Background and Context
According to its corporate publications:
“Pfizer is a research-based global pharmaceutical company that discovers, develops, manufactures and markets leading prescription medicines for humans and animals.”
Some 105,000 people are employed, of whom approximately 14,000 work in Pfizer Global Research and Development (PGRD). The largest R&D presence is in the US but some 2600 are employed in Sandwich in South-East England and some 400 at Nagoya in Japan. This case study concerns learning interventions designed to underpin essential collaboration between research and development colleagues at these two locations.
Collaboration in research across the globe is critical to Pfizer’s business. It can take from 10-15 years and expenditure of in excess of $1billion to bring a product from idea to new marketed medicine. Pfizer is a global organisation and it needs to leverage its world-wide resources. Given necessary economies of scale a regional model does not work. Japan is particularly important in this global context – the country is the second biggest market for pharmaceutical products in the world. Pfizer has been a presence in Japan since 1953 and the Nagoya site specialises in early stage and exploratory research. Once identified, its experimental medicines will be tested and trialled elsewhere including Sandwich.
To quote from the PGRD President in his introduction within the UK PGRD booklet on communicating with Japan:
“Effective communication lies at the heart of the Pfizer values and leader behaviours and is crucial to our ongoing success. Time and energy are required to address problems and come to common ground around the best possible solutions. Maximum interaction is therefore critical when we are communicating with colleagues, from other countries and cultures.”
Culture organisation and language training
For over a decade collaborative skills have been supported by training interventions. In Sandwich this support has taken the form of a one day course on ‘Partnering with Japan’. In Nagoya the focus has been on language training, organised by Human Resources, supported by a team of freelance trainers.
Both sets of interventions continue in place but recognition of their limitations has led to extended and new approaches. What was on offer in the UK was an overview of Japan and Japanese customs. However the often stereotypical view of the Japanese did not reflect the reality of the research scientists working in Nagoya. These are graduate scientists, intelligent and aware; they are innovative and share ideas. Many have chosen to work for Pfizer because it is a vibrant international company. Senior leaders are drawn from both the local and global talent pools. Consequently, the business practices are a complex mix of cultures and customs; neither stereotypically Japanese, nor completely westernised.
In 2005, to illustrate the differences between the stereotypical view of Japan and the way that people in Nagoya behave, Tim Kendall (English Language Training Co-ordinator in PGRD Nagoya) undertook a short exercise in which he asked colleagues in Nagoya to consider some questions regarding business culture. Respondents were asked what they believed would actually happen within their own working environment and also what they perceived to be the traditional Japanese stereotype. Two are reproduced below:
Two examples of questions that gave a clear indication of significant mindset and cultural differences within these types of organizations are set out below;
Participants where asked;
What will normally happen in a meeting if some of the participants are running late?
a) The meeting will always start on time as scheduled.
b) Participants will wait until the late arrivals arrive if they are high ranking.
c) Participants will always wait for those running late.
82% of respondents in Pfizer Nagoya marked choice a), with remainder marking b) for their own working environment. However, when participants were asked their views regarding a more traditional Japanese working environment, 100% marked choice b), thus highlighting the weight of importance that a high ranking colleague may have within a more traditional Japanese setting.
Participants were asked;
When a Japanese colleague says that your idea or proposal might be a bit difficult to succeed in Japan, it is best to;
a) Ask ‘Why?’
b. Ask ‘what can be done to make it succeed?’
c. Realize that they are say ‘No’ and give up.
Of the respondents, 68% marked choice a) with a further 32% choosing b) for their own Pfizer environment. In complete contrast, 97% of respondents marked c) as their choice when considering the situation in a traditional Japanese business environment.
Taken together, all the evidence led Pfizer to conclude that solutions to issues are an important part of decision-making within a Western business environment, and because colleagues in Pfizer work in an American company their mindset is significantly impacted by this action. In addition Tim Kendall undertook a series of interviews with participants in the questionnaire. This suggested support for these conclusions, but that there were significant differences between the views of: colleagues that joined Pfizer during the past 12 months; those that had joined more than 12 months ago; and those that had only worked in the Pfizer environment.
At Nagoya the challenge was to develop English language training beyond ‘text-book’ understanding. In particular, to be effective partners in global R&D teams it was considered necessary to enhance skills in effective oral communication (including clarifying, questioning and debating, where cultural norms may impact two-way dialogue) - especially where that communication is via virtual means, telephone, teleconference, e -mail and e-Net-meeting.
Moving forward
Such initiatives in isolation would lead to improvements. However, in 2005 following a short review of trainers involved in cross-cultural working, and the part that learning and training could play in reducing cultural barriers, Tim Kendall (PGRD Nagoya) and Jane Waters, (PGRD Sandwich) were charged with developing joint initiatives.
The first step was for Jane Waters to identify more clearly who in Sandwich would benefit from cross-cultural training. It may seem obvious in retrospect but the best information was held in Japan. Language training in Nagoya was most sharply concentrated in those who worked closely with fellow scientists at Sandwich. They were able to supply details on who they interacted with and the nature of this interaction. This allowed the Sandwich learning and development team to ensure the right people attended the classroom training event and at the right time. A second step was to use those people who had participated in a secondment in Japan to assist in taking the design and input of the classroom training (together with a third party vendor, able to bring wider, multi-industry cultural training knowledge into the design).
Additional outputs have been guides - both for Japan and the UK - which are tailored to the specific situation of the company. Some of the material is generic and covers what would be expected, however the illustrations capture eloquently the reality of the relationships and potential pitfalls aiming to be overcome by training and support. To quote from the guide for the UK:
“I appreciate that UK and US colleagues usually make an effort to speak clearly at the beginning of meetings, but they tend to speed up and use more colloquial expressions when we get into deeper discussion.” (Attributed to a Manager, PGRD, Nagoya).
and
“I was surprised when, during one teleconference, my colleagues in the UK called for a 30-minute lunch break. It was 01:00 in Japan and I felt that my considerations were not fully considered.” (Attributed to a Research, PGRD, Nagoya)
The training activities in Sandwich and Nagoya will continue. The continuing challenge is to keep them relevant as cultures continue to be modified by globalisation influences. Another objective is to achieve greater leverage and value for the organisation by extending support to US colleagues working with Japan.
However, interestingly this does not mean that there is no place for the more generic cultural orientation/awareness event. John Castledine, PGRD’s Director of Learning and Development, points out that UK staff who spend time in Japan (or elsewhere) do not interact solely with their PGRD research counterparts at Nagoya. They have business contacts with customers/suppliers and thus experience a wide range of cultural influences, which are better approximated by accepted cultural ‘stereotypes’.
Moreover, John Castledine believes that the learning and development function, in its collaboration, needs to model what it is seeking to promote in the rest of the company. Only by ensuring L&D professionals are ahead of the organisation in their ability to partner effectively across cultures can the organisation discover the steps needed to establish and prioritise the learning activities needed to support ongoing effective cross-cultural collaboration.