Reference no: EM132860191
After two years of sales calls and persuasion, a large, multinational petroleum company - Big Oil Ltd. - decides to sign with your employer, Secure Bank. Since Big Oil is headquartered in Saudi Arabia and most of the meetings with the client have been in the Middle East, Secure Bank's senior executive in charge of oil and oil products companies, Julie, has not attended. Although the Secure Bank employees who have met with the company have told the Big Oil executives that the lead on their account will be a woman, the news must not have registered, perhaps because of language difficulties. Today, the Big Oil reps are in Chicago to sign on the dotted line and meet with Secure Bank's senior managers, and of course, they've met with Julie. A member of your sales team calls you to say that Big Oil's senior team member has told him he does not want Julie to work on their account, period. Because of cultural issues, Big Oil execs are uncomfortable dealing with women from any country.
-What do you see as the main issue in this case?
-Explain the context using cross-cultural knowledge to compare and contrast cultural values of the US and Saudi Arabia. Use chapter 5 & 6 slides and focus on Hofstede's cross-cultural dimensions, faith influences, and differences in language to analyze the case.
-List 3 possible solutions to this scenario and the likely outcomes.
-Explain in detail what may be the best possible solution that would respect Julie's work and the expectations of the Big Oil executives.