Discussion on: Managing in a different culture Part 4 http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/itproject/managing-in-a-different-culture-part-4/ Sat, 11 Oct 2008 08:43:03 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=wordpress-mu-1.2.1 By: Abitfazed http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/itproject/managing-in-a-different-culture-part-4/#comment-9 Abitfazed Sat, 20 Oct 2007 14:40:43 +0000 http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/itproject/managing-in-a-different-culture-part-4/#comment-9 This was a great idea to share your experiences at building into your company the structure needed to start moving forward with improvements to processes and services. I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors. This was a great idea to share your experiences at building into your company the structure needed to start moving forward with improvements to processes and services. I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors.

]]> By: Management Tips http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/itproject/managing-in-a-different-culture-part-4/#comment-8 Management Tips Thu, 18 Oct 2007 15:42:33 +0000 http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/itproject/managing-in-a-different-culture-part-4/#comment-8 Yes I am facing exactly the same issues you mentioned, you will always find a group in your company resisting change. As you may know, I am currently working on an assignment in Saudi Arabia, letting the cultural issues aside; I am facing a lot of resistance for new management style that the company is trying to implement. My meetings with employees always result in a firm commitment from their end to work with me on the new change management plan, but that commitment quickly evaporates is we move on. When I first started to work for the company, I had many meeting with the staff, both technical and administrative staff, and clearly explained to them why we need to implement new management plan for the company, some of the points I kept repeating in almost every meeting were: 1- We need to change in order for us to remain competitive in the market 2- New management style and work flow system will results in better customer service and clients’ retention, 3- The new management system, if implemented properly, will results in an increase profit margin which at the end be reflected on staff pay 4- The new management system will reshape the company’s image and give the staff more comfortable and rewarding work environment 5- As we progress, the staff members will have a better opportunity to gain more knowledge in their field 6- The change will happen because it was the upper management decision and you will be left out if you are not ready to adapt I kept the above points fresh in my staff mind for about two months and gave them an ample time to absorb the changes, but at the same time I set a deadline which after it, I made it clear that I will not accept any excuses for not implementing the new system. In my case, I had about two technical staff member resisting the change and refusing to take the responsibility to implement the new management system. So here how I resolved the issue: 1- Gave the two staff member a final warning after that they will see punishment which will result in a termination 2- Consulted with the most senior staff from the technical team who is excited about the new system, and we both agreed to work with the new system implementation until we hire new staff member to replace the one who are not willing to adapt I am not sure in your case if you can fire someone or not, but in order to a change to take a place, you will need to remove all obstacles out of your way, and in my case, I chose firing as my last option, but a valid option after I exhausted all other options. Not every member of your team will be willing to change, and that doesn’t mean you failed to motivate them, but some people are just not ready and you will have to make a decision about them. Hope you can relate my experience to yours Thanks Yes I am facing exactly the same issues you mentioned, you will always find a group in your company resisting change.

As you may know, I am currently working on an assignment in Saudi Arabia, letting the cultural issues aside; I am facing a lot of resistance for new management style that the company is trying to implement.

My meetings with employees always result in a firm commitment from their end to work with me on the new change management plan, but that commitment quickly evaporates is we move on.

When I first started to work for the company, I had many meeting with the staff, both technical and administrative staff, and clearly explained to them why we need to implement new management plan for the company, some of the points I kept repeating in almost every meeting were:

1- We need to change in order for us to remain competitive in the market
2- New management style and work flow system will results in better customer service and clients’ retention,
3- The new management system, if implemented properly, will results in an increase profit margin which at the end be reflected on staff pay
4- The new management system will reshape the company’s image and give the staff more comfortable and rewarding work environment
5- As we progress, the staff members will have a better opportunity to gain more knowledge in their field
6- The change will happen because it was the upper management decision and you will be left out if you are not ready to adapt

I kept the above points fresh in my staff mind for about two months and gave them an ample time to absorb the changes, but at the same time I set a deadline which after it, I made it clear that I will not accept any excuses for not implementing the new system.

In my case, I had about two technical staff member resisting the change and refusing to take the responsibility to implement the new management system. So here how I resolved the issue:

1- Gave the two staff member a final warning after that they will see punishment which will result in a termination
2- Consulted with the most senior staff from the technical team who is excited about the new system, and we both agreed to work with the new system implementation until we hire new staff member to replace the one who are not willing to adapt

I am not sure in your case if you can fire someone or not, but in order to a change to take a place, you will need to remove all obstacles out of your way, and in my case, I chose firing as my last option, but a valid option after I exhausted all other options.

Not every member of your team will be willing to change, and that doesn’t mean you failed to motivate them, but some people are just not ready and you will have to make a decision about them.

Hope you can relate my experience to yours

Thanks

]]> By: Abitfazed http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/itproject/managing-in-a-different-culture-part-4/#comment-7 Abitfazed Thu, 18 Oct 2007 03:45:24 +0000 http://itknowledgeexchange.techtarget.com/itproject/managing-in-a-different-culture-part-4/#comment-7 Hello again Yusuf, One of the things I noticed in the small company I work for is that as it grows... the original employees in the IT Dept. are not adjusting to the change. It took me a while to understand what was ocurring because my team is completely new staff and they are highly technical and are able to implement new processes and strategize well. But the network and technical support staff are part of the original group of employees and as the network and systems change and become more complex these employees are not motivated to expand on their knowledge and therefore cannot support my team as we try to grow the application enviornment. Instead, I find that we are doing more and more of the analytical work for the network staff in addition to our deliverables so that we can meet the goals of the CIO. I have been trying to address this with peer management to help them to think of ways to have their staff "take ownership" of their work because that leads to taking responsibility, but I have not had much success. Instead, I find that because of the pace of the changes management is taking the path of least resistance and my staff are being over-tasked to make up for the issue. Are you seeing that your employees are adjusting well to the new systems and are they owning those systems and thinking of ways to improve them for themselves so that they can better serve their internal and external customers? If so, how are you accomplishing motivating them to do this and how do you address their development and knowledge quickly to make the best use of the systems? Hello again Yusuf, One of the things I noticed in the small company I work for is that as it grows… the original employees in the IT Dept. are not adjusting to the change. It took me a while to understand what was ocurring because my team is completely new staff and they are highly technical and are able to implement new processes and strategize well. But the network and technical support staff are part of the original group of employees and as the network and systems change and become more complex these employees are not motivated to expand on their knowledge and therefore cannot support my team as we try to grow the application enviornment. Instead, I find that we are doing more and more of the analytical work for the network staff in addition to our deliverables so that we can meet the goals of the CIO. I have been trying to address this with peer management to help them to think of ways to have their staff “take ownership” of their work because that leads to taking responsibility, but I have not had much success. Instead, I find that because of the pace of the changes management is taking the path of least resistance and my staff are being over-tasked to make up for the issue. Are you seeing that your employees are adjusting well to the new systems and are they owning those systems and thinking of ways to improve them for themselves so that they can better serve their internal and external customers? If so, how are you accomplishing motivating them to do this and how do you address their development and knowledge quickly to make the best use of the systems?

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