I worked with Americans for over 20 years (Unisys, Price Waterhouse) and got on great with all of them. Well, all but on (who nobody got on with, so it wasn't me.

One aspect I really loved: tell them this is what we have to do and they immediately start thinking about how to get it done, as opposed to my home teams who would immediately start telling me why it couldn't be done. Maybe that's a bit binary and a bit of a generalisation, but that's my experience.

I'm reminded of the story of the clean-up guys after the 9/11 rescue searches had been called off. Surveying the mountains of debris, one guy says "Geez, where do we start?". His supervisor looks down at his feet and says "right here". Says it all for me.

Another story: I was in NYC working and on my last day I went to Rudy's Music Stop (West 48th Street) and came out with a beautiful Taylor 514. Back at the office I was saying I didn't fancy lugging it all the way back to the hotel and back again the next morning (those Taylor cases are HEAVY) and wondering where I could leave it overnight. The head of PW (and I mean the world-wide head of PW, the really big boss) overheard and says you can leave it in my office, it'll be safe there...and he hadn't got a clue who I was.

As I said, my experience.

Pete