The problems and their origins
Before Henry Tam considers options to make the MGI team “work” better, it is essential
for him to take a step back and recognize the underlying causes behind the current status
quo. While the absence of a shared vision and cultural differences appear obvious, there
are several subtle issues that make the team vulnerable to conflicts. Although addressing
the behavioral issues is necessary, any approach that does not rally the team towards a
common purpose would be a mere Band-Aid. Without a clear marketing vision, the team is
currently split between the founders’ preference to target the youth and entertainment
segments while the HBS students favor the education sector. Therefore, Henry’s biggest
challenge is to help the team agree on a coherent strategy and then utilize the synergy
towards building a winning case for the HBS contest. Not only will a win help the team
financially, but also more importantly, it will increase their morale to continue pursuing
their passions to set up a new venture.
To understand the behavioral side of the problem better, it would help to categorize the
issues broadly into cultural dynamics, ineffective leadership styles, lack of clear team roles
and responsibilities, and decision-making biases. The root cause of the cultural issues lies
in the socio-cultural differences between the Russian and American approach towards
work and relationships. The typical attitude of Russian managers towards their teams is
very hierarchical, with workers viewed as mere “executers” rather than “ independent
thinkers”. This was particularly evident in Sasha’s attitude towards Dana and their ensuing
conflicts. While Dana had Eastern European upbringings, she was a straightforward and
independent thinking woman with a successful banking career in London. Dana’s differing
attitude towards Sasha’s expectations appeared to have caused him some humiliation or
loss of credibility with his Russian colleagues. Further, situations such as Sasha explicitly
communicating in front of everyone that Dana’s comments were ‘bullshit’ only aggravated
the problem. From Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs model (Exhibit 1), we can infer the
gravity of this problem. According to the model, a sense of belonging and self-esteem are
more important to humans than satisfying higher level needs such as creativity or
intellectual stimulation. Another cultural issue was around the conflicting decision making
norms at MGI. While Henry and Dana would come to meetings prepared with facts to
support quick decisions, the founders were unfocused and less structured in their thoughts
and actions. Additionally, it did not help that both Sasha and Roman used the Russian style
