Paul Waddle has risen rapidly through the management ranks at a Silicon Valley IT firm. He has positioned his company as the frontrunner for a deal with a large Japanese bank. Expectations at his hard-charging firm are high—but his preparations for a meeting with bank executives suggest he rein in his Western ways and hew closely to Eastern business etiquette if he hopes to leave with a contract. Japanese advisers tell him to accede to the bank’s demands; his instincts say to be upfront on what his firm can deliver. Can he thread the needle?