Question

Based on the available data, you try to determine the primary cultural reason why kenji seems dominating and unreadable to the swedish workers, whereas the swedish workers seem uncooperative and disobedient to kenji.

Answer 1

Kenji works for a multinational company which engages in the practice of rotation high performing managers throughout different locations in the world. In this case, Kenji is a Japanese manager who is in charge of running the operations at a plant in Sweden.

Employees at the workplace have already complained via email about Kenji's harsh method. They find him too hostile, which is negative for the overall working climate of the workplace.

This is due to the cultural gap that exists between Kenji and the Swedish workers. The Japanese tend to be much more rigorous and disciplined regarding work shifts and the overall quality of work. It is common for the average Japanese worker to take it "to hard on himself" when things don't come out as planned.