Communication and collaboration in subsidiaries in China – Chinese and expatriate accounts Online publication date: Sat, 11-Oct-2014
by Anne-Marie Søderberg; Verner D. Worm
European J. of Cross-Cultural Competence and Management (EJCCM), Vol. 2, No. 1, 2011
Abstract: 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.
Existing subscribers:
Go to Inderscience Online Journals to access the Full Text of this article.
If you are not a subscriber and you just want to read the full contents of this article, buy online access here.Complimentary Subscribers, Editors or Members of the Editorial Board of the European J. of Cross-Cultural Competence and Management (EJCCM):
Login with your Inderscience username and password:
Want to subscribe?
A subscription gives you complete access to all articles in the current issue, as well as to all articles in the previous three years (where applicable). See our Orders page to subscribe.
If you still need assistance, please email subs@inderscience.com
Our Blog 
Follow us on Twitter 
Visit us on Facebook