THE GLOBAL MANAGER - CULTURAL DIVERSITY

Why The Interest?1. Labor market migration patterns have produced urban areas and regions which are increasingly heterogeneous in cultural terms. 2. Multiculturalism has been driven by different forces and produced different outcomes amongst the old socialist economies in Europe. 3. The emergence during the 1980s and 1990s of large global corporations which employ increasingly diverse labor forces.

What Is Cultural Diversity?historically created guides for living.collective mental programming. a shared set of deep assumptions which are not directly accessible but which may be indirectly reflected in the values, attitudes and behavior of individuals and groups. Such assumptions are cultural because they are learnt [not innate], patterned, shared and passed down through generations.

What Are The Dimensions Of Cultural Difference?Relationships with the physical environment [the extent to which it is taken as given or susceptible to human control]Conceptions of space [how close is close? how is public differentiated from private?]Conceptions of time [how the past, the present and the future are linked together, evaluated and understood] Understanding of the manner in which truth is determined [through inductive or deductive reasoningThere are various dimensions around which differences in human relationships may be understoodorientation towards authorityacceptance of power inequalitiesdesire for orderliness and structurethe need to belong to a wider social group and so on.

What Are The Dimensions Of Cultural Difference?An influential model was developed by the Dutch academic, Geert Hofstede. He identified four national cultural dimensions in work related values. The four dimensions are: Power distance The extent to which the less powerful expect and accept that power is distributed unequally. (more authoritarian regimes tend to be associated with high power distance cultures; in such cultures, bosses have much more power than subordinates)Uncertainty avoidance The extent to which uncertain or unknown situations are perceived as threatening. (high uncertainty avoidance indicates a strong desire to structure and control the future)

What Are The Dimensions Of Cultural Difference?The four dimensions are: Individualism/collectivism The extent to which individuals and families are expected to look after themselves. (more collectivist societies are characterized by strong social ties which offer unconditional support and protection throughout life) Masculinity/femininity The extent to which masculine values (assertiveness, ambition, achievement) dominate, as opposed to feminine values (relationships, quality of life, service). (gender roles are clearly differentiated in highly masculine societies; in more feminine societies gender roles overlap)In more recent work Hofstede has added a fifth dimension - long term orientation (personal thrift, perseverance, adoption of traditions to the modern context) - which appears to be a particularly distinctive feature of East Asian cultures (e.g. China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea).

What Are The Dimensions Of Cultural Difference?

Value Dimensions and Management Dilemmas1. Universalism vs. Particularism When no code, rule, or law seems to quite cover an exceptional case; should the most relevant rule be imposed. however imperfectly, on that case, or should the case be considered on its unique merits, regardless of the rule?2. Analysing vs. Integrating Are we more effective as managers when we analyse phenomena into parts, i.e., facts, items, tasks, numbers, units, points, specifics, or when we integrate and configure such details into whole patterns, relationships, and wider contexts? 3. Individualism vs. Communitariansim Is it more important to focus upon the enhancement of each individual, his or her rights, motivations, rewards, capacities, attitudes, or should more attention be paid to the advancement of the corporation as a community, which all its members are pledged to serve? 4. Inner-directed vs. Outer-directed Orientation Which are the more important guides to action, our inner-directed judgements, decisions, and commitments, or the signals, demands, and trends in the outside world to which we must adjust? 5. Time as Sequence vs. Time as Synchronisation Is it more important to do things fast, in the shortest possible sequence of passing time, or to synchronise efforts so that completion is coordinated? 6. Achieved Status vs. Ascribed Status Should the status of employees depend on what they have achieved and how they have performed, or on some other characteristic important to the corporation, i.e., age, seniority, gender, education, potential, strategic role? 7. Equality vs. Hierarchy Is it more important that we treat employees as equals so as to elicit from them the best they have to give, or to emphasise the judgement and authority of the hierarchy that is coaching and evaluating them? Source: Hampden-Turner and Trompenaars The Seven Cultures of Capitalism, 1994

The Management Challengethe way in which cultural diversity is managed may be an important determinant of the effectiveness of large global corporations.Recognizing cultural differences in the motivational profiles of managers often represents the first step in designing reward systems which are effective across culturally diverse groups.Such differences are also important in understanding - and improving - the performance of culturally diverse work teams.

The Management ChallengeThe balance between task and more supportive group maintenance activities is itself a cultural product. The proportion of effort devoted to maintenance activities is traditionally higher in more relationship oriented cultures such as Japan, for example; by comparison, highly individualist societies such as the UK or the USA may produce highly task focused teams.

Achieving High Performance in International TeamsSetting up the team Chose people with appropriate skills, knowledge and goals Assess costs - and then double them Remove organizational barriers and seek top management support Involve team members' managers in the process Share the rationale with the team Provide training and support Explain national cultural influences Clarify task, timescales, accountability.

Achieving High Performance in International TeamsRunning the team Start slowly and end faster (rushing to complete the task typically produces poor group processes) Use help to facilitate group skills (e.g. feedback, surfacing differences etc) Encourage participation: summarize, check understanding, seek consensus, keep track of time Surface and address differences (rather than `accommodate' them) Build in time to discuss and review team processes.

Source: Sue Canney Davison, Creating a High Performance International Team. Journal of Management Development, 1991

The Impact Of Corporate CultureDespite well documented differences amongst diverse labor forces there are clearly variations in the extent to which these are acknowledged. In some corporations ethnic, gender and national differences are publicly recognized and reflected in carefully constructed human resource policies and personnel procedures. Homogeneity assumptions: Dominant cultural groups within organizations may make the [implicit] claim that were all the same here - with the implication that everyone is like us. This effectively makes the issue of diversity undiscussable. There may be differences but they are publicly ignored. Ethnocentric assumptions: recognize diversity but see it as a problem. The dominant view in such organizations is that ours is the best way, therefore differences are to be minimized. Synergistic assumptions are those which recognize that diversity brings both advantages and problems. The implication is that creative combinations of our way and theirs may be best. This approach acknowledges diversity and seeks not to minimize but to manage it in ways which fully exploit available opportunities.

Ground Rules for Managing across Cultures.1. Recognize your own cultural biases. Respect for ones own culture is likely to increase respect for others. In effect, a sense of where you come from can provide the platform upon which leadership qualities such as integrity, courage and honesty can rest.

Ground Rules for Managing across Cultures.2. Assume others are different. Some differences are clearly visible and difficult to avoid. Physical attributes - for example, size, weight, height, skin color, hair length etc Other characteristics - such as individual values, attitudes and motives - are less visible and often more difficult to determine. In the absence of reliable information there is a well documented tendency for individuals to assume that others are like them. In any setting this is likely to be an inappropriate assumption.

Ground Rules for Managing across Cultures.3. Assume differences are significant.the manager can determine the impact of diversity on the basis of experience and careful observation. Assuming differences are insignificant is likely to damage relationships in such a way that recovery is impossible.

Ground Rules for Managing across Cultures.4. Do not assume differences are always cultural. There are several sources of difference. Some relate to factors such as personality, aptitude or competence. It is a mistake to assume that all perceived differences are cultural in origin.

Ground Rules for Managing across Cultures.5. Use stereotypes carefully. At the interpersonal level cultural awareness is more likely to involve undermining rather than reproducing stereotypes.

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