IBM has clients in 170 countries and does two-thirds of its business outside the United States. As a result, it has overturned virtually all aspects of its old tradition-bound culture. One relatively new focus is in the teamwork area. The way IBM uses work teams extensively is unique. To instill in its managers an appreciation of local culture IBM send hundreds of its employees to month-long volunteer project teams various regions of the world. The company calculates that these multicultural, multinational teams are a good investment.
1. If you calculate the person-hours devoted to IBM’s team projects, they amount to more than 180,000 hours of management time each year. Do you think this is a wise investment of IBM’s human resources? Why or why not?
2. Why do you think IBM’s culture changed from formal, stable, and individualistic to informal, impermanent, and team oriented?
3. Would you like to work on one of IBM’s multicultural, multinational project teams? Why or why not?
4. Multicultural project team often face problem with communication, expectation and values. How do you think some of these challenges can be overcome?