Managers in international companies increasingly find themselves in situations where they encounter representatives of many different cultures with which they are totally unfamiliar or of which they have only superficial acquaintance. Rather than using a country-by-country approach in such encounters, they are compelled by circumstances to adopt a global stance, as Théry points out in Concept 12.2 .

What do you consider to be one key element in this global approach? To what extent do you consider it possible to adopt a global stance when it comes to addressing ethical issues in a multicultural context?

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Concept 12.2 Diversity and transcultural competence in organisations What is diversity? Gmez-Mejia et al. (2001) see in the notion of diversity a human char- acteristic that allows a differentiation to be made between people. On the one hand there are individual characteristics, such as race, age or gender, over which the individual has no or little control. On the other hand there are characteristics an individual can act on during his life, such as work background, geographical situation and education. In everyday business life, managers may well see their employees as individuals. However, they should also be aware of the diversity and the characteristics inherent in each specific group. In fact, diversity among employees may well not only cause misunderstandings but also obstruct team work and productivity. Good management is therefore crucial to prevent this happening. How do the managers in a transnational organisation perceive cultural diversity? Adler (2002: 157) refers to a survey (Adler and Ghadar, 1990) to show that it can be a source of both problems and advantages. Problems caused by cultural diversity are to do with communication and integration, particularly when the organisation requires its employees to think and act in the same way. The more an organisation demands transparency and convergent opinions, the greater the ambiguity, complexity and confusion. Problems with diversity also arise when certain practices and procedures are adopted by the organisation across the board. Export manag- ers may use the same marketing campaign across countries without taking account of the different cultures involved. As for the possible advantages of cultural diversity, Adler (2002) notes that some man- agers describe multicultural organisations as being more flexible and open to new ideas. Other managers find such organisations to be more aware of consumer needs. Diversity is also considered an advantage when the concern needs to reposition itself, to generate ideas, to develop projects, to open itself up to fresh perspectives. Within organisations operating in an international environment, partners, collabora- tors and co-workers will be brought into intercultural situations that need to be turned to their advantage to prevent failure of the strategy of internationalisation. This means that knowledge, tools and working methods need to be acquired to help develop the attitude and behaviour desirable in a specific cross-cultural context.