...and he is contemplating on whether or not to keep his manager Charles Martin. Charles Martin is an unorthodox HG manager who has a high interest in the African culture. Martin has excelled in all the previous projects and has even done projects on time and within budget. However, his recent actions with the Uganda project has made Vice President James Green, re-consider having Martin in-charge of the Uganda project. The power plant project in Uganda requires local support from the tribes, government and villagers. The government in Uganda is highly unregulated and it strongly favors the project. The construction of a large dam in Uganda means that 700 of the villagers would be displaced and in order for HG to move forward with the project, they offered the villagers a “resettlement package that included the renovation of schools and health centers in the new location.” This was an offer the villagers could not resist and those who were affected accepted it. The tribes on the other hand, were not so easily convinced. Tribes often tend to worship many things such as trees, animals, and even spirits. For the two tribes that lived near the Bujagali Falls site, spirits who lived near the river were sacred. This caused a big problem for HG. Therefore, Martin hired a religious caretaker who insisted that the only solution was to pay a fee of $7500 and sacrifice a sheep, two cows, four goats, and slew a few chickens. Martin went ahead and made this ceremony happen, without having in...
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...This affects foreign company doing business because bribe or extra payments is illegal and or ethically unacceptable. Finally, one last aspect is Ugandan’s trial rituals, this sometimes involves the international manager or representative themselves to participate in the ritual in order to continue the work needed to be done. Firms need to be aware of this culture enforcement because it could damage image of the corporation since many are under religious influence that are incompatible with the Ugandan culture. 2. I believe the respective attitudes of Martin and Green are completely opposite of each other. Green definitely is ethnocentric because he believes the company should operate under the same morals and values as it does at home. Though the idea seems to be logical, however, under different cultures those morals and values might not influence as greatly or even be respected by the new environment and its people. Martin on the other hand is very polycentric; he understands Ugandan culture and is very accommodating to the culture’s needs. Factors that have...
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...Charles Martin en uganda 1. Describir los atributos culturales de Uganda que podrían afectar las operaciones de una empresa extranjera que hagan negocios allí * Barreras del idioma Uganda es país que tiene un multi étnica, multi-idioma y multi-religiosa. Aunque se afirma que el Inglés es el idioma oficial como se ha mencionado muchas personas hablan idiomas INDÍGENAS como bantú y nilóticos. Henee que resulta en un riesgo para las operaciones de la empresa por no ser capaz de comunicarse con el Locais, resultando así en una barrera del idioma. * Preocupaciones Religiosas Uganda es también un país multirreligioso con personas que practican muchas religiones. Esto significa que la empresa tendrá que contratar a los empleados en forma a trabajar de cualquier religión, así como respetar a los que pertenecen a todos los grupos religiosos en la Orden de evitar la discriminación de los trabajadores. 2. ¿Cómo describiría la actitud respectiva de Martin y Green: etnocéntrica, policéntrica, o geocéntrico? ¿Qué factores se sospecha de haber influido en sus actitudes respectivas? * La filosofía de la empresa HG abraza la idea de que aunque secular, las actividades de negocio de HG debe encarnar fuertes valores cristianos. Además, los subordinados se debe dar plena ¡n la responsabilidad de decisiones y ejecución de las decisiones, sino que también deben rendir cuentas por sus resultados. Al optar por vivir en un barrio de clase media en Uganda, , por medio...
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...Case study Charles Martin in Uganda Contents I. Case Background 3 II. Statement of the Problem 4 III. Alternatives 5 IV. Recommended Solution 6 V. Answers to the case questions …..6-8 VI. Learnings 8 I. Case Background Hydro Generation (HG) is a U.S. based company that specializes in power plant. It has built power plants in 16 countries where they maintained an ownership in about half of them. The company has targeted a construction of large dam in Uganda Africa. HG put Charles Martin in this project to facilitate the preliminary construction and in case up to the construction phase to get an operating structure and facility start-up activities that includes obtaining licenses, installing telephones and utilities and securing the initial staff that would hire the full range of local personnel. But Vice president James Green pondered whether to continue employing Martin for the construction phase of the project. In particular, Green was concerned about Martin’s lifestyle, some of his business practices, and his participation in Ugandan tribal rituals. Green worried that Martin’s practices were counter to both HG’s corporate culture and methods of operating elsewhere, that some of his actions bordered on the unethical, and that some might be illegal under U.S. law. Characters in the case Lawrence Lovell * HG’s founder and CEO * A devout Christian and very influential in shaping the company’s management culture * Believed that...
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...Charles Martin in Uganda: What to Do When a Manager Goes Native? Q1: Business in Uganda typically moves slowly; however, paying tips to people in advance can speed the process. Because unemployment is high and hiring is generally done through word-of-mouth, contacts typically recommended their relatives, who are usually hired. Further, although the majority of Uganda’s population is Christian, tribal religions believe that many natural sites (including that of the proposed dam) possess spiritual qualities and are sacred. Q2: HG’s corporate philosophy embraces the idea that although secular, HG’s business activities should embody strong Christian values. Further, subordinates should be given full responsibility in making and implementing decisions, but they should also be held accountable for their results. By choosing to live in a middle-class Ugandan neighborhood while shunning the expatriate community, by paying extra for service, by hiring recommended relatives, and by paying fees and participating in tribal ceremonies, Martin exhibited a more polycentric (autonomous) attitude, while Green seemed to be more geocentric in his approach. While Martin was more concerned about his effectiveness with respect to his assignment in Uganda, Green was more concerned with corporate-level issues. Q 3: Martin was right for his controversial actions in facilitating the project due to his good understanding of Ugandan culture that gave him an edge to perform the preconstruction...
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...CLOSING CASE: Charles Martin in Uganda [See Map 2.5.] Hydro Generation (HG) is a U.S.-based specialist in power generation, with plants in 16 countries. Charles Martin, a 29 year-old American has been assigned by HG to manage the preliminary stage of the construction of a large dam in Uganda. Martin’s specific assignment was to (i) work with Ugandan government authorities and villagers to gain support and necessary permission for the construction, (ii) establish an office and hire people who would be responsible for local operations, and (iii) help foreign visitors when visiting Uganda. Vice President James Green wondered whether to continue to employ Martin in Uganda for the construction phase of the project. In particular, Green was concerned about Martin’s lifestyle, some of his business practices, and his participation in Ugandan tribal rituals. Green worried that Martin’s practices were counter to both HG’s corporate culture and methods of operating elsewhere, that some of his actions bordered on the unethical, and that some might actually be illegal under U.S. law. ------------------------------------------------- Questions 1. Describe Ugandan cultural attributes that might affect the operations of a foreign company operating there. Business in Uganda typically moves slowly; however paying tips to people in advance can speed the process. Because unemployment is high and hiring is generally done through word-of-mouth,...
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...Charles Martin in Uganda: What to Do When a Manager Goes Native Question 1: Describe Ugandan cultural attributes that might affect the operations of a foreign company doing business there. Uganda is country, which has a multi ethnic, multi religious and multi language background. From the perspective of a foreign company willing to operate in Uganda the language is a serious if not the main problem because of the different types of languages. Even though English is the official language on that country there a great portion of the population that still speaks indigenous languages such as Bantu and Nilotic. This fact alone, results in a risk to the operations of the company by not being able to communicate with the locals, which result in a serious language barrier problem. So, having employees able to communicate with different people in a diverse set of languages is very important from a business perspective. Another concern is the multi religious background of the country with people practicing many different religions. The company may have to hire employees to work from any religion and also make sure that those belonging to all religious groups are also respected in order to avoid discrimination in the workplace. Also, business in third world countries tends to move slowly, so for example: phone lines may take months to be installed. Additionally the incomes are extremely low and with high payment system. Uganda is considered one of the most corrupted countries in...
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...Case Study On Charles Martin in Uganda Submitted to: Salma Akter Senior Lecturer Department of Business Administration Submitted by Muhammad Nazmus Shakib ID: 2008-2-10-213 ITB301 (05) Date of submission 25-03-2012 [pic]East West University Acknowledgement In preparing this case study, I had the support and co-operation of the personnel of my group members. At the beginning I would like to thank my honorable course instructor. I am pleased to present the Case Study that was assigned to me as a partial requirement of the ITB301 course. I have found the experiences regarding the assignment quite valuable and interesting. I tried my level best to make the case study authentic and worth reading. I really enjoyed the hard work of preparing the paper. I am very thankful to you for giving me such an assignment from which I can enhance my knowledge over cultural influence and other factors affecting international business. I ensure that certain information enclosed in this paper is appropriate and authentic within academic interest. Table of Contents |Serial |Topic |Page number | |01 |Introduction |04 | |02 ...
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...Charles Martin in Uganda: What to Do When a Manager Goes Nat |575 By Raef Khalid on 8 October 2013 Share Make a copy Comments (0) Please log in to add your comment. Report abuse Transcript of Charles Martin in Uganda: What to Do When a Manager Goes Nat Charles Martin in Uganda: What to Do When a Manager Goes NativeCharles MartinProject ManagerUgandaHydro Generation (HG)Power Plant Project in Uganda :Local support. Gov’t strongly favored project – highly unregulated Displacement of 700 villagersLawrence Lovell, CEO :Believed business should embody Christian valuesJames Green, Vice PresidentConcerned about business practices and lifestyleProfessional educationMinor in African Studies form University of Wisconsin Served in Peace Corps in KenyaMBA from University of MarylandExperience with Hydro GenerationResponsibilities :Gain local supportSet up office, hiring, customs, logistics, inventory Assist foreign personnelLocation:Uganda is in East AfricaCapital City:KampalaGovernment: Multiparty democratic republic. Population:Just over 30 million people live in UgandaLanguage:English (official national language), Ganda or Luganda, Nilo-Saharan languages, Swahili, and Arabic.Religion:- Roman Catholic 33%- Protestant 33%- Muslim 16%- Indigenous beliefs 18%Currency:Uganda Shilling,Questions ( 1 )Describe Ugandan cultural attributes that might affect the operations of a foreign company doing business there?1-different types of communication language:The official language there is English...
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...CHARLES MARTIN IN UGANDA Purpose How operations differ from country to country due to different laws and regulations internationally. Discussion Internationally other countries have different laws. In this article they discuss how using different ways to approach a company internationally works, by comparing Charles Marin and James Green. Martin had a taste of the Ugandan culture because he went to African after he graduated college for the Peace Corps where as James Green did not have a taste of the African culture and had more of a US based culture and was not open to both as much as Martin was. Question 1: Describe Ugandan cultural attributes that might affect the operations of a foreign company doing business there. Comment: For the most part business in Uganda would be very different. They have a much different working style then here in the United States. Uganda has a few cultural attributes that might affect operations of a foreign company operating in Uganda. Starting off language gets in the way because Uganda is a country that has various types of religions and languages. As indicated in the article on page two “English is the official language, but many people speak only an indigenous language—mainly Bantu or Nilotic languages.” This may result in miscommunication because the company may not be able to interconnect with the citizens of the area. Also religion results in numerous types of controversies around the world and Uganda has many different religions...
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...Charles Martin in Uganda: What to do When a Manager Goes Native 1. In Uganda, things are very different than they are in the U.S. The government in Uganda is extremely corrupt, which means that there aren’t a lot of regulations that are put in place. Nepotism is a huge issue in Uganda, the people who have power usually favorite family members. There are also some tribes in Uganda that believe there is sacred ties to certain land, so trying to have those tribes move is a serious issue for them. Uganda has had a short and not very happy history, ranging from mass murders to an overflow of refugees from other countries. 2. Green definitely has more of an ethnocentric approach to HG being in Uganda. He wants Martin to stay in line with the company’s culture and values. Green was uncomfortable with many of the ways that Martin was accomplishing his tasks. Even though Martin was finishing everything that he was supposed to be doing, Green didn’t like the way it was done. Martin was more in line with the ideas of having a polycentric attitude. He basically changed his culture to the culture of Uganda, which may be good for becoming friends with the citizens but that doesn’t benefit the company as much as he would think. When you become overly involved with the cultures and its practices, the locals could take advantage of your openness. This was something that Green was afraid of. Like when HG paid the local tribes $7,000 to perform a tribal ritual to appease the spirit gods...
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...Name: Juwei, Chen Prof: G. J. Carrino Date: 9/20/2015 Class: BUS 371A Case Analysis Case 1- Uganda: QUESTIONS: 1. Describe Ugandan cultural attributes that might affect the operations of a foreign company doing business there. Answer: There are so many people in Uganda, it’s about 25 million. In Uganda, people should speak English as an official language, but most of people only speak the native language which is Bantu language or Nilotic. However, there are two third of Ugandans are the Christians, this is a large number of religions in negative side. So that, I think language is a big problem for those international companies doing business in Uganda, and the business in Uganda is often move slowly. For example, when the company is waiting for a business phone call, they usually need wait for a months. Also, the income is very low, and they have high payment system. However, the Uganda government is very corrupt for those foreign companies. 2. How would you describe the respective attitudes of Martin and Green: ethnocentric, polycentric, or geocentric? What factors do you suspect of having influenced their respective attitudes? Answer: The Charles Martin’s attitude is geocentric. His basic idea is about handing the operations the knowledge that organization culture with home and host country needs. That is the preferred approach for doing business with other culture because they increase the innovation and decrease the failures. For James Green’s point...
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...Case study 2-Charles Martin in Uganda 1) Describe Ugandan cultural attributes that might affect operations of a foreign company operating there? Uganda is a country of lacking infrastructure and lots of bureaucratic hoops to jump through. Governmental and Political corruption make it hard to do business without handing out bribes. The native language of Swahili, and few speak English. The many religions of Uganda also make foreign company’s respect them in order to avoid discrimination in the workplace. 2) Would you describe Green’s and Martin’s attitudes as being ethnocentric, polycentric, or geocentric? What factors do you think have influenced their attitudes? HG as an American company is secular by nature, but its activities retain Christian values. Green is a high level manager and his attitude was geocentric, choosing to associate with other Americans and lived in the upper middle class neighborhoods. Martin on the other hand had a more polycentric attitude, taking in all of Uganda’s offerings and culture…which helped in doing business in Uganda. 3) Who was right, Green or Martin, about the controversial actions Martin took in the Ugandan operation? What might have been the results if he had not taken those actions? Martin was right about the actions he took. He was hired because of his expertise in African studies, as well as international business. Martin completed the operation, and probably made the Ugandan people see HG in a good way. If Martin did things by...
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...the operations of a foreign company doing business there. The population of Uganda is about 25 million. And it official language is English. But many people can only speak an indigenous language, is primarily Bantu language or Nilotic languages. Although, about two-thirds of Ugandans are Christian, there a large number of Muslims and adherents of various animistic religions. From this perspective, language is a big problem for a foreign company operating in Uganda. Business in Uganda, on the other hand, often moves slowly. For example, it will take months installing a telephone. The Ugandan’s income is very low, but meanwhile, it has an exorbitant payment system. The nepotism is a norm for its employment staffs. If any company involves such activities, then it is illegal under U.S. law. And its corrupt government is also a brick wall for foreign companies. Finally, I think people of Uganda are too much devout to their religion and beliefs and culture. So foreign must accept the religion and beliefs and culture of Ugandan people. 2. How would you describe the respective attitudes of Martin and Green: ethnocentric, polycentric, or geocentric? What factors do you suspect of having influenced their respective attitudes? Charles Martin has a geocentric attitude, but James Green’s attitude is ethnocentric. When studying in college, Martin’s major is about African studies. After graduation, Martin worked in the Peace Corps in Kenya. He really liked working there in Kenya, but...
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...dam itself should HG employ someone whose main function is that of liaison between its corporate culture and the culture of its host country? If so, is Martin the right person for the job? Answer: Given the importance and the size of the project, as well as the many pitfalls that will surely be encountered along the way, it seems only logical to employ someone who is extremely well versed in the culture of Uganda to serve as a liaison with HG’s headquarters. Whether that person is Martin or someone else, however, HG must establish clear guidelines that reflect both U.S. law and corporate policy to guide the managers of their foreign operations. 4.IN HG’s NEXT PHASE, THE DAM CONSTRUCTION, SHOULD IT EMPLOY SOMEONE WHOSE MAIN FUNCTION IS TO BE A LIAISON BETWEEN HG’s CORPORATE CULTURE AND THE CULTURE OF UGANDA? IF SO, SHOULDMARTIN BE THE PERSON FOR THE JOB? The assignment taken up by Hydro Generations to construct a power plant in Uganda can be viewed in different phases. The first and initial phase can be listed as establishing an operating structure so that future work activities could be carried out smoothly and uninterrupted. The second phase consists of the construction of the dam. The final phase even though not mentioned in the case study could be assumed to be as the final construction of the power plant. Charles Martin’s initial assignment mainly dealt in the pre constructional phase where his duties were three pronged. 1. Working with Ugandan government authorities in the capital...
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