Cross-Cultural Management

NGOs often rely on their local responsiveness, social focus and cultural sensitivity in their service delivery. Yet a cross-cultural management approach is rarely articulated. Praxis looked at how we might understand the cultural influences on NGO management, the process of transfer of management knowledge across cultures, and the implications for capacity building and impact assessment.

Through work carried out by Terry Jackson it is argued that there are a number of historical and current cultural influences on the way NGOs are managed both internationally and locally. Through a combination of knowledge transfer of Western approaches and the integration of indigenous approaches a number of hybrid management and organizational systems emerge. Some are highly adaptive and appropriate to their context, some are not.

The implications of this for capacity building practitioners is that in order to respond to cultural and contextual influences management should focus on:
• Managing complexity and uncertainty
• Managing decision-making processes through multiple stakeholders
• Using appropriate leadership and management styles
• Building locally appropriate motivational and reward systems
• Managing multiculturalism and developing managers

Praxis publications on the topic

Praxis Note 8 'The Multi-Cultural Iceberg: Exploring International Relations in Cambodian Development Organisations'

Praxis Note 5 'Mayan Organisation and Management'

Praxis Note 1 'Cross-Cultural Management and NGO Capacity Building: Why is a Cross-Cultural Approach Necessary?'

Praxis Note 2 'Cross-Cultural Management and NGO Capacity Building: How Can Capacity be Built Through Cross-Cultural Management?'

Praxis Note 3
'Cross-Cultural Management and NGO Capacity Building: How Can Knowledge Transferability be Managed Across Cultures?'

Praxis Note 4
'Cross-Cultural Management and NGO Capacity Building: How Should Impact be Assessed Cross-Culturally?'