Miscommunications with a Brazilian Auto Parts Manufacturer Case Study Answers

Miscommunications with a Brazilian Auto Parts Manufacturer
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Miscommunications with a Brazilian Auto Parts Manufacturer
Issues
In the case study miscommunications with a Brazilian auto parts manufacturer, there are some important miscommunication issues that emerge. There was a pending meeting between Mr. Silva, president of a mid-sized auto parts manufacturer in Sao Paulo, and Mr. Henry Williams, president of Lucky Auto Parts Company based in the United States. However, Mr. Williams is unable to proceed with the meeting because; he had to take part in a deposition on a court case pending against his company. Instead, Mr. Williams opted to send his Vice-President, Wally Astor, who was also his son-in-law (Deresky, & Christopher, 2011). An important communication mistake Mr. Williams made was failing to notify Mr. Silva on the cancellation of the trip, and the decision to send Mr. Wally Astor.
Then again, there was other non-verbal cues, especially depicted by Mr. Wally Astor did not appear in business attire, as it was the norm when business people met for official business. Mr. Wally Astor wore faded jeans, sneakers and a checked shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Such attires made Mr. Silva and Mr. Ventura perceive that, probably Mr. Williams and Mr. Wally did not take the appointment seriously. Considering that, Mr. Wally was meeting Mr. Silva and Mr. Ventura for the first time; it was appropriate for him to address them officially, a factor that the hosts maintained, but Mr. Wally did not uphold. Because it was their first meeting, then, Mr. Wally ought to have maintained a higher level of formality (Maude, 2011).
Lessons
From the above miscommunication issues, there are important lessons, which the manager learnt. A typical lesson is that there are differences in communication when entering a foreign environment. In some countries, business people are loud, direct and have tendencies of interrupting other people as they communicate (Burrow, & Kleindi, 2013). In other countries, business people are soft, use indirect language and wait for other people to finish their sentence. On the other hand, cultures communicated differently, in that, some will greet using handshakes, others will hug and others will use word of mouth. In the same context, the issue of time is important and different across countries. As such, scheduling for a meeting will require managers in foreign countries to abide with the time.
For example, some cultures value punctuality, whereas others perceive time as a general guideline; thus, it is not something to observe strictly. Apart from cultural factors, there are other factors such as the manner of dressing, which communicate particular messages based on the perceptions. In this regard, managers must consult on matters of dressing, especially when going to foreign countries and this will help th...