Establishing an ECL culture in China: organizational difference or national difference

Establishing an "ECL" Culture in China

Problem identification

General description

The problems and their symptoms (description, analysis)

The relation between the problems

The causes of the problems.

Problem solving

The best solutions which can solve the problems

Expected outcomes

General description

The decision to make China the new home for ECL business had very important consequences. On the one side there was the perspective of the advantages, the most important of which being the vast dimension of the market. On the other side however there was the challenge represented by the cultural difference which would surely have an impact upon the management process. A key decision had to be made, whether to adapt the traditional management practices employed by the company to the local Chinese culture or do just the opposite and try to impose its global policies.

The main areas that are to be taken into consideration are represented by the corporate culture, the cross cultural relations, organizational behaviour, human resources management and organizational behaviour.

Stating the main problems

First and foremost one needs to state that the major problem is represented by the cultural difference. China is an environment where the company needs to deal with the socialist economy which basically excludes the market economy. This means a completely different manner of conceiving business. The solution was to adapt to the local culture in a way which would allow the company to preserve its identity and maintain its most important values while at the same time permit it to function successfully in terms of profit.

This basically required the creation of an organizational culture in an intelligent manner. The process was divided into two phases, the first one consisting in establishment and the second one in the so called socialization. The best way to achieve establishment was thought to be through and with the help of expatriates who had very good knowledge of the company values and culture. They were appointed important management positions which allowed them to function as key elements in the chain of communication. On the one hand they were looked at as behaviour models. On the other hand they were supposed to understand the local reality and find the rightful manner of "contamination" between the two cultures. The socialization phase concentrated upon the processes through which the local employees succeeded to adapt to the company's culture.

Analyzing the problems and their symptoms

The first problem that was encountered was the difficulty of the expatriate managers to really communicate with the local employees of the company. Although the basic concepts were clearly defined right from the very beginning, it was still difficult to reach a genuine understanding of the other because not all the differences in terms of conceiving the same issue were always obvious to the involved parties. This meant that a new organizational culture was being built but the foundations were not very solid. The risk involved by the situation was very big since it threatened the functioning of the entire organization.

As far as the symptoms of the first problem are concerned they were to be found in a difficulty of communication on both horizontal and vertical levels. In addition, the employees were not used to give very open feedback, which resulted into further difficulty for the expatriates to understand which were the differences that had to be worked upon. Furthermore a certain tension was created because the employees did not really assume the values they were supposed to.

The other problems and their symptoms

The second problem was the low level of motivation that the employees demonstrated. The symptoms of the problem could be identified in a lower rhythm of accomplishing the tasks compared to what was desired.

The third major problem regarded the slow pace with which the local employees managed to fulfil the socialization process. The most important symptom of this problem was to be found in the delay in the process of putting the bases of a new organizational culture. Consequently these delays were translated into a functioning of the company which was not as efficient as planned.

The relation between the problems believe that there is a very strong connection between the three existing problems. Not only do they coexist but they contribute to each other's existence. The employees have a difficulty to understand perhaps what they are supposed to do and more importantly why is it better for them to do it. Hence the absence of motivation, which contributes to a slower adaptation process. Just like in a vicious circle this contributes to creating tension which causes communication not to function properly.

The cause of the problems

The cause of the problems is represented by a communication process which is not managed in a good enough manner. It is possible for the problem to derive from the scarce understanding of the local culture. This causes the expatriate managers to have difficulties communicating their values. There is not an universally valid method through which a company can teach its values to its new employees. I believe that a key element in the process is represented by collaboration.

The solution

Since all the major problems have been found to have an unique cause, it is safe to say that by eliminating the cause, one will eliminate the problems and their symptoms as well. The solution lies in the fact that the company managers must understand that they too need to understand the Chinese culture and its implications as far as organizational culture is concerned. Before starting to teach their employees they need to acknowledge what is the proper means through which they can do this. The best option that one can take into consideration at this point is represented by a communication process which is based on collaboration and team work, conceived according to a win-win perspective and implemented at all the work levels within the company.

Suggestions

People coming to work with the ECL company are motivated by the desire to have a good job. This job should not only pay well, but also make sure that there is an emotional satisfaction offered to the employees. This is usually achieved through a feeling of belongingness and other various stimuli for personal development and recognition of achieved success. Theories in the field of organizational culture have demonstrated that people manifest a resistance to change even if they are not aware of it. So what the company needs to do when starting its socialization / education process of the employees is not tell them "forget who you are, this is how you need to be," but "This is who we are, this is where we need to get to, tell me who you are so we can decide what is the manner in which we can both get what we want." would suggest for the establishment and the socialization phases to take place at the same time. The expatriate managers should be brought in perhaps in even larger numbers. At the same time, the company should also put locals in key positions. In this manner it would get a deeper insight upon the local perspective upon business, communication and what are the really important (attractive) values. The short-term and long-term goals should be decided together by the managers coming from both cultural environments. All the actions should be carefully planned and monitored thoroughly.

Training sessions are extremely important, while team building sessions are another component that must not miss from the establishment and socialization phases. Since the interaction between people coming from different cultures is essential, then one of my recommendations would be to facilitate and encourage the contact between the expatriates and the locals.