The impact of cross‐cultural dynamics on change management

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce a proprietary survey instrument – “ChangeTracking Survey^®” – which measures employees' perceptions of organizational change and captures their experiences during the course of change management in their organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors present an empirical study of employees involved in change management projects in 146 organizations situated in 27 countries across a variety of industries, nationalities and languages, using robust statistical analysis. Hofstede's work is used as a foundation for understanding cross‐cultural differences in organizations from across the world.

Findings

The paper finds significant differences in certain characteristics of change projects between different nationalities.

Practical implications

The findings present new and recent knowledge of the cross‐cultural dynamics in change management projects, which would prove useful to change managers throughout the world.

Originality/value

This research is recent and is extensive in its examination of the effects of national cultures on change management initiatives internationally.

Citation

Kirsch, C., Chelliah, J. and Parry, W. (2012), "The impact of cross‐cultural dynamics on change management", Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal, Vol. 19 No. 2, pp. 166-195. https://doi.org/10.1108/13527601211219865