As a result of possessing two very different cultural backgrounds (German, Uruguayan) we have chosen to select the most crucial points of cultural clashes between European and South American cultures and analyze both, the practical and theoretical issues which are involved. Due to the strict word limit, just three concepts are discussed in detail.

- The concept of cultural complexity

- And as a cultural characteristic the issue of time

The Kolbenschmidt AG, a German supplier for the automotive industry owns a subsidiary in Uruguay named Santa Rosa Auto Motores. Mr. Hedden, the General Manager from Kolbenschmidt is not satisfied with the recent sales figures from Santa Rosa in Uruguay. He decides to send Dr. Loser, a very experienced and trusted sales manager with excellent Spanish skills to Uruguay, in order to replace the current sales manager. Seeing it as a challenge, Dr. Loser accepts the job despite the fact of having no previous experience in the South American market. Mr. Hernandez, Santa Rosa's local general manager agrees to Mr. Hedden's plan after a fierce discussion regarding the introduction of a foreign mana

He decides to ask the key account salesman Cesar Rodriguez to come in his office to discuss market trends and sales forecasts but finds him on the phone.

Cesar tries to build up a relationship by asking about Dr. Loser's family, which is a perfectly normal behavior in high-context cultures. However in Germany questions of private nature are not usual in business. Therefore Dr. Loser thinks Cesar's attempt to build up a relationship is an attempt to distract Dr. Loser from the rude behavior. Dr. Loser does not understand the high-context culture principle: trust first and then business and therefore reacts completely wrong.

One quarter of an hour later Dr. Loser gets impatient and looks for Cesar, who is still speaking to his dad. He signals him by waving his index finger to come to his office. Fifteen minutes later Cesar appears in Dr. Loser office.

Again Dr. Loser is not sure what to think.

Some common words found in the essay are:
Dr Loser, Uruguayan German, Santa Rosa's, Loser Cesar, Dr Loser's, dr loser, Uruguay Argentina, South American, Low- Germany, power distance, Hofstede Uruguay, Loser Please, low power distance, dr loser's, cultural complexity, low power, sales manager, high-context cultures, speaking dad, low-context countries, low-context cultures, dr loser impatient, dr loser cesar, meeting dr loser, power distance index,
Approximate Word count = 2382
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)