Disney guests faced problems of people getting too close or pressing around those who left too much space between themselves and the person in front. Disney placed its first ads for work bids in English, leaving small- and medium-sized French firms feeling like foreigners in their own land. Eventually, Disney set up a data bank with information on over 20,000 French and European firms looking for work, and the local Chamber of Commerce developed a video text information bank with Disney that small- and medium-sized companies through France and Europe would be able to tap into. “The work will come, but many local companies have got to learn that they don’t simply have the right to a chunk of work without competing,” said a chamber official. Efforts were made to ensure that sooner, rather than later, European nationals take over the day-to-day running of the park. Although there were only 23 U.S. expatriates among the employees, they controlled the show and held most of the top jobs. Each senior manager had the task of choosing his or her European successor. Disney was also forced to bail out 40 subcontractors who were working for the Gabot-Eremco construction contracting group, which had been unable to honor all of its commitments. Some of the subcontractors said they faced bankruptcy if they were not paid for their work on Euro Disneyland. A Disney spokesperson said that the payments would be less than $20.3 million and the company had already paid Gabot-Eremco for work on the park. Gabot-Eremco and 15 other main contractors demanded $157 million in additional fees from Disney for work that they said was added to the project after the initial contracts were signed. Disney rejected the claim and sought government intervention. Disney said that under no circumstances would it pay Gabot-Eremco and accused its officers of incompetence. As Bourguignon thought about these and other problems, the previous year’s losses and the prospect of losses again in the current year, with their negative impact on the company’s stock price, weighed heavily on his mind.
1. Using Hofstede’s four cultural dimensions as a point of reference, what are some of the main cultural differences between the United States and France?
2. In what way has Trompenaars’s research helped explain cultural differences between the United States and France?
3. In managing its Euro Disneyland operations, what are three mistakes that the company made? Explain.
4. Based on its experience, what are three lessons the company should have learned about how to deal with diversity? Describe each.