Please Answer All Question.

A Brazilian in Outer Space

PDI IDV MAS UAI LTO IVR BRA 69 38 49 76 44 59 USA 40 91 62 46 26 68

Background Fernando da Silva was a high potential Research and Development (R&D) lab employee that moved as an expat to the United States. During his time in the company, Fernando came up with several new inventions that allowed the parent company to start developing the next generation of artificial limbs to be monitored directly by the human brain.His expatriation to a small Midwestern town included a generous increase in salary and fringe benefits. Fernando was born and raised in Belem, located in the north of Brazil and, prior to his expatriation, was living in So Paulo. This was not only Fernandos first time living abroad but also his first time visiting the U.S. Before leaving for the States, Fernando received all the information he needed to get from the airport to the hotel that the company had booked for him. Fernando arrived on Saturday morning and the HR Manager set up a meeting for him first thing on Monday morning to go over the basics and meet his team. Over the weekend, Fernando was left alone and had plenty of time to get to know the little town. One of the most striking things for him was that there were no fences separating the different gardens. Although he had been told that Americans were very individualistic, for Fernando these gardens showed a great deal of community spirit. Another interesting thing was the number of churches, all of different Protestant denominations, compared to the number of inhabitants of the town. Fernando considered himself to be a non-practising Catholic who occasionally took part in Afro-Brazilian ceremonies when visiting his parents in his hometown. Working Environment On Monday, Fernando arrived at the office and was warmly received by the HR Manager who introduced him to the Manager in charge and to his direct colleagues. They all appeared to be genuinely interested in him. Over the next four weeks, Fernando found himself busy getting used to his new work environment and acquainting himself with the new work challenges, in addition to searching for a place to live. Soon after that, however, he realised that he was quite aloneas far as he could tell, he was the only foreigner in town. Fernando also found that, although his colleagues treated him kindly and many of them told him that he should just drop by, nobody had really made the effort to invite him over. In addition, while they repeatedly told him that they were proud that he had joined their group and were happy that they would benefit from his know-how, no one invited him for a drink after work. He had one colleague, Randy, who spent more time with Fernando than the others. After a couple of weeks at the office, Randy even invited him out for a drink. In return, Fernando invited Randy several times for dinner but, after having accepted one invitation, Randy seemed to be too busy to accept again. The work environment itself was also, on occasion, confusing for Fernando. It was especially difficult for PDI IDV MAS UAI LTO IVR BRA 69 38 49 76 44 59 USA 40 91 62 46 26 68 Cultural Puzzles

After a few weeks, Fernando was asked to visit his old R&D lab in So Paulo. On his flight back to the States, he sat next to a man who claimed to be an expert on intercultural affairs. Fernando told him about his situation and the man told him that, in order to find a way to enter the community, he should walk around on a Sunday morning and find a church where the nicest cars were parked. Then he should join that church and, subsequently, their community. When Fernando got back to his U.S. office, one day at lunch, Randy asked if he could give him some feedback. When Fernando agreed, Randy said that his colleagues found Fernandos attitude to be disappointing. They didnt know if he actually believed in what he was doing and wondered whether or not Fernando was worth the money. Fernando was not a shy person and thought through the comments before responding to Randy. He mentioned that he felt like he didnt belong in the community and, now that the opportunity presented himself, asked Randy what he thought about Fernando joining the fanciest church in town. Randys response was a confused: but you are Catholic, arent you? Fernando confirmed that he was but that he didnt see the problem of becoming part of a Protestant church as well. Denouement While his American colleagues remained polite towards him, they soon stopped telling Fernando how proud they were to have him around. When he was approached by a headhunter a couple of weeks later, Fernando gladly left the company to join its biggest competitor located in Boston, a city where he found himself at ease. Assignment Suppose what happened here is not so much a matter of different personalities, but a reflection of cultural differences.

With this in mind, please answer the following questions:

1. To which degree do you think Fernando suffered from culture shock?

2. Can you describe what happened in terms of the 6-D Model and in your own words:

a. At a personal level to Fernando as an expat in the U.S.

b. At a professional level to Fernando as an expat in the U.S.

c. In the initial and final perception of Fernandos American colleagues.

3. Using the 6-D Model, which dimension(s) do(es) not play a role in this case?

4. Can you describe what was striking in Fernandos eyes in terms of the way the Manager in charge and non-managers interacted with each other?