CROSS CULTURAL MANAGEMENT

Cross Cultural Management

Executive Summary

This research paper identifies the main global business issues in the chosen area of cross-cultural Management, using some specific culture as examples. It utilizes the core concepts of international business in this regard and comprehensively addresses the issues providing recommendations for future course of action. It also provides personal application for improving the future prospects and performance of a global business manager. This report suggests that various factors give rise to the various problems of cross-cultural. These factors include language, environment, technology, social organization, the perception of authority and nonverbal communications. Having the ability to assess these variables is vital in ensuring for managers to convey messages and conduct business across a wide range of cultures. This paper addresses various problems and dilemmas within multicultural project teams. This paper also pays emphasis on the significance of leadership in the management of cross-cultural differences. The aim of this paper is to reveal different ways or skills that managers need to smooth operation of business in multicultural teams. Furthermore, this paper sheds lights on variegated solutions that the managers adopt to conduct all the business activities smoothly, effectively and efficiently.

Cross Cultural Management

Introduction and Background

In the contemporary world, diversity has emerged out as one of the major issues facing the organisations. Managing a diversified workforce is not an easy task. The organisations have now realised the importance of culturally diversified workforce. Firms are hiring Individuals having differing identities in large numbers. These firms are planning to expand their businesses to other parts of the world. This paper has two parts. The first part discusses the concepts and theories of cross-cultural management. The second part discusses the Hofstede's model of cultural dimensions.

The primary reason for study culture is to help organizations better understand the variations of job stress for people with different backgrounds. Existing cultural theories have been adopted to guide cross-cultural research on the management of cultural differences (Kroeber, 2002: 47-48).

Discussion and Arguments

Concept of Diversity and Cross-Cultural Management

The existence of different cultural subsystems in organisations causes the phenomenon of cultural diversity formed by a system of values established for organisational action and ethnic differentiation and gender of all persons as members of the organisation have equal status and share power (Adler, 2003: 22-23).

The concept of cross-cultural management revolves around other inter-related concepts, including: racial, gender, national origin, ethnicity, ability, and even geographic origin. For some researchers, cross-cultural management is a set of differences, resulting in potential differences in behaviour between varying ethnic groups.

The notion of cross-cultural management can be promoted by organisations through two main types of formal influence, training and policy setting, while for Copeland (1988), the existence of training programmes intercultural approach to development of management skills is another crucial component of cultural diversity. Researchers have recognised diversity as formal sources of influence, formal authority, organisational politics and experience reactions formal diversity programmes can cause behavioural and attitudinal changes (Cheung, 2000: 18-19).

Sources of informal influence of cultural diversity are reference groups, support groups and networks of ...