Bierman is losing control of his construction project in Mexico due to communication issues, cultural differences around work habits like siesta, and ethical tensions. The main problem is how Bierman has handled the siesta issue, causing relationship problems between the American staff and Mexican workers. The document analyzes options like instituting sanctions, educating workers, changing management roles, reorganizing schedules, and firing personnel to address the issues and get the project back on track.

1. For FitzbergTire Company
BWR BUSINESS CONSULTANTS

2. Overview

3. Overview
Max Bierman
construction
manager
John Perkins
Bierman’s
assistant
Workers
Maestro Miguel
Munoz
Subcontractor
Leopoldo Sanchez
Garcia :
Chief engineer
FitzbergTire Co
Ann Block
V.P., Overseas
Operations

4. Existing situation
Communication
Intercultural
differences
Ethics
Management Statement
of problem

5. Communication
-Fast meetings
-Sanchez’s
experience
-Fruitless meetings
-Misunderstandings
-Lack of trust

6. Intercultural differences
-Welcoming city -Gap between
mexican tradition
and the american
way of working
(siesta, equipment)

7. Ethics
-Sanchez defends
his own culture
-Bierman and
Perkins don’t deal
with mexican
tradition.
-Bierman’s siesta
cut

8. Management
-Experienced
engineers
-Sanchez wants to
hire people
-Bierman wants to
fire Munoz /delete
siesta
-Perkins isn’t liked
by the workers

9. Statement of problem
Bierman is losing control of his project
concerning the process schedule, the
budget and by keeping bad
relationships between the workforce
and the american staff.The heart of
the problem is the way the project is
run especially how the siesta issue is
handled.

10. Options
# 1 Instaure primes/ sanctions
-Motivation
-Catches up the
time schedule
-Additional costs
-Risk of a sloppy
work

11. Options
# 2 Change the workers mind by educating
them and organizing meetings
-More
communication
and trust
Free
-John closer to the
workforce
-Involves additional
availability
-John can’t learn
spanish in a month

12. Options
#3 Bierman out of the office to manage
-Help Perkins to
motivate the
workers
-Reassure
everybody
-Change in
Bierman’s working
habits

13. Options
#4 Reorganize the daily schedule: Multiple
working groups/Volunteers for siesta work
-Changes the
working habits
-More workers may
needed
-No interruption
-Possibility to earn
more money
-We keep the siesta

14. Options
#5 Fire john
-Better quality of
supervision
-Workers will
appreciate
-A bilingual engineer
has to be found
-He needs time to get
used to the project
-Perkins loses his job

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