Adjustment of Foreign Professors during Interaction with SMEs in Seoul, South Korea

The focus of this qualitative case study was to explore the experiences and perceptions of foreigners during interactions with small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Seoul Metropolitan Area, using the constructs of intercultural communications and consumer language, to understand their difficulties during service encounters. In-depth interviews were used to collect data with a purposeful sample of 10 participants from a sampling frame of 62 foreign professors. MAXqda software was used to identify the emergent themes pertaining to foreigners: verbal and non-verbal coping skills, cultural adaptation, and preference to use Korean. The first implication is the ability of foreigners to adapt using various coping skills, and the ability to adapt culturally. The second implication is the interaction between foreigners and Koreans leads to a better understanding of Korean culture. Recommendations for practice include improving communication and culture classes offered to foreigners, and improving technology to aid in communicating with SMEs. A recommendation for future research is a study to examine the convenience level of foreigners using Korean in low- and high-involvement service encounters.