Challenging Workplace
 As a leader in campus organizations, Samira Tanaka, a student, often led
 projects and took deadlines very seriously.What universal leadership attributes did Samira exhibit?At orientation for her internship, Samira learned that Japanese compa-
 nies historically had little diversity in terms of race and gender.This ensured
 that the company invested in local businesses that operated in tradition-
 ally economically disadvantaged areas.Japanese advisers were perceived as focusing
 on the creation of consensus in teams, often leading to slow decision
 making.Her manager praised her as being
 very dependable, as planning deadlines well, and as being very compe-
 tent at her tasks overall.Samira ultimately realized that her workplace was different from the
 campus atmosphere she was used to. If she wanted to be an emerging
 leader in the workplace, she had to better adapt to her new environment.Questions
 1.In
 an effort to adapt to North American norms, Japanese subsidiaries had
 well-developed diversity policies.For example, Samira tracked the usage
 of minority-owned businesses in the company's supply base.Samira successfully completed two internship rotations and was about
 to graduate from college.In what way did this company reflect the characteristics of other
 Confucian Asia countries?Investing in the local community
 was already an important business value in Japan, so this was a simple
 adaptation for Samira's company.She always offered
 her opinion on how things could be done better, and sometimes even
 initiated tasks to improve processes on her own.Although she saw her-
 self as an emerging take-charge leader, Samira always downplayed her
 ambitions.Some of her peers at work advised her that it was important to con-
 sider working at a plant near her hometown because it would be closer
 to her family.Her strong work ethic led to
 an internship offer at a Japanese automotive company.Women
 in Japan were not as prevalent in the workforce as in North America.Feedback was indirect from both Japanese
 and North American managers.2.3.4.5.