Jim Ellis, vice president of a North Carolina knitwear manufacturer, was sent by his company to observe firsthand how operations were proceeding in their Korean plant and to help institute some new managerial procedures. Before any changes could be made, however, Jim wanted to learn as much as possible about the problems that existed at the plant. During his first week he was met with bows, polite smiles, and the continual denial of any significant problems. But Jim was enough of a realist to know that he has never heard of any manufacturing operation that didn’t have some problems. So after some creative research, he uncovered a number of problems that the local manager and staff were not acknowledging. None of the problems were particularly unusual or difficult to solve, but Jim was frustrated that no one would admit that any problems existed. “if you don’t acknowledge the problems,” he complained to one of the managers, “how do you expect to be able to solve them?” And then to further exasperate him, just today when a problem was finally brought to his attention, it was not mentioned until the end of the workday when there was no time left to solve it.

Questions 1: Could you help Jim better understand the dynamic of this situation by explaining the possible workplace hierarchy in Korea?

Question 2: Can you suggest how Jim may solve the issue?