JAGRAN LAKECITY BUSINESS SCHOOL

Project Report On

CASE BASED ROLEPLAY

Submitted in lieu of

Mid-Semester Examination

Session: January – July 2021

Course Name – Skills for Managers II

Course Code – BF10083

Submitted To – Ms. Deepa Ayachit Ma’am

Submitted By – Khushboo Chouhan JLU05126 (2020MBA030)

Riya Kumari JLU05614 (2020MBA048)
Abhishek Bidhan JLU05162 (2020MBA020)
Rajshikhar Gohiya JLU05133 (2020MBA002)

Japan: The Case for Expatriate Training

Denise Chapman, a native of Long Island, New York, heaved a sigh of relief as she sat down on the
wooden chair in her tiny apartment in Tokyo, Japan. She has survived the 13-hour flight from New
York in relatively good shape and is about to start her new job: Marketing Manager of Akuta
Corporation in Japan. Akuta Corporation, a high technology company specializing in semiconductors,
produces memory chips for cell phones, electronics, and cars. It is a joint venture between Akuta
North American and Akuta Japan. Denise has spent the last twelve years working her way up the
career ladder in New York and has finally been rewarded for her consistently outstanding
contributions to Akuta by being given this promotion. To say she is elated is an understatement.
Tomorrow will be her first day on the job, and she is supposed to report to her boss, Vice President
for Business Development Junichiro Yasuda, at 9 am.

Denise is slightly apprehensive at the thought of meeting Mr. Yasuda, who is known for his personal
integrity and extremely high standards. But she is prepared and ready for the challenge. There is
only one problem: Denise is hoping that she can find some polite way to express to Mr. Yasuda her
dissatisfaction with the apartment she has been given: it is much too small and has only one closet.
Surely the company can give her a larger apartment. After all, she will be living in Tokyo for the next
two years.

The next morning Denise overslept because of the time change and had to rush to get ready for
work, so she called and left a message for Mr. Yasuda, saying that she would be a bit late. She
dressed carefully for her first day on the job, choosing her black Ralph Lauren suit and black heels.
While she was dressing, she discovered that her blouse was badly wrinkled. She managed to find her
iron, ironed the blouse, and left the apartment at 10:30 am, catching a cab to Akuta Corporation.

When Denise walked into Mr. Yasuda’s office at 11 am that morning, she smiled and extended her
hand for a handshake. Mr. Yasuda bowed slightly, shook her hand energetically, and asked her to sit
down and make herself comfortable. Before Denise could apologize for being late, he immediately
apologized for not providing her with coffee or tea and inquired about her long plane ride. In fluent
English, he said, “Please call me Junichiro, and may I call you Denise?” Then he got down to business,
explaining the budget constraints the company was facing, and asking what Denise’s long-term
priorities were and how she planned to accomplish them. Denise had not been expecting such
intense questioning, but she attempted to answer the questions with clarity and honesty.

One hour went by, with Denise and Mr. Yasuda chatting informally yet seriously about the goals of
the company. Denise had been waiting for just the right moment to mention her desire for a better
apartment. Finally, she said, “Mr. Yasuda, I was wondering, would it be possible for me to find a
larger apartment? My present one is not big enough. After all, I’ll be living here for two years, and I
am an executive.”

Mr. Yasuda’s eyes shifted to the view out of his window, he breathed in through his teeth, and he
remained silent for several minutes. Denise found the silence uncomfortable. At last, he replied,
“Yes, yes, indeed, but difficult, you know.” Denise was confused by his response but added, “I would
really appreciate your help with this, Junichiro.”

“That’s right, yes, yes, I’ll look into it,” Mr. Yasuda said, picking up his business card from a small box
on his desk and handing it to Denise with both hands. Denise quickly put it in her purse without
looking at it and then glanced through her brief case for her cards, before she remembered that they
had not been printed yet. She mentioned this to Mr. Yasuda, who attempted a smile, and then
changed the conversation back to the topic of the budget.

Finally, Mr. Yasuda stood up and said that he had enjoyed meeting Denise and looked forward to
their future business endeavours. At that point, he took a thin, beautifully wrapped rectangular
package from the top drawer of his desk and handed it to Denise.
“Please accept this small token of my esteem for your willingness to travel across the ocean to
become a member of our company, and I am sure we will have success in our future cooperation.”

Somewhat taken aback, Denise slowly unwrapped the package. Inside were four intricately carved
ivory figurines. Denise realized that this was a lovely and expensive gift, and what’s more, she had no
gift to give to Mr. Yasuda in return. Although she had been briefed on the importance of gift giving in
the Japanese business world, she had assumed that gifts were given after people had worked
together for some time and not at the beginning of a work relationship. She was embarrassed and
couldn’t think of what to say, beyond “thank you,” so she turned to Mr. Yasuda and bowed deeply,
as she had remembered his bow to her at the start of their meeting.

Mr. Yasuda did not bow in return. He merely stuck out his hand and shook Denise’s hand again,
while studying a calligraphy print hanging on the wall. Nor did he say another word. “Well, uh,
thanks again,” Denise said, and she left the office, worrying about whether she had gotten off on the
wrong foot with Mr. Yasuda.

Something did not seem right about this first encounter. Denise decided to call the New York office
and speak with the training officers who had given her the two-day orientation session on working in
Japan. She was not at all sure that she had learned enough in that short session to adapt to her new
work environment, which seemed full of ambiguity and tension. Maybe she would try to read the
books that had been recommended to her on cross-cultural communication and doing business in
Japan. She wasn’t exactly an expert on these issues, considering that this was her first assignment
abroad. In spite of her jet lag, she was probably going to have to stay up late and get some reading
done before returning to work tomorrow.

Discussion
1. How can expatriate employees best prepare themselves for working abroad?

Expatriate employees can prepare themselves for working abroad by anticipating: -

a. Potential challenges
b. Developing strategies to overcome them.
c. Understanding societal and business norms better
d. Understanding the goals of their overseas assignment
e. Research your destination
f. Making a bucket list.
g. Prepare for culture shock.
h. Learn a bit of language

2. What type of training did Denise get from Akuta in New York?

In New York Denise was briefed on the importance of gift giving in the Japanese business
world. Then in the orientation of two days the training officer advised her to read the books
that had been recommended to her on cross-cultural communication and doing business in
Japan.
3. What problems did Denise encounter on her first day of work in Japan?

Upon reaching Tokyo, Denise encountered that her apartment was too small, she also
overslept because of the time change and due to overslept she was not been able to go on
time in the meeting with Mr. Yasuda. She was supposed to arrive in office at 9:00 AM but
she arrived office at 11:00 AM.

4. What errors in business etiquette did Denise make with Mr. Yasuda?

Denise made few errors while she was with Mr. Yasuda, for example –

a. She did not greet him with a bow, this should count as an error as it is a very important
gesture in Japan.
b. She took the business card handed out by him and put it in her bag without even taking
a look at it.
c. She did not return the favour of the present by handing out a gift in return, even when
she was briefed about it.
d. Complaining on the very first day of job could also be counted as a business etiquette
error.

These were the errors made by Denise on her meeting with Mr. Yasuda.

5. What factors led to the problems in communication between Denise and Mr. Yasuda?

Several factors could have led to the problems in communication between them, like –

a. Denise may have forgotten about some of the training elements.

b. Cultural differences may have acted as a communication barrier.
c. Her first impression was a bit off as she was running late and to add to it, she did not
greet him properly.
d. She brought up her problem in the middle of an important business conversation.

6. How can Denise repair the damage she has caused to her relationship with Mr. Yasuda?

Since, this was the first meeting, the damage is repairable. She can do this by –

a. Greeting Mr. Yasuda with a bow when she meets him again.
b. Getting a present for him, as it holds a great importance in Japanese business world.
c. Setting her personal problem aside for a few days she should try to gain information
about Akuta organization, its goals and the problems faced by the organization.
d. She can also try contacting her training officers, and gain some insights after this
experience.

7. What would you do if you were in Denise’s situation?

If we were to play Denise’s role, we would have done certain things differently –
a. We would have focused on examining the cultural differences of Japan both –
professionally and personally.
b. We would have not complained on the very first day of our job. We would have waited
for a few days.
c. We would have greeted Mr. Yasuda properly with a bow and would have kept in mind
the importance of present exchange in Japanese business world.
THANK
YOU