Cross-Cultural Management: Strategies for Global Organizations

This report analyzes cross-cultural management challenges within global organizations, focusing on the differences between the UK and Australia. It examines how cultural practices impact task approaches, decision-making styles, and verbal and non-verbal communication, drawing on theories from Hall and Hofstede. The report highlights specific differences, such as communication styles and uncertainty avoidance, which can lead to conflicts. It emphasizes the importance of understanding cultural nuances to build effective global teams. The report recommends fostering strong relationships, embracing diversity, and promoting open communication to mitigate these differences and improve organizational outcomes. The conclusion stresses the need for global managers to implement strategies that value and respect cultural differences to foster a collaborative and productive work environment, including recommendations for fostering strong relationships, embracing diversity, and promoting open communication.

CROSS-CULTURAL
MANAGEMENT

CROSS CULTURAL ISSUES
• There are various issues which create difference in the opinion and expectations of the employees in a
global organisation mainly originate from the cultural practices. In this aspect the theories of Hall and
Hofstede can be analysed so that these differences in the organisational cultures host country and
home country can be identified. Here host country is England and home country is Australia.

APPROACHES TO COMPLETE TASKS
• People from various cultures have
different set of understanding hence
they have different approaches to
complex a task (Huarng and Ribeiro-
Soriano 2014). Some cultures tend to
value the task oriented approach some
prefer relationship oriented approach.
The western organisations put more
emphasis on the completion of tasks
rather than building relation.

DECISION MAKING STYLES
• Decision making roles vary from culture to culture which often
leads to conflict in the organisations. One culture delegates
whereas other place more value on holding decision making
responsibilities by the group (Konstantinides, et al . 2016). Therefore,
in the organisational decision making process, the elder executives
dominate their subordinates which leads to conflict.

VERBAL AND NON-VERBAL
COMMUNICATIONS
• The English business communication style is not very implicit but
the business partners from different culture chiefly from Australia
need to understand the actual intension of the words. This create
issue at the business dealings as the Australians are very to the
point in their communication (Igbaekemen 2014).

CONTD.
• In Australian business culture, profanity is a norm as well as natural part of
vocabulary. The British maintain complete seriousness in communication.
They are proud of their dry wit and intellectual humour. Facial expression,
sitting arrangements, gestures of the English people are at some point
different from those of the Australians (Jopp et al. 2014).

UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE
• In this dimension the cultures disclose their relaxing
nature with uncertainties. They can frequently change
their plans to face new situations. On the other hand,
some culture cannot bear the tension of uncertainty
therefore, they make decisions taking more time and
thoughts.

LONG TERM ORIENTATION
• This is another dimension which points out the sharp difference
between the cultures. In this dimension, the cultures are
distinguished in terms of normative and pragmatic. The Australians
score high in this dimension which means the company will be
facing issues in the business long term business dealings with the
English stakeholders or the suppliers.

RECOMMENDATION
• In order to mitigate these differences among the host and home
countries and maintaining a high diversity in the organisations, the
global managers need to follow some strategies. First they must
foster strong relationships with the employees so that they stay
engaged with one another and perform their tasks as a team.

CONTD.
• The managers need to embrace
diversity among the employee. By
showing respect to each of the
cultures and valuing them the
managers can easily avoid any type of
conflicts. Moreover, they will get full
support from their employees.

CONTD.
• The managers working in the global context needs to promote
open communication among the employees so that they can
gradually understand the value systems and expectations of one
another. Through this the management will be able to
communicate tasks and the barriers associated with language will
be easily overcome.

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