust to the culture of other nation, which affects
their decision regarding their organization. The US manager loves to adopt the direct managerial
approach which is not in the practice of the Australian company (Parris et al., 2016). Loyalty and
respect are the main elements of the managerial style of both Australia and America, but the
ways to achieve these are different in both the nations. A managerial post is regarded as a vital
position in America than in Australia where the person as an individual is respected more than
his position.
Answer 2
Bob has observed fewer levels of management among the staffs in the Australian organization.
The fact is that the Australian company has a flat structure than the American company. Bob
finds himself in answering the requests and getting information from the technicians, managers,
executives, and heads of the department. He found in one the meetings that it is the standard rule
of this firm to inspect the workflow design of the department, where the technicians and the
managers all take part in the discussions of the meeting. In the present competitive business
world, mobility is not just shifting the staffs to the new markets (Johns et al., 2014). It is a
process of making a global business strategy with the aims of yearly shifting, and search beyond
the bottom line to achieve the effective programs of mobility. But it is very unfortunate that there
is a big gap between the global mobility and the aims of the large companies for talent
management, especially in the large firms like MedScope. This could make the planned and

3
Management
talent based activities like recruiting and benefit management, hard to control. An efficient
global mobility depends on the interaction among the people, who are in charge of the programs
and applying it in the company (Pfeifer et al., 2016). This is the responsibility of the senior-level
HR member in the corporate sector. The long-term approach will remain in the lead as long as
these two fields are in the same context. But the execution of the targets of the company would
suffer without the interaction between the employees.
Answer 3
There was a serious misunderstanding between Bob and their subordinates due to the cultural
differences. Primarily Bob was involved in this as he was finding difficulty in adjusting with the
Australian culture and their styles of management. The cross-cultural interaction is important for
those organizations which have diverse employees and take part in the world economy. It is vital
for the staffs to realize the aspects of an efficient and diverse team (Altamony et al., 2016). The
cross-cultural interaction is vital for the firms like MedScope because of the development of
world business and technology. The cross-cultural interaction consists of the interaction and
perceptions of the people of various cultures all over the world. The cross-cultural interaction in
a company deals with the realization of various customs, beliefs and interaction approaches of
the company. Bob Underwood is the manager in a Houston based firm, MedicoSupplies Inc. He
has flown to Australia to join the Medscope, a subsidiary of MedicoSupplies. Bob has never
come to Australia before this, and he is not familiar with the Australian culture. Thus, lack of
cultural knowledge had created issues in his achievement of the business. The Americans have
the tendency to wave their hands and utilize a finger to point something (Ho, 2014). Although
extreme gesturing is regarded as rude in some cultures it is acceptable in some cases in America.
In America, eye contact is considered a good thing and perceived as the sign of honesty. But it is
not in the Australian culture which is completely different from the American culture.
Answer 4
In this case, the creative problem solving (CPS) approach for the present situation of Bob can be
considered. The CPS is a proven approach to solving an issue in an innovative method
(Sofronijević et al., 2014). It is a procedure which helps the managers like Bob to redefine the
issues and opportunities that were faced by him, came up with fresh and innovative responses
and solutions and then decides to take any action. The CPS also makes the positive experience

4
Management
that helps in the creation of new concepts. The CPS means finding methods to solve, meet or
fulfill a condition by improving oneself or the circumstances. The creative concepts do not
appear all of a sudden in the minds of the managers without any specific reason (Costanzo et al.,
2014). These occur when the managers try to solve a particular issue or to achieve a specific
target. Bob had to adjust himself in the current situation in spite of the cultural differences.
Strengths
 CPS has the capability to receive the details of the issue and analyze all the perspectives
to know and decide the missing points.
 It also has the capability to visualize numerous results, assumes the requirement to
achieve the result and is ready to take risks, as CP solver are confident in their own
decisions.
Weaknesses
 The weakness of CPS is that there are no limitations in reality to the creative methods.
 If the issue has a deadline or budget restriction, creative solvers might struggle, due to
their difficulty in concentrating and could lose the importance of more evident
resolutions.

5
Management
References
Altamony, H., Al-Salti, Z., Gharaibeh, A. and Elyas, T., 2016. The relationship between change
management strategy and successful enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementations: A
theoretical perspective. International Journal of Business Management and Economic
Research, 7(4), pp.690-703.
Costanzo, L.A., Vurro, C., Foster, D., Servato, F. and Perrini, F., 2014. Dual‐Mission
Management in Social Entrepreneurship: Qualitative Evidence from Social Firms in the United
Kingdom. Journal of Small Business Management, 52(4), pp.655-677.
Haldorai, A., Ramu, A. and Murugan, S., 2018. Social Aware Cognitive Radio Networks:
Effectiveness of Social Networks as a Strategic Tool for Organizational Business Management.
In Social Network Analytics for Contemporary Business Organizations (pp. 188-202). IGI
Global.
Ho, J.K.K., 2014. A theoretical review on the professional development to be a scholar
practitioner in business management. European Academic Research, 1(12), pp.5393-5422.
Johns, D.J., Hartmann-Boyce, J., Jebb, S.A., Aveyard, P. and Group, B.W.M.R., 2014. Diet or
exercise interventions vs combined behavioral weight management programs: a systematic
review and meta-analysis of direct comparisons. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and
Dietetics, 114(10), pp.1557-1568.
Parris, D.L., Dapko, J.L., Arnold, R.W. and Arnold, D., 2016. Exploring transparency: a new
framework for responsible business management. Management Decision, 54(1), pp.222-247.
Pfeifer, S., Šarlija, N. and Zekić Sušac, M., 2016. Shaping the Entrepreneurial Mindset:
Entrepreneurial Intentions of Business Students in Croatia. Journal of Small Business
Management, 54(1), pp.102-117.
Sofronijević, A., Milićević, V. and Ilić, B., 2014. Smart city as a framework for creating
competitive advantages in international business management. Management: Journal of
Sustainable Business and Management Solutions in Emerging Economies, 19(71), pp.5-15.