El Taco Loco

Been around Phuket Town and nothing.

Yesterday Tesco had one guy check with mirror under the car, no hood/boot check.

Today Central has one guy checking the trunk/boot of cars. I feel much safer now! ;-)

I came to Thailand to find love and live a peaceful life here.

The last year of my life in the U.S.A. was not very fun and most of the time i was miserable.

I really do not like spilling my guts on a public internet forum either. Most of the time i prefer to keep my personal life private.

please help!

Maybe I am just lucky, after reading about this issue for many years. Mine insists that I go out and I do the same with her. She is a homebody and a good mom.

However, there comes a time, and I had to do this, to put your foot down, explain to her who brings the bacon home and say that you are going out, call me if you need me, should I bring you some food home (that is always a winner with Thai wifes).

She is like a 2 year old. Testing you to see how far she can go with you. 2 years of marriage? Put your pants on now, bud!

Good luck!

About a month(?) after my baby was born my wife's mother shaved the baby's head. Anyone else have this done?

No, but a few days after wife came home, I walk in the bedroom and I see Buffy (mother in law, long story) putting something in her eyes. I ask tilac <deleted>, and she says, oh, Isaan people believe mother milk good for eye!

Regardless, I'm uncomfortable being in a religious country with a religion I don't understand.

Hi.

And you understand Bhuddism? I tried but gave up. Too many hypocrits in Thailand. 5 years here and I am also looking at Malaysia. It serves its purpose: Close to Thailand for nice trips back, close to wife's province (Phuket).

I have never stayed in Malaysia for extended periods of time. But even the Muslim girls at Macdonalds give you a smile and wish you well when you leave. I have met Muslims everywhere and not one gave me a look of disdain. They are truly friendlier. I cannot say that about the ethnic Chinese in Malaysia. And forget about the Indians there.

Regards,

Same location as the old California Lobster place used to be. Plenty of parking, one positive thing about this place.

Where exactly? Behind?

Thoroughly enjoyed the "vintage" then and now pics.

Thanks!

It is xcellent food. But, alas, in forums such as this one, there are the complainers with few solutions or alternatives given.

Try using the search function and reading the thread about curries in Phuket before you make baseless accusations.

Now I know who the grumpy one is for the Thaivisa Phuket Forum.

sigh

There is an Indian restaurant on the way to Chalong Pier, to the right side, new driveway and shop houses. Very good chicken tikka and lemon chicken. Great biriani.

Sniper

I agree, if you like your chicken tikka masala made with canned tomato soup and you don't mind paying 99 Bt for a plate of plain rice.

Plain rice was 59 baht, now 29 baht. I know Sir Burr doesn't like it - we've discussed it before - but I love the food there and try to make it at least every couple of weeks when I'm in town.

It is xcellent food. But, alas, in forums such as this one, there are the complainers with few solutions or alternatives given.

got my local one ... and a BMW helmet for 40k on a guy riding a bike worth 40k is silly

As I stated in my message, I have no idea what your budget is, hence my suggestion. The jist of it is there are good helmets available locally.

There is an Indian restaurant on the way to Chalong Pier, to the right side, new driveway and shop houses. Very good chicken tikka and lemon chicken. Great biriani.

Sniper

I agree, if you like your chicken tikka masala made with canned tomato soup and you don't mind paying 99 Bt for a plate of plain rice.

Everytime I have eaten there the food is freshly cooked. Since when is Indian food cheap?

I have no idea what your budget is. There are helmets then there are helmets.

If you want a good one, try BMW. They have some nice selections, including one with bluetooth (40k).

I won't repeat what others are saying regarding the list of schools.

I tutor some Dulwitch and QSI as well as Montessori students. By far, reviewing their homework, school to home communication, they all loose.

With Dulwich you pay for the name, though they are just as expensive as they ever have, even after loosing the Dulwich franchise.

I have not heard anything negative re QSI, but at 3000 USD per term, it is pricey and I am constantly correcting their teachers with the homework. They fail to teach grammar and caligraphy and spelling errors while communicating home is simply ridiculous.

Montessori schools are a bit strange, as students have a run of the school and they are very tough to tutor, as they are used to choosing what they want to do, whereas I am somewhat firm with what I want to teach that day (after reviewing their homework, classes or upcoming tests).

Out of the 3 (Dul, Mon and QSI) I would give QSI a try. But if you are European, then it may not be for you, as it is an American curriculum, not a Baccalaureate (sp) system.

Another user mentioned Darasamut. Excellent choice. I tutored a student there for her IELTS exams in the UK and she got a 6.0 band, enough to get in the university. So in hindsight, they prepared her well enough to understand my teachings. She needed help but she was able to do it!

And they teach Chinese. Costs about 30k per term if falang, or 10k if Thai born.

Good luck,

On Saturdays and Sundays only:-

Go to the Thai Naan cross-roads and take the road to Wat Chalong. About 500 mtrs to 1 km you will get to the next set of lights. Turn left, go 100 mtrs, huge weekend market on the right hand side. Can't miss. Excellent for food. Try the Hoy Tod with beanshoots.

Yeah, you beat me to it. Great chicken keebabs! 20 Baht and they are huuuge.

Sniper

Perhaps a roasted Max instead of a turkey?

Anyways, good idea.

"Gooten Afternoogen" Gerd!

Sniper

There is an Indian restaurant on the way to Chalong Pier, to the right side, new driveway and shop houses. Very good chicken tikka and lemon chicken. Great biriani.

Sniper

Not replying to anyone.

Just wondering what would happen if some of the posters managing places in Thailand and me managing a place in Japan apply for a managing job.

Would they have an advantage because they did it in Thailand, would I be an underdog just by the virtue of the isolated Japanese culture and biz environment?

Say, the new job is in Singapore or Hong Kong.

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I am 50 50 on this one. Having managed Thais can go both ways. Either they see you as having the patience and guts and willingness to inmerse yourself in their culture and get things done is good.

On the other hand, they may think that working with mostly lazy Thais and getting things accomplished is not what they need in a place where there are hard working Chinese, Malay and Indians. (I am not generalizing. I never worked with any of those 3 types). Just an example. In other words, they may think that Thailand is the only place where I could succeed.

Chai my?

I was being constructive.

You claimed I made a generalization about corruption, yet then go on to agree with me that corruption takes place in your hotel (which you manage)

You wrote that you are a good listener, yet stated that I "showed my style of management" when I made some valid points about your lack of language skills, and that "I wouldn't last a day". Seemed to contradict your good listening skills when something you don't like is raised by getting personal. (and incorrect BTW)

On meetings, I was trying to find out what your style actually was, managers usually go with one style. I wasn't actually criticising you.

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Hi again.

Let me backtrack. You are correct on a lot of what you say. I actually agree with it as well.

I never claimed my place is a white as the pure driven snow. Even with all the whitening lotion flying around the place.

I am not fluent in Thai and no falang manager needs to be. Your previous posts insinuated that I was a lazy learner. I took that personally. But with my present Thai skills and books, electronic dic, translations, pictures, etc., I am communicating well. How do I know that? Things are getting done. Slow, but done nevertheless.

Thanks for your posts.

They are appreciated.

Sniper

and lets not turn this into a "I've got a bigger one than you" debate  

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Feels that way. I avoid some posts as it is more of a post hijack than constructive criticism or opinions.

On Thai Language: I grant that my Thai isn't the best and I've been learning the language somewhat reluctantly. I speak a few thousand words, read and write in slow motion. I don't know how I could have managed by biz without at least a bit of Thai. While all of our engineers spoke English, the driver, the accountant, the graphics guy and others didn't and it was sometimes necessary to get through to these people as well. But I think it is perfectly possible to do 100% of the mid- and high-level management in English. At least in Bangkok.

On Meetings: As a Thailand greenhorn I once held team meetings, brainstorming sessions, seminars and such, but soon realised the futility of these exercises. Team meetings turned out to be useful only for broadcasting "top-down", otherwise they were quite a waste of time. I communicated with middle managers (project managers in my case) one by one. Nobody wants to speak about difficulties and problems in a big large group meeting. It's considered a loss of face.

On Going Out: Occasional dinner for the staff, birthday parties, free meals, etc. add to the "bunkhun" of the boss. So, I think it's a good thing to do. You can even deduct the expenses from taxes. It gives the staff a chance to socialise outside the office and potentially adds "sanuk" to their jobs. Occasionally, one also gains interesting insights into people ideas and behaviors with rising alcohol levels. I always enjoyed it.

On cronysim/nepotism: I suppose that is more a problem of the Thai companies. Whenever there's an expat at the top of the command, I rarely see this happening because people get selected for their skills, not for their connections. One would have to deal with this thing at the middle management level in large Thai companies. Very difficult. I suppose in a 100% Thai environment the expat can only function in a expert advisor role with limited executive powers.

However, there is one thing that a farang manager probably needs to observe carefully: the peer relationships, internal friendships and enemities. For example, if you berate the receptionist (not a good thing to do anyway) and the receptionist is best friends with the account manager and the sales lady, then you have three people against you, not just one.

Cheers, X-Pat

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Agreed with everything you said. Being too hand-on is not good either, otherwise they start wondering why you are the boss. The issue with relationships. Inevitably there are family relationships here and are quite hidden, but they surface once in a while. We avoid nepotism, but difficult to kill it off once they are hired without my knowledge.

We do have our outside dinners and we have fun, do the karaoke thing and I enjoy it. But do not do it often.

On meetings. They help somewhat. My meetings are more frequent exactly for the reason you stated, the loss of face in a meeting group. Comes with the territory.

Thanks for your comment.

Knowing how to motivate your workers shows your ability to culturally understand and assimilate their individual raison d’etre. Trying to fit your preconceived notions of “what’s best for them” on them is a sure recipe for failure in any culture.

Serenity now! – Frank Costanza

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I can't agree more. You are very right. I consider myself a good listener. I did not come here to turn the place upside down, but rather keep it going straight.

However, my preconceived notions was not of what is best for them, but what is best for the company. They do take things personally and I have to deal with that. Simply implementing policy is quite a struggle. Everyone shakes their head in agreement then it is not implemented.

That is when I scratch my head, sometimes. Motivating the staff is actually easy. I wish sometimes they could motive me. lol

Sniper,

Firstly, I do manage a large number of Thais. So your perceptions of me are wrong aren't they? (Oh and I have to do much of my work in Thai) I have worked for several Thai companies both in Bangkok and outside, up here in Isaan.

You say you have meetings. Thai-style meetings, (for rubber stamping only) or farang style (actual discussons)?

I didn't suggest you get "involved" with them, but staff parties/tios are important. My boss takes the senior staff out in twos and trees over a couple of months to discuss work in a more relaxed atmosphere, and to get a more accurate feedback. This is his only real opportunity to pick our brains, and for us to warn of problems ahead, or things he should know about.

I not implying that most Thai workplaces are corrupt, they are. But the staff don't involve you. Ask your wife, she'll find out. (Check your supply contracts/security personnel agreement for starters) How much shrinkage do you allow for?

Still don't believe me? Find out which staff have "friends in high places". U.S. companies in particular have no backhanders policy. So doing business here, they don't. They just employ the daughter of the local MP (or local bigshot) as a "secretary" or whatever. She does nothing but sit on the payroll. But it isn't a "bribe" is it?

Also, you seem to plan to live here, with a Thai wife and in-laws. You not speaking Thai sends a powerful message. I noticed you didn't fault me on the fact I said you have not learnt the culture.

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I know full well about corruption. It happens here a lot. Stopping it is next to impossible, but we have slowed it down a bit and that forced some of the staff mafia to leave, w hich was what I wanted in the first place.

For you to insinuate that I have not learnt Thai culture is bs. You know nothing of me.

It is apparent, that with your attitude, you clearly have not learnt Thai culture. Shooting from the hip is not recommended, as you may get shot in the back.

Where did I say I had Thai style meetings? Rubberstamping? Where, when?

It appears that your place is in need of a good vaccum cleaning. Mine needs improvement and I am writing here for assistance, not for execution.

Here we go again with the stereotyping and over the top generalizations about “them” as if all thais were the same. Not to mention the hypocrisy that led many foreigners to Thailand in the first place, namely to go someplace that they can relax and enjoy themselves and escape the never ending rat race of western societies.

To answer the op's original question: you got yourself into another country with another way of doing things. Change is possible but how do you expect "them" to be willing to change (or respect someone who tells "them" to change) unless you are willing to change and learn the language?

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I have changed a lot. I am a lot more patient than before, and consider myself a good listener. As in my previous post, I do not need to be fluent in Thai to get a point across. I know how to speak and have basic conversations. I am not walking around with 10x5 poster cards with cartoons to explain my point. All of the managers here speak English and our meetings are held in English. Again, to bring up the original post, this has to do with middle management's desires to continue with old habits and not willing to learn new ideas or the unwillingness to understand TQM or other work concepts.

I take exception to the issue that we are involved in generalizations. We are not, ask any falang manager and they will tell you the same. It is a cultural issue and I am not here to change it, but to give new ideas on how to run a business. Which this country desperately needs in order to compete in the REAL world.

Sniper

Sniper.

I speak Thai, but not fluently. I do not read it or write it nor do I need to.

You have obviously not managed Thais, and certainly not 110 of them, as I have. Your misconceptions of me from one post alone shows me your "management" style.

You would have failed the first day.

As with all management jobs, you have to earn their respect. Once they build a wall around themselves, the farang has to leave the job. That has not happened here and the job is actually a lot of fun and we respect each other.

The main point asked in this thread was about implementing policy and how it is so excrutiatinly difficult it is for it to be implemented. Nothing to do with lazyness, per say.

Most of your points below I am fully aware of. Do I karaoke with them? No. Once you start drinking with them, they think the relantionship is cozy and others will get jealous if one gets a promotion, etc. Management should never involved themselves outside of the resort, unless it is staff parties or birthdays, etc., which I do involve myself with.

Your knowledge of working conditions in Thailand also lacks severely. You seem to imply that all Thai work places have corruption, particularly when jobs are attained or promotions applied. That is generalization at its worst. Everyone here got the job or got promoted based on their own merit. I implemented job promotions, whereas before it was nonexistent. I also implemented crosstraining between departments.

Do I need to be fluent in Thai for that? No.

Sniper

I have lived in Thailand 4 years. Do not speak Thai but I know about 300 words and always am able to discuss and give orders without any problems.

So, who is being lazy?

You have been here four years, and seemed to have totally failed to pick up  the language or culture. No wonder you have problems. You expect all these changes from your staff, but expect that you personally don't have to change.

Do you know all the names of your staff? (Formal and nicknames)

What is the latest gossip. Whose seeing/split from who?

Who has a (really) sick granny?

Who is in debt up to their eyeballs?

Who do the staff all hate?

Who has ambition? Who got the job because of connections?

Who is unsackable, for the same reasons as above?

Who got the job through a backhander/bribe?

What is the latest rumour about you. There are several I assure you!

When did you last go karaoke/have a meal with them?

Sorry, but you cannot "discuss and give orders"on 300 words of Thai. You cannot manage a team on 300 words of Thai. The most important word here is "because". Explain why you are doing this/want it done this way.

Developing staff is a slow process. But you have not changed in four years, so why do you expect them to?

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