Question 1
The problems could have been avoided by conducting a training needs assessment. A training needs assessment helps with the identification of the specific skills and knowledge that the employees should be trained on (Mathis, et al. 270). However, in the case study, this assessment was not conducted. The training program was conducted haphazardly without paying much attention to the areas where the Indian employees needed more training i.e. empathy training. Secondly, the problems could have been avoided if the IT and support department had not been outsourced to India. For department which will interact directly with the customers, it is prudent to fill them with personnel who can easily understand the customer. The cultural differences between the customers and the Indian employees creates a communication barrier (Jandt, 2).
Question 2
Basing my arguments on Hofstede’s Model; India can be viewed as a more collective society. The interests of the group are prioritized more than those of the individual. Group dynamics take center stage in every operation. India also has a high power distance index alluding to the fact that it has strong hierarchical structures in place (Hofstede par. 1). The country also scores high on the uncertainty avoidance index (Hofstede par. 5). Most employees are not willing to take initiative and go the extra mile in helping customers with their problems. Since what lies outside the job description and other instructions of the job is unknown, most Indian employees were not willing to venture out. The Indian society is also short-term in nature i.e. it is only concerned with solving the immediate problem oblivious of the aftermath (Hofstede par. 6). For example, the support staff did not warn the customer about buying the right type of switch. If the staff was long term oriented, he/she would have gone ahead to explain to the customer about the appropriate switch to purchase to avoid future problems.
Works Cited
Hofstede, Geert. "Cultural Dimensions-India". Geert Hofstede.Web
Jandt, Fred Edmund. Intercultural Communication. 7th ed., Thousand Oaks, Calif., Sage Publications, 2013. Print
Mathis, Robert L. et al. Human Resource Management. 14th ed., Cengage Learning, 2013. Print
