Textbook: International Project Management By: Kathrin Koster

Mini Case 10.2: Who 'owns' the customer? In many global organizations, there will be an ongoing political struggle between the local subsidiary and headquarters regarding the responsibility and authority of customer relation management. This tension is frequently reflected in international projects dealing with the development of new products for a customer headquartered in the subsidiary's country. The local subsidiary sees its main competences in knowing the customer's needs best, speaking the customer's language, knowing the market and sharing the same culture. Hence, the local subsidiary claims that all contacts and final authority for delivering satisfactory results should reside with the project team of the local subsidiary. However, the local subsidiary usually lacks the resources to deliver the product or service the customer requires. Therefore, it has to draw on other units including headquarters for support. Headquarters, in return, prefers to have direct contact with the customer citing speed and ease of direct communication. Although both parties belong to the same organization and pursue the same project goal, namely fulfilling the customer's needs at a competitive cost and time, the two organizational units often oppose each other and have difficulties with smooth cooperation, impacting on the overall results of an international project.

Question What would you suggest in order to solve this intra-organizational conflict? Base your answer on the structural topics discussed in Chapter 6 and communication as discussed in Chapter 9