Transcript CulturalProblemx

Cultural Problem
WE DEMAND SOFTWARE CHANGES
Why are they demanding?
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People in the Paris office send rude telexes (now faxes or emails)
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Why are they DEMANDING new software features
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Who are they to make DEMANDS. Everyone else make requests.
A Google Search
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What is the word for request in French?
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http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english-french/demand
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Translation of request in French:
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noun
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1 (comment) demande (f)
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(for de) (to à)
requête (f) (for de) (to à)
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to make a request faire une demande
Maybe they are not rude
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It is easy for a young French person to assume that the English word
demand means polite request.
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A communication that “demands” new features seems a lot more polite
to a French person than it does to the American person receiving the
communication.
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I thought the people in the Paris office were rude until I took a 10 day
Berlitz course in French and learned that the French word demande
means request.
What about real problems
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This was a small problem based on a small translation issue
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If a small problem can lead to misunderstandings, what could happen
with serious problems and differences?