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PODCAST

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech

John Stech, The Auto Ethnographer, draws on his thirty years in the global automotive industry to bring the world to your doorstep in both an informative and entertaining way using a style rooted in autoethnography.What is "autoethnography"? Derived from Tony E. Adams’ definition, "autoethnography" is a research method leaning on the experiences of individuals to analyze assumptions, culture, communication, local norms, traditions, emotional impact, and how they mesh with greater culture and society

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All Episodes

36:14

EP 37: Is Europe too focused on the past as China...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/11/19

In this episode of The Auto Ethnographer podcast, host John Stech welcomes back Chinese culture trend forecaster and brand strategist Grace Mou for a deeply personal and thought-provoking conversation. Fresh from her first-ever trip to Europe - visiting France and Italy - Grace shares her candid impressions of Western culture, technology, and branding through the eyes of a Chinese professional immersed in global consumer trends.What she discovered surprised her. “I never expected that Europe is

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19:06

EP 36: Cultural black eye in Georgia - when ICE...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/11/13

In this episode of The Auto Ethnographer, host John Stech explores the cultural and diplomatic shockwaves following a U.S. immigration raid at a Korean-run EV battery plant in Georgia. Nearly 500 Korean nationals - engineers, technicians, and students - were detained despite holding valid visas. The raid triggered not only legal action but also a deep rupture in trust between South Korea and the United States.John examines the human toll, the Korean cultural concept of chemyeon (face), and how

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17:23

EP 35: Stepping into the unknown culture dimension

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/11/06

Today’s episode is a bit of a back-to-school episode. Until now you have heard truly insightful stories from automotive executives that have navigated different cultures. Today we break out the chalkboard and try to fit a simple, yet complex, framework around those conversations. That framework was developed by Geert Hofstede.Let’s have a short introduction to Geert Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions. Based on research that he conducted in the 1970’s, Hofstede constructed six cultural dimensions by

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14:46

EP 34: Volkswagen overcoming the Great Wall of...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/11/01

The news media are continuously reporting on the declining fortunes of foreign automakers in China. But what are the manufacturers doing to turn that story around? In this episode of The Auto Ethnographer, host John Jörn Stech takes a look into Volkswagen’s efforts to stem the decline and fuel a future rise.Despite decades in China as one of the first automakers, and a commanding market share for most of those years, the market has shifted and Volkswagen has been struggling. The massive shift into

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15:07

EP 33: Filipino Jeepneys ride with pride

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/10/23

Two weeks ago John Stech, host of The Auto Ethnographer, traveled from Bangkok to the Philippines to visit his wife’s family. Together with them, we traveled from Manila to the center of Luzon and then to La Union on the northwest corner of the island. There was much to see but one thing was a constant: the hard working Jeepney. This episode focuses on that Filipino icon.Jeepney’s are unique to the Philippines. They originated from the Willys military Jeep, thousands of which were left behind by the

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26:23

Grace Mou explains why Chinese consumers flock to...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/10/08

In Part 3 of a 4-part series, Grace Mou, Chinese trend forecaster and brand strategist, explains why Chinese consumers are flocking to Chinese automotive brands, especially electric vehicles. Together with Auto Ethnographer host, John Stech, she discusses consumer mindset.Chinese consumers compare styling, technology, price, and features to arrive at a purchase decision. Grace clarifies what does and does not drive their decision-making process.She explains her own experience with a family member’s

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30:37

EP 31: Grace Mou explains PopMart's Labubu craze as...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/10/01

In Part 2 of a 4-part series, Grace Mou, Chinese trend forecaster and brand strategist, explains how China has emerged from its past of copycatting foreign goods and brands, and is now rapidly advancing its own innovation. Together with Auto Ethnographer host, John Stech, she discusses the so-called soft power of Chinese brands and the increase in their global export.Grace explores the rise of the Labubu brand under PopMart, saying clearly that it is not a toy company but an intellectual property

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29:55

EP 30: Grace Mou unravels the current consumer...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/09/24

Grace Mou joins host John Stech on this week’s Auto Ethnographer Podcast for the first of a four-part series on the Chinese market, marketing, branding, and trend forecasting. She helps to unravel the current consumer sentiment in China, the world’s largest consumer market.With a background in marketing and branding as a strategist and researcher, Grace Mou has honed her forecasting skills to determine which trends lie ahead in the Chinese consumer market. Currently working as an independent brand

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54:12

EP 29: Philipp Schiemer - CEO in Motion: Brazil,...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/09/17

Philipp Schiemer is equally comfortable leading a dealer meeting at Mercedes-Benz Brasil or driving a cutting-edge performance car around the track at Mercedes-AMG. And it’s no wonder because he has been CEO of both companies.This week’s Auto Ethnographer podcast, with host John Stech, features Philipp Schiemer, a highly adaptable German automotive executive. Philipp spent a combined twenty years in Brazil over the course of three separate work assignments, the final 7-year stint as CEO of

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48:18

EP 27: Tim Bravo - leading Lamborghini's...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/09/10

Tim Bravo, Director of Communications at Automobili Lamborghini, joins John Stech, host of The Auto Ethnographer, to discuss how his mixed German-Spanish heritage boosted his career opportunities. Tim has worked with an enviable list of automotive brands from SEAT to Porsche to Bugatti and, ultimately, to Lamborghini.He was born in Germany but he moved with his family to Barcelona at an early age. Although his father is of Spanish descent, Spanish was not spoken in the household. Tim took things

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6:08

BONUS: A thanks to listeners in 38 countries after...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/09/05

Six Months. 27 Episodes. Listeners from 38 Countries.The Auto Ethnographer podcast is officially six months old and what a global journey it’s been.From Mercedes-Benz to McLaren, Toyota to VinFast, our guests have shared stories from Mexico to Malaysia, Sweden to Saudi Arabia, exploring how culture shapes the way we move, market, and make meaning.We’ve featured voices from inside Porsche, Volvo, Aston Martin, Land Rover, and more with each one revealing what it’s like to work across borders, brands,

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38:38

EP 27: Jess Bala talks about General Motors culture...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/09/03

On this week’s episode of The Auto Ethnographer, host John Stech speaks with Jess Bala, Managing Director of General Motors Australia & New Zealand. The native Australian speaks about her experiences working for GM in both Australia and at the company’s headquarters in Detroit, half a world away.Jess is currently launching the Cadillac brand as an EV-only brand Down Under. And she is uniquely qualified to do this. She has 13 years of product planning experience with GM, starting with the

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9:21

EP 26 Visas: The Global Rite of Bureaucratic Passage...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/08/29

Raise your hand if you have ever gone through the visa process for either travel or moving abroad. Then you know how it feels to fill in endless forms, sit in soul-draining beige waiting rooms, wait for your number to be called, and finally, finally receive your visa. This week the Auto Ethnographer does a humorous take on the visa process. Hopefully you chuckle, because the other option is crying.John Stech, host of the Auto Ethnographer summarizes his experiences into a humorous account of visa

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27:51

EP 25: The Meaning of Time across Cultures

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/08/20

Time. Most of us would argue that we do not have enough of it. We want more. Yet every culture uses available time in a completely different way.This week, John Stech, host of The Auto Ethnographer, speaks about the meaning of time across different cultures. He looks at the “time is money” philosophy of the Americans, the “punctuality is a virtue” culture of northern Europe, the “espresso culture” of southern Europe, the “mañana means maybe” culture of Latin America, and dives into a comparison of

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22:45

EP 24 Sun or shade? A humorous look at vacation culture

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/08/13

John Stech draws on his experience working with Germans, Swedes, Thais, Americans, and Vietnamese to examine the summer holiday sun culture of each.Every culture has a different attitude towards taking vacation. Stay connected or completely disconnect? One week or six? Sit in the sun or stay in the shade? John will take a humorous approach to the Thai, German, American, Vietnamese, and Swedish attitudes to taking it easy.In a fun twist, John hosts a “parade”, an examination of summertime stereotypes

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27:14

EP 23: Home Sweet Home? Returning from overseas...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/08/06

This week on The Auto Ethnographer podcast, host John Stech ruminates on the homecoming phase for expats. You may think the hardest part of a foreign assignment is moving overseas and getting to learn a new culture and new language. John argues that the most challenging part is coming back to your home country.John lived overseas with his family for eight years, starting when his children were quite young. By the time they returned home, the children barely remembered having lived in the United

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45:44

EP 22: Ageism – a conversation about its impact in...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/07/30

This episode tackles ageism a growing issue across the globe. Along with two distinguished human resources experts, Auto Ethnographer host John Stech takes on the topic of age discrimination in the context of the American and Vietnamese cultures.Discussing that today are Tamica Sears, The Corporate Fixer and Founder of Sears Coaching, a human resources consulting agency. She has built her vast experience working with Fortune 500 companies including Raytheon and Gannett, among others. Tamica is also

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30:14

EP 21: China Auto Rising

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/07/24

This China-focused episode was born when pulling on the red thread connecting four prior episodes with elements of that nation’s automotive rise. This time, host John Stech stitches together the story of China’s rise in the automotive industry from the humble beginning to the current achievement of largest automotive market and biggest net exporter of cars using the words of experts that have worked there. .Drawing on insights previously shared by Dr. Susanne Lehmann (Volkswagen Malaysia), Dr

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43:48

EP 20: Adi Bathla: AI Start-up, Revv, success rooted...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/07/17

This week’s guest on The Auto Ethnographer Podcast is Adi Bathla, CEO and Co-Founder of Revv, a company that merges car repair with artificial intelligence. Together with host John Stech they trace Adi’s origin story from humble beginnings in India to the current success of an entrepreneur recognized on the Forbes 30 under 30 list.Born and raised in Northern India Adi excelled in school and harbored an intense curiosity that led him to learn at a speed outpacing other students his age. He eventually

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35:27

EP 19: John Stech: Thailand accelerates while...

The Auto Ethnographer with John Stech ·

2025/07/09

Last week the Auto Ethnographer, John Jörn Stech, attended the 10th International Electric Vehicle Technology Conference & Exhibition combined with MobilityTech Asia 2025. The conference happened to be aligned in the same week that the American Houses of Congress passed legislation that effectively killed public funding and support for electric vehicles and renewable energy initiatives. The stark contrast between Thailand’s push on the accelerator and America’s stomp on the brake pedal are in

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