Cross-cultural leadership for global construction projects

Abstract

This study is based on a construction project successfully undertaken by an Italian company in a multi-cultural environment in Swaziland. The main objective was to explore the impact of cultural diversity on construction project management by investigating possible correlations between cultural differences of employees and leadership behaviours exhibited by managers. A total of 66 employees from Swaziland, 23 from Mozambique, and seven managers from Italy participated in the study undertaken in 2008. The survey instruments used were Hofstede’s Values Survey Module to measure cultural differences, and Bass and Avolio’s multifactor leadership questionnaire to determine leadership styles exhibited by managers. The results show significant cultural differences among employees, and managers exhibited both transformational and transactional leadership behaviours. Correlation coefficients between employees’ cultural factors and managers’ leadership styles were calculated by linear regression, and the results show that there are both positive and negative relationships. This implies that managers used ‘flexible leadership styles’ to cope with the cross-cultural environment. Despite the cultural differences found, the project was delivered on time and within budget. The conclusion drawn from the study is that project managers can adopt ‘flexible leadership styles’ to leverage the sustainable competitive advantages embedded in cultural diversity.