“ MULTI-CULTURAL PROJECT TEAMS ARE BECOMING A MAJOR CHALLENGE FOR THE 21ST CENTURY PROJECT MANAGER AND THEREFORE NEEDS MORE ATTENTION IN TODAY’S GLOBAL PROJECT ENVIRONMENTS”

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CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION 03

2. LITERATURE STUDY 03

2.1 WHAT IS CULTURE 032.2 CULTURES IN SOUTH-AFRICA 052.3 IDENTIFYING INTERNATIONAL CULTURES 072.4 WHY IS MULTI-CULTURALISM BECOMING SO CHALLENGING AND OCCURRING MORE OFTEN THAN EVER BEFORE? 08

3. NEGATIVE BARRIERS IN A MULTI-CULTURALENVIRONMENT AND THEIR EFFECTS ON THEPROJECT SUCCESS 09

3.1 NEGATIVE BARRIERS 09

4. PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS TO OVERCOMING THEBARRIERS IN A PROJECT MANAGEMENT ENVIRONNEMT 11

5. CASE STUDY ON HOW TO MANAGE AN INTERNATIONAL MULTICULTURAL PROJECT 16

6. CONCLUSION 20

7. REFERNCES 20

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ABSTRACT

The main aim of this report is to theoretically investigate multi-cultural project teams and the challenges faced by the 21st century project manager. Formulate practical solutions to the investigated challenges that can be implemented to any multi-cultural project. A literature study is done, followed by practical solutions and the a flowchart (model) is created to depict how the 21st century project manager will be able to successfully function in a multi-cultural project team.

1. INTRODUCTION

Multicultural teams are been seen more than ever before. Foreign borders have weakened and globalisation is increasing and this is bringing together people of different nationalities and cultures into the work environment. This is now making people more aware of cultural differences and thinking styles that are creating negative preconceptions. Cultural differences are raising strong barriers and encouraging working in “silos”. This creates a huge challenge for project managers working across international boundaries, especially those who do not have a very diverse cultural background.

In South-Africa project managers have the luxury of dealing with very diverse project teams. This helps and gives a good grounding for foreign projects. However there are also many challenges that are incurred whilst undertaking a multicultural foreign project ,and sound project management skills and techniques are needed to produce a successful project.

2. LITERATURE STUDY

2.1 WHAT IS CULTURE?

“Culture is defined as the shaping of the mind that distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from those of another. It is expressed as the collective values, norms, traditions, myths and institutions that are characteristic among members of a group.

Culture defines people, context, human relationships and leadership – virtually every aspect of business. People who share the same culture need not be constantly mindful of the implications of their behaviour. They can predict accurately the reactions of those with whom they interact. The codes for interpreting the environment, attaching values and priorities to that information, classifying behaviours acceptable or not, and recognising social rank, are all passed from one generation to the next through the cultural process. “ [1]

Culture surrounds everyone in the work and project environment, it influences our actions and everything we do and perceive. Culture influences how the world is perceived. People in different cultures perceive the world differently

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and have different ways of doing things, and there is no set standard for considering one group as intrinsically superior or inferior to any other.Trompenaars goes about describing culture in the form of an onion with layers as shown below.

Figure 1. The different levels of culture (The onion principle). [2]

Explicit products of culture make up the outer layer. These include languages, the food we ingest and our houses. Our norms and values make up the middle layer of the onion. Our sense of what is good and bad and what is right from wrong is a reflection of out norms. The centre most layer of the onion makes up assumptions about the way we exist as human beings.

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Multiculturalism according to organisational behaviour refers to pluralism and respect for diversity and individual differences in the work place and any project environment.

2.2 CULTURES IN SOUTH AFRICA

Five cultural influences are predominantly found in South Africa. These include the black African being the majority, the Afrikaners, the English, the Coloureds and the Asians. Nine tribal groups make up the black Africans and each group has its own cultural heritage, language and sense of identity.

Afrocentric refers to the African value system and Eurocentric refers to the value system of the whites. In the project management environment, research has shown black managers in this country ( South Africa) have a management style which reflects their value system and is different from their white counterparts.

What is diversity? “ The term diversity is not contained in any law or report; instead it grew out of academic and popular press usage. Every individual is unique. At the same time, every individual shares biological and environmental characteristics with any number of others. Diversity in the work place can be generally defined as recognition of the groups of people who share common traits. These traits – the properties and characteristics that constitute the whole person – both unite and divide us. “[3]

South-Africa’s diverse population

South Africa has a very diverse population. When dealing with project in South Africa, the project manager has the challenge of dealing with many ethnic groups and their cultural background. Before dealing with international cultures, it would be advisable to first identify the different cultures in your own environment and country.

Demographics in the South African work environment are constantly changing and these make the working environment more diverse and more challenging.

The population estimation for South Africa’s nine provinces and languages are shown below. South Africa is predominantly made up of four ethnic groups: blacks(Africans), coloureds, Indians (Asians) and whites.

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Figure 2. South-Africa’s population breakdown [3]

South African Languages

0

5

10

15

20

25

Series1

Figure 3. Number and percentage of languages spoken in South-Africa [3]

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2.3 IDENTIFYING INTERNATIONAL CULTURES

A study to identify international cultures was done by Geert Hofstede between 1967 and 1973. Hofstede identified four dimensions that help to distinguish different value systems and attitudes that depict the different culture.

The four key dimensions he came up with are:

Individualism versus collectivism Power distance Uncertainty avoidance Masculinity versus femininity

Hofstede categorised these findings into clusters which are depicted below:

Figure 4. Hofstede’s four key dimensions [3]

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* Key

Power distance – i.e. the extent to which different cultures accept different distributions of power within the society, thus, a high power distance society accepts wide differences of power between those at the top of the society and those at the bottom, while a low power distance society sees power as being shared much more equitably, leaving less of a power gap between the top and bottom ranks.

Uncertainty avoidance – i.e. the extent to which a society is tolerant of uncertainty, and which therefore feels either less need to avoid it (low avoidance) or feels threatened by it (high avoidance). Thus people rather prefer structured versus unstructured situations.

Individualism versus collectivism – i.e. where individualism is a national cultural attribute that favours people looking at themselves and their families as their first priorities, and where collectivism is an attribute that favours people giving their prime loyalty to, and finding protection in, the wider group.

Masculinity versus femininity – i.e. where a nation either has a tendency to prefer assertiveness and materialism (masculinity) or has a higher concern for relationships and the welfare of others (femininity). Masculine values identified by Hofstede where assertiveness, performance orientation, success and competitiveness, where as feminine values included quality of life, close personal relationship and caring. [3]

2.4 WHY IS MULTI-CULTURALISM BECOMING SO CHALLENGING AND OCCURRING MORE OFTEN THAN EVER BEFORE?

In an ideal world and specifically in terms of project management, one would like to choose a team that is from the same culture, speaks the same language and has the same belief system and inclined to have the same reasoning. This would prevent many assumptions being formed and fewer barriers that hinder a project would be available. But we do not live in isolation and the world is diverse place with tons of views and perceptions that form from different cultural backgrounds.

3. NEGATIVE BARRIERS IN A MULTICULTURAL ENVIRONMENT AND THEIR EFFECTS ON THE PROJECT SUCCESS.

Management are always faced with frustrating dilemmas that are generated form a multicultural project team. This can create obstacles that negatively affect team work and spirit. At times this may be subtle and the project manager may find it difficult to recognise until there may be significant damage that has taken place and leads the project to failure.

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3.1 NEGATIVE BARRIERS

Different definitions of milestones and handoffs. Sometimes there is a lack of understanding of the meaning of words that relate to a commitment of milestones and handoffs.

Objectives are not aligned by the respective stakeholders and this can lead to project failure down the line.

Uneven project communications and reporting state. Where geographical and cultural separate team exist, there can be a lack of trust especially if you don’t know how the other teams functions and how they carry out their work. This can lead to major obstacles to the detriment of the project. Different languages brings with it different ambiguities. This can create different expectations as the concepts and meaning of objectives is interpreted differently.

Uneven ability to use common tools. This creates effective working barriers. Project team members cannot share information that might be valuable and this could lead to stagnation of the project. This could also cause team members to stop sharing their work with others. Gaps in the project phases could open up.

Understanding time keeping and sticking to schedules, Different cultures have a different interpretation of time keeping and meeting deadlines. Time is one of the key elements in project management and by not abiding to the times set, for example attending a meeting could lead to delays in the project.

Stakeholders not committing during the vital stages of the project can cause difficulties in the project advancement.

Lack of Discipline and control can lead to project failure

Unclear project goals. By not setting clear project goals, project teams often define their own goals and work towards achieving them if even if they are not in line with their project. This could lead to different outcomes being achieved.

Offending different cultural beliefs. This can be done by total ignorance but it can greatly stifle a project,

Breaking the rules of different cultures can also bring the project to a complete standstill if not provide grounds for termination of the project.

4. PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS TO OVERCOMING THE

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BARRIERS IN A PROJECT MANAGEMENT ENVIRONNEMT

Identify your gaps as a project manager.

(The first step in identifying one’s gaps is to first start with you. This entails

understanding and accepting yourself which is depicted in the self awareness

model below.

WHO AM I?

DO I LIKE MYSELF?

WHAT ARE MY VALUES & HOW DO THEY AFFECT ME?

WHAT MOTIVATES ME?

HOW DO I FEEL ABOUT MYSELF?

Figure 5. Model showing self – awareness.

After truthfully answering these questions, you should become more aware of

yourself and form the grounding of identifying were your gaps lie, because if

you don’t accept yourself then nobody will be expected to accept you.

The model discussed below, adapted from Dr. Minnaar (MINAAR G,

Emotional Intelligence Module One – Self Awareness) is displayed in

Figure 6. It allows one to identify their own strengths and weaknesses

as well as that of their team members. This depicts the emotional

dimensions a person lies in each quadrant can be broken down to

show the interactional styles and potential strengths and weaknesses.

Figure 7, elaborate on each of the quadrants showing the interaction

styles.

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•LESS FORECFULL

•FORMAL

•FORCEFULL•FORMAL

•LESS FORCEFULL

•INFORMAL

•FORCEFULL•INFORMAL

EXPRESSIVES SUPPORTERS

ANALYSTSDRIVERS

Figure 6: Four Quadrants Model Adapted

Figure 7: Interaction Styles

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STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES

QUICK THINKING

CREATIVE

GOOD MOTIVATORS

OPEN-MINDED

BIG PICTURE THINKING

EASILY BORED

DISLIKE ROUTINE

IMPULSIVE

TAKE SHORT CUTS

MAY BE REBELLIOUS

EXPRESSIVES

STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES

PEOPLE-ORIENTATED

GOOD LISTENERS

DIPLOMATIC

EMPATHETIC

ADAPT EASY TO TEAM WORK

TOO SENSITIVE

OVER DEPENDANT

UNASSERTIVE

POSTPONE DECISION-MAKING

LACK DIRECTNESS

SUPPORTERS

STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES

DETERMINED

ASSUME RESPONSIBILITY

GOAL DIRECTED

LOGICAL

LIKE LEADING

INTOLERANT

POOR LISTENERS

STUBBORN

LIMITED EMPATHY

IMPATIENT

DRIVERS

STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES

METICULOUS

GOOD LISTENERS

RATIONAL

ORGANISED

OBJECTIVE

OVER-CAUTIOUS

TOO SERIOUS

SHY

RESIST CHANGE

UNCOMFORTABLE IN CROWDS

ANALYSTS

This depicts the emotional dimensions a person lies in. Each quadrant can be

broken down to show the interactional styles and potential strengths and

weaknesses.

Once you have established where you and your team members fit in the two

models discussed, you should be able to work on your short comings i.e.

weaknesses and also help your team members work on their weaknesses.)

Equip yourself with the necessary tools to drive your project with confidence.

Identify with your team members. Explore their different cultures

Identify the different cultural backgrounds. Cultures may not only mean ethnic groups but also the different work environments they come form and their thinking.

Identify their value systems and how they use their various value systems to influence their thinking

Identify your team members further as individuals and what their personalities are.

Use continuous monitoring and communication during all phases of the project

Set clear objectives in a common language for all team members and that all team members understand how to read and write the common language

Make sure that all objectives are aligned by all parties and stakeholders give their commitment at all times.

Different meanings for milestones can be overcome with complementary development practices, in project planning and project scheduling.

Make sure that the project team and all stakeholders agree on the terms and milestones of the project. Everyone must agree what the milestones mean.

Make sure that time keeping is strictly adhered to and that everyone understands that time delays will delay the project.

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Form relationships with team members so that building trust is achieved.

Recognise causes of conflict, this can be caused by cultural backgrounds and intervene on strategic ways so that the team is back on track and team members can deal with these types of conflicts on their own in the future. Find ways to empower team members.

“The good news is that cultural challenges are manageable if project managers and team members choose the right strategy and avoid imposing single-culture-based approaches on multicultural situations.”

If team members are to function well and make the project a success, then they need to learn to see their differences as assets and nit as liabilities.

The project manager should arrange team building activities to get the team bonding and team spirit going. This should be done right at the start of the project.

IDENTIFIED PROJECT MANAGEMENT CULTURE ELEMENTS THROUGH CONCEPT MAPPING (16 ELEMENTS)

“1. Utilising project methodology/tools:

The methodology, tools and specific project approach, utilised in projects ensures the delivery of results. Example, work breakdown structure (WBS), specifications, deadlines, milestones, project plan.

2. Open Communication:Communication is seen as the “glue” that binds the parts together that makes the project succeed. Open communication ensures interdependence and break down of “silos”.

3. Quick response:Projects do not have unlimited time to deliver, therefore the competence of members and utilisation of processes should enable a quick response, without sacrificing quality.

4. Commitment by all stakeholders:Involvement and commitment of all the parties who have vested interest in the project in necessary.

5. Integrated with organisational structure:If the project is not seen as contributing towards the strategic priorities of the organisation, it is likely not going to have the necessary resource allocation and support from management.

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6. Flexibility:Flexibility in structure and mindsets of people to ensure creativity and optimisation of resources.

7. Delivering unique outcomes:Projects are unique and deliver unique outcomes according to user specifications and requirements.

8. Uncertainty in risk:The unique nature of projects creates change and with change comes uncertainty and risk.

9. Discipline and control:Discipline with time, quality and costs are necessary for project performance. Thus deadlines, quality specifications should be controlled.

10.Clear project goals:Clear project goals should be developed that focus all the parties to ensure a shared vision for successful delivery.

11.Keeping focus:Focusing the efforts of diverse individuals on the project goal is vital, especially during major projects that can stretch over several years.

12.Team effort:A project is a team effort, due to the complexities and varied activities and expertise that might be necessary.

13. Intergration/co-ordination of activites and roles:Every member in the project process should have clear activities and roles, which should be intergrated at the right time to ensure completion of planned deliverables.

14. Interdependence:Interdependence amongst and between interested parties is vital, due to resource and information sharing. Since the project follows an intergrated process (systems approach): any missing link can cause project failure.

15.Limited lifespan/lifecycle:A project has a lifecycle, comprising of various stages, with a definite start and ending. If the project does not deliver within a specific lifespan, trade-off’s between time, cost and quality will be necessary.This could lead to project failure.

16.Environment of project support:The organisation should support the project from start to end with organisational practices and systems. The necessary resources

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should be available. Rewards and recognition should be in line with project performance.” [4]

5. CASE STUDY ON HOW TO MANAGE AN INTERNATIONAL MULTICULTURAL PROJECT

Project Background: The project is to design and construct a Generator Transformer in China for Eskom. The transformer will then be shipped to South Africa in parts and assembled by the Chinese from China and South Africans from Eskom at Lethabo Power Station.

Due to the electricity crisis bracing Eskom , there is a limited time window available for the installation of this transformer, the project needs to be done within the specified time with no delays as any delay would cause a major load loss and more black-outs around the country. The workmanship must be according to specification as there will be no time after the installation to fix major problems that could have occurred during the installation.

Figure 8. What could happen if Project Management goes wrong.

Compile a quick flow diagram of how you as a project manager see yourself managing this specific multicultural project and tailor your needs accordingly.

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Identify personal gaps

Local Cultural analysis needs

International Cultural needs analysis

Familiarise yourself with the different environments

Identify team members as individuals

Make team members aware of the different surroundings

Define project objectives and align

Set communication strategies and common tools

Get commitment from all stakeholders

Decide on the Project Management style, PMBOK, Prince 2 or other

Define structures

Start with Project once all have agreed and committed

Figure 9. Strategic Multi-cultural Project Management Model

Identifying your personnel gaps should always be the first step in any project. Equip yourself with tool and techniques to narrow those gaps. In this project, maybe you have a short tolerance and get angry quickly when trying to explain a basic concept to someone. This can occur when trying to explain terms in English to the Chinese. A short course or some literature in emotional intelligence would be vital in handling this project and managing conflict to a better degree

Identify the different local cultures in your project team in South Africa. Determine how your team members use their cultural value system to think and perceive things. Try to understand their cultural needs better. Culture may no only be from an ethnic background

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only, it can be different work cultures. People who come from different organisations bring different thinking styles and different cultures.

For a project like this, the international cultures need to be investigated and their needs explores. In the Chinese culture there are many facets. For example their style of communication. Chinese are not direct communicators like most of the Western world were a yes means yes, I agree. I yes to the Chinese means, I am listening to you but I decision has not been made yet. Although it is an Asian country but it differs from other Asian customs and is unique in its own sense. When you are dinning with the Chinese, you are expected to leave a little food left over in your plate, if you don’t it is taken offensively as they have not given you enough. This on the other hand is different in the Indian culture. If you leave food in your plate while dinning with an Indian, it is a sign that you did not enjoy your meal. So, as we can see, all this little but important facets will play a role in negations and building a relationship with your project team.

Get to know you team member better and as individuals. Identify their strengths and weaknesses and determine which side of their brain are dominant. This will help you to interact with them. You will know what makes them “tick” and what doesn’t. This can be done through simple team building exercise and also add some fun and valuable education that could prove to be the success of this project.

Make your team members aware of their surroundings. Educate your local team on how to interact with their Chinese counterparts who will arrive for the installation. Also educate and inform your Chinese team of their environment in South Africa, the laws and procedures to be followed. Also make them aware of the dangers in terms of hijackings and which areas that may be potentially high risk. They should feel comfortable in this environment and constantly aware of their surroundings. Any hazard or personal injury to any of the team members could potentially cause a delay and could lead to serious repercussions.

It is important to define the project objectives and the level of priority of this project. The objectives must be aligned and understood as well as the project manager understands it.

Set communication strategies and common tools that will be used for the duration of this project. Example, communication will be done via the internet in English and a response time will be set daily. Microsoft Projects version 2007 will be used for planning and make sure that all involved in using this software have access to it.

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Get commitment from all stakeholders at all points necessary in the project. They should be giving their “blessings” for the passage of every stage so that there is a smooth flow and the stake-holders needs are always met and possibly superseded.

Decide on the project management style to be used, example PMBOK, Prince 2 or any other that might be used for this project. Uniformity in a project decreases the possibility of confusion.

Define structures such as reporting structures and stick to the work flows. This brings about better control and progress can be effectively monitored if there is proper order.

Finally, after doing this the project managers would have already prevented most of the difficulties that would been faced during stages in the project. The project manager can revise his or her techniques and start with the project.

6. CONCLUSION

Although multicultural teams of the 21st century are difficult to manage and introduce many challenges, but these are difficulties and challenges that can be managed effectively by first taking the time to do the necessary “ pre-project “ preparations that have been discussed in this report and continuing to implement them throughout all phases of the project.

Every project is unique and project teams will also be unique but the underlying principles and guidelines will remain the same and should be tailored to meet the needs of every project.

7. REFERENCES

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1. Alexander Rodrigues, Multi-cultural and International Project Management ,www.cutter.com2. PJ Smit & GJ de J Cronje, Management Principles, 3rd Edition.

3. Grobler, Warnich et al, Human Resource Management in South Africa, 3rd Edition.

4. Y Du Plessis, C Hoole, An operational ‘ Project Management Culture’ Framework (part 1)

Research references

1. Chad Lewis, www.allpm.com

2. The Chinese Culture, www.info@hktdc.com/chinaguide

3. Dr M Makilouko, Multicultural Project Management

4. Managing a multi-cultural workforce, www.Allbusiness.com

5. Schermerhon, Hunt, Osborn, Organisational Behaviour, 9th Edition

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