We live in the age of globalization theese days. Organizations now a days are increasingly hiring people from divers cultural and ethnic backgrounds coming from different countries around the world. Immigration has boosted the process of diversity and enabled people to work side by side with people from different parts of the world. As a results of this, many organizational workplaces are comprised of places with diversity in culture and ethnic values which means that they have their own manners, traditions, and languages.in order for an organization to be able to achieve its goals, it requires a management structure that is able to compete and relate with people from around the globe.
Cross-culture management takes place when a manager is responsible for overseeing people coming from different backgrounds and when employees are working in a team with team members from different countries. There are a number of ways through which a multi-cultural team can be set up. Moreover, big organizations have offices in different countries around the globe which are overlooked by people from different backgrounds. Similarly, employees who work remotely are being managed by different people around the world. Another example of cross-cultural management need is when people have immigrated from different countries to work with you and also work along side people who come from different countries (Swarnalatha & Vasantham, 2014). The first step towards the success of cross-culture management is that the manager must be able to identify and accept the fact that different cultures have different norms so there will be an obvious difference in the conduct of his employees. Managers also need to look into changing their business practices accordingly and be able to adapt their business conduct or models to the way information is sent or received between the employees or how the decision-making process works in the organization.
One of the major problems that are identified when cross-culture working environments comes into effect is the communication barrier. This is mainly in the form of a language barrier where the employee is unable to effectively communicate with his or her fellow employees or team members because of the difference in the language in which the business is conducted. It may take them longer and a struggling attitude to communicate their ideas to others. They might face difficulties with communicating their message effectively to others in the office and their colleagues might not even take them seriously because of their lower level of language skills. Communication barrier can also be related to the style or the way of communication as well.one such example of this is that the Western cultures have a more direct to the point style of speech whereas in Eastern cultures it can be seen that a more indirect speech pattern is prevalent. This different in speech style can be the cause of confusion.
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Another barrier that cross-culture teams in an organization can face is the way the organization is structured. These kinds of structures are not the same everywhere and can vary form company to company. This can include an organization with a horizontal structure where there is no formal hierarchy in the organization without any levels of management and where the only the word of the superior is considered the law inside the organization and any deviance form the word will be considered as a sign of disrespect with grave consequences in many cases. Working with cultures that have a different viewpoint of authority because of the way the organization is structured can be the cause of problems (Karin Andreassi, Lawter, Brockerhoff & J. Rutigliano, 2014). Some employees with new ideas might hesitate to bring them to the table because of this very problem whereas some might not feel any hesitation at all. This kind of confusion can affect the performance of the company.
Culture can also affect the decision-making process. Conflicts between a manager and his employee can arise if one prefers to make decisions analytically whereas the other wants to make the decisions instinctively. In the same way some employees make decisions in a short span of time whereas some take their time to decide. This can be a cause of friction between different people working in the same office and hence effect the progress of the company. If the barriers are not dealt effectively by the management with proper measures it can affect the team relationships and can derail the organization from its path of achieving goals.
For the purpose of effectively carrying out the process of cross-culture management a number or measures and strategies need to be taken into account to deal with the problems that are cause because of the difference in cultures and ethnic backgrounds in people. One of the most useful strategies is adaptation without ignoring the cultural differences that people might have between them working in a workplace. It is important to acknowledge the differences in culture and to figure out a way around these differences. There is a need of creative solutions to address these barriers. One example of this when an employee might be facing a language barrier is that instead of asking the employee to take a language course which can be very tough and time taking, the manager can work with him in personal meeting to get him familiar with the important business terms used inside the office.
Structural intervention is another strategy used by managers. This intervention means that the manager is able to reassign people to different tasks and shuffle them into different teams for the sake of improved learning and creating more opportunities with reduced confusion in the workplace environment. The manager must be aware of the skills and expertise of his employees and also aware of their strengths and weaknesses. Cross-cultural leaders in organizations choose to make use of managerial intervention as a strategy for the purpose of dealing with barriers originating because of culture. This includes the setting of basic ground rules and strategic intervention to deal with such culture related barriers.
For example, in case of language barrier the manager can ask the employee to learn the language on his own and gain as much expertise as he can to improve his communication with other employees. At the same time the manager can assign his colleague, team member or someone else to keep reviewing his work so that it meets the standards that are being followed at the organization or the manager can intervene himself and go over the main communication issues that that employee is facing ang help him or her with solving the problem. A manager can also intervene and remove the employee from the team if the cultural problem is severe. This can turn out to be a costly strategy but if the cultural issues arising because of the employee are too severe to overcome than the only solution that might be left is the removal of the employee. This obviously should not be the first choice for the manager.
The manager will spend time in analyzing and assessing the problems that are arising in the team because of the employee and will also assess how severe the problems is because of the problems that take place. He will try to solve the problem with other was before finally taking the decision to terminate the employee. For example, in the case of a language barrier if the employee himself doesn’t wish to improve his communication skills with others and is not putting in effort to resolve the issue then the only thing that can resolve this issue is to rescue the rest of the group to avoid any further problems. The manager can then focus on other issue sand help the team in achieving organizational goals (Ahmed, 2018).
Whether you are working in a multi-national organization or managing employees working from home around the globe, it is very common for you to face issues that arise because of cultural problems. In a managerial position at a workplace it is important to be aware and to acknowledge such issues so you are able to remove any berries that can hinder organizational performance and achievement of organizational goals.
References
- Ahmed, A. (2018). Cross-Culture Management. Retrieved 3 September 2019, from https://bizfluent.com/facts-6955562-cross-culture-management-definition.html
- Karin Andreassi, J., Lawter, L., Brockerhoff, M., & J. Rutigliano, P. (2014). Cultural impact of human resource practices on job satisfaction. Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal, 21(1), 55-77. doi: 10.1108/ccm-05-2012-0044
- Swarnalatha, C., & Vasantham, S. (2014). Cross Cultural Management – An Overview. International Journal Of Research In Management & Business Studies, 1(3), 9-10.
