The impact of national and organisational cultures on intergroup coordination in software development in mainland China: a qualitative analysis
by Minghui Yuan, Xi Zhang, Doug Vogel, Zhenjiao Chen, Chuanjie Guo
International Journal of Chinese Culture and Management (IJCCM), Vol. 1, No. 3, 2008

Abstract: Intergroup coordination is critical for the success of large software projects. This paper examines the impact of national culture and organisational culture on intergroup coordination success factors (knowledge sharing, communication, mutual support and stakeholder commitment) through a qualitative analysis of semistructured interviews conducted in mainland China. We draw on a multiple-case study of five different-sized Chinese software companies to identify common patterns of national cultural impact across the cases as well as differences generated due to different organisational cultures. Based on a coding scheme, our research shows that collectivism and concern for 'face' have the most salient impact on these factors. Uncertainty avoidance and power distance also have a slight impact. Interestingly, several organisational culture dimensions (harmony, customer orientation, quality orientation and leadership style) can explain part of the differences among companies. The paper contributes to the team coordination literature, particularly to intergroup coordination in software development, and provides research evidence to support the impact of culture on the implementation of the Capability Maturity Model for Software (SW-CMM). It also has implications for Chinese software project management practice.

Online publication date: Thu, 17-Jul-2008

The full text of this article is only available to individual subscribers or to users at subscribing institutions.

 
Existing subscribers:
Go to Inderscience Online Journals to access the Full Text of this article.

Pay per view:
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 International Journal of Chinese Culture and Management (IJCCM):
Login with your Inderscience username and password:

Username:        Password:          Forgotten your 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