Case: communication challenges with a US-based client

To illustrate, here is a case of Lingua Fluency working with an IT team that faced communication challenges with a US-based client (fintech project).

Initial situation

The development team was receiving ambiguous feedback from the American client, and misunderstandings frequently arose due to differences in communication styles. The Ukrainian team tended to stay quiet during calls, while the client perceived this as a lack of engagement.

Internal meetings were often tense. Team members felt uncomfortable expressing themselves actively in English, and the client began raising concerns about the overall collaboration process.

Lingua Fluency’s solution

We started with a thorough diagnostic phase:

• analyzed recordings of client calls and joined several live sessions

• assessed each team member’s English level

• collected feedback on key communication challenges

Based on this, we identified key risks:

• limited understanding of American communication etiquette

• overly direct responses perceived as abrupt

• lack of confidence when presenting ideas

We divided the team into small groups based on level and roles:

• junior developers focused on improving language proficiency

• team leads and managers worked on business communication skills

We placed special emphasis on practicing corner cases—situations that had previously caused friction. In particular, the team practiced:

• politely clarifying requirements

• paraphrasing unclear client requests

• responding to criticism constructively

• handling informal communication nuances (small talk, humor, cultural references before meetings)

Results

Within just a few months, the team demonstrated significant progress.

During client calls, team members became more confident, structured their ideas clearly, and were no longer “silent in the background.” The US client noted clear improvements:

• fewer requests to repeat information

• more productive discussions

• significantly better mutual understanding

As a result, the client provided positive feedback, highlighting the team’s professional communication and proactive approach.

This case demonstrates that a focused approach to communication can quickly improve client collaboration and minimize business risks associated with language and cultural barriers.