Maywood Inc. Case

Maywood Inc Case

It is understandable why Gary Lowery is so uneasy with the whole situation at Maywood Inc's Singapore branch office. A number of mistakes were made during the assignment preparation stage, then, later, during the assignment implementation stage. Those mistakes and problems needed to be analyzed and recommendations needed to be developed for the future so that Maywood Inc's Singapore branch would operate more effectively.

A survey of 1,500 senior executives conducted by Korn, Ferry, and Columbia Graduate School of Business showed that there is a big shortage of US executives prepared to run international businesses1. Another study shows that the failure rate among the expatriates is between 25 and 50 percent, which is a further indication of this problem. These failed assignments on the average cost companies very large sums of money ranging anywhere from $40,000 to $250,0002. In order to prevent failed assignments, companies develop extensive training programs and detailed guidelines for establishment of overseas office.

In this particular case, there was a number of mistakes made from the beginning, at company headquarters in the U.S., that later stood in the way, preventing Gary from being an effective manager. To begin with, there was no clear job description for Gary. Maywood Inc's reason for not developing formally written job descriptions was that this was a new territory for them, and they decided to develop them later as the team progressed in the assignment. Clear job objectives were not there either, and the company viewed Gary's role in assignment as "jack-of-all-trades".

Another problem was in the selection of possible candidates, which was done based on their qualifications, desire for international exposure career potential, and experience. However, the typical causes of the overseas failure are extended beyond technical capabilities, and include personal and social issues as well.

Next, outsourced, expensive, company sponsored training was poorly prepared and inadequate. International business books are full of examples of how companies made mistakes due to the lack of understanding of foreign cultures: Pepsi's slogan "Come Alive with Pepsi" translated into Chinese, became "Pepsi brings your ancestors back from grave"; major advertisement in green color did not work in Malaysia, where green symbolizes death; a company was ordered to never return in Qatar, after airport customs discovered brandy in its vice president's brief case, etc3. Here, Maywood was making same mistakes, because during the training, Gary has learned very little about actual Singaporean culture, and even less about the way business is run there. He and his other colleagues felt that the training was very superficial and it did not relate to Singapore's business environment and management practices. Besides, he was not given an opportunity to visit Singapore with his spouse prior to the accepting of the assignment as it was company policy.

In addition, an effective system of communication was not created. When Gary needed an immediate answer from his headquarters about the legal issue, he did not get a quick response from the company.

In order to avoid future failed assignments, and in order to prevent future expatriate managers sent from headquarters to the Singapore office dealing with the problems on ad hoc basis, all the previously stated mistakes must be corrected, and following policies should be implemented:

1. The company has to define assignments clearly, i.e. define job description, and create clear job objectives. Gary Lowery and his team with their recently acquired experience can develop this policy.

2. Select expatriate for assignment using effective, validated selection screening criteria based not only on technical attributes, but on personal characteristics as well. This is one of the most common factors leading to failed assignments3. Corporations' management teams assume that if a person did well in his home environment, he will do as well in the foreign culture. Effective international executives are not only experts in their field, they are also sensitive to cultural differences, have courage to take stand on the issue, act with integrity, are insightful, take risks, and are commitment to success4.

3. Train the expatriates and their families for assignments more effectively. This point can not be stressed enough. First of all, the training must focus on the Singaporean culture, and in order to do this, information on its economy, history (defining moments, founders, outcasts), geography, religions, government, attitude to outsiders, population, language, and popular myths must be covered. In addition, training on business ethics, management techniques, long working hours, etc. must be conducted as well. Without an understanding of local customs, ethical standards, and applicable laws, an expatriate is not duly prepared to work internationally. In addition, during- and post-arrival training must also be conducted. If possible, the expatriate and his family should be offered a trip to Singapore prior to taking the assignment.

4. Create a support system at the headquarters. When and if he needs any help from his headquarters, he should be given assistance as soon as possible. Specific coordination team would be ideal. This team should be ready and able to respond quickly to faxes, appeals for help or information, send out any technical advisors necessary, and boost morale of the expatriates.

5. On his return from Singapore, Gary Lowery could be given role of a mentor for the new expatriate that would take his place, so that he will help, monitor, and intervene in case of trouble. According to a survey by the Center for Global Assignments, 61 percent of employees who returned from overseas postings said they lacked opportunities to put their experience abroad to work at home5. This means that corporation's investment in training of the employee and overseas expenses get wasted.

All these points will help in preparation stage for the next expatriate.

Now let us see what was done wrong during the implementing stage of the assignment.

Due to the lack of training, Gary experienced many problems with issues related to the Singaporean culture. For example, he was surprised to discover long working hours, his work in laying out offices in the new building was useless, because it contradicted the Chinese culture and Feng Shui. Despite this, he was able to adapt to his new surroundings and performed well. However, his biggest problem at this