Managing Diverse Virtual Teams Introduction This is to inform you that the Lanx Textile Company will be undergoing significant changes to increase its profit margin. The company intends to open a new manufacturing plant in India. This will lower the costs of manufacturing that have recently risen in the last few months in the UK. Although, the best managers will be selected based on their leadership skills, performance track records, and experience to physically manage the employees in India. Therefore, the selected individuals will be expected to work as a virtual team to accomplish the objectives of manufacturing more textiles at low costs to increase the profit margin of the company. Importance of working virtually Opening another plant in India is advantageous to the Lanx Textile Company. The company will benefit from the cheap labor and availability of raw materials among other resources that will significantly lower the costs of manufacturing. However, cultural barriers and trust building will pose a challenge as the company will be operating from both the Indian and UK cultural contexts. This will mostly affect the expatriate managers going to India because none of them has knowledge about the Indian culture. It is expected that the Indian employees will have a phobia of sharing information with the UK managers. Because of the varying cultural contexts between the two races, Indians subscribe to a high context culture where the society is reluctant to share close or
Every country differs in culture which has been there for centuries. The international market is growing rapidly, with more and more multinational organisations entering new markets each day. In this assignment I will evaluate how the difference in cultures affects the performance of international businesses.
Wipro technologies are a company focused on the software and information technology service division as a part of the Wipro group whose header quarter located in Bangalore, India (Wipro Technologies Europe A, 2015). Nandy as the director of Sales and Marketing in Europe started the European operation in London as the headerquarter for Western Eurpoe and he was an Indian with the Indian and American working experiences (Wipro Technologies Europe A, 2015). As a global company, Wipro’s European sales, marketing and project management staff were exclusively Indian expatriates with a short time in Europe (Wipro Technologies Europe A, 2015). These staffs couldn’t build good relationships with the
Globalization and technological advancement have dictated the need for managers to deal with multiple ethnic groups with different culture in their day to day interactions. According to Kulkarni (2012), cultures play critical roles in individuals, including values, beliefs, humor, worries, fears, hopes, opinions, attachments, and anxieties.
Making business abroad can be risky, but it can also be profitable for a company as well; thus the necessity to study in deep the country where the company will bring the business to. International companies are faced with many cultural challenges, when doing business across and inside of different borders. Identifying the significant cultural issues involved when evaluating the attractiveness of a particular location as a place for doing business can be crucial for a business. Aspects to consider when studying culture in a new place
Cultures are varying among different parts of the globe. People with different cultures have different characteristics and viewpoints on the subjects due to diverse understanding and method of learning. During the past few decades, the international trade grows in a very rapid rate due to the advantages that it provides; “increased sales, operational efficiencies, exposure to new technologies and broader consumer choices” (Heslin). Therefore, when considering the culture aspect to current business world, it is crucial for business to understand the culture aspect because of the tremendous growth of international business as well as utilize the international market to its maximum
Finally, we have to wonder how the Liability of Foreigners would affect the company. Even though we do not have any direct reference on the culture and political situation, we can assume that they are a lot different to what the company is used in its own country. Therefore, and even though the recommendation is to enter India finding a partner that can help them understanding the culture, distribution channels and help them dealing with the Indian bureaucracy, the LOF variables should be taking into account to help the company minimize the failure risk of succeeding in India.
. Geert Hofstede (1980) describes culture as, ‘a source of conflict rather than synergy. Cultural differences are a nuisance at best and often a disaster’. Justin Paul (2011) also supports this view stating that, human beings tend to have an instinct ‘deep inside’ that all human beings are the same. Therefore, if one goes into another country and makes decisions based on how one operates in one’s home country-‘the chances are that he or she will make some very bad decisions’ (Paul 2011). Hence, different types of factors need to be understood to ensure that you and the business are readily available to adapt to any change in culture or environment, this will be shown by a number of examples involving companies that have successfully set up business and others that have failed significantly all due to the lack of understanding of CCM.
In this assignment, we aim to investigate in which extent an organisation must appreciate cultural differences before entering a market.
2. When a company grows in size and makes the decision to expand internationally, it is vital for its image among current and future customers to complete projects effectively and on time. Furthermore, it is also likely that such an expansion would entail the representation of more than one culture among the workforce. Indeed, while many employees will be relocated from the home country, a further proportion will be hired from the host country. To facilitate the relations and
The success of the company lies within its employees. With LB’s high volume of work, the employees are very dedicated to fulfill all the requirements and to
In this era of Globalisation, cross cultural management is the biggest challenge that is faced by the organisations. Within the business context, cross culture refers to interaction between different cultures. Cross cultural management refers to managing the employees from different cultural background in one environment (Adler, 2008). Cross culture management is a significant issue within the organisations as the success of an organisation depends upon the smooth interaction of the employees. This paper is aimed at providing insight on the cross cultural management and the main issues and challenges relating to cross cultural management. For the purpose of this paper, two articles, “Cross-cultural Differences in Management”, by Amman & Jordan
Management researchers have shown their interest in culture (dating back from 1960’s) as it is believed that culture has an influence on managerial behavior and performance (Sekaran, 1983 p: 67). Along with the present problems, an increasing demand for necessity to innovate cultural solutions to organization problems in a business which has resemble the world to a global village (Doktor, Tung, and Von Glinow, 1991 a P: 259).
A team comprised of international components presents an interesting challenge in regards to management. Various problems can potentially arise in regards to organizing the team, developing rules that govern the team and assigning tasks. One method in which to mitigate all of the above mentioned rules is by setting performance standards for the entire team to adhere (Alexander, 2000). One such standard involves the use of a balanced scorecard. A balanced scorecard allows each individual irrespective of their position within the team to have a core set of standards in which to abide by. These standards will also include the job function and the roles of each member with the job function. The scorecard provides an ideal medium in which to judge performance as well. By viewing the scorecard management can easily pinpoint areas of opportunity and improvement (Blair 2010).
Managers were concerned about knowing and understanding each and every perspective of their employee’s cultures. As they know that without studying or knowing the culture, coordination cannot be built between the employees. It is the existing perspective of managers dealing with cross-cultural management (Sultana, 2013).
Each country has its unique ways of communicate, act, think, or behave and managers should need to identify and recognized these differences to bridge the gaps between cultures for real communication to take place (Global Strategic Management, 1999). The language barrier is one of the biggest obstacles PPQ Parts manager will have to face when doing business in international markets. Language is one of the contexts in which the company should do adequate research before entering a foreign market, especially when the foreign language is a different one. Keeping an open mind and sensitivity to these differences can lead to better channels of communication and understanding for both parties. Cultural issues are present in all aspects of global activities, including selling to foreign customers, buying materials overseas, working with vendors, and setting up operations. Other issue that the company may face is complying with foreign government regulations and labor requirements. A company looking to set up manufacturing facilities in a foreign country may also face difficulties in making an effective transfer of core technologies, poorly trained local workers, financial restrictions, and a lack of inputs and supplies that meet the necessary quality standards. It is necessary that PPQ Parts managers identify and learn these regulations if they don’t want the company to get involved in any