Israel – US: Cross-Cultural Training
12 mistakes Israeli companies do when establishing a US operation:
Mistake # 1: Over-Globalize
- Corporate Identity < Site Identity
- Where is the real headquarter?
- Who makes the Call?
- Where are:
Marketing
Finance
Human Resources
Mistake # 2: No Clear “Rules of the Game”
- Who Acquired and who Got Acquired?
- Reporting Lines
- Communication Channels
- Staff meetings
- Delegation ≠ Abdication
Mistake # 3: Lack of External Corporate Identity
- Company Logo
- Company Colors
- Company letterhead
- Company Shirts, hats, mugs, etc
Mistake # 4: “Dragging” Termination
- Create un-Certainty
- Perceived as lack of confidence
- If you don’t control the process–it controls you
- Termination lists prior to actual take over
Mistake # 5: Maintain Current Business Goals
- Feeling of “business as usual”
- Missing the logic of the acquisition
- Fears of hidden agenda
- No integration
Mistake # 6: Ignoring the “Soft Stuff”
“Soft” issues = > “Hard” problems
Mistake # 7: Overemphasize Cultural Differences
Look for:
- Competency issues
- Control issues/site identity
- Professional identity
Mistake # 8: Over-Respect Local Values
- Awareness ≠ Acceptance
- Business before culture
Mistake # 9: Globalize Compensation
- Stock Options Matrix
- Awards
- Benefits
Stock Options: Standardization
| U.S. | Israel | Poland | |
| Gross Cash | $110,000 | $75,000 | $30,000 |
| Options Grant | 10,000 | 10,000 | 10,000 |
| Exercise Price | $0.50 | $0.50 | $0.50 |
| Sell Price | $17.00 | $17.00 | $17.00 |
| Gross Profit | $165,000 | $165,000 | $165,000 |
| Relative W . | 150% | 220% | 550% |
Stock Options: Equalization
| U.S. | Israel | Poland | |
| Gross Cash | $110,000 | $75,000 | $30,000 |
| Options Grant | 14,670 | 10,000 | 4,000 |
| Exercise Price | $0.50 | $0.50 | $0.50 |
| Sell Price | $17.00 | $17.00 | $17.00 |
| Gross Profit | $242,000 | $165,000 | $66,000 |
| Relative W . | 220% | 220% | 220% |
Mistake # 10: Localize Hiring Policy
- Prevent “Corporate Sapiens”
- Prevent employees’ mobility
Mistake # 11: Confuse Statutory & Practice
- Statutory benefits ≠ Market practice benefits
- Employment Contract Vs. Employment Offer
Mistake # 12: Forget about Termination
- Statutory benefits ≠ Market practice benefits
US – Israel: Apparent Similarity
- Apparent Similarity – Surface Level
- Deep rooted differences
- It is easier to deal with a more “obvious dissimilarity”
Israel – The Melting Pot
- 2,000 + 60 Years of Survival Mode (“Massada Myth”)
- “Living Outside the System”
- Self Selected Authority (“Choose Your Own Rabbi”, “We have all been at the Sinai Mou.”)
- Learning Methods Based on a Conflict
- Founding Fathers – Social Revolutionaries
- Frontier Mentality
- Integration by Conflict
- The Kibbutz and the Army
US – The American Dream
- The “Mayflower Myth” (1621)
- “The Sky is the Limit” – “Tomorrow the Sun will Shine Again”
- 400 years of history
- Founding Fathers – WASP
- Integration by Keeping Low “Common Denominator”
- The Sheriff – the Person who supervises land
- Frontier Mentality
- Integration by Inclusion
- Individual Freedom
Individualism
| ISRAEL | USA |
| · Belonging to a Group | · No Trespassing
|
| · Freedom to Express Opinions | · Private Property |
| · Collective is the Center of Society | · Private Interest |
| · “I’ll Help You to Understand” | · Individual Rights |
| · Individual is the Center of Society | |
| · Live and Let Live |
Responsibility
| ISRAEL | USA |
| · Group and Personal | · Personal |
| · Welfare State System | · Self-Reliance |
| · Team Achievement | · Individual Achievement |
| · Collective Situation, We | · Individual Success |
| · More Status-Equality | · Competition |
| · Sharing Blame & Glory | · Personal Accountability |
Interpersonal Relations
| ISRAEL | USA |
| · Diffuse | · Contractual |
| · Total Friendship | · Compartmentalized Friendship |
| · Friendship By Assignment Strong Obligations | · Choose You are Friends |
| · Sincerity | · Politeness |
| · Don’t take “No” For an Answer | · Can Say “No” in a Friendly Way |
| · Demanding Relationships | · Non-Imposition |
| · Admitting Weakness is OK | · Avoid Showing Weakness |
Interpersonal Relations (Cont)
| ISRAEL | USA |
| · Openness/bluntness | · Reluctance to Criticize |
| · Directness | · Sensitive to Criticism |
| · Rudeness “Glorified” | · Tact |
| · Informal | · Formal |
| · Stranger/Acquaint. Gap | · Respect/Trust Strangers |
| · Meddling | · Mind Your Own Business |
| · Conflicts Solved by Arguments | · Conflicts Solved by Litigation |
Association With Group
| ISRAEL | USA |
| · Primordial Belonging | · Join By Choice |
| · “Us And Them” | · Vague Group Limits |
| · Cement relationship -> corporate | · Easiness to corporate (trust) |
| · Belonging Despite Doubts | · Can Leave Group At Any Time |
Relation to Authority
| ISRAEL | USA |
| · Low Power Distance | · High Power Distance |
| · Question Authority | · Respect Authority |
| · “Rules Are Created in Order to Change Them” | · “Rules exist in order to obey them” |
| · Equality of Status | · Equality of Rights |
| · Leadership By Role-Model | · Leadership by Command |
| · “Socialism” – No Status, Natural Authority | · Hierarchical System Works Well |
Employee Relations
| ISRAEL | USA |
| · Loyalty to Company > Than Profession | · Loyalty to Profession > Than Company |
| · Familial | · Contractual |
| · Seeing the Whole Picture | · Excellence In Your Job |
| · Cooperation Based on Companionship | · Cooperation Based on Contract |
The Israeli Factor
Pros:
- Creative
- State of the art technology
- Aggressive, “no prisoners”, “fight to the last bullet“
- Winners
Cons:
- Arrogant
- Stubborn
- Micro manager
- Suspicious
- “Cards close to the chest”
Israeli Expatriates in the US
Pros:
- Knowledge transfer
- Internal communication
- Loyalty
- Resourcefulness
- “Spinning resistance”
Cons:
- Cultural/language barriers
- External communication
- “Us and them”
- Cost
