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Gert Jan Hofstede: The cultural biology of organization |
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Food for ThoughtThis is a game for approximately 100 people that lasts about one hour, with optionally up to half a day for evaluation. You can organize the game in your own organization using the following materials.
Back to Gert Jan Hofstede's main page
Account of the Wageningen venue The game was played at the Fourth International Chain Management Conference in Wageningen on May 24, 2000. Here is a brief account. 8.00 PM Start of the game.
8.15 PM First customers get fed up with waiting and go out to find fruit salads. 8.20 PM First fruit salad handed out to customers.
8.50 PM Producer 2 is sold out. They have, according to their script, had a bulk sales trategy. 8.55 PM End of game is announced.
9.00 PM End of game The culture award goes to a Caror customer team. Financial result awards go to Producer 4 (who would definitely have had a problem if there had been market regulation - they sold to customers directly), Marketing Organization 1 (Flexible strategy), Retailer 1 (the "safe food" team, quick to address the customer at the start of the game). What most paid off in this game is to jump in the gaps that other teams allow to occur. Back to Gert Jan Hofstede's main page
Instructions for "Food for Thought" N.B. This is for the game leader, to be divided among the teams. Teams only get the part of the info that they need. The game leader will do some editing and clipping to give each team the proper package of information. Each producer, marketing organisation or retailer gets: A kerchief, hat or apron in their team’s colour A page with practical instructions, see below. This page differs per team, e.g. producer 1 has instructions that differ from those of producer 2. In addition, the HOT (Head Of Team) of each team of P, B or R gets an envelope with currency which they have to hand in to the game leaders at the end of the game. The amounts are (N = number of customers; see spreadsheet "currency"): 2 straw of change for each producer team 0.2 x N of change for each marketing organisation team 0.4 x N of change for each retailer team Producer 3 receives 2 children as labourers, who are provided by the organisation. Each consumer gets: 1.20 Straw of currency a page with their team’s culture profile (see below) Each team gets a plan (plattegrond) showing where all the parties are, and where the bar and toilets are. If it is obvious then this is not necessary. Each observer gets some private instructions from GJH after his opening address. They are told to watch out for chain effects and for synthetic culture effects. The observers will give a brief summary of events at the end of the game. They will also decide on who gets the "culture award". Price levels Retailers At the game's beginning, the prices retailers will charge are about as follows:
Of course, these prices vary according to quality, quantity, speed of delivery, or other attributes, and other products can be created during the game. Marketing organisations At the game's beginning, the prices marketing organisations will charge are about as follows:
Of course, these prices vary according to quality, quantity, speed of delivery, or other attributes. Producers At the game's beginning, the prices producers will charge are about as specified in the spreadsheet. Each producer team gets a copy of the product price sheet of that workbook. Of course, these prices vary according to quality, quantity, speed of delivery, or other attributes. In particular, the up-market exclusive articles can be considerably more expensive. Some FA questions
Distribution of raw materials This can only be done after buying the stuff, because the actual fruit types and quantities may deviate from the projected. All providers should have about equal amounts of money value in stock according to average producer price levels (see sheet "fruit" in workbook). Team role scripts N.B. Make sure teams do not get to see other teams’ handout information! Producer 1: Quality You are a producer with a varied assortment of Top Quality Produce. You never sell a rotten fruit. You know what quality is. You pride yourselves on this. Some of your best produce is genetically ameliorated. You expect your customers to value this and to pay accordingly. That will make you a profitable living. Producer 2: Bulk You are a bulk producer. Your only products are the most common ones, which you have in large quantities. They may or may not be genetically manipulated; you do not care so much one way or another. Obtaining the biggest market share is your aim, which you intend to reach cost what may. You intend to beat your competitors by aggressive marketing among the marketing organisations. Producer 3: Mediterranean You are a Mediterranean family business. Everybody is proud of the business and helps along, from children to grandparents. You sell dried and fresh fruits. These are usually cultivated under poor circumstances. If no chemical treatment was administered, this is an advantage since the product can be labeled biological. In your assortment, this holds for pistachios, almonds and walnuts. Due to cheap labour, your quality / price ratio is excellent. But fresh tropical fruit is very perishable. If the products are not perfect you make up for that by adding a bit extra.
Producer 4: Biological You are a modern, biological European fruit producer. You cater for the customer who values a sustainable, back to purity and nature way of producing. Customers are willing to pay for this, either for the sake of the environment or for the sake of their health. Time is on your side.
Marketing organisation 1: Odysseus You are a creative, modern enterprise. You know that you are strategically placed in the food production chain. You try to outsmart your competitor in the way that seems most fitting with the prevailing market forces. Playing on a wide, flexible, innovative range of products is important in this respect. Marketing organisation 2: Hermes You are a creative, modern enterprise. You know that you are strategically placed in the food production chain. You try to outsmart your competitor in the way that seems most fitting with the prevailing market forces. Being fast to market at low cost is important in this respect. Retailer 1 You are the Safe Salad Specialists. You feel that today’s customers care for more than just the amount of money they pay for their food. They want certified quality, hygienic service, and reliable background information for their food. And you do so in minimum time. Retailer 2 You know that the customer might go to any retailer if you do not stand out. Therefore your strategy is: go and see what they want first, and then go and try and find it for them. Your credo is: anything you want, we can get. This is your team’s key to success. Retailer 3 Your credo is: we care for our customers. Therefore, your strategy is first to find high quality fruit salads, and then to take them to the customer. You do not just dump them on the customers, but you help them to select the fruit salad that best matches their wishes. In that way the customers know that they purchase fruit salads of quality that were made with love. Retailer 4 You are a modern, big, fast salad chain. You produce standardized, recognizable salads fast against low prices. You pride yourself on being first to market. No nonsense.
Customers ( N.B. Do not distribute this paragraph:) Each customer team belongs to one out of five cultures. Scripts that should in any case be represented (because they can be expected to generate tracing pressure in the chain) are: Lopow (complain if not fresh or anything else), Indiv (human rights, health obsession), Caror (sustainability), and Uncavo (infection, genetic manipulation). If there are under 10 scripts, or over 10, start with these four. Use Achievor (fast, big) as nr 5. Here are the five scripts. Each team only receives one of the scripts. Lopow Your team consists of people from a country with a national culture that you are proud of. The Lopow culture is the opposite of the Hipow culture. It is characterized by extremely low power distance. Seven key elements are:
Some words that Lopows will use with a positive connotation are: rights, complain, negotiate, fairness, task, necessity, co-determination, objectives, question, criticize. Some words with a negative connotation among Lopows are: respect, father (as a title), master, servant, older brother, younger brother, wisdom, favor, protect, obey, orders, pleasing. Lopows express their intentions freely, in the following manner. Friendliness: animated, smiling, listening Unfriendliness: not listening, talking to others Trust: physical closeness, talking freely Distrust: physical distance, silence Interest: animated, eye contact, with interjections Boredom: expressionless, unanimated, no eye contact Indiv Your team consists of people from a country with a national culture that you are proud of. The Indiv culture is highly individualistic. Seven key elements are:
Words with a positive connotation: self, friendship, do your own thing, contract, litigation, self-interest, self-respect, self-actualizing, individual, dignity, I, me, pleasure, adventurous, guilt, privacy. Words with a negative connotation: harmony, face, we, obligation, sacrifice, family, tradition, decency, honor, duty, loyalty, shame. Indivs are loud and have uninhibited non-verbal behavior. They express their intentions in the following manner. Friendliness: talkative, self-disclosing Unfriendliness: obviously not listening, interrupting, sabotaging Trust: intensively debating issues, controlling the interview Distrust: not showing one’s cards, passive, defensive Interest: loudly verbal, questioning, physical contact Boredom: physical distance, no questions, no eye contact Achievor Your team consists of people from a country with a national culture that you are proud of. The Achievor culture is highly achievement-oriented. Seven key elements are:
Words with a positive connotation: career, competition, fight, aggressive, assertive, success, winner, deserve, merit, balls, excel, force, big, hard, fast, tough, quantity, total. Words with a negative connotation: quality, caring, solidarity, modesty, compromise, help, love, grow, small, soft, slow, tender. Achievors tend to be noisy and boisterous. They express their intentions in the following manner. Friendliness: loudly talkative, interrupting, physical contact Unfriendliness: obviously not listening, interrupting, leaving Trust: taking action together, physical closeness, no eye contact Distrust: hostile, eye contact Interest: positive and animated, eye contact Boredom: not polite, no eye contact Caror Your team consists of people from a country with a national culture that you are proud of. The Caror culture is highly cooperation-oriented. It is the opposite of the Achievor culture. Seven key elements are:
Words with a positive connotation: quality, caring, solidarity, modesty, compromise, help, love, grow, small, soft, slow, tender. Words with a negative connotation: career, competition, fight, aggressive, assertive, success, winner, deserve, merit, balls, excel, force, big, hard, fast, tough, quantity, total. Carors tend to be soft-spoken and empathic. They express their intentions in the following manner. Friendliness: talkative, physical contact, listening Unfriendliness: polite, not listening Trust: listening, physical closeness, much eye contact Distrust: rigid, no eye contact Interest: positive and animated, eye contact Boredom: noncommittal, some eye contact Uncavo Your team consists of people from a country with a national culture that you are proud of. The Uncavo culture is one of strong uncertainty avoidance. Seven key elements:
Words with a positive connotation: structure, duty, truth, law, order, certain, clean, clear, secure, safe, predictable, tight. Words with a negative connotation: maybe, creative, conflict, tolerant, experiment, spontaneous, relativity, insight, unstructured, loose, flexible. Uncavos tend to be uptight. They express their intentions in the following manner. Friendliness: fairly loud. Detailed responses, formal and unambiguous Unfriendliness: generalized responses, anxious to leave Trust: polarized responses, separating right from wrong Distrust: openly critical and challenging other person’s credentials Interest: verbal, task oriented, active, direct eye contact Boredom: passive, quiet, no eye contact *** end of instructions for players *** |
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