TY - JOUR
T1 - Communication and Collaboration in Subsidiaries in China
T2 - Chinese and Expatriate Accounts
AU - Søderberg, Anne-Marie
AU - Worm, Verner
PY - 2011
Y1 - 2011
N2 - The purpose of this article is to explore how Chinese and expatriate managers, working in subsidiaries of five MNCs, communicate and collaborate, what kind of cultural encounters they talk about and give prominence to in their accounts of critical incidents, how they reflect upon them/explain them, and how they cope with perceived similarities and differences to improve cross-cultural communication and collaboration within a global organisation. Using an inductive qualitative methodology and thematic analysis, the study draws on in-depth narrative interviews with 29 expatriate and 39 Chinese managers and experts. The specific value of this paper is that it explores a hitherto under-researched issue and provides insight into well-educated expatriate and Chinese managers' accounts of how they perceive themselves and others in a multicultural work context. In both groups, we find widely travelled, flexible and open-minded people, who are ready and have the capabilities to conduct cross-cultural leadership.
AB - The purpose of this article is to explore how Chinese and expatriate managers, working in subsidiaries of five MNCs, communicate and collaborate, what kind of cultural encounters they talk about and give prominence to in their accounts of critical incidents, how they reflect upon them/explain them, and how they cope with perceived similarities and differences to improve cross-cultural communication and collaboration within a global organisation. Using an inductive qualitative methodology and thematic analysis, the study draws on in-depth narrative interviews with 29 expatriate and 39 Chinese managers and experts. The specific value of this paper is that it explores a hitherto under-researched issue and provides insight into well-educated expatriate and Chinese managers' accounts of how they perceive themselves and others in a multicultural work context. In both groups, we find widely travelled, flexible and open-minded people, who are ready and have the capabilities to conduct cross-cultural leadership.
KW - cross-cultural communication, cross-cultural collaboration
KW - Culture
KW - international management
KW - expats
KW - Expatriates
KW - China
KW - MNC subsidiaries
KW - Multinational corporations
KW - MNCs
KW - cross-cultural learning processes
KW - intercultural effectiveness
M3 - Journal article
SN - 1758-1508
VL - 2
SP - 54
EP - 76
JO - European Journal of Cross-Cultural Competence and Management
JF - European Journal of Cross-Cultural Competence and Management
IS - 1
ER -