Jean Claude T is a 51 years old Frenchman who works and lives in Shanghai, China. He is married and has two children who study at the university. He was an expatriate for a French automobile company, Citroën, for many years. He has spent three years in Hungary and six years in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. One year ago, Citroën decided to lend Jean Claude T's knowledge and experience to GNFA, another French company. GNFA (Groupement National pour la Formation Automobile), his present employer, is a firm for automobile consulting and training created in 1995. This firm also offers its services all over the world, even in China, where the market is booming. Jean Claude T was sent there to reorganize the subsidiary of GNFA in Shanghai. He studied in France and obtained a degree from "IUT Genie Mécanique" (a technical school in mechanical engineering). He had already worked for Citroën before beginning to work abroad.
[...] Was someone there to welcome you, in Shanghai, and introduce you to your new job and life? “Actually, I had a very short training period in France days) on cultural aspects. But nobody welcomed us when we arrived in China.” • What is the thing you miss the most from France? “Nothing special, maybe the French gastronomy.” • Do you think that your expatriations changed you? In what extent? “Obviously travelling affects the way you are and the way you see others. [...]
[...] Our analysis This interview showed us that Mr. T was well settled and happy in his new life in China. We thought that maybe there were a lot of prejudices about Chinese culture and that it was not so hard for a European to be well integrated in this country. But this very good experience must be put into perspective. Indeed this case fulfills all the necessary conditions to make this expatriation an excellent experience. He is very lucky that his wife can accompany him and successfully adapt to every country in which he works. [...]
[...] - Is the relation with the hierarchy different? If you have the most important position of the company in China, how do the Chinese employees behave with you? Are they much more respectful than French? Or do you feel a sort of segregation or racism towards you? “Yes, I have the highest position in our subsidiary in Shanghai. The Chinese are highly respectful. Culturally, in China, the manager is the one who knows and consequently he is the one who people respect." - Is the collaboration good? [...]
[...] In fact, during the interview one sees that the expatriate has no problem being respected by his employees. The dimension of uncertainty avoidance is high in France, but we see that the French expatriate is not a good example of this theory. Whereas a lot of French would be stressed and worried about working in an unknown country, Jean Claude T. has always wanted to work overseas. France is supposed to be an individualist country. As one can see for Mr. [...]
[...] Cross Cultural Management – Expatriate Interview The Description Jean Claude T is a 51 years old French man who works and lives in Shanghai, China. He is married and has two children who study at university. He was an expatriate for a French automobile company, Citroën, for many years. Indeed, he spent three years in Hungary and six years in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. One year ago, Citroën decided to lend Jean Claude T's knowledge and experience to GNFA, another French company. [...]
APA Style reference
For your bibliographyOnline reading
with our online readerContent validated
by our reading committee
