Learning Outcomes:
This module (course) aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the issues involved in cross-cultural management. It will focus on the impact of culture at the level of the individual, the team and the organisation. It will demonstrate how cultural factors influence behaviours in the workplace and will develop the skills needed to manage effectively in cross-cultural situations. The module will require students to reflect on their own cultural values and experiences, and help prepare them for the future challenges of an international business career. If I am successful in my teaching, this module will not only expand your knowledge in management but will also start a personal-transformation process.
By the end of this module, you should:
1. Gain an in-depth understanding of the nature of culture, the theories and frameworks that help in highlighting similarities and differences across cultures, and comparative business practices and behaviours.
2. Be able to apply these theories and concepts to a range of different cultural and organisational settings.
3. Be able to analyse and synthesise different theories and concepts and critically evaluate their usefulness in addressing the problems of managing people from different cultures.
4. Increase your awareness of the economic, social, political and ethical issues related to globalisation and migration.
5. Develop your self-awareness to how culture shapes who you are and how you behave and improve your ability to work in, manage and lead culturally diverse groups and teams.
Indicative Module Content:
Some of the topics to be covered include fundamental dimensions of culture, how culture affects behaviour, cognition, motivation, and emotion in organisations, cross-cultural communication, negotiation and conflict resolution, how culture affects team work, diversity in teams and organisations, managing expatriates and leading a multi-cultural workforce.
While most of the above topics are covered in other management courses, the challenge that you will be presented in the Cross-Cultural Management module is to critically examine the management theories and research in light of what we know about cross cultural and national differences. This is important since most of the knowledge accumulated in these areas is based on a “Western” perspective; most studies that form the basis of management studies were carried out by scholars from the ‘Anglo Cluster’ of countries and may be limited in their cultural applicability. Thus, critical examination of these models and findings will allow us to evaluate how applicable they are to various cultural and social systems.
A more fundamental challenge that I invite you to accept is to heighten your self-awareness to how YOU are, in almost everything you do, a product of the social/cultural environment you grew up in. Committing to taking on this challenge is likely to result in fundamental changes in your self-perception, thinking and, eventually, acting.