Learn how to address global cultural differences in the way people deal with conflict, relate to authority, ask and answer questions, express respect, and practice equality in the workplace. Presented by: Barry Saiff - Founder and CEO, Saiff Solutions, Inc.

2. Your Host
Scott Abel aka “The Content Wrangler”
Internationally recognized content strategist
Helps organizations deliver the right content to the
right audience, anywhere, anytime, on any device
Featured presenter at content industry events
Serves on the faculty of the University of California,
Berkeley, School of Information.

3. Your Speaker
Barry Saiff
33 years in technical documentation
Led content development teams at
Symantec, Oracle, IBM, and GE
Founded Saiff Solutions in 2011
Provides technical writing services to large
enterprises in Australia, Japan, Canada,
US

4. Vision
Where are your teams located?
◻ North America and/or Europe only
◻ Asia, plus North America and/or
Europe
◻ Asia plus another continent
◻ Asia only
◻ Other
What is your role?
◻ Documentation Manager /
Leader
◻ Technical Writer
◻ Engineering Manager / Leader
◻ Product Management /
Marketing
◻ Other
Quick Poll

5. textScenario I
The remote technical writing team in
the Philippines is making “a lot of
mistakes.”
Your US writing team is convinced
the Philippine writers are less than
competent, or that they don’t care
about quality.
Perhaps. But what else might be
going on?

6. Vision
Remote team members are not
asking enough questions.
Remote team members are not
included in key meetings,
resources, etc.
Expectations are not clear or
not shared.
Remote hiring or management
issues.
Possible Causes of High Error Level

7. Vision
Why aren’t they asking enough
questions?
How do you* respond to questions
that seem pointless? Stupid?
Are you* open to people who think
differently?
Are all questions welcome?
Really?
---------
*Anyone in authority
Asking Questions
Structure meetings to encourage quieter people
to speak (when feasible):
Break into pairs before discussing in the larger group.
Have each person in the circle make a comment.
(Allow people to pass if they want to.)
Everyone should speak once, before anyone speaks
twice.
Invite quieter people to lead part of the meeting.
Talk about problems openly in the meeting. Invite more
vocal people to speak less.
Between meetings, ask quieter people what would
help them speak, or ask for their ideas on how meeting
should be run.
--Community Tool Box, “Building Relationships with People
from Different Cultures”

8. Vision
Why aren’t they asking enough
questions?
What does respect mean to you? To
them?
Respect
Respect in the Philippines (and some other
Asian cultures):
○ Defer to authority/role, age, whiteness,
experience, wealth.
○ Be quiet. Appear attentive. Agree. Do what you
are told.
○ Do not challenge or question authority. Support
leaders.
Respect in the USA (and many non-Asian
cultures):
○ Tell the truth, respectfully. Do not withhold key
information.
○ Ask questions, appropriately. Contribute. Speak
up.
○ Do what you say you will. Do not lie. Support the
team.

9. Vision
Remote members not included
in team meetings, emails, etc.
Communication
Social factors are the most significant
predictors of virtual team performance and
satisfaction. (Lin et al, 2008)
Predictable and timely responses between
members lead to greater levels of trust in a
virtual team. (Dewar, 2006)
Set times for regular meetings and individual
accessibility by phone or email, but avoid
relying on email as sole means of
communication. (Cascio, 2000)
Rely on a common database to store and share
knowledge. (Hertel et al., 2005; Powell et al., 2004)
https://est05.esalestrack.com/eSalesTrack/Content/Content.
ashx?file=4578f59e-21b3-4a2c-bbfe-63e53af3f5dc.pdf

10. Vision
What is ‘a lot of mistakes’?
How many? What kinds?
Are expectations clear to the
remote team?
‘A Lot of Mistakes’
Establish clear lines of
accountability by setting
monthly, quarterly, and yearly
performance goals.
Set targets so the remote team
knows without a doubt exactly
what ‘hitting it out of the park’
means.
Prof. Mark Mortensen
Organizational Development,
INSEAD
https://hbr.org/2015/02/how-to-manage-
remote-direct-reports

11. Vision
Turnover at your remote site is
very high.
What are the possible reasons?
Scenario 2

12. Vision
Possible reasons:
● Job market competition
● Compensation
● Shift hours
● Transportation
● Management
● Relations between remote
and local staff
Turnover

13. Vision
Management in Asia is frequently “Command
and Control:”
○ Management as supervision
○ Intensely hierarchical
○ “The manager always knows best”
This management style does not encourage:
○ Collaboration
○ Asking questions
○ Prioritizing quality over deference to authority
All over the world, people frequently leave jobs
because of their managers. This may also
explain why they don’t ask questions.
Management Style

14. Vision
Why are local and remote staff
not getting along well?
Conflict / Culture Clash
Some Common US approaches to conflict:
○ Discuss. Argue. Raise voices. Blame. Apologize.
Resolve/Not.
○ Challenge. Brainstorm together. Resolve/Not.
Some Common Filipino approaches to conflict:
○ Avoid. Work around. Await opportunity to resolve.
Some Common Filipino responses to US
approaches:
○ Withdraw. Resent. Sabotage. Leave.
Some Common US responses to Filipino
approaches:
○ Give up on the Asians. Blame. Assume
stupidity/incompetence.

15. In Summary:
Things Are Not Always What They Seem
Mistakes
...could be due to incompetence. But
also think about:
● The clarity of your expectations
● Your communication style
● Your openness to questions
● Differences in display of respect
● All the “authorities” involved and
the above issues for each of them
Turnover
...could be due to typical reasons
(competition, compensation, etc.). But
also carefully consider:
● Your management style
● Conflicts or culture clash

16. Vision
Which of these challenges are
affecting your productivity?
◻ Remote team not asking enough
questions, or not following instructions
◻ Turnover rate high at remote sites
◻ Conflict between remote and local
staff
◻ Deadlines not being met
◻ Other
If Saiff Solutions could assist you
in overcoming your challenges,
would you be interested in a free
consultation?
◻ Yes, please contact me directly.
◻ Not right now, but I would like to
receive additional information about
your services.
◻ No, thank you.
Quick Poll

17. Barry Saiff
barrysaiff@saiffsolutions.com
twitter: @SaiffSolutions
Scott Abel
scott@thecontentwrangler.com
twitter: @contentwrangler