Road to Hell

Description

Mr. Baker the current chief engineer is leaving the company and wishes to impart some wisdom to his predecessor, Mr. Rennalls. He gives him praise for his positive attributes and attempts to give constructive criticism about his weaknesses. The meeting does not go well and instead of Mr. Rennalls accepting the position of chief engineer he turns in his resignation.

Diagnosis

The root of this problem is Mr. Baker as he builds his interview with Mr. Rennalls it is strictly from his perspective as an expatriate. He failed to take into account Mr. Rennalls own personal views of racial sensitivity and intolerance to discrimination. He did not consider the difference in cultures and take diversity into consideration. Without realizing it Mr. Baker was speaking with a racist view. However; Mr. Baker would be surprised to hear this analysis of his actions. In attempt to show Mr. Rennalls an example of leadership collaboration he offended him by insulting the intelligence of his race and implying his European upbringing is superior to any Barracanian.

Theory

The key theories that I identified in this case are perception and the halo effect. Mr. Baker's self-perception was that he was good at working with and leading people of different cultural backgrounds. He also perceived Mr. Rennalls as the one with having the problem of working with expatriates because of his belief that he was an effective leader. This leads to the theory of the halo effect, basing his opinion of Mr. Rennalls on one trait. That he is guarded and will not open up. Under the halo effect this leads Mr. Baker to assume that Mr. Rennalls is like this in every aspect of his job and will not succeed without him pointing it out and trying to help him.

Prescription

Mr. Baker and all the leadership and staff at the company would benefit from diversity and cultural training. This can be done quickly and effectively by the human resources department. Long term it would benefit the entire company to include diversity training in new employee orientation. This could also include classes on perception and how we perceive others in the workplace.

Fallout

With the departure of Mr. Rennalls tis could cause some other Barracanian to leave the company as well. If they hear that Mr. Baker was perceived as being racist and insulting to the Barracanian people they will not support the effort of regionalization. Furthermore with the political background of Mr. Rennalls family the Caribbean Bauxite Company may find it difficult to operate a successful l business in Barracania.