Cross-Cultural Management: Hofstede, Trompenaar and Disney's Failures

This report delves into the complexities of cross-cultural management, utilizing Hofstede's cultural model and Trompenaar's research to analyze cultural differences between the USA and France. It examines how these differences influenced EuroDisney's business operations in France, highlighting the company's failure to adapt to local cultural nuances. The report details specific mistakes made by Disney, such as disregarding cultural factors, inadequate staffing, and strategic errors, which ultimately hampered its success. Furthermore, it extracts valuable lessons from this case, emphasizing the importance of adequate staffing, cultural sensitivity, and strategic adaptation for businesses operating in international markets. The analysis provides insights into how businesses can avoid similar pitfalls and successfully navigate the challenges of cross-cultural environments. This assignment is available on Desklib, a platform providing past papers and solved assignments for students.

Running head: CROSS CULTURAL MANAGEMENT
Cross Cultural Management
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1CROSS CULTURAL MANAGEMENT
Question 1: Hofstede's cultural model
The Hofstede’s cultural model is one of the most popular tools which are used to
analyze the national culture of a particular nation. The concept of national culture has indeed
become very important in the present day business world in the light of the fact that the
corporate houses are following the path of internationalization and thus are operational in
many other nations of the world apart from their native one (Minkov and Hofstede 2012). It
is a generally seen that the national culture of one nation is drastically different from another
nations and many experts are of the viewpoint that the national culture of a particular nation
wields a significant amount of influence on the way or the manner in which business is being
conducted in that particular nation (Minkov and Hofstede 2012). Therefore, it would be apt to
say that an analysis of the national culture of a particular nation has become very important
for the corporate houses which are willing to expand their business in that particular nation
and it is precisely here that the tool of Hofstede’s cultural model becomes important (Minkov
and Hofstede 2012).
The nation of USA can be seen as a multicultural one with people from different parts
of the world taking up residence in this nation (Halls 2014). Thus, the national culture of the
nation USA represents the conglomeration of all these different cultures. An analysis of the
national culture of the nation of Hofstede’s cultural model would reveal the following details-

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Figure 1: USA on Hofstede’s Cultural Model
Source: Hofstede’s Insights 2018
The people of the nation under discussion here are more likely to indulge in
individualistic kind of works rather than collaborative or group activities since the score of
the nation on the quotient of individualism is very high (Hofstede Insights 2018). The people
of the nation, on the other hand, are likely to get influenced by the concepts of achievement,
success and competition which is indicated by the high masculinity score of the nation
(Hofstede Insights 2018). The low score of the nation on the power distance section is a
representative of the fact the people of the nation does not follow ardently the power
divisions within the workplace and the seniors are always approachable (Hofstede Insights
2018). Moreover, the low score on the long term orientation quotient is a representative of the
fact that the people of the nation measure the success of a particular corporate house on the
basis of its recent performance rather than its overall performance since its initiation
(Hofstede Insights 2018). Furthermore, the high score on the parameter of indulgence is a
representative of the fact the people of the nation generally like to keep their work and
personal lives separate (Hofstede Insights 2018). Finally, the average score on the uncertainty
avoidance section is an indicative of the fact that the people of the nation of USA are
generally comfortable with the recent innovations and technologies and generally like to use
them for the process of their business (Hofstede Insights 2018).
An analysis of the nation of France on the cultural framework of Hofstede’s cultural
model would reveal the following facts-

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Figure 2: France on Hofstede’s cultural model
Source: Hofstede’s Insights 2018
The people of the nation of France just like the people of the nation like to take part in
individualistic kind of works rather than on group or collaborative kind of activities which is
indicated by the high score on the individualism index (Hofstede Insights 2018).
Furthermore, the people of the nation unlike the people of the USA score low on the
masculinity quotient which means that the people of the nation are less likely to be influenced
by the concepts of achievement, competition and success (Hofstede Insights 2018). The high
score on the power distance quotient is a representative of the fact that in the nation of France
and more specifically within the various workplaces people follow the various power
divisions in an ardent manner (Hofstede Insights 2018). The extremely high score on the
uncertainty avoidance quotient represents the fact that the people of the nation of France do
not like to take the help of the recent technologies and innovations for the process of their
business (Hofstede Insights 2018). The high score on the long term orientation index
represents the fact that the people of the nation of France access the success or the failure of a
particular corporate house on its overall history rather than its recent performance (Hofstede
Insights 2018). Finally, the average score on the indulgence quotient is a representative of the
fact that the French people generally like to keep their work and personal lives separated
(Hofstede Insights 2018).

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The above discussion clearly indicates both the people of the USA and France are
alike in terms of the individualistic kind of work which they like to do whereas they are
different from each other in all other six parameters of Hofstede’s cultural model. Thus, the
corporate house EuroDisney needed to take these differences in culture between the two
nations into effective consideration for the process of their business in the nation of France.
Question 2: Trompenaar’s research
The research work of Trompenaar provides the same kind of information into the field
of cross cultural communication just like the cross cultural communication theory of
Hofstede’s cultural model (Kinloch and Metge 2014). An analysis of the two nations on this
particular model of cross cultural communication would reveal the following facts-
Individualism and universalism
The American people are very individualistic and do not generally like to indulge in
collaborative or group activities and the people of France just like the people of USA
generally like to indulge in individualistic kind of works (Thomas and Peterson 2017).
However, the results of this particular research show at the same time that the people of
America are more likely to not take into consideration the cultural factors of other nations in
comparison to the people of France who are likely to take into consideration the cultural
factors of other nations (Thomas and Peterson 2017). Thus, the failure of the American
company Disney to take into consideration the cultural factors of the nation of France became
the major cause of its failure in the nation of France.
Neutralism and emotions
The people of France as well as the people of USA generally like to display their
emotions and do believe in keeping their emotions in checks. According to Trompenaar, this
particular aspect of the cultures of the two countries is starkly different from the cultures of

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the other nations which generally like to suppress their emotions (France, del Carmen
Rodríguez and Hett 2012).
Diffuse and specific culture
The people of the nation of America are more likely to follow a specific kind of
culture in which there is a distinction between the private as well as the professional lives of
the individuals (Ferraro and Briody 2017). The people of France, on the other hand, are the
followers of the concept of diffuse culture in which there is a close parallel between the
professional as well as the personnel lives of the individuals (Ferraro and Briody 2017).
Time orientation
The nations of America and France differ from each other on the factor of time
orientation as well. The people of the nation of America consider the entity of time to be of
paramount importance and thus it is generally seen that they do not like to change the time of
the meetings and other important official events once it had been scheduled by them (Thomas
and Peterson 2017). This particular thing can be ascribed to the fact that the people of
America generally like to do one thing at one time. The appointments or official events
scheduled by the French people, on the other hand are subjected to change since the French
people like to do multiple things at one time (Thomas and Peterson 2017).
Question 3: Three Mistakes
The American company Disney for the process of its business operations in the nation
of France committed many mistakes which indirectly as well as directly affected the
prospects of the company in the nation of France and other European countries. Some of the
major mistakes committed by the American company for the process of its business in the
nation of France are as follows-

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Failure to take into effective consideration the cultural factor
The Paris Disneyland was completely based on the model which was followed by the
company for the process of its business in the nation of the USA (Disneylandparis.com
2018). It is significant to note that this particular model enabled the theme park to attain a
significant amount of success in the nation of America (Disneylandparis.com 2018). Thus, it
was with this particular objective that the company for the process of its business operations
in the nation of France banned the use of wine and other alcoholic beverages, explicit display
of emotions and other important factors that formed the key components of the culture of the
nation of France (Disneylandparis.com 2018). Furthermore, the company served American
food items to the people who visited the theme parks which were much in demand among its
American customers (Disneylandparis.com 2018). It is significant to note that these food
items were not much appreciated by the people of the nation of France. Thus, the lack of
presence of these factors significantly hampered the prospects of the concerned corporate
house in the nation of France. Therefore, the establishment of this particular theme at the city
of Paris was called by the people of Paris as a form of “cultural imperialism” on the part of
the American people (Halls 2014).
Inadequate staffing
The American company Disney for the process of their business at the city of Paris
also faced the problem of inadequate staffing. The corporate house failed to recruit adequate
number of staffs and therefore it was generally seen that most of the time the theme park was
unclean and the ground of the theme park was littered with food packets and other stuffs
consumed by them.
Strategic errors
The entire theme park established at Paris was modeled after the theme park of the
same corporate in the nation of USA. Thus, it was generally seen that the organization

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followed the same kind of business strategies for the process of their business in the nation of
France which have yielded success in the nation of USA (Disneylandparis.com 2018). It is a
reflection of this particular fact that just like its theme park in the nation of USA the theme
park of Paris as well had its major focus on the children. It was with this objective that the
theme park banned the use of wine and other alcoholic beverages in the theme parks. This
particular strategy along with the other ones followed by the corporate house for the process
of their business in the city of Paris hurt the prospects of the corporate house in a negative
manner.
Question 4: Three lessons
Although the business operations of Disney in the nation of France failed to yield the
desired kind of results which the corporate house had expected yet the corporate house can
take the experience as a learning one and try not to repeat them for the process of their
business operations in the other nations of the world.
Adequate staffing
The corporate house for the process of its business operations in the future times
should take into consideration the factor of adequate staffing. Adequate staffs are not only
likely to keep the theme parks clean but at the same time are likely to help the concerned
corporate house to serve its customers in a much effective manner. Therefore, it would be apt
to say that the factor of adequate staffing is likely to significantly enhance the prospects of
the corporate house in a significant manner.
European Culture
Culture generally serves as a uniting entity within the framework of the society and
thus the effective utilization of this particular factor by the various corporate houses becomes
of paramount importance (Kinloch and Metge 2014). Thus, in future it becomes very

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important for the corporate house Disney to take into effective consideration the culture of
Europe for the process of their business operations in the continent of Europe.
Realistic goals
The setting up of realistic goals is another factor which is likely to help the corporate
house in a significant manner. One of the major mistakes committed by Disney for its
operations in the city of Paris was the fact that it established goals for itself on the basis of the
success attained by it in the city of California and thus the venture was bound to fail.
Therefore, in future setting up of realistic goals is likely to help the concerned corporate
house in a significant manner.

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References
Disneyland Resort. 2018. Disneyland® Official Site. [online] Available at:
https://disneyland.disney.go.com/ [Accessed 28 Jan. 2018].
Disneylandparis.com. 2018. Disneyland Paris. [online] Available at:
http://www.disneylandparis.com/en-us/ [Accessed 28 Jan. 2018].
Ferraro, G.P. and Briody, E.K., 2017. The cultural dimension of global business. Taylor &
Francis.
Forbes, B.D., 2017. Religion and popular culture in America. Univ of California Press.
Forbes.com. 2018. Forbes Welcome. [online] Available at:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/csylt/2014/07/14/the-secrets-behind-disneys-2-2-billion-theme-
park-profits/#961964e584fb [Accessed 28 Jan. 2018].
France, M.H., del Carmen Rodríguez, M. and Hett, G.G. eds., 2012. Diversity, Culture and
Counselling: A Canadian Perspective, 2e. Brush Education.
Halls, W.D., 2014. Education, Culture and Politics in Modern France: Society, School, and
Progress Series. Elsevier.
Hofstede Insights. 2018. Country Comparison - Hofstede Insights. [online] Available at:
https://www.hofstede-insights.com/country-comparison/the-usa/ [Accessed 28 Jan. 2018].
Hofstede Insights. 2018. Country Comparison - Hofstede Insights. [online] Available at:
https://www.hofstede-insights.com/country-comparison/france/ [Accessed 28 Jan. 2018].
Kinloch, P. and Metge, J., 2014. Talking past each other: problems of cross cultural
communication. Victoria University Press.

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Minkov, M. and Hofstede, G., 2012. Hofstede’s fifth dimension: New evidence from the
World Values Survey. Journal of cross-cultural psychology, 43(1), pp.3-14.
Thomas, D.C. and Peterson, M.F., 2017. Cross-cultural management: Essential concepts.
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