Heating up between senior executives and middle management

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Reference no: EM132228047

Scenario: A UK mobile phone company, Jazz Mobile, was set up in the Caribbean one year ago. Jazz Mobile has offices in Trinidad, Barbados, St Lucia, St Vincent, and Jamaica. 75% of the senior executives are British, while almost 90% of middle management and other staff are from the Caribbean. The company is poised to launch a new service in three months, one that could help the company gain a superior market share.

On the inside, tensions are heating up between the senior executives and middle management. The executives are failing miserably to get the staff on board and are nervous about the impending deadlines. They are accustomed to working with well-defined plans, schedules, and budgets, and have noticed that their Caribbean colleagues are ignoring their need to stick to the plan. They set meeting agendas considerably in advance, and focus on the tasks to be achieved, but are annoyed with the Caribbean team members’ extensive chit-chat in meetings, and the propensity to stray from the important topics to be discussed. They work way beyond “official” working hours, often missing out on lunch breaks and taking work home. They feel that their instructions are not being honoured, for example, Janet (one of the executives) recently asked for some urgent research from Richard (Caribbean staff), saying: “Please research that topic, as soon as you are able.” Janet was confused when she did not receive what she asked for until two weeks had passed. The British execs find their Caribbean counterparts loud, overly-friendly, and are uncomfortable with their over-familiar invitations to join them for weekend plans.

The Caribbean staff find their executives overly controlling regarding plans and schedules, and find their need for efficiency stifling. They are not sure what they are expected to do, and when. They are losing morale because they feel that they have to be overly formal at work, and have picked up that their managers frown upon their departure from work at the close of the official business day. They would like to improve their relationships with their leaders, but feel a lack of warmth and camaraderie from them.

Will they be able to overcome their challenges and meet the upcoming deadline?

Reference no: EM132228047

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