>then every few years when the projects fail or are over budget (time or money) to replace the partner ... and then they have to start again
i've also worked with Germans a lot, and what you said is one of the keys to their success. Everybody makes mistakes. Mistakes are given. Majority of IT everywhere is mistakes, failures and waste :) What Germans do, at least in my anecdotal experience, is that they [slowly, with time, yet unstoppable] do ultimately notice the mistakes/failures and really react to it with strong reaction like you described, like closing projects, replacing partners, etc. - basically cutting the bad pieces out, cutting losses without fear of sunken costs.
i've also worked with Germans a lot, and what you said is one of the keys to their success. Everybody makes mistakes. Mistakes are given. Majority of IT everywhere is mistakes, failures and waste :) What Germans do, at least in my anecdotal experience, is that they [slowly, with time, yet unstoppable] do ultimately notice the mistakes/failures and really react to it with strong reaction like you described, like closing projects, replacing partners, etc. - basically cutting the bad pieces out, cutting losses without fear of sunken costs.