M7A1_BUS222

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M7A1 – BUS222 Timothy Sollenberger December 8, 2023

Leading a global project team that will address the need to recertify the organization to the ISO 9000 will be a large task that will take careful consideration of business cultures, and work hours while supplying enough flexibility to meet the timeline of five months. The project goal is to successfully obtain the recertification to ISO 9000 across locations in Mexico, the United Kingdom, Italy, Taiwan, and Ukraine. The timeline is five months in length with the following needing to take place. Virtual meetings, internal audits, and refresher training. This document will detail the plan to incorporate all the noted countries, develop a meeting plan that allows full participation and alignment, and recognize proper business practices in each of the noted countries. As the team lead it is important to identify and communicate the important business practices of each of the represented countries. This section will note some of the important items for the team to know while moving through the project. Beginning in Mexico the idea of punctuality is not strictly adhered to and as a leader and team member would be important to set the standard for timeliness, so this cultural norm does not negatively affect other members. Mexican team members would expect to build long-term relationships based on mutual trust. This may be difficult over a short-term project as this. As a result, taking an active role in facilitating team-building discussions is important (Morrison, 2023, pg. 317-319). Further, the Mexican people are risk-averse, and ‘expertise’ is less important than in other countries. The next country to consider is the United Kingdom. Based on their preponderance for higher education and separation from the remainder of Europe, the United Kingdom is in some ways closed to outside information. Team members from the United Kingdom will seek well-established rules for everything. As such it will be important as the team lead to establish a charter and expectations for the team to work through. These members of the organization will expect punctuality and an oral agreement

that may be made via the telecommunications to be used will be considered binding (Morrison, 2023, pg. 536-539). Italians much like the Mexican team members will expect a good bit of effort to be put into strong, trusting relationships. As a rule, it will be more difficult to schedule the Italian members for appointments during their summer periods of July and August, and the likelihood that if a holiday is encountered the Italians will extend weekends to match it. Italians expect punctuality and to deal with people they know. Negotiating in Italy may seem slow compared to other countries (Morrison, 2023, ph. 270-272). As a result, it would behoove the team leader to construct an agenda for the team meetings and have a member who is accountable for keeping the team on track and in the designated one-hour time-space. This will meet the needs of the various team countries and can be used as a tactic to minimize the burden of a global team. The Taiwanese have rapidly become one of the wealthiest and highest tech-related countries in East Asia through modernization. This alone should make it important for the team lead to identify and implement the proper technology to use for the meetings. There may be an opportunity to flex the Taiwanese members to assist with identifying the right technology to use. The Taiwanese team does have some importance on evening entertainment and would expect their morning engagements to be a bit later. This will be important to note when developing a schedule that accommodates the team members. Brute honesty is not something the Taiwanese team members will expect. This is something that could be discussed during a write-up on the various cultures to be shared before the beginning of the first meeting. Competition in Taiwan can be fierce as a team lead coming prepared to discuss all aspects of the work to be completed will be important (Morrison, 2023, pg. 496-501). Ukraine brings with it a history and recent partaking in global conflict. Included in this history is a note of a share of cyber-crime. This should not fully shape the participation of the team from Ukraine

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but along with other countries should be a consideration for the proper technology to be used when conducting the team meetings and protecting of the organization's assets. Punctuality is not a rule for the Ukrainians, and neither is the set timeliness of the meeting. As mentioned above with other countries this will need to be addressed to keep the meetings on target and the project in scope. If there are legal issues in the country of Ukraine with the ISO standard to be recertified it may not be the fault of the team member for not understanding them. Spend time with the Ukrainian team members to develop groundwork and understand what will need to be done to succeed (Morrison, 2023, pg 526- 530). With a better understanding of the countries and cultures involved in completing this project an execution plan can be laid out. The timeline for the team will be as such, months one through four will include bi-weekly 1-hour scheduled meetings with an agenda that is designed for 50 minutes to allow for questions and unique discussions. Following this period, the last month will include travel to various sites to perform audits and refresher training topics on the ISO standards. Before kicking off the routine meetings there will be a ‘building community meeting’ for all the parties. As mentioned with most of the team members having a trusting relationship and not just strictly business is important. This meeting will be designed around icebreakers and introductions such that the team members can get to know one another. A Forbes article describing plans for overcoming the disconnect to a remotely connected team gives the following that can be used. As the team lead be a mentor and facilitate discussion, give the team opportunities to celebrate accomplishments, and have an environment in which collaboration can occur (Boquen, 2023). By opening the team at the onset and having a plan to keep trust building at the forefront a higher likelihood of success will be encountered. The next step is to ensure the team has a consistent method of communicating and having bi- weekly meetings. Note that some of the countries may have challenges with VOIP choices such as Zoom

or Skype. Things to consider for this, have a voice-only option but encourage the use of video as this will improve collaboration. Consider other software such as Teams that may be allowed in all the countries. Communicate that the meetings will be recorded for the team members to reference if there is no alternative to a live stream. In fact, in the off-meeting times recorded messages can add a layer of personal connection for the team members “For remote teams working in different time zones, recorded video messages are also a powerful tool. These can be watched on demand, accommodating different schedules and replacing emails with a personal and effective messaging medium that is much higher bandwidth.” (Massachusetts, 2020). These tips can help build a team that can succeed even in the face of several time zone differences. The time zone differences must be addressed for this project to be successful. As stated above a clear agenda for the meetings with a scheduled time will be made up. The lead will need to allow each member nation to stipulate the best time in the morning and evening to facilitate the bi-weekly meetings. Then the times can be aligned to rotate early/late for the meetings to balance the impact that can be had on all parties. The bi-weekly meetings will not be the only communication among the team members. The best team leads for a global team such as this must have an open-door policy for remote workers. The team leader needs to establish expanded working hours in which they can be available to the members. This may be impactful and require flexibility on the lead's part but will go a long way in moving past the time zone difference challenge (Gurchiek, 2020). Other suggestions from the HR managers on a global remote team include tracking progress, giving a platform such as a team page to collaborate on, and celebrating successes (Gurchiek, 2020). At the end of the period in which the meetings will occur with the above plan a month of site visits will need to be held. Members from various countries should be scheduled to travel to their counterparts to take part in cross-training and internal audits. As the team has built its relationship over

the prior months this action can help with improving the team for the final steps, having trusting members there to provide candid feedback if needed in pursuit of the recertification. As the team lead from beginning to end it will have been important to maintain clear direction for the team overall. This will be accomplished by having a standard agenda that includes a welcome and introduction. Project overview which will become check-ins on project progress. A communication plan can be visited at each meeting to adjust as needed. A briefing on country-specific business practices and a running list of action items and owners. This agenda will be excellent for kick-off and hold the team to a standardized practice which can help overcome the above-described cultural differences and communication barriers. The team lead should have an easily accessible place where all members can check goal progress and be aware of needed travel and difficulties in obtaining the needed standards for ISO recertification. The business practices of Ukraine, Taiwan, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Mexico have been examined here with an emphasis on recognizing what practices will be needed to facilitate a successful remote global team. Then an outline of best practices to lead the team including an agenda for the meetings has been provided. By following the plan outlined here the organization under the direction of the team lead will be successful in meeting the provided timeline and goal of ISO recertification.

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References Boquen, A. (2023, April 3). How to overcome five remote work challenges in 2023. Forbes . https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinesscouncil/2023/04/03/how-to-overcome-five- remote-work-challenges-in-2023/?sh=19bcc1c2f3d3 Gurchiek, K. (2020, May 1). 10 Tips for Successfully Managing Remote Workers. SHRM . https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-news/pages/covid19-10-tips-for-successfully- managing-remote-workers-.aspx Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (2020, April 9). Overcoming Remote work Challenges | MIT Sloan Management Review . MIT Sloan Management Review. https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/overcoming-remote-work-challenges/ Morrison, T., Conway, W.A. (2023). Kiss, bow, or shake hands. (2 nd ed.). Adams Media

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