Fred Bailey: An Innocent Abroad Fred gazed out the window of his 24th floor office at the tranquil beauty of the Imperial Palace amidst the hustle and bustle of downtown Tokyo. Only six months ago, Fred had arrived with his wife and two children for this three- year assignment as the director of Kline & Associates' Tokyo office. Kline & Associates is a large, multinational consulting firm with offices in 19 countries worldwide. Fred was now trying to decide if he should simply pack up and tell the home office that he was coming home, or whether he should somehow try to convince his wife and himself that they should stay and finish the assignment. Given how excited Fred thought they all were about the assign- ment to begin with, it was a mystery to Fred as to how things had gotten to this point. As he watched the swans glide across the water in the moat that surrounds the Imperial Palace, Fred reflected on the past seven months. Seven months ago, the managing partner of the main office in Boston, Dave Steiner, asked Fred to lunch to discuss "business." To Fred's surprise, the "business" was not the major project that he and his team had just finished but was instead a very big promotion and career move. Fred was offered the position of managing director of the firm's relatively new Tokyo office which had a staff of 40, including seven Americans. Most of the Americans in the Tokyo office were either associate consultants or research analysts. Fred would be in charge of the whole office and would report to a senior partner who was in charge of the Asian region. It was implied to Fred that if this assignment went as well as his past ones, it would be the last step before becoming a partner in the firm. When Fred told his wife about the unbelievable opportunity, he was shocked at her less than enthusiastic response. His wife, Jenny, thought that it would be rather difficult to have the children live and go to school in a foreign country for three years, especially when Christine, the oldest, would be starting middle school next year. Besides, now that the kids were in school, Jenny was thinking about going back to work-at least part time. Jenny had a degree in fashion merchandising from a well-known private university and had worked as an assistant buyer for a large women's clothing store before having the two girls. Fred explained that the career opportunity was just too good to pass up and that the company's overseas package would make living overseas terrific. The company would pay all the expenses to move whatever the Baileys wanted to take with them. The company had a very nice house in an expensive district of Tokyo that would be provided to them rent-free. Additionally, the company would rent their house in Boston during their absence. Also, the firm would provide a car and driver, education expenses for the children to attend private schools, and a cost-of-living adjustment and overseas compensation that would nearly triple Fred's gross annual salary. After two days of consideration and discussion, Fred told Dave Steiner he would accept the assignment. The previous Tokyo office managing director was a partner in the firm but had only been in the new Tokyo office for less than a year when he was transferred to head up a long-established office in England. Because the transfer to England was taking place "right away," Fred and his family had about three weeks to prepare for the move. Between getting things at the office transferred to Bob Newcome, who was being promoted to Fred's posi- tion, and the logistical hassles of getting furniture and the like ready to be moved, neither Fred nor his family had much time to really find out much about Japan, other than what was in the encyclopedia. When the Baileys arrived, they were greeted at the airport by one of the young Japanese associate consultants and the senior American expatriate. Fred and his family were tired from the long trip, and the two-hour ride back to Tokyo was a quiet one. After a few days of settling in, Fred spent his first day at the office. Fred's first order of business was to have a general meeting with all the employees of associate consultant rank and higher. Although Fred didn't really notice it at the time, all the Japanese staff sat together and all the Americans sat together. After Fred introduced himself and his general ideal about the potential and future direction of the Tokyo office, he called on a few individuals to get their ideas about how their responsibilities would likely fit into his overall plan. From the Americans, Fred got a mixture of opinions with specific reasons about why certain things might or might not fit well. From the Japanese, he got very vague answers. When Fred pushed to get more specific information, he was surprised to find that a couple of the Japanese simply made a sucking sound as they breathed and said that it was "difficult to say." Fred sensed the meeting was not fulfilling his objectives, so he thanked everyone for coming and said he looked forward to their all working together to make the Tokyo office the fastest growing office in the company. After they had been in Japan about a month, Fred's wife complained to him about the difficulty she had getting certain everyday products like maple syrup, peanut butter, and quality beef. She said that when she could get it at one of the specialty stores it cost three to four times what it would cost in the United States. She also complained that the washer and dryer were much too small and she had to spend extra money by sending things out to be dry cleaned. On top of all that, unless she went to the American Club in down- town Tokyo, she never had anyone to talk to. After all, Fred was gone 10 to 16 hours a day. Unfortunately, at the time, Fred was preoccupied, thinking about a big upcoming meeting between his firm and a significant prospective client a top 100 Japanese multinational company. The next day, Fred, along with the lead American consultant for the potential contract, Ralph Webster, and one of the Japanese associate consult- ants, Kenichi Kurokawa, who spoke perfect English, met with a team from the Japanese firm. The Japanese team consisted of four members-the VP of administration, the director of international personnel, and two staff special- ists. After shaking hands and a few awkward bows, Fred said that he knew the Japanese gentlemen were busy and he didn't want to waste their time so he would get right to the point. Fred then had the other American lay out their firm's proposal for the project and what the project would cost. After the
Fred Bailey: An Innocent Abroad Fred gazed out the window of his 24th floor office at the tranquil beauty of the Imperial Palace amidst the hustle and bustle of downtown Tokyo. Only six months ago, Fred had arrived with his wife and two children for this three- year assignment as the director of Kline & Associates' Tokyo office. Kline & Associates is a large, multinational consulting firm with offices in 19 countries worldwide. Fred was now trying to decide if he should simply pack up and tell the home office that he was coming home, or whether he should somehow try to convince his wife and himself that they should stay and finish the assignment. Given how excited Fred thought they all were about the assign- ment to begin with, it was a mystery to Fred as to how things had gotten to this point. As he watched the swans glide across the water in the moat that surrounds the Imperial Palace, Fred reflected on the past seven months. Seven months ago, the managing partner of the main office in Boston, Dave Steiner, asked Fred to lunch to discuss "business." To Fred's surprise, the "business" was not the major project that he and his team had just finished but was instead a very big promotion and career move. Fred was offered the position of managing director of the firm's relatively new Tokyo office which had a staff of 40, including seven Americans. Most of the Americans in the Tokyo office were either associate consultants or research analysts. Fred would be in charge of the whole office and would report to a senior partner who was in charge of the Asian region. It was implied to Fred that if this assignment went as well as his past ones, it would be the last step before becoming a partner in the firm. When Fred told his wife about the unbelievable opportunity, he was shocked at her less than enthusiastic response. His wife, Jenny, thought that it would be rather difficult to have the children live and go to school in a foreign country for three years, especially when Christine, the oldest, would be starting middle school next year. Besides, now that the kids were in school, Jenny was thinking about going back to work-at least part time. Jenny had a degree in fashion merchandising from a well-known private university and had worked as an assistant buyer for a large women's clothing store before having the two girls. Fred explained that the career opportunity was just too good to pass up and that the company's overseas package would make living overseas terrific. The company would pay all the expenses to move whatever the Baileys wanted to take with them. The company had a very nice house in an expensive district of Tokyo that would be provided to them rent-free. Additionally, the company would rent their house in Boston during their absence. Also, the firm would provide a car and driver, education expenses for the children to attend private schools, and a cost-of-living adjustment and overseas compensation that would nearly triple Fred's gross annual salary. After two days of consideration and discussion, Fred told Dave Steiner he would accept the assignment. The previous Tokyo office managing director was a partner in the firm but had only been in the new Tokyo office for less than a year when he was transferred to head up a long-established office in England. Because the transfer to England was taking place "right away," Fred and his family had about three weeks to prepare for the move. Between getting things at the office transferred to Bob Newcome, who was being promoted to Fred's posi- tion, and the logistical hassles of getting furniture and the like ready to be moved, neither Fred nor his family had much time to really find out much about Japan, other than what was in the encyclopedia. When the Baileys arrived, they were greeted at the airport by one of the young Japanese associate consultants and the senior American expatriate. Fred and his family were tired from the long trip, and the two-hour ride back to Tokyo was a quiet one. After a few days of settling in, Fred spent his first day at the office. Fred's first order of business was to have a general meeting with all the employees of associate consultant rank and higher. Although Fred didn't really notice it at the time, all the Japanese staff sat together and all the Americans sat together. After Fred introduced himself and his general ideal about the potential and future direction of the Tokyo office, he called on a few individuals to get their ideas about how their responsibilities would likely fit into his overall plan. From the Americans, Fred got a mixture of opinions with specific reasons about why certain things might or might not fit well. From the Japanese, he got very vague answers. When Fred pushed to get more specific information, he was surprised to find that a couple of the Japanese simply made a sucking sound as they breathed and said that it was "difficult to say." Fred sensed the meeting was not fulfilling his objectives, so he thanked everyone for coming and said he looked forward to their all working together to make the Tokyo office the fastest growing office in the company. After they had been in Japan about a month, Fred's wife complained to him about the difficulty she had getting certain everyday products like maple syrup, peanut butter, and quality beef. She said that when she could get it at one of the specialty stores it cost three to four times what it would cost in the United States. She also complained that the washer and dryer were much too small and she had to spend extra money by sending things out to be dry cleaned. On top of all that, unless she went to the American Club in down- town Tokyo, she never had anyone to talk to. After all, Fred was gone 10 to 16 hours a day. Unfortunately, at the time, Fred was preoccupied, thinking about a big upcoming meeting between his firm and a significant prospective client a top 100 Japanese multinational company. The next day, Fred, along with the lead American consultant for the potential contract, Ralph Webster, and one of the Japanese associate consult- ants, Kenichi Kurokawa, who spoke perfect English, met with a team from the Japanese firm. The Japanese team consisted of four members-the VP of administration, the director of international personnel, and two staff special- ists. After shaking hands and a few awkward bows, Fred said that he knew the Japanese gentlemen were busy and he didn't want to waste their time so he would get right to the point. Fred then had the other American lay out their firm's proposal for the project and what the project would cost. After the
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Transcribed Image Text:Fred Bailey: An Innocent Abroad
Fred gazed out the window of his 24th floor office at the tranquil beauty of
the Imperial Palace amidst the hustle and bustle of downtown Tokyo. Only six
months ago, Fred had arrived with his wife and two children for this three-
year assignment as the director of Kline & Associates' Tokyo office. Kline &
Associates is a large, multinational consulting firm with offices in 19 countries
worldwide. Fred was now trying to decide if he should simply pack up and tell
the home office that he was coming home, or whether he should somehow
try to convince his wife and himself that they should stay and finish the
assignment. Given how excited Fred thought they all were about the assign-
ment to begin with, it was a mystery to Fred as to how things had gotten to
this point. As he watched the swans glide across the water in the moat that
surrounds the Imperial Palace, Fred reflected on the past seven months.
Seven months ago, the managing partner of the main office in Boston,
Dave Steiner, asked Fred to lunch to discuss "business." To Fred's surprise, the
"business" was not the major project that he and his team had just finished
but was instead a very big promotion and career move. Fred was offered the
position of managing director of the firm's relatively new Tokyo office which
had a staff of 40, including seven Americans. Most of the Americans in the
Tokyo office were either associate consultants or research analysts. Fred would
be in charge of the whole office and would report to a senior partner who was
in charge of the Asian region. It was implied to Fred that if this assignment
went as well as his past ones, it would be the last step before becoming a
partner in the firm.
When Fred told his wife about the unbelievable opportunity, he was
shocked at her less than enthusiastic response. His wife, Jenny, thought that
it would be rather difficult to have the children live and go to school in a
foreign country for three years, especially when Christine, the oldest, would
be starting middle school next year. Besides, now that the kids were in school,
Jenny was thinking about going back to work-at least part time. Jenny had
a degree in fashion merchandising from a well-known private university and
had worked as an assistant buyer for a large women's clothing store before
having the two girls.
Fred explained that the career opportunity was just too good to pass up.
and that the company's overseas package would make living overseas terrific.
The company would pay all the expenses to move whatever the Baileys
wanted to take with them. The company had a very nice house in an
expensive district of Tokyo that would be provided to them rent-free.
Additionally, the company would rent their house in Boston during their
absence. Also, the firm would provide a car and driver, education expenses for
the children to attend private schools, and a cost-of-living adjustment and
overseas compensation that would nearly triple Fred's gross annual salary.
After two days of consideration and discussion, Fred told Dave Steiner he
would accept the assignment.
The previous Tokyo office managing director was a partner in the firm
but had only been in the new Tokyo office for less than a year when he was
transferred to head up a long-established office in England. Because the
transfer to England was taking place "right away," Fred and his family had
about three weeks to prepare for the move. Between getting things at the
office transferred to Bob Newcome, who was being promoted to Fred's posi-
tion, and the logistical hassles of getting furniture and the like ready to be
moved, neither Fred nor his family had much time to really find out much
about Japan, other than what was in the encyclopedia.
When the Baileys arrived, they were greeted at the airport by one of the
young Japanese associate consultants and the senior American expatriate.
Fred and his family were tired from the long trip, and the two-hour ride back
to Tokyo was a quiet one. After a few days of settling in, Fred spent his first
day at the office.
Fred's first order of business was to have a general meeting with all the
employees of associate consultant rank and higher. Although Fred didn't
really notice it at the time, all the Japanese staff sat together and all the
Americans sat together. After Fred introduced himself and his general idea
about the potential and future direction of the Tokyo office, he called on a few
individuals to get their ideas about how their responsibilities would likely fit
into his overall plan. From the Americans, Fred got a mixture of opinions with
specific reasons about why certain things might or might not fit well. From
the Japanese, he got very vague answers. When Fred pushed to get more
specific information, he was surprised to find that a couple of the Japanese
simply made a sucking sound as they breathed and said that it was "difficult
to say." Fred sensed the meeting was not fulfilling his objectives, so he
thanked everyone for coming and said he looked forward to their all working
together to make the Tokyo office the fastest growing office in the company.
After they had been in Japan about a month, Fred's wife complained to
him about the difficulty she had getting certain everyday products like maple
syrup, peanut butter, and quality beef. She said that when she could get it at
one of the specialty stores it cost three to four times what it would cost in the
United States. She also complained that the washer and dryer were much too
small and she had to spend extra money by sending things out to be dry
cleaned. On top of all that, unless she went to the American Club in down-
town Tokyo, she never had anyone to talk to. After all, Fred was gone 10 to
16 hours a day. Unfortunately, at the time, Fred was preoccupied, thinking
about a big upcoming meeting between his firm and a significant prospective
client a top 100 Japanese multinational company.
The next day, Fred, along with the lead American consultant for the
potential contract, Ralph Webster, and one of the Japanese associate consult-
ants, Kenichi Kurokawa, who spoke perfect English, met with a team from the
Japanese firm. The Japanese team consisted of four members-the VP of
administration, the director of international personnel, and two staff special-
ists. After shaking hands and a few awkward bows, Fred said that he knew the
Japanese gentlemen were busy and he didn't want to waste their time so he
would get right to the point. Fred then had the other American lay out their
firm's proposal for the project and what the project would cost. After the
Transcribed Image Text:presentation, Fred asked the Japanese what their reaction to the proposal was.
The Japanese did not respond immediately and so Fred launched into his
summary version of the proposal, thinking that the translation might have
been insufficient. But, again, the Japanese had only the vaguest of responses
to his direct questions.
The recollection of the frustration of that meeting was enough to shake
Fred back to reality. The reality was that, in the five months since the first
meeting, little progress had been made and the contract between the firms
had yet to be signed. "I can never seem to get a direct response from a
Japanese," he thought to himself. This feeling of frustration led him to
remember a related incident that happened about a month after this first
meeting with the client.
Fred reasoned that not much progress was being made with the client.
because Fred and his group just didn't know enough about the client to
package the proposal in a way that was appealing to the client. Consequently,
he called in the senior American associated with the proposal, Ralph Webster,
and asked him to develop a report on the client so the proposal could be
reevaluated and changed where necessary. Jointly, they decided that one of
the more promising Japanese research associates, Tashiro Watanabe, would be
the best person to take the lead on this report. To impress upon Tashiro the
importance of this task and the great potential they saw in him, they decided
to have the young Japanese associate meet with both Fred and Ralph. In the
meeting, Fred and Ralph laid out the nature and importance of the task. At
that point, Fred leaned forward in his chair and said, "You can see that this is
an important assignment and that we are placing a lot of confidence in you
by giving you this assignment. We need the report this time next week so that
we can revise and re-present our proposal. Can you do it?" After a somewhat
pregnant pause, the Japanese responded hesitantly, "I'm not sure what to
say." At that point, Fred smiled, got up from his chair, and walked over to the
young Japanese associate, extended his hand, and said, "Hey, there's nothing
to say. We're just giving you the opportunity you deserve."
The day before the report was due, Fred asked Ralph how the report was
coming. Ralph said that since he had heard nothing from Tashiro, he assumed
that everything was under control, but that he would double-check. Ralph
later ran into one of the American research associates, John Maynard. Ralph
knew that John was hired for the Tokyo office because of his language ability
in Japanese and that, unlike any of the other Americans, John often went out
after work with some of the Japanese research associates including Tashiro. So,
Ralph asked John if he knew how Tashiro was coming on the report. John
then recounted that, last night at the office, Tashiro had asked if Americans
sometimes fired employees for being late with reports. John had sensed that
this was more than a hypothetical question and asked Tashiro why he wanted
to know. Tashiro did not respond immediately and, since it was 8:30 in the
evening, John suggested they go out for a drink. At first Tashiro resisted, but
then John assured him that they would grab a drink at a nearby bar and come
right back. At the bar, John got Tashiro to open up.
Tashiro explained the nature of the report that he had been requested to
produce. Tashiro continued to explain that even though he had worked long
into the night every night to complete the report, it was just impossible; he
had doubted from the beginning whether he could complete the report in a
week.
At this point, Ralph asked John, "Why the hell didn't he say something
in the first place?" Ralph didn't wait to hear whether John had an answer to
his question or not. He headed straight to Tashiro's desk.
The incident just got worse from that point. Ralph chewed Tashiro out
and then went to Fred explaining that the report would not be ready and that
Tashiro didn't think it could have been from the start. "Then why didn't he
say something?" Fred asked. No one had any answers and the whole thing
just left everyone more suspect and uncomfortable with the other.
There were other incidents, big and small, that had made the last two
months especially frustrating, but Fred was too tired to remember them all. To
Fred, it seemed that working with Japanese both inside and outside the firm
was like working with people from another planet. Fred felt he just couldn't
communicate with them, and he could never figure out what they were
thinking. It drove him crazy.
Then, on top of all this, Jenny laid a bombshell on him yesterday. She
wanted to go home, and yesterday was not soon enough. Even though the
kids seemed to be doing okay, Jenny was tired of Japan-tired of being stared
at, of not understanding anybody or being understood, of not being able to
find what she wanted at the store, of not being able to drive and read the road
signs, of not having anything to watch on TV, of not being involved in
anything. She wanted to go home and could not think of any reason why
they shouldn't. After all, she reasoned, they owed nothing to the company.
because the company had led them to believe this was just another assign-
ment, like the two years they spent in San Francisco, and it was anything but
that!
Fred looked out the window once more, wishing that somehow every
thing could be fixed, or turned back, or something. Down belo the traffic.
was backed up. Though the traffic lights changed, the cars and trucks didn't
seem to be moving. Fortunately, in the ground below, one of the world's most
advanced, efficient, and clean subway systems moved hundreds of thousands
of people about the city and to their homes.
Questions
1. What factors (individual, work, and organizational) contributed to Fred
and Jenny's lack of adjustment to Japan?
2. What mistakes did Fred make because of his lack of understanding of
Japan?
3. What criteria would be important in selecting employees for overseas
assignments?
4 What special training and development programs might have been
beneficial to Fred and his family prior to his assignment in Japan?
5. Assume you are Dave Steiner and you receive a call from Fred about his
difficulties in Japan. How would you respond? What should be done now?
2
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