...Topic..................................................................................................8 4.0 Conclusions and Recommendations.....................................................................................13 References..................................................................................................................................14 List of Figures Fig: 2.0 Diagrammatic representations of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions...............................7 AN ANALYSIS OF THE CULTURE OF AN ORGANIZATION 1.0 Background to the Organization Organization culture is a predominant aspect of an organization’s internal environment Azhar (2003). Culture, to some extent, influences performance and efficiency in an organization Rousseau (2000). Every organization has its unique culture that differs from that of other corporate Schein (2004). For purposes of this report I chose IKEA group, I will conduct an in-depth analysis of its culture using the appropriate cultural analysis frameworks and dimensions. IKEA group is a multinational corporation that has a strong corporate culture that is entrenched in its core values. IKEA has its roots in Sweden; it was incorporated as Inter IKEA Systems B. V. in 1983 in the Netherlands. The primary goal or idea of founding IKEA was to make it conceptualize and operationalize IKEA business model in what has...
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...Topic..................................................................................................8 4.0 Conclusions and Recommendations.....................................................................................13 References..................................................................................................................................14 List of Figures Fig: 2.0 Diagrammatic representations of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions...............................7 AN ANALYSIS OF THE CULTURE OF AN ORGANIZATION 1.0 Background to the Organization Organization culture is a predominant aspect of an organization’s internal environment Azhar (2003). Culture, to some extent, influences performance and efficiency in an organization Rousseau (2000). Every organization has its unique culture that differs from that of other corporate Schein (2004). For purposes of this report I chose IKEA group, I will conduct an in-depth analysis of its culture using the appropriate cultural analysis frameworks and dimensions. IKEA group is a multinational corporation that has a strong corporate culture that is entrenched in its core values. IKEA has its roots in Sweden; it was incorporated as Inter IKEA Systems B. V. in 1983 in the Netherlands. The primary goal or idea of founding IKEA was to make it conceptualize and operationalize IKEA business model in what has...
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...The purpose of this essay is to firstly understand the arguments between McSweeney and Hofstede about national cultures. The argument starts on the Hoftstede’s published book Culture’s Consequences. Hoftstede’s cultural dimensions theory has got popular and in the same time criticised by other scholars, while McSweeney is one of the scholars who have been critising the cultural dimensions on people from different nations. This essay will firstly summarise the ideas and arguments of both of McSweeney and Hofstede in order to develop the understanding about the reasons why they are conflicting with each other on the cultural dimension theories. Following the summary of the two scholars ideas and argument, this essay will discuss the agreement and disagreement of both scholars. Reflection on this course on national culture will be specified as well in order to show whether my personal understanding about culture has been changed or improved. Summary of the ideas and argument of both McSweeney and Hofstede * McSweeney’s argument McSweeney expresses his doubts about Hoftstede’s model of national cultural differences and their consequences. The criticism that McSweeney has on the theory of Hoftstede’s cultural dimensions based on the description of national cultural differences in the Culture’s Consequences published in 1980 (McSweeney, 2002). First of all, the methodology applied in the research of Hoftstede’s model is critised by McSweeney. McSweeney points out that...
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...Culture on Employee Performance ALHARBI MOHAMMAD AWADH University Technology Malaysia International Business School, Malaysia E-mail: alharbimohamd@gmail.com ALYAHYA, MOHAMMED SAAD University Utara Malaysia College of Business Malaysia. Email: msy330@hotmail.com Abstract Aim of the study: The relationship between organizational culture and performance has been study and a clear link between them has been identified by certain researcher’s research. The main aim of research article is to identify and measure strong relationship between performance and organizational culture. Methodology: Literature review is adopted as methodology to assess the culture of an organization impacts upon process, employees and systems. Findings: Certain dimensions of culture have been identified so far and research shows that value and norms of an organization were based upon employee relationship. The goal of an organization is to increase level of performance by designing strategies. The performance management system has been measured by balance scorecard and by understanding nature and ability of system culture of an organization have been identified. Recommendation: The strong culture of an organization based upon managers and leaders help in improving level of performance. Managers relate organization performance and culture to each other as they help in providing competitive advantage to firms. Keywords0:0Impact, Organization0Culture, organizational goals. Organization0Performance, Employee’s...
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...Conclusion To conclude, each dimension has its distinctive features. People who come from an individualistic society loosing ties to others in the organization while those from collectivistic cultures are fully integrate themselves into the organization; Long-term orientation advocate perseverance, thrift and close attention to status differences, in contrast, “short-term orientation stress stability, face-saving and social niceties.” (Johns) In today’s global economy and society, cross-cultural negotiation strategies ensure communication with people of other cultures. Hofstede’s model which contains the five major dimensions exist across cultures has been very significant for us to have a better comprehension of people from different cultural background. These five dimensions model to a certain extent reflects people’s values toward work and life in the contemporary society. On the one hand, we can estimate our thoughts and actions based on a general sense of how the society might react to us by using Hofstede’s model. “Hofstede measures culture in five dimensions and teaches that cooperation across cultures is essential to human survival.” (Marilyn, 2013) On the other hand, managers can analyze multi-cultural employee’s personalities and group them reasonably to have a best working efficiency. these will have a crucial influence on human resource management and organizational behavior. The model also helps to understand what one county’s situation is and how it is different...
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..."Organizational Culture and Cross-Cultural Management" Please respond to the following: * Hofstede’s study is an important contribution to cross-culture management research. Analyze the impact that culture exerts on recruitment and selection, training and development, compensation, and task distribution. Determine whether or not there are leadership behaviors, attributes, and organizational practices that are generally accepted and effective across cultures. o * *From the e-Activity, compare the two (2) cross-cultural management theories that you researched to Hofstede’s cross-cultural theory. Determine two (2) fundamental differences and similarities between each theory. The impact the Hofstede’s study had on the cultural context of HRM practices are as follows: Recruitment and selection: In cultures low on “in-group” collectivism such as the U.S., and the UK, individual accomplishments are important selection criteria, and societies high on “in-group collectivism” such as China and Spain put more importance on team-related skills than on individual capabilities. Training and development: While no country has perfect gender equality, societies high on the gender social equality scale have more women in positions of power and similar levels of education as men, such as the U.S, women usually have the same chances for a straight up career progression as men and societies which score low on gender social equality such as Afghanistan and Liberia do not have nearly...
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...Cultural Differences Introduction Cultural diversity is the norm in today’s workplace. If you work for a large corporation, you most likely deal with people from various backgrounds and countries all day long. It is a difficult enough situation to have such cultural diversity amongst your peers but if you are a manager facing these demographics, you really face the challenge of learning the make-up and background of your team. In order to be an effective leader you will have to use various management styles as every team has different personality types, however, you will also have to be sensitive to and educated on what the cultural differences on your team are and how to tie it all together. Relationship building within your teams and reaching a diverse group with effective communication is a daunting challenge but necessary for success in today’s workforce. Millennials are the most ethnically and racially diverse generation ever in the history of the U.S. One out of three or thirty percent of Millennials is ethnically or racially diverse (Blain, 2008). The workforce is getting more and more diverse requiring effective communication, tolerance of others, and education about cultural differences. This paper will take a closer look at the cultural differences in Hofstede’s Five Dimensions between the United States and India. Cultural Differences in Hofstede’s Five Dimensions The workplace is getting more challenging to manage but Dr. Geert Hofstede and his Five...
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...As we all know every country has its own way of doing things; something not taken seriously in one country can be taken completely different in another country. India is a very good example when it comes to cultural differences compared to the rest of the world or as we would compare it to the United States, because that’s how we Americans are. We tend to think anything done other than the American way is the wrong way of doing things and that’s the bottom line. By analyzing Hofstede’s dimensions of cultural differences which include individualism/collectivism, high power distance/low power distance, high uncertainty avoidance/low uncertainty avoidance, masculinity/femininity and long-term orientation/short-term orientation a conclusion can be made that they are by far a very unique nation compared to the rest of the world. India is very much so a collectivists society when it comes to the individualism/ collectivism category. In a collectivist society people tend to belong to tightly knit social framework and rely heavily on extended families, where in individualistic societies people tend to only worry about themselves and their families. For India to be a collectivist society it means that there is a very high preference for belonging to a larger social class, in which you have to act according how your actions benefit the entire class. In a collectivist society individuals are highly influenced by ones family, extended family, neighbors, work group and other such wider...
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...Cultural Diversity: What Would I Do? Anonymous Not so long ago, in the United States, white men made up the vast majority of doctors, lawyers, professors, elected officials, and corporate executives. Today, corporations, institutions, work environments, and neighborhoods are multicultural communities. Communicating effectively in these global communities is extremely challenging, considering we must collaborate with other people in culturally diverse group environments. Culture is “a learned set of shared interpretations about beliefs, values, and norms which affect the behaviors of a relatively large group of people” (Lustig & Koester, 2006, p. 25). Culture is also shared by everyone and by most members of any given social group. Older members of a group pass their culture on to the younger group members and it shapes behavior while structuring perceptions of the world (Adler & Gundersen, 2008). Diversity – a much broader concept – describes more than a person’s birth place, skin color, or ethnic heritage. In the most general of terms concerning group communication, diversity is simply the quality of being different. Most of the groups we are members of are made of individuals with different physical characteristics, traits, status, and attitudes. These characteristics include, but are limited to age, occupation, physical ability, marital status, personality, and religion (Engleberg & Wynn, 2010). Also, in terms of diversity, it exists within and among all cultures...
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...expectations of people in different countries. Every culture has distinctive norms and values which have shaped the perception of customers for years. Nowadays, the concept of perceived product quality is increasingly becoming more important on the minds. Although there are a lot of definitions, each of them are defined as common meaning; that is, quality is basically ability to meet the customer’s needs and expectations. Perception of quality varies from person to person and even from culture to culture. Therefore, the national identity and cultural values and norms might have an important role on the customers’ quality perception. Even if all the features and the prices of the product are same, it can create different opinions and perceptions in different countries and cultures. How may culture affect the ‘product quality perception’ of consumers? 1.1 Culture ‘Without culture, and the relative freedom it implies, society, even when perfect, is but a jungle. This is why any authentic creation is a gift to the future’ - Albert Camus Culture is a fundamental part of every society and can be defined as the learned pattern of behavior and everything which makes up a person’s entire way of living. Another very well-known definition for culture is written by Hofstede (Hollensen, 2004, p. 193) which says...
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...Company report on cross border offshoring management, cultural dimensions and gamification Table of Contents Table of Contents Executive Summary | p.5 | Chapter I – Introduction1.1 Purpose of the Report1.2 Effects of Globalization on Businesses’ 1.3 Company Background1.4 Outline of the Report | pp.6-7 | Chapter II – Cross Border and Offshoring Management 2.1 Introduction2.2 Defining culture2.3 Defining management and cross cultural management 2.4 Offshoring2.5 Key problems in cross cultural teams2.6 Conclusions | pp.8-11 | Chapter III – Analyzing and Explaining Cultural Dimensions3.1 Introduction3.2 Analysis of cultural dimensions and Country Comparisons 3.2.1 Power Distance 3.2.2 Uncertainty Avoidance 3.2.3 Long term orientation 3.2.4 Indulgence 3.2.5 Individualism 3.2.6 Masculinity 3.3 Limitations of Hofstede’s Dimensions | pp.12-17 | Chapter IV – Gamification4.1 Introduction4.2 Defining and Explaining gamification4.3 Gamification’s effects on business4.4 Examples of gamification4.5 Criticism – The dark side of gamification | pp.18-20 | Chapter V – Corporate Social Responsibility5.1 Introduction5.2 Defining and explaining CSR 5.3 The Foxconn and Apple scandal5.4 Recommendations and Actions | pp.21-22 | Chapter VI – Recommendations to Management | pp.23-24 | Chapter VII – Conclusions | pp.25 | References | pp.26-27 | Executive Summary Executive Summary This report provides an analysis and evaluation of...
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...Diversity and Inclusion Juanita Guthrie SOC/315 January 25, 2016 Jennifer Hudgins Diversity and Inclusion Cultural diversity has many dimensions which is what makes one person different than the other. Some of these dimensions include “cultural, gender, ethnic, religious, sexual orientation, ability, age, and size differences (Harvey & Allard, 2009).” While some of these different dimensions can be chosen, such as, religion others cannot because they are born into it. Cultural diversity helps us to identify the different subordinate groups or minority group which is “a group whose members have significantly less control or power over their own lives than do the members of a dominant or majority group (Schaeffer, 2011).” The differences of each group help us to understand the differences of each and their accomplishments and struggles. We have learned with these differences so much with statistics for health and other related issues that give us insight to better prepare ourselves for different outcomes. I am a Mexican American. My mother was raised in Texas and my father in Wyoming. I have been fortunate to learn the culture, especially how to make Mexican food. Recently, with my work, I am have been able to learn more Spanish than I have growing up. My parents did not speak much Spanish to my siblings and I when we were younger. They did take us to events that celebrated significant dates that are special to Mexico though. My life was...
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...University of Lethbridge Course: MGT 3650 – B (Introduction to International Business) Instructor: Dr. Rehana Afaqi Research Paper Three Approaches That Will Help in Comparing Cultural Differences By Emmanuel Makoni, Sonia Jerin & Laren Michel Due Date: November 6th 2014 Introduction: There are around 196 countries in the world and the cultures and values differ between the different countries. There are still similarities in some of the culture traits. In today’s world people are more willing to engage in global business and for this reason they need to be able to adapt to the different cultures. As the cultures vary from country to country, people around the world may face many difficulties during their communication. Many businesses have failed due to the fact that they failed to fully assess the market they were entering in. The paper will portray three different approaches that will aid in understanding cultural differences that can be utilized as effective tools in conducting global business. These approaches are known as the context approach, the cluster approach and the dimension approach. 1. Context Approach: This is one of the three main approaches to understand cultural differences. Context approach is considered as the most straightforward as it relies on a single dimension. In addition, there are two parts of the context approach, known as: (i) High context cultures and (ii) Low context cultures. The two types of contexts have different cultures, values...
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...Business Project – HMV Chan Ho Yeung 13431908 Context 1. Introduction 2 2. Comparative Analysis of the company’s competitive position in its various markets 3 2.1 PEST 4 2.2 Porter 5 forces 5 2.3 Value Chain 7 3. Considerations for the company’s position in relation to cross-cultural issues 10 3.1 Hofstede Cultural dimensions 10 3.2 Iceberg model of culture 14 4. The company’s position in relation to corporate social responsibility 16 4.1 Carroll’s CSR Pyramid 16 5. Conclusion 21 6. References 24 1. Introduction People who were born in 1990s or before, they should have gone to CD shops to buy CDs and supported their favourite singers. So that, you must know HMV. HMV, everyone knows that it is a CDs retailer basically. HMV opened in Oxford Street London on 20th July 1921. HMV’s full name is “His Master’s Voice”. At that time, HMV was a part of EMI - Electric and Musical Industries. In 1998, HMV was divested from EMI. It needs to especially mention the logo of HMV. HMV’s logo is based on a dog that called Nipper, is listening to a gramophone. In 1921, when HMV had started, they were a company which sold gramophone and also used HMV’s name to produce TVs and radios. After that, HMV did not sell gramophone, they was transiting gradually to sell CDs. Until now, HMV has changed a lot. They are not only selling CDs, they also sell the other products including film, games and headphones. In 1988, HMV has opened their first overseas store in Canada...
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...1799 1799 ‘How are the concepts of culture and leadership linked?’ Introduction: This literature review will make use of four pieces of academic work to discuss how the concept of culture can intrinsically affect leadership. The literature finds that the link between culture and leadership is an important, yet complicated relationship. I will begin by discussing and defining the central concepts of culture and leadership. I will then explain and analyse the significance of culture upon leadership. Finally I will review Hofstede’s cultural framework to assess its significance and relevance to the topic at hand. Culture: To begin, culture is a phenomenon that carries multiple definitions. A simplistic view sees it as “how things are done around here”(Ouchi and Johnson, 1978 p.293). Culture can also encompass the behaviours, attitudes, norms, morals and unconscious values instilled within a group of individuals (Schien, 1985). Hofstede himself defines culture as the “collective mental programming” (Hofstede, 1980 pp.43) of individuals bound by some form of common orientation or geographical boundary. Culture shapes everything within society, and as an extension, leadership. Leadership is another interlinked concept, commonly defined as a relationship by which followers are influenced, and inherent changes are made towards a collective purpose (Daft and Lane, 2005). Moreover leadership refers to the “core set of traits, behaviours, skills, or characteristics that...
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