The Three Sourcesof Cultural Intelligence
Can it really be that some managers are socially intelligent in their own settings
but ineffective in culturally novel ones? The experience of Peter, a sales manager at a California medical devices group acquired by Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals, is not unusual. At the devices company, the atmosphere had been mercenary and competitive; the bestperforming employees could make as much in performance bonuses as in salary. Senior managers hounded unproductive salespeople to perform better. At Lilly's Indianapolis headquarters, to which Peter was transferred, the sales staff received bonuses that accounted for only a small percentage of total compensation. Furthermore, criticism was restrained and confrontation kept to a minimum. To motivate people, Lilly management encouraged them. Peter
commented, "Back in L.A., I knew how to handle myself and how to manage my sales team. I'd push them and confront
them if they weren't performing, and they'd respond. If you look at myevaluations, you'll see that I was very successful and people respected me. Here in Indianapolis, they don't like my style, and they seem to avoid the challenges that I put to them. 1 just can't seem to get things done as well here as I did in California.