Crossing the Atlantic

The Yes Trap: How French vs American business culture kills deals

A French founder I work with was sure his US deal would close. The American buyer kept telling him "we're excited, let's keep moving forward." Eleven weeks later, still no contract. Around the same time, an American sales VP walked out of a meeting in Paris and told me to write the deal off. The French team had grilled him for an hour. Three weeks later, they signed. Two opposite mistakes, same root cause. In this episode I break down why an American "yes" and a French "oui" are almost never the same word, how French vs American business culture turns the same signals into opposite meanings, and why the warm responses you're tracking in your pipeline are probably lying to you. Then I give you four questions you can run after any cross-Atlantic meeting to find out what's actually real. IN THIS EPISODE * Why an American "yes" is cheap and warm, and usually means "keep talking," not "we're committed" * Why a French team that grills you with hard questions is often interested, not rejecting you * How each side prices risk and time differently, and why that shapes the language they use MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE MedTech breakfast on a ground-breaking innovation in diabetes prevention: June 3, NYC at La Maison de l'Occitanie. Featured speakers: one of the world's leading doctors in the field and Bruno Aubert, founder of SoleCooler and inventor of WarnFeet. I'm moderating the event. If you're in med tech, health insurance, or the medical field and you'll be in New York, come join us. Save your spot here: https://partiful.com/e/pRGMGLY8pbqZl3qbuG9s [https://partiful.com/e/pRGMGLY8pbqZl3qbuG9s] ---------- My next book: working title False Friends. It's about doing business across the Atlantic and the gap between what looks similar in the US and France and what actually is. If you've had a transatlantic "false friend" moment, a conversation or meeting that hid rough patches due to cultural differences, reach out and tell me about it! I'm looking for stories and companies to feature in the book! SOURCES & LINKS MENTIONED * Diabetes Prevention Breakfast, June 3, NYC. Sign up: https://partiful.com/e/pRGMGLY8pbqZl3qbuG9s [https://partiful.com/e/pRGMGLY8pbqZl3qbuG9s] * Share your "false friend" story for the book: christina@christinarebuffet.com [christina@christinarebuffet.com] ABOUT CROSSING THE ATLANTIC Crossing the Atlantic is a biweekly podcast for business leaders expanding across the ocean. Hosted by Christina Rebuffet-Broadus, an American who has spent 20+ years in France and founded TransAtlantia, each episode tackles the cultural blind spots, strategic mistakes, and hidden dynamics that make transatlantic business harder than it looks. New episodes every two weeks. CONNECT WITH ME, CHRISTINA REBUFFET-BROADUS * Website: transatlantia.com [http://transatlantia.com] * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinarebuffetbroadus/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinarebuffetbroadus/] * Email: christina@christinarebuffet.com [christina@christinarebuffet.com]

The Alignment Trap: How French and American decision-making kills deals

This week, we explore another challenges of transatlantic business : the alignment trap and decision-making differences. We'll delve into the impact of cultural nuances on decision-making and give you strategies for understanding how deals move forward in different cultures on both sides of the Atlantic, and more importantly, how to manage the decision-making process so things really do move forward. Chapters * 00:00 The Alignment Trap * 05:26 Cultural Differences in Decision-Making * 14:13 Consensus First Decision-Making * 20:22 Strategies for Transatlantic Deals About Crossing the Atlantic Crossing the Atlantic is a biweekly podcast for business leaders expanding across the ocean. Your host is Christina Rebuffet-Broadus, an American advisory consultant in transatlantic deals with 20+ years in France and founder of TransAtlantia. Each episode tackles the cultural blind spots, strategic mistakes, and hidden dynamics that make transatlantic business harder than it looks. New episodes every two weeks. Connect with Christina   •  Website: transatlantia.com [http://transatlantia.com]   •  LinkedIn: Christina Rebuffet-Broadus [https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinarebuffet/]   •  Book a conversation: Schedule here [https://app.iclosed.io/e/TransAtlantia/rdv-decouverte-US-fast-track]

The Operating System Trap: Why US companies fail when expanding to Europe

If the Familiarity Trap is the disease, the hidden cost of assumptions is the bill. In this episode, I put numbers on what happens when companies cross the Atlantic without questioning their instincts: 68% of failed transatlantic expansions trace back to cultural assumptions made in the first 90 days. I'll talk about the concept of “cultural operating systems”, the invisible rules governing how business gets done on each side of the Atlantic and explain why running your American operating system on European infrastructure (or vice versa) breaks things in ways you won’t see coming. In This Episode * The French energy company whose growing US revenue masked a team falling apart and why nobody saw it coming * Why 68% of failed transatlantic expansions trace back to assumptions made in the first 90 days * Cultural operating systems: what the computer analogy reveals about why business cultures are incompatible without translation * The American OS (speed, individual accountability, 70% and iterate) vs. the European OS (depth, consensus, 85% before you move) * How one fintech company hired a single local advisor and rewrote their entire go-to-market in three months * The three-phase framework: Observe, Translate, Pilot and why the companies that slow down spend less money Sources & Links Mentioned Studies & Data: * 70% of international business ventures fail due to cultural misunderstandings : Academic research on cross-border failures (GRIN) [https://www.grin.com/document/137585] * Cross-border M&A failure rates of 70–90% : Harvard Business Review: A Better Approach to Mergers and Acquisitions [https://hbr.org/2024/05/a-better-approach-to-mergers-and-acquisitions] * EACC Transatlantic Expansion Barometer (survey of 200 US & European mid-size businesses) : EACC France / OCO Global [https://www.eaccfrance.com/2024/11/20/transatlantic-expansion-barometer/] Previous Episode: * Episode 1: The Familiarity Trap [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/crossing-the-atlantic/id1737974898]: Why the Atlantic feels easy and isn’t About "Crossing the Atlantic" Crossing the Atlantic is a biweekly podcast for business leaders expanding across the ocean. Hosted by Christina Rebuffet-Broadus an American transatlantic expansion expert with 20+ years in France and founder of TransAtlantia. Each episode tackles the cultural blind spots, strategic mistakes, and hidden dynamics that make transatlantic business harder than it looks. New episodes every two weeks. Connect with me: * Website: transatlantia.com [http://transatlantia.com] * LinkedIn: Christina Rebuffet-Broadus [https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinarebuffet/] * Book a conversation: Schedule here [https://app.iclosed.io/e/TransAtlantia/rdv-decouverte-US-fast-track] Next Episode Decision-Making: Consensus vs. Command How Americans and Europeans make business decisions differently, why neither side understands why the other “takes so long” or “rushes into things,” and what to do about it. Drops May 5, 2026.

The Familiarity Trap: Your biggest transatlantic danger

Why does doing business across the Atlantic feel so easy, and why does that feeling cost companies more than expanding into markets they recognize as foreign? In this episode, I break down what I call The Familiarity Trap: the false sense of alignment created by a shared language, shared tools, and shared conference circuits that leads companies on both sides of the Atlantic to skip the cultural preparation they'd do for any other market. I share two stories of transatlantic deals derailed by invisible cultural assumptions, introduce the Cultural Operating System diagnostic and explain why the companies that succeed aren't smarter or richer, but the ones who start by questioning what they think they know. In This Episode   •  Why companies entering Japan prepare for culture shock but companies crossing the Atlantic don't, and why that costs more   •  The French CEO whose "hot pipeline" went silent after enthusiastic American meetings   •  The American team that walked away from German prospects who were actively trying to buy   •  The Cultural Operating System diagnostic: five questions to ask before you spend six figures   •  What "yes," "no," "fast," and "direct" actually mean on each side of the Atlantic Sources & Links Mentioned Studies & Data:   •  70% of international business ventures fail due to cultural misunderstandings Academic research on cross-border M&A failures (GRIN) [https://www.grin.com/document/137585]   •  Cross-border M&A failure rates of 70–90% Harvard Business Review: A Better Approach to Mergers and Acquisitions [https://hbr.org/2024/05/a-better-approach-to-mergers-and-acquisitions]   •  EACC Transatlantic Expansion Barometer (survey of 200 US & European mid-size businesses) EACC France / OCO Global [https://www.eaccfrance.com/2024/11/20/transatlantic-expansion-barometer/]   •  US-EU trade totaled $1.5 trillion in goods and services in 2024 — Office of the United States Trade Representative [https://ustr.gov/countries-regions/europe-middle-east/europe/european-union]   •  The Transatlantic Economy 2026 report — U.S. Chamber of Commerce [https://www.uschamber.com/international/the-transatlantic-economy-2026] About Crossing the Atlantic Crossing the Atlantic is a biweekly podcast for business leaders expanding across the ocean. Your host is Christina Rebuffet-Broadus, an American advisory consultant in transatlantic deals with 20+ years in France and founder of TransAtlantia. Each episode tackles the cultural blind spots, strategic mistakes, and hidden dynamics that make transatlantic business harder than it looks. New episodes every two weeks. Connect with Christina   •  Website: transatlantia.com [http://transatlantia.com]   •  LinkedIn: Christina Rebuffet-Broadus [https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinarebuffet/]   •  Book a conversation: Schedule here [https://app.iclosed.io/e/TransAtlantia/rdv-decouverte-US-fast-track]

Pourquoi vos clients U.S. disparaissent

Dans cet épisode, Christina Rebuffet explore la réalité des cycles de vente aux États-Unis, en déconstruisant le mythe de la rapidité des affaires américaines. Elle explique que, bien que les Américains attendent une réactivité rapide, le processus de décision peut prendre jusqu'à 211 jours. Elle aborde les concepts de MQL (Marketing Qualified Lead) et SQL (Sales Qualified Lead), et souligne l'importance de maintenir un momentum tout au long du cycle de vente sans brusquer les prospects. La patience et la présence active sont essentielles pour réussir sur le marché américain. Takeaways * Les salons peuvent générer des contacts, mais le suivi est crucial. * Le cycle de vente américain peut durer jusqu'à 211 jours. * Il existe un décalage entre la réactivité et la décision aux États-Unis. * Les MQL et SQL sont des étapes clés dans le processus de vente. * Maintenir le contact sans pression est essentiel. * La réactivité est évaluée par les prospects américains. * Un prospect peut être enthousiaste sans être prêt à acheter. * La patience est nécessaire, mais la présence est primordiale. * Comprendre le tempo américain est vital pour réussir. Chapitres 00:00 Retour du CES : Réalité des salons américains 01:55 Le mythe de la vitesse du business américain 07:02 Cycles de vente : Comprendre le MQL et le SQL 14:20 Maintenir le momentum : Stratégies de réactivité 20:22 Conclusion : Patience et présence dans le cycle de vente