Post-merger integration stalls more often than it fails outright — and the usual cause isn’t strategy or systems, but a cultural faultline the two companies split along. This article looks at why “we’re one company now” doesn’t dissolve that divide, and what actually weakens it — a common and fixable source of cultural friction for […]
Post-Merger Integration: Why Two Cultures Don’t Merge Read More »
Cross-cultural feedback is where good intentions quietly go wrong: the same sentence can read as honest and helpful to one colleague and rude to another, and usually neither person realises there is a gap. This article explains why direct feedback lands as rudeness in some cultures while indirect feedback vanishes unheard in others, and how
When “Direct” Means “Rude”: Getting Cross-Cultural Feedback Right Read More »
Cultural stereotypes at work rarely arrive as prejudice — they usually arrive as preparation. This article looks at why country guides and cultural frameworks describe averages rather than people, why well-prepared leaders get individuals wrong, and how to use cultural knowledge without letting it harden into assumption. Explore more in the Cultural Friction newsletter. Cultural
You Read the Culture Guide. Then You Met the Actual Person. Read More »
Cultural Friction · Team Dynamics Half Your Team Follows the Process.The Other Half Treats It as a Suggestion. It looks like a professionalism problem. It’s actually a norms problem — and you can’t fix it by repeating the rules more loudly. Brendan Thomas Quinn · 6 min read · Team Dynamics You built the process
Half Your Team Follows the Process. The Other Half Treats It as a Suggestion. Read More »
Feedback across cultures rarely flows upward the way most leaders assume, and that gap is often the real reason nobody tells you when you’re wrong. This article looks at why upward correction breaks down in hierarchical vs egalitarian team cultures, and what to do about it — a common and fixable source of cultural friction
The Emperor’s New Clothes: Why Your Best People Are Watching You Fail in Silence Read More »
Building trust in international teams often starts strong and then quietly erodes — and most leaders never see it happening until the damage is done. This article looks at swift trust, why new multicultural teams often trust each other faster than anyone expects, and what causes that early trust to drain away. Explore more in
Your Team Trusted Each Other on Day One. Here’s Why That Won’t Last. Read More »
