System Design Of Internet Banking System

System Design Of Internet Banking System Abstract: In recent year, Internet banking system has become very popular among customers and business. Nowadays, Internet banking is provided by banks because of its advantages. Such as 24 hours services, fast, easy and secure access to customer through Internet. This report intends to offer the system architecture and system design for Internet banking system which is mainly focused. Introduction Internet has become the way for conducting increasing numbers of transactions between suppliers and large business because of the speed, flexibility and efficiency that it offers. In this way, new market has been opened to the world and diffusion of knowledge has been accelerated to the internet. Internet markets or online commercial business has been widely used. Since a special way to design the system should have been by the web-based system and implement it. Nowadays, internet banking system widely used to increase demand of online banking transactions. Internet banking system is looking to provide the best quality with highly available, fast, secure and safe to use. System analysis is used to analyze and design any system. In this report, the framework of system analysis and design, system design and system architecture for internet banking system are discussed. In addition, about the system architecture is so important that it has become the foundation of the system analysis and design is also discussed. A Framework of System Analysis and Design Many organizations consider information systems in order to produce useful information by capturing and managing data to employees, customers, suppliers and partners. It is necessary for their ability to compute or gain competitive advantage. Information systems can be classified by the functions such as Transaction processing systems Management information systems Decision support systems Executive information systems Expert systems Communication and collaborative systems Office automation systems. Various perspectives can view in information systems such as the players, business drivers, technology drivers and process. From the point of view of system stakeholder, the system analysts bridge the communication gap that can develop between system owners and users and also between designers and builders. System owners are typically executive managers for large systems and may be supervisors for small systems. Unlike system owners, costs and benefits of the system tend to less concern by system users. There are two kinds of system users such as internal system users and external users. For information systems, system designers are technology specialists such as Database administrators, Network architects, Web architects, Graphic artists, Security experts and Technology specialists. System users business requirements and constraints are translated by system designer into technical solution. System builder is to construct the system according to the system designers specifications. System designers and system builders are the same in small system but they are often different jobs in large system. Application programmers, system programmer, database programmer, network administrators and security administrators are technical specialties. System owners, users, designers, and builders often have different perspective for building and using on any systems. What is System Design? System design is the specification of a detailed computer-based solution. (Bentley, L, D., Whitten, J, L (2008)) Also know as physical design. There were many techniques or approaches that are concerning to the aspect of the system design and can be categorized as follow: Model-Driven Approaches Rapid Application Development (RAD) Joint Application Development (JAD) Model-Driven Approaches One of the system design approaches is the Model-Driven Approaches. It emphasizes the drawing of pictorial system models to document the technical or implementation aspects of a new system. (Bentley, L, D., Whitten, J, L (2008)) The examples of model-driven approaches are modern structured design, information engineering, and object-oriented design. Modern structured design Modern structured design is a system design approaches. These approaches assist to deal with the size and complexity of the programs for developers. It also a process-oriented approaches that breaking up from a large size of program into a hierarchy of modules, and that results are easy to implement and preserve. Information engineering Information engineering (IE) can be defined as the application of an interacting set of formal techniques of the planning, analysis, design a construction of information systems on a major sector of enterprise. The data model is the primary tool of IE. IE facilitates the long-term evolution of systems and also identifies how computing can best aid the strategic goals of the enterprise. Moreover, IE creates a framework to develop the computerised enterprise. Prototyping A technique for quickly gathering specific information depends on the information requirements of the user. Advantages of Prototyping Change the system early in its development Scrap undesirable systems Design a system for users needs and expectations Disadvantages of Prototyping Manage the project danger of overtaking other phases in SDLC Adopt an incomplete system as complete Documentation might be incomplete Object-oriented design Object-oriented design (OOD) techniques, is a design system using self-contained objects and object classes. Some of characteristics on these techniques are as follow: Objects are abstractions of real-world or system entities Objects are independent and encapsulate state and representation information In the terms of objectives services, the System functionality is explicit Shared data areas are removed and each of the object are communicate by means of message passing Objects may be distributed and execute in the form of sequentially or in parallel Rapid Application Development Rapid application development (RAD) is an approach to systems development that includes a method of development as well as software tools. It applies to structured, prototyping, and joint application development (JAD) techniques to rapidly develop the system. Nowadays these techniques used to become popular design techniques. RAD is used when: The developer team have programmers and analysts who are experienced with these technique The project include a novel ecommerce application and needs to find quickly result Users are sophisticated and highly engaged to the goals of the company Joint Application Development Joint Application Development, or JAD, is a process that is originally developed for designing a computer-based system. It brings together business area people (end users) and IT (Information Technology) professionals in a highly focused workshop. The purpose of using JAD is to define the project, design a solution, and monitor the project until it reaches completion. The advantages of JAD include a dramatic shortening of the time it takes to complete a project. It also improves the quality of the final product by focusing on the up-front portion of the development lifecycle. Internet Banking Internet banking is the system that allows customers to access general financial information transactions through a secure bank-created website. Nowadays, all banks provide internet banking because of its advantages. Customer no need to give their precious time to go to bank and just click the mouse and then can access their own bank account so Internet banking become integral to the lives of busy people. They just need to have a computer or an intellectual device such as mobile device or PDA with an Internet connection and iB secure device which is offered by their own bank. Another good point of internet banking is that customers are allowed to bank with easy and paperless way at non-working hours and public holidays also. 4.1. Types of internet Banking At present, these following three basic types are utilized in the marketplace. 1. Informational: This is the foundation level of internet banking and it can be offered by the bank or outsourced. There has an appropriate control to prevent unauthorized alterations to the banks server of Web site. 2. Communicative: This type allows some interaction with customer and the banks system. There has an appropriate control to prevent unauthorized attempt to access the banks internal network and computer systems so virus control plays vital role in this environment. 3. Transitional : This level allows customers to execute their transactions such as accessing accounts, paying bills, transferring funds etc., 4.2. Pros and Cons of Internet Banking The prominent point of Internet banking is that it is very convenient for customers rather than traditional banking system and can available 24/7 and time saving. Customer can access their account anytime and anywhere no need to go the bank Customer can also check their account information and make funds transfer to their payee Customer can access too many services such as payment services, investment services and trading services Customer can open their new account Customer can access deposit account, remittance and apply Credit/Debit card Customer can update their profile such as changing their address, their phone number and so on. Although Internet banking has too many productive points and very popular in the recent years, there are few drawback that are worried by customers. Despite the Internet banking installed Internet security programs and latest anti-virus software, customers scared that privacy of their information and loss of user IDs and pin number also. By using Internet banking system, there are loss of communication with fellow and friends at physical branches of banks. Another problem which customer encounter occasional is, when the bank server is down, customer cannot access the Internet banking system. 4.3. System Design in Internet Banking Steps of System design in Internet banking are as follow: Firstly, the customer needs to request the URL. Customer login the system, then the system checks User ID and Pin No. After the system check User ID and Pin No. , then the system check that this customer is valid or not. If it is valid, then that customer need to key in their OTP can access the system so the customer can see the Main Menu page of the Internet banking website. Then the customer can choose from many menus such as viewing Account Information, Funds Transfer, Payment, Trading and Investment Services, Opening New Account, Remittance, and Update Customer Profile and so on. For example, if the customer chooses the Funds transfer menu, then the customer need to select Funds Transfer type such as Funds Transfer to My own A/C, Funds Transfer to Other A/C and Funds Transfer to Other Bank. Then customer needs to choose From Account, To Account and Amount. After that, submit this information to the system. And then ensure the detailed information and click Confirm button to accomplish the transaction. Key in his/her iB Secure PIN(for OTP) to complete this transaction After logout, customer needs to clear cache for security reason. Figure 4.1 Use Case Diagram for Internet Banking System Assumption: Assume that the customer already enter the banks home page. Account holder, credit/debit card holder can conduct this system. Bank database, Users account no:, amount of money (transaction), states and other. Assume, Users can log out the system after the transaction. User can cancel the system before the transaction. 4.4. Sample Use case specification 1. Login When customer wants to access their account from bank database, they must need to login the system with User ID and Pin No. The system will prompt error message when the customer may be an invalid user. If valid, customer can access the Main menu page of the Internet banking system. 2. Logout The system must logout after the customers works are done. After logout the system, the customer must need to clear the cache of the system for the security reasons. In this step, customer should have been logged in already. Figure 4.2 Deployment Diagram for Internet Banking System Conclusion and Further Study In this report, we focused on importance and foundation of System Analysis and Design in Internet banking system. We choose Internet banking system as case study because in this recent year, Internet banking becomes a well-known and very useful system among people. We based on a Framework of System Analysis and Design, techniques or approaches System Design, Internet Banking, types of internet Banking, Pros and Cons of Internet Banking, and the last topic is System Design in Internet Banking. We can study as System Analysis and Design in Mobile banking for future work because this system is also very popular and very convenience. To access this system the customer just need to have mobile phone and just access the transaction with sms.

How has social media changed the way marketers and consumers communicate with one another? Essay

| First, marketers must realize that they often do not control the content on social media sites. Second, the ability to share experiences quickly and with such large number of people amplifies the impact of word of mouth in a way that can eventually affect a company’s bottom line. Third, social media allow marketers to listen. It is no longer one way communication. Marketers now can actually have conversation with customers and get feedbacks. Fourth, social media also provide more sophisticated methods of measuring how marketers meet and interact with consumers than traditional advertising does. Fifth, social media allow marketers to have much more direct and meaningful conversations with customers.| | , forge deeper relationships, and build brand loyalty. Social media also allows consumers to connect with each other, share opinions, and collaborate on new ideas according to their interests. With social media, the audience is often in control of the message, the medium, the r esponse, or all three. Some companies have had trouble adjusting to this new distribution of control, but the focus of social marketing is on the audience and the brand must adapt to succeed. The interaction between producer and consumer becomes less about entertaining and more about listening, influencing, and engaging.| | 29. How does price interact with the other three Ps of the marketing mix? (Points : 0.5| The marketing manager determines the goals of the company’s promotional strategy in light of the firm’s overall goals for the marketing mix-product, product, place, promotion and price.| Product: The price setting and the quality of the product is related. The price must be decided according to the level of the product and demand for the product. Place: Offering a large profit margin to distributors can often attain adequate distribution of a new product. Promotion: Price can be the main tool for promotion. Low price, discount coupons, events, or campaigns can be used for promotion.| Instructor Explanation:| | 5. Describe the five gaps identified in the gap model of service quality that can cause problems in service delivery and influence customer evaluations of service quality. Discuss ways that marketers can close each gap. (Points : 0. .| Question 😠 Describe the five gaps identified in the gap model of service quality that can cause problems in service delivery and influence customer evaluations of service quality. Discuss ways that marketers can close each gap.| | Student Answer:| | This is gap 3. Gap 3 is due to the inability of management and employees to do what should be done. Management should ensure that employees have the skills and the proper tools to perform their jobs. Other techniques that help to close gap 3 are training employees so they know what management expects and encouraging teamwork.| | Instructor Explanation:| GAP 1 is the gap between what customers want and what management thinks customers want. This gap results from a lack of understanding or a misinterpretation of the customers’ needs. To close gap1, firms must stay attuned to customers’ wishes by researching customer needs and satisfaction.GAP 2 is the gap between what management thinks customers want and the quality specifications that management develops to provide the service. Essentially, this gap is the result of management’s inability to translate customers’ needs into delivery systems within the firm.GAP 3 is the gap between the se rvice quality specifications and the service that is actually provided. Management needs to ensure that employees have the skills and the proper tools to perform their jobs.Other techniques to clos gap 3 are training employees and encouraging teamwork.GAP 4 is the gap between what the company provides and what the customer is told it provides. This is clearly a communications gap. To close gap 4, companies need to create realistic customer expectations through honest, accurate communication about what the firms can provide.GAP 5 is the gap between the service that customers receive and the service they want. This gap can be positive or negative.|

The Characteristics of Asa Formatted Essay Samples

The Characteristics of Asa Formatted Essay Samples What Everybody Dislikes About Asa Formatted Essay Samples and Why How to compose a reflective essay on growing up While the absolutely free essays can offer you inspiration for writing, they can't be applied as agreed to the notion that education has an important part on economic growth. From time to time, the best method to learn and understand new information is by way of seeing and understanding work which is already completed. The understanding of the past is the ideal approach to move in the future. For those who haven't any yet, then it is going to be better for you to hunt for any examples and samples of works to comprehend the way the work ought to be completed and formatted. Asa Formatted Essay Samples: No Longer a Mystery It can arrive in the shape of specialist essay writing help. Students must understand all the elements to be in a position to format it correctly. Students who do not have any experience with pa per formatting can adhere to these suggestions to master ASA style. Begin your preparation ahead of time. It is possible to also hunt for samples of ASA formatting online. Additionally, there are key guidelines that has to be followed to be able to properly format the whole manuscript. In compliance with the ASA citation guide, if you're going to apply them, assure yourself that they're numbered in a suitable way. If you don't understand how to cite in ASA format style, there are many alternatives to pick from. The Little-Known Secrets to Asa Formatted Essay Samples If you would like to assure yourself that you're going through all steps correctly in regards to quoting, consider seeking the ASA style guide sample paper and see the way the quotes are structured there. When there is need to specify the specific page number you've cited, then you may write it after the publication year. Sources that won't be changed, in the majority of cases need to be referred to in the print form. Also, it's a whole lot faster to reference a site or book by using totally free on-line citation app s. Students should choose which position they need to take based upon the number and caliber of the points they're in a position to come up with to support their position. Some students find a great deal of difficulty writing the essay, even if they can locate strong points. Every student is to take note of them. Later on, other students may cite your work also. The Appeal of Asa Formatted Essay Samples All citations will show up in the body of the paper. Headings are only acceptable when they don't signify the beginning of the paper. The 5-Minute Rule for Asa Formatted Essay Samples You'll find many samples on the internet, along with in our blog on this site. Generally, your name should be present at the cover page, though it is going to be the best to put it on each and every page. Thus, the given list should be organized in alphabetical order and give all the vital parts of information for readers to locate the initial source easily. You're able to read more on the subject of the different citation styles at this site. But What About Asa Formatted Essay Samples? The aim of the Response Papers is to enable you to make that synthesis and to enable you to communicate your understanding. There's quite a few helpful guidelines you may use to boost your paper and facilitate your writing process. If you are able to use the provided information in a smart way, you'll be in a position to create your efficient study program. It's also advised to write down all of the information considering sources you take as a basis at the phase of literature research so as not to forget some essential details. Who Else Wants to Learn About Asa Formatted Essay Samples? If so, you can check the Section 4.3.2.2. It is suggested to set the acknowledgements in the title page, but it's not necessarily. This page contains an extensive collection of the sources which were cited in the paper. A title page isn't required in a typical MLA report. Generally speaking, th e given citation is place at the close of the sentence. It will allow you to avoid any probable mistakes. Citing is a wonderful means to prevent plagiarism. Keep all punctuation away from the parenthesis. There's yet another step you should make as a way to prepare ideal writing is to make an APA style essay outline. You also ought to don't hesitate to use outside sources if they will assist you in making a more powerful argument. The very first step is to select an exciting topic for the upcoming essay. Take a look at our top totally free essays on missing my very best friend to assist you write your own essay. Three pages is a rather brief essay, and that means you will need to concentrate your ideas carefully. But if you simply need to rapidly learn the fundamentals and turn in a tidy, well-formatted essay, read on! Be certain to ask them about essay format together with the content of your writing.

Cultural Dominance Of Male Over Female - 1340 Words

Antonio Gramsci’s hegemony defined as the dominance of one group over another has been occurring since the beginning of time. It is where a dominant force exerts its influence in society and exert their own power over other groups. Hegemony is seen with the cultural dominance of male over female. Because of this dominance men have assumed the right to determine what is masculine and what is not. With hegemony, here will be always an opposing force that plans a strategy in order to combat and defeat their adversary. Homosexuality is often depicted as inferiority. Heterosexual men see homosexual men as adversary to be defeated. Men has defined their masculinity by very specific set of behavior, habits and activities acting strong, being involved in sports and becoming engineer or doctors. Any men who do not behave according to these characteristics is viewed as â€Å"effeminate†. A young man like the actor in the movie who does not engage in vigorous sports but is intere sted in theater and poetry and shows sensitivity is perceived as being a â€Å"Sister Boy† a code word for as being â€Å"Gay†. This is a hint that a lack of what society perceives as masculinity is linked to homosexuality. Homosexuals are attracted to people of their gender. Homosexuals are usually human beings very aware of their gender, their masculinity or femininity while being attracted to members of the same sex or gender. In the movie, this very sensitive and apparently fragile young man falls in love with an olderShow MoreRelatedThe Science Of Human Sexuality Essay1437 Words   |  6 Pagesshowing it the pathway to same-sex acceptance that it still walks. The third wave lasted till the 1970’ and developed in the U.S. with Alfred Kinzey’s construction of the first sexual education course. His texts, Sexual Behavior in the Human Male and its female counterpart, include thousands of scientific interviews which enabled him to invalidate beliefs of inferior sexuality in women and harmful effects of premarital sex. Late in the third stage, William Masters and Virginia Johnson began a programRead MoreThe Synoptic Gospels Lies A Brief Passage Of A Man Carrying The Cross For Jesus1717 Words   |  7 Pagesfirst cross is one fashioned by the tools of racism and White supremacy. This cross is the tool in which the Black female body and identity is oppressed and manipulate through the means of White heterosexual male dominance. This dominance is exerted through the vehicle of mainstream American cultural standards. These standards seek to devest the voice of the feminine in Black cultural perception and Black self-interpretation. These interpretations and perceptions subsequently do harm to the institutionRead MoreThe Feminist Theory Of Women s Representation On The Company Board Of The Australian Agriculture Company Essay1706 Words   |  7 Pagesreveal an insight to Women’s representation on the company board of the Australian Agriculture Company (AACo). Through the notion of gender, feminists analyse relations of power concerning males and females, how that power is exerted and the that interaction has habitually, historically and socially implemented over time. There are four major lenses of feminism; liberal, Marxist, radical and socialism. The findings in this paper focus on the strengths and limitations of radical and liberalist feministRead MoreThe God Of Small Things1640 Words   |  7 Pagesnovels set in societies where females are significantly of lesser value and oppressed by male figures. TGOST is an Indian novel following the Ipe family and their interactions during adverse situations. Tiny Sunbirds Far Away shows the struggles that Blessing and her family endure when moving from their wealthy apartment in Lagos to a complex in countryside Nigeria. Through their respective novels, Roy and Watson explore the detrimental effects the dominance males have over women both in family and societyRead MoreFemale Students Pursuing Science, Technology, Engineering, Or Mathematics Essay1670 Words   |  7 PagesThe number of female students pursuing science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) majors in US colleges has been on the increase, even though male dominance persists, particularly in the upper levels of STEM careers. Male and female students at the elementary, middle, and high school levels leave school equally prepared to pursue STEM majors at the college and university levels. However, fewer females tend to pursue these majors. Female students are less likely to indicate intentionsRead MoreVisual images Reinforce Traditional Gender and Sexuality Stereo types948 Words   |  4 PagesVisual images reinforce traditional gender and sexuality stereotypes through the manifestation of the masculine and feminine miens. An examination of print media advertisements highlights the social and cultural ideologies associated with traditional gender roles that are expected and imposed on by society. â€Å"Advertisements are deeply woven into the fabric of Western Culture, drawing on and reinforcing commonly held perceptions and beliefs† of gender and sexuality stereotypes. They have a strongRead MoreIntroduction In this paper, I argue that while sexual violence is arguably the monopoly of men, it1000 Words   |  4 PagesIntroduction In this paper, I argue that while sexual violence is arguably the monopoly of men, it is culturally cultivated rather than biologically determined. Consistent with the concept of Hegemonic Masculinity which theorises male domination of other males and subordination of females (Connell, 2005), I assert that rape is particularly rampant in societies where sexual violence is an effective means of attaining this status quo. Thus when rape is institutionalised in the context of war where masculinityRead MoreWomen And The Middle East And North Africa1148 Words   |  5 PagesThe diversities within North Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia (cultural, religious, political, etc.) play a crucial part in the status of women and the key features of gender roles in these particular geographic regions. The Middle East and North Africa share commonalities through Arabic and Islamic culture. Establishing equalities for women amongst the current social and political changes of Middle Eastern and North African societies stands as a difficult obstacle to overcome, but inRead MoreThe Cultural Constructs That Germaine Greer1176 Words   |  5 Pagesthink it portrays the cultural constructs that Germaine Greer writes about in the last chapter of her book. According to Greer Maleness is the natural condition, the sex if you will, and masculinity is the cultural construct, the gender (728). Her essay focuses on discussing the possible force at work which shapes society’s concept of what is considered the masculine male. She concludes that cultural influences on males and/or females will â€Å"not only produce the masculine male but also how women fitRead MoreHegemonic Masculinity : Masculinity And Masculinity1169 Words   |  5 Pagesdominate over women and subordinate the social position of women, however if a male is raped by a women, then it introduces insecurities and reverses hegemonic masculinity (Duncanson 2015). Hegemonic masculinity can be seen as culturally idealised concept in which is both personal and collective and can be commonly understood as the continuation of the breadwinning husband and caring subordinative woman (Donaldson 1993). When discussed within sexual roles, Hegemonic masculinity depicts females as submissive

Literature Review of Organizational Change, 2000 to 2008

Introduction There has been a considerable body of literature dedicated to assisting organisational leaders in their endeavours to implement change (Holt, Self, Thal Lo 2002). Many authors concur that the prime task of leaders is to bring about change and that leadership and change management are indeed inextricably linked (Burnes 2003, Stoker 2006, Maurer 2008). Robinson and Harvey (2008) maintain that the acceleration of globalisation has resulted in a tumultuous state of change as organisations struggle to adapt to new models of leadership. Consequently, few would dispute that with such increasing globalisation, deregulation, rapid pace of technology and shifting social and demographic trends that leading organisational change is†¦show more content†¦(2003) who argue that regardless of the specific phases of the change process or which type of change model is used, the extent of success at the end of the process is affected by the leader’s ability to influence members of th e organisation to adopt and implement change. Essentially these ‘influence strategies’ encourage affected employees to adopt and exhibit the appropriate behaviours that translate into organisational gains (Holt et al. 2003). Landrum, Howell and Paris (2000) also point out the importance of being able to apply leadership skills that will gain commitment from followers and change attitudes, beliefs and if necessary the goals of followers. Accordingly, it can be seen that one of the skills a leader and indeed a change leader must possess is the ability to influence employees. This gives rise to establish what specific skills an individual change leader requires to exert this influence. Graetz (2000) and Ellinger, Ellinger and Keller (2003) highlight that there has been a radical shift in the role of senior managers from the traditional authoritarian, command and control style to a more open, participative approach that emphasises a non-positional, team-based and empowering model. With the focus on cooperation, communication and collaboration, Graetz (2000) maintains that managers need to adopt a completely different range of leadership skills in addition to the traditional technical dimensions of management. Stewart andShow MoreRelatedA Study On Refining Organizational Training Essay951 Words   |  4 Pagescapabilities is at the core front of any organization. This capstone literature review plan focuses on refining organizational training research, demonstrating an understanding of current organizational environment and limitations, and how the capstone project can fit in the global context of training. II. Describe a plan to collect and organize literature that explains the history of the topic. This capstone project literature review will consist of historic and present studies of employee trainingRead MoreEvaluation Of A Project On Training Curriculum Development1198 Words   |  5 PagesI. INTRODUCTION This capstone project literature review intends among others things, to refine the research ideas, demonstrate awareness of the current state of knowledge on training curriculum development, its limitations and how the research fits in the context of a learning organization. This research process makes a good starting point for the capstone project. The research uses evidence from conceptual theories to database research literature from several learning organizations training Read MoreSocial Leadership, Global Management, And Millennial Leadership Essay1167 Words   |  5 PagesChapter Two In this chapter, it will provide an overview of the literature that has been included in this proposed study. The literature used in this chapter was developed and reviewed by various articles, books, magazines, website journals, and peer reviewed articles on management, mentoring, global leadership, global management, and millennial leadership. The gaps in literature within this study were based on literature that was used between 1999 and present. The conceptual framework used in thisRead MoreThe Impact Of Organizational Citizenship Behaviour By The Five Dimensions, Antecedents And Their Consequences1648 Words   |  7 PagesTitle : Literature Review Due date : 23rd November 2015 Date submitted : 19th November 2015 Word count : 1472 Declaration: I have read and understand the Rules relating to Awards (Rule 3.18) as contained in the University Handbook. I understand the penalties that apply for plagiarism and agree to be bound by these rules. The work I am submitting electronically is entirely my own work . Signed : Aneesh Rama Date : 19th November 2015 Literature Review AbstractRead MoreCross-Cultural Problems in the Uae1641 Words   |  7 PagesWith Cross-Cultural Differences at Workplace in the UAE OR Impact of Cross-Cultural Differences On Adjustment of Expatriate Employees in the Work Environment of the UAE INTRODUCTION / LITERATURE REVIEW The working environment in the UAE has seen huge changes in the last 25 years or so. The change has been introduced primarily by the opening up of multinational firms in the UAE. This has created job opportunities for expatriates, therefore bringing about a large diversity in the workplaceRead MoreHow Effective Leadership Leads The Great Creativity And Innovation Essay1322 Words   |  6 Pages4 1.2 Background to the study 4 1.3 The research problem 4 1.4 Rationale (reason for the study) 4 1.5 Aims and objectives of the study 4 1.6 Research questions 4 1.7 The relevance of the study 4 1.8 Structure of the dissertation 5 Chapter 2 Literature review (3500words) 5 2.1. Introduction 5 2.2. Conclusion 5 Chapter 3 Research methods (1500 words) 5 3.1 Introduction 5 3.2 Research purpose 5 3.3 The research framework 5 3.4 Research philosophy and perspective 5 3.5 Research Approach adopted 5 3.6Read MoreSupply Chain : A Source Of Competitive Advantage1658 Words   |  7 PagesSupply chain has gained importance in the current world of business. With the advent of globalization and competitive advantage being key aspects of organizational existence, it is essential to look into sustainability of the same. This research paper focuses on the need for this sustainability and how supply chains can make a difference to the sustainability of the planet. It will also explore supply chain practices that could be a source of competitive advantage. Introduction In the world ofRead MoreImplementation Of Implementing Change And Developing Worldwide Rivalry1452 Words   |  6 PagesIMPLEMENTING CHANGE Introduction: Businesses are constantly required to adapt to changing environment in order to maintain their position in the market and even more so if they are to truly grow.† (Biedenbacha and Soumlderholma, 2008). Changes are the crucial things in â€Å"the present market, the present rate of technological progress and growing and developing worldwide rivalry let us predict a proceeding with requirement change in future. (Armenakis and Harris, 2009). The writer says change never beginsRead MoreSustaining or Institutionalizing Change1195 Words   |  5 PagesSustaining change Sustaining or Institutionalization change is making change permanent part of the organization and internalization is stabilization of change. (P Subba Rao). Gains made from change are lost from the abandonment of new practices is call initiative decay (Buchanan et al., 1999, Doyle et al., 2000). So strategy on how to sustain the changes made is a crucial element in change management process. But relatively little research has been carried out on the issue of sustainability. MostRead MoreResource Based View of Social Entrepreneurship: Puting the Pieces Together813 Words   |  3 Pagesbeen little scholarly output in mainstream journals (Short, Moss, Lumpkin 2009). Social entrepreneurship is commonly defined as â€Å"entrepreneurial activity with an embedded social purpose† (Austin et al. 2006). Social entrepreneurs play a role of change agents in society by adopting missions to create and sustain social value. They recognize and pursue new opportunities to serve the particu lar mission at hand. Social entrepreneurs engage in a process of continuous innovation, adaption and learning

Identification of the Impact of Cultural Diversity Free Essays

string(67) " say wins in matters of conflicts or arguments in my organisation\." CURTIN UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF HUMANITIES (DEPARTMENT OF CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT) IDENTIFICATION OF THE IMPACT OF HOFSTEDE’S CROSS-CULTURAL DIMENSIONS ON THE DETERMINANTS OF PROJECT SUCCESS AMONG MANAGERS IN PRIVATE SECTOR ORGANIZATIONS IN MIRI, SARAWAK, MALAYSIA Uyi Rapheal Edomwandagbon 7e0b8198/14 Mitrabinda Singh Research thesis presented as a part of the requirements for the award of the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE (Project Management) June 2012 Acknowledgement My most sincere thanks and gratitude goes to my supervisor, Mrs. Mitrabinda Singh for her consistence patience, valuable advice and guidance throughout this final year project in every aspect. In addition, I would like to express my greatest gratitude to all the lecturers in Curtin University who at one time or the other have been there for me throughout the duration of this Master of Science in Project Management course. We will write a custom essay sample on Identification of the Impact of Cultural Diversity or any similar topic only for you Order Now I would also like to say a Special thanks to all my course mates and seniors for their contributions and support in the writing of this research. Last but not least, I would like to thank all of my family both here and back home for giving me this opportunity, Ik and Mathilda for their unrelenting effort in supporting me and Manami for her encouragements and love. Abstract The research focuses on identifying the underlying impact of Hofstede’s cross-cultural dimensions on project success among private sector organisations in Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia. Cultural difference is predominantly existent in most of today’s private sector organisations but the effect has been greatly overlooked. Following the aim of the study a number of questions has been drawn which the research aims to answer and an in-depth analysis of past literatures and studies has been conducted and used for the purpose of the underlying research and a number of hypotheses have been drawn for testing this study. First, an identification of the factors necessary for project success was done, followed by an analysis of cultural dimensions developed by Geert Hofstede (1984). The effect of each of the dimensions in relation to organisations success factors was identified and these were applied to develop a correlation between the cultural dimensions and project success. The research study shall be conducted within selected strata of 20 private sector organisation in Miri with only the managers as participants, employing a quantitative approach using a set of questionnaire containing questions with 5-point likert scale and a demographic section of open and close-ended questions distributed among managers in Private sector organisations located in Miri, Sarawak. The resulting findings and conclusion shall help in establishing this relationship and provide substantial evidence on if cross-cultural differences in Private sector organisations contribute to the success of project in Private sector organisations located around Miri, Malaysia. The relationship as evaluated by Tukiainen et al. (2004) and (Matveev and Milter 2004) is that the heterogeneous group of managers coming from different nations have lower project success and according to Higgs(1996) the heterogeneous group get advantages to get higher project success than the homogeneous group. The homogenous group here is the group of managers who are Malaysians from Miri private sector organizations. To analyse the group differences an independent sample T-test is conducted. Multiple regressions have been conducted to test the hypotheses. Table of Contents Chapter 11 1. 1INTRODUCTION1 1. 2BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY2 1. 3PROBLEM STATEMENT3 1. 4RESEARCH OBJECTIVES5 1. 5OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF CONCEPTS AND TERMS5 1. 6METHODOLOGY7 1. 7STRUCTURE OF THE REPORT8 Chapter 29 2. 1INTRODUCTION9 2. 2UNDERSTANDING PROJECT SUCCESS9 2. 2. 1Measuring project success10 2. 3CULTURAL DIFFERENCES13 . 3. 1Understanding Culture and Cultural Difference13 2. 3. 2Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions theory14 2. 3. 3The Effect of Cultural Difference on Project Success16 2. 4HYPOTHESES DEVELOPMENT19 2. 5CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK AND HYPOTHESIS25 Chapter 326 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY26 3. 1INTRODUCTION26 3. 1. 1Application of study26 3. 1. 2Objectives of the research27 3. 1. 3Mode of enquiry27 3. 2FORMULATION OF RESEARCH PROBLEM28 3. 3CONCEPTUALIZATION OF A RESEARCH DESIGN28 3. 4CONSTRUCTING AN INSTRUMENT FOR DATA COLLECTION29 3. 5SELECTING A SAMPLE31 3. 6WRITING A RESEARCH PROPOSAL33 3. 7DATA COLLECTION34 . 8PROCESSING AND DISPLAYING THE DATA34 3. 9WRITING A RESEARCH REPORT35 3. 10RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPROVEMENT36 Chapter 437 ANALYSIS OF RESEARCH37 4. 1INTRODUCTION37 4. 2DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS37 4. 2. 1Company Profile (Dem1)38 4. 2. 2Number of employees in organisations (Dem2)39 4. 2. 3Employee Nationality (Dem3)39 4. 2. 4Number of Diverse employees in participating Organisations (Dem11)40 4. 2. 5General Language of communication in Organisations (Dem12)41 4. 2. 6Employee perception of Cultural diversity issues (Dem13)42 4. 3PROFILE OF RESPONDENTS44 4. 3. 1Age of the respondents (Dem5)45 4. 3. Gender (Dem4)45 4. 3. 3Education level of participants (Dem6)46 4. 3. 4Job Profile (Dem7-Dem10)47 4. 3. 5Years in current position (Dem10)48 4. 4SECTION 2: PROJECT SUCCESS FACTORS (Q1-33)49 4. 4. 1 Perception of Time, Cost and Quality as measures of Project Success50 4. 4. 2Percentage of Effective team performance51 4. 4. 3Percentage project management process quality53 4. 4. 4Percentage satisfies organisational goal and purpose55 4. 4. 5Percentage perception on benefits to stakeholders, Users and clients56 4. 4. 6Percentage efficient conflict management57 4. 4. 7Percentage benefit to organisation59 4. SECTION C: PERCEPTION OF EMPLOYEES ON CULTURAL DIVERSITY DIMENSIONS (CulD 1-25)61 4. 5. 1I agree that power and authority is being distributed equally among employees in my organisation. 61 4. 5. 2I agree that a certain level of power must be exercised to ensure that team members or employees are dedicated to their work in my organisation (CulD2)62 4. 5. 3I allow my employees to question me or top management when in disagreement with project or work related issues in my org. (CulD3)62 4. 5. 4I agree with the statement that my employees must adhere to my organisations rules even if it jeopardizes our organisational goals. CulD4)63 4. 5. 5I agree with the statement that employee supervision in my organisation is strict (CulD5)64 4. 5. 6I feel I have sufficient time for my family and personal life outside my workplace CulD665 4. 5. 7I agree that my employee appraisal is deserved for doing a good job at my organisation. CulD765 4. 5. 8I agree that an employee with the strongest say wins in matters of conflicts or arguments in my organisation. You read "Identification of the Impact of Cultural Diversity" in category "Essay examples" CulD866 4. 5. 9I like to help others as much as I can. CulD967 4. 5. 10I agree to the statement that working is the only means of livelihood. (CulD10)67 4. . 11I sometimes receive complaints from my employees about being stressed by work load. CulD1168 4. 5. 12I agree that my organisations rules must be strictly obeyed by my employees at all times. CulD1269 4. 5. 13I agree that time is most valuable to my employees when handling tas ks. CulD1369 4. 5. 14I agree with the statement that uncertainties and risks are normal features of life. CulD1470 4. 5. 15I believe that simple tasks should be handled first before others. CulD1571 4. 5. 16I allow the contribution of my employees in decision making in my organisations. CulD1671 4. 5. 7I agree that hiring and promotion decisions in my organisations in my organisations should be based on their performance and organisational rules only. CulD1772 4. 5. 18I have a sense of personal satisfaction when I accomplish challenging tasks at my organisation73 4. 5. 19I believe that my employees always follow group made decisions even if their personal convictions are against it. CulD1973 4. 5. 20I have employees who generally prefer to work on their own without their group cooperation (CulD20)74 4. 5. 21I believe that my organisations goals is best measured by the future achievements than the present achievements (CulD21)75 . 5. 22I agree that employee rewards and appraisals sho uld not be based only on their performance (CulD22)75 4. 5. 23I believe that rules should be broken in order to achieve innovation76 4. 5. 24I agree that commitment to my clients and stake holders is important in maintaining my relationship with them CulD2477 4. 5. 25I agree with the statement that my employees value their meal time and breaks even when pressed by challenging tasks (CulD25)77 4. 6FURTHER ANALYSIS78 4. 6. 1Reliability Test78 4. 6. 2Factor Analysis79 4. 6. 3Correlation Analysis81 4. 6. 3. 1Assumptions for correlationError! Bookmark not defined. 4. 6. Test of Hypothesis (H1a – H1e)82 4. 6. 4. 1Multiple Regression Analysis83 4. 6. 4. 2Assumptions checking for regression analysis84 4. 6. 4. 3H1: All the Hofstede’s Cultural dimensions relates to Project Success among managers of private sector organizations in Miri90 4. 6. 4. 4H1a: There is a relationship between Power distance in managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. 91 4. 6. 4. 5H1b: There is a relationship between the Societal Collectivism (Individualistic/Collectivist) attribute of managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. 91 4. 6. 4. H1c: There is a relationship between gender differentiation of social values (Masculinity/Femininity) among managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. 91 4. 6. 4. 7H1d: There is a relationship between uncertainty avoidance or the fear of unknowns among managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. 92 4. 6. 4. 8H1e: There is a relationship between Long term orientation for goal accomplishment among managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. 92 4. 6. 5Test Of Hypothesis (H2): Independent Samples Test93 Chapter 594 Recommendation and Conclusions94 5. 1Conclusion95 5. 1. 1Identification of the impact of Hofstede cultural dimension on determinants of project success among managers in private sector organizations in Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia. 95 5. 1. 2Hofstede’s cultural dimensions and project success96 5. 1. 3The Identification of whether heterogeneous group of managers coming from different nations get higher project success than the homogeneous groups. 97 5. 1. 4Conclusions relating to the main aim of the study97 5. 1. 5Value of the research98 5. 2Recommendations for future research98 References99 Appendix A104 Appendix C105 Appendix C110 Appendix D111 Appendix E113 List of Figures Figure 2. 1:Research Model25 Figure 4. 1: Company profile38 Figure 4. 2: No of Employees in organisations39 Figure 4. 3: Nationality of Respondents40 Figure 4. 4: Number of Diverse employees in participating40 Figure 4. 5: Number of diverse staffs in organisation41 Figure 4. 6: Respondent language of communication in organisation41 Figure 4. 7: Language of communication42 Figure 4. 8: Do you feel your organisation has no culture problems43 Figure 4. 9: Do you feel these issues do not affect your organisation43 Figure 4. 10: Does your organisation have plans to handle issues in their organisations43 Figure 4. 11: Do you feel these issues do not affect organisational objectives44 Figure 4. 12: Participant Age45 Figure 4. 13: Participant Gender46 Figure 4. 14: Education level of respondents46 Figure 4. 15: Job position of Respondents47 Figure 4. 16: Participant work schedule47 Figure 4. 17: Number of years of Respondents have worked in their organisations48 Figure 4. 18: Number of years working in same position49 Figure 4. 19: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (Culd 1)61 Figure 4. 20: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 2)62 Figure 4. 1: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 3)63 Figure 4. 22: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 4)64 Figure 4. 23: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 5)64 Figure 4. 24: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 6)65 Figure 4. 25: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 7)66 Figure 4. 26: Bar c hart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 8)66 Figure 4. 27: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 9)67 Figure 4. 28: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 10)68 Figure 4. 9: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 11)68 Figure 4. 30: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 12)69 Figure 4. 31: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 13)70 Figure 4. 32: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 14)70 Figure 4. 33: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 15)71 Figure 4. 34: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 16)72 Figure 4. 35: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 17)72 Figure 4. 36: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 18)73 Figure 4. 37: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 19)74 Figure 4. 38: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 20)74 Figure 4. 39: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 21)75 Figure 4. 40: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 22)76 Figure 4. 41: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 23)77 Figure 4. 42: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 24)77 Figure 4. 43: Bar chart of respondent response on Cultural Diversity (CulD 25)78 Figure 4. 44: Scatter plot for PS and HCD81 Figure 4. 5: Scatterplot85 Figure 4. 46: Histogram85 Figure 4. 47: scatterplot of standardised residual against power distance86 Figure 4. 48: Histogram for assumptions testing88 List of Tables Table 1. 1 Structure of the research8 Table 2. 1: Five cultural dimensions [as referred by Hofstede (2005)] and attributes drawn from the literature17 Table 3. 2: Coding/Item Generation From Li terature To Measure Project Success (DV)30 Table 3. 3: Coding/item generation from literature to measure Cultural Diversity(IDV)30 Table 3. 4: Participating Organizations (Coded)33 Table 4. 1: Respondent perception of Time, Cost and Quality50 Table 4. 2: Employee perception of effective team performance51 Table 4. 3: Respondent perception on project management process quality53 Table 4. 4: Respondent perception on satisfying organisational goal and purpose55 Table 4. 5: Employee perception on benefits to client, stakeholders and users56 Table 4. 6: Respondent perception on efficient conflict management58 Table 4. 7: Respondent percentage on benefit to organisational60 Table 4. 8: Cronbach Alpha for project success (PS)78 Table 4. 9: Cronbach Alpha for Cultural Diversity (CulD)78 Table 4. 10: Factor analysis for project success80 Table 4. 11: Factor analysis for Cultural diversity80 Table 4. 12: Pearson correlation of variables82 Table 4. 13: Correlation statistics82 Table 4. 14: Descriptive statistics of correlation81 Table 4. 15: ANOVA88 Table 4. 16: Model summary89 Table 4. 17: coefficients table89 Table 4. 19 : Independent Sample Test93 1. 0 INTRODUCTION A diverse workforce, built of so many people of different backgrounds has a high contribution to how organizational objectives and goals are achieved due to the availability of a mix of people with completely different understanding, emotions, thinking and attitudes. But does this affect the success of projects executed in these organizations? Thus, an understanding of the impact of different cultural dimensions is effective in identifying how organizations with cultural diverse employees attain successes in project undertaken in their organizations and knowledge of whether the differences in culture or nationality have a positive or negative effect on their organizational success is important. The increasing globalization trend today is coupled with surge for the need of skilled labor and has seen the global migration of people from every part of the world to different countries creating a web of organizations with so many cultural diverse employees working together in the same organizations. The impact of the cultural differences is fast becoming the focus of so many researches as it tends to have a relationship with how organizations employing cultural diverse staff function. This research explores the relationship between the well known cross cultural theory of Hofstede and the determinants of project success outcomes among Private sector organizations in Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia with an emphasis on Private workplace employee relationship and interaction and how the differences of their culture helps or stands as a barrier in their actualization of their goals and objectives. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY The differences that are inherent in people such as their dressing, religion, languages and behaviors in their society and organizations values and shows how this differences in people is related to the way they interact with their environment, environment in this context refers not only to their physical environment but also to the people they have to deal as they go along with their everyday life. Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia is located on the eastern part of Malaysia with a population of about 300,000 people of the 25,581 approximate Malaysia population (Salleh 2007), consisting of Iban, Chinese, Malays, Berawan, Lumbawang, Malanau, Indian, Kayan, Kenyah, Kelabit, Bidayuh, Penan and other non-indigenous groups such as Europeans, Arabs and Africans etc. f different diverse backgrounds and religions and this collection of people are the overall make up of most of the Private sector workforce located here. The impact of these diverse work forces of people is sometimes overlooked and ignored which tends to undeniably affect how managers and employees relate with their counterparts of different cultures. This has an effect on workplace relationship can be a limiting or contributing factor to how their organizational goals are achieved on the long run. However, there have been a lot of researches carried out on cultural diversity among manager and on organizational themes, but the true impact of its effects on these organizations performance is quite limited to a wider sphere of cross-country organizations and not attributed to places such as Miri. Just as a the combination of different sounds produce music(good) or noise(bad), so does a combination of people of different diverse background could also have results that could be positive or negative in organizations. PROBLEM STATEMENT During a formal peer coaching session with some colleagues of different cultures, it was easy to recognize the effect that working in Malaysia with others of diverse backgrounds had on diverse employees in carrying out their daily work, in other words, general job satisfaction and if this views could be shared by others of different cultures working in similar multi cultures environments. Were they generally satisfied with their jobs or are they just there â€Å"working to get their daily bread†. A study of the effects of cultural diversity on a joint Russian and British project showed that there is a relevance of cultural differences to project success and that it could affect the output of the project (Murray-Webster and Simon 2004). Their analysis of the project led to the discovery that although all factors that are necessary for the success of the project were in place, there was an underestimation of how diverse teams could guarantee the success of that project and that it is appropriate that organisations conducting projects should have relevant understanding of the differences in work behaviour and individual preferences of the diverse project teams. Success of projects in organizations has been attributed to the existence of a comfortable work environment that encourages a workforce where employees feel empowered to exert maximum efforts that enable job satisfaction and comfort, with the ability to be able to deal with uncertainties that may arise. This also puts a stress on the organizations managers and insists that manager should be able to create an atmosphere were goals are clearly nderstood and employee participation is high (Belassi 2007). Kendra (2004) attributes that there is a high rate of failure in projects in organizations which was due to factors such as poor working relationships between employees, lack of trust among team members and proposes that the importance of organizations promotion of a shared cultural value could help in improving their project success rate. Kendra’s suggestions were based on organizational culture but on an individual level of analysis (were cultural diversity is less observed from) could be related and the impact could be seen from a much expanded view as these refers to groups of people with different backgrounds and understanding based on their cultures. Following Geert Hofstede (2005) in showing the way countries react to different cultures, there are some outstanding views on the application and adaption of the 5 dimensions of Hofstede on the basis that, although, it was correct, it seemed to be based on just Hofstede assumptions using only country values and it has to be seen from other perspectives which they broke down to be individual, organizational and country (Kirkman, Lowe, and Gibson 2006). An analysis of the individual level of cultural diversity would help in justifying this statement and thus this research shall be aimed at the individual and organizational level of cultural diversity with managers as our focal point. The willingness of employees to accept and succumb to the issues from difference in culture has a high impact in organizational success. mployees in cultural diverse organizations should have an understanding of their culturally diverse counterparts as it helps to improve their team efficiency and communication which are essential to induce success in the organization, thus cultural differences should not be ignored but appreciated and welcomed in cultural diverse organizations, in other to attain their organizational goal and objectives (Frey-Ridgway 1997). In other to achieve favorable outcomes by organizations, it is necessary to assume differences in people in an individual sphere and not in the category of culture based differences that is accomplished with a comfortable work atmosphere portraying equality between people (Day 2007), with an understanding and respect for the individual differences that are inherent in people and embedded in the organizations everyday processes (Magdaleno and Kleiner 1993). In the Malaysian context, the Malaysian employee is said to be Collectivist by nature, and are more open to their local subordinates than an outsider or foreigner in their workplace, but does this have an impact on their culturally diverse counterparts in the same workplace. Nelson and Quick suggests, the Malaysian culture is collectivist in nature but only a section or department of these people (Nelson and Quick 1997). The question arises here is â€Å"are managers from Miri private organizations have the same value for Hofstede’s cultural dimensions? † RESEARCH OBJECTIVES This research aims at identifying how Hofstede’s cultural dimensions in Private sectors of organizations in Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia affects the determinants of project success and the main objectives of this research are as shown below * Identification of the Impact of Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions on determinants of Project Success among Managers in Private Sector Organizations in Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia * Whether heterogeneous group of managers coming from different nations get higher project success than the homogeneous group from Miri private sector organizations. The objectives will be achieved by doing a study on Managers from Miri private sector organization, which at least employ 2 managers from different nationalities. OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF CONCEPTS AND TERMS The following terms are associated with this research, Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, project, project management process, project success, intercultural communication. A proper definition of these terms would provide a better understanding in the research. Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Hofstede’s cultural dimensions developed (1980-2001) as a measure of culture is the dominant metric of culture as it closely relates to many cultural attributes from many different countries. This study also had used the largest sample for an empirical study on employees of IBM with employees belonging to 66 countries. This study helped to a large extent in bridging the gap between two different/dissimilar cultures (Yoo, Donthu, and Lenartowicz 2011). The five different dimensions are Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance, Collectivism, Long-Term Orientation, and Masculinity. The last dimension was taken from ‘Confucian work dynamism’ (Yoo, Donthu, and Lenartowicz 2011). Culture defines an individual in terms of distinction of people from another group (Kelley and Fitzsimons 1999). (Gomez-Mejia and Palich 1997) suggests that to measure differences in culture we need to calculate the cultural similarity indicators. The five dimensions of Hofstede in this study will be taken as the cultural similarity indicators. Cultural Difference The cultural differences refers to the individual differences in the cultures of people living together in a common society. By neglecting cultural differences and the refusal for its acceptance has been a problem and as Garcia (2011) suggests in her study of the long non-acceptance or recognition of cultural diversity in Europe and how it stands as a problem to the new Europe and the need for an understanding and education on the issues of cultural diversity for promotion to individuals of the future so as to cultivate an early awareness of it. The cultural difference in this study is identified from the nationality of the participants (managers from private sector organizations). Project Success Project success can be said to have been achieved when a project is completed with all objectives and goals being fulfilled. Defining project success can be in different ways, for software developers it could be on-time delivery, for designers it could be appreciation of a design, for a project manager it could be on-time, budget completion that meets the required quality of the output. Project success in this research is being defined by success factors which serve as characteristics by which the objectives of the project can be said to have been successful completed. These factors used in this research as a defining measure of success for projects are, time, cost, budget, efficiency of the project teams, conflict management and project management process, ability to satisfy the organizations goals, finally, benefits to stakeholder, clients and users. Project A project can be defined as any endeavor that has been undertaken to achieve a goal (Project Management Institute 2004). Project Management process A process is a set of interrelated activities and actions performed to achieve a predefined result. Project management processes are activities that are taken to achieve a project objective. The project management process quality as used in this research refers to the effectiveness of the project management process in the execution of the project. METHODOLOGY The study was carried out following the approach as suggested by Kumar (Kumar 2005) listed below: * Formulate research problem * Compile literature review * Develop the project schedule * Establish a research design * Collect and Analyze and process the data Suggestions and improvements * Establish research conclusions * Finalize report STRUCTURE OF THE REPORT The report comprises of 5 chapters and is structured in table (Table 1. 1) below: Table [ 1 ]. 1 Structure of the research Chapters| Description| Chapter 1. 0 Introduction| This chapter gives us an overview of the report and introduces us to the background of the research, aims and objectives of study and operational definitions of the terms used in the research. | Chapt er 2. Literature Review| This chapter consists of reviews of available literatures on project success and Hofstede cultural dimensions. | Chapter 3. 0 Research Methodology| This gives an idea of the overall research process while. It gives us a summary of how the research will be undertaken including the research design, literature review, population and sample, data collection instruments and process. | Chapter 4. 0 Analysis of Research| This chapter presents a detailed analysis of the study based on findings in addressing our aims and objectives and answering our research question| Chapter 5. Recommendations and Conclusions| This chapter gives a summary of the findings in the research study and addresses the value of the research with recommendations for future researches| 1. 0 INTRODUCTION This research shall be accomplished using management studies and articles from past researches by Authors with a focus on Cultural Diversity and Project Success, the identification of past find ings in the study of cultural diversity and project success and an exploration of how these findings are related and contribute to this study. Subsequently a look into the main aims of project management in accomplishing project within the confines of time, costs and quality, management responsibilities as well as the contribution to achieving organizational project success. UNDERSTANDING PROJECT SUCCESS The Project Management Institute defines a project as a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product, service or result (Project Management Institute 2004). From this definition, it can be clearly seen that the word temporary means that it has an end time or duration and being unique means that it has an expected level of requirement or quality. The goal of every project is to be completed within the confines of time, cost and quality and a failure in any of these factors usually has a relational effect on the others and can undermine the overall goal of that project. For a project to be successful, an understanding of the project objectives and scope by the project team is essential. Recognising the actual needs of the client and satisfying those needs is what actually counts in saying the project was completed successfully, and these all depends on the three factors of the project completion in time, within the budget and with the required quality maintained. Although, it is inarguable about the Time, Cost and Quality factors for projects success, Dennis Lock suggests that the success of a project, though judged from these three objectives depends on some other factors and actions undertaken during the project and certain of these factors relate directly to employees in the organizations, such as; a strong support for the project and its manager from higher management, sound organizational quality culture, good project communication, well motivated staffs and a quick and fair resolution of conflict (Lock 2007). These views of other related factors that contribute to project success are instrumental to the measurement of project success and a project that is successful can be subsequently tagged as successful if these factors are met. Measuring project success In the determination of project success, it is essential to establish how we define it. The most common measurement of project success is by the measures of the success factors and the critical success criteria’s. From previous studies there is an undeniable difference between both terms. uccess factors are said to be measures that are put in place to ensure that the project becomes successful i. e. what must be done right to achieve the project success, while the success criteria are the indicators or benchmarks that are used to refer to a project as being successful (Cooke-Davies 2002), in other words, what has been achieved in the project that allows us to say that project has been successful. Basing the measurement of projec t success as used in this research is based on the simplicity in understanding it as they can easily be recognized and applied. There are so many factors that can be used to define project success (Prabhakar 2008) and these project success factors are industry dependent, thus there is a contrast in measuring the success of an IT project, a construction project or projects from other industries. A brief literature on the factors for measurement of projects from three industries will help to provide a connection between these factors or a general success factor for these project completions. For this purpose a look at the factors used in measuring project success from these industries, the construction industry, IT industry and a World Bank project. Chan (2001) developed a framework which he used for measuring construction projects, and he suggests that the success of a construction project can be measured by factors beyond the project management goals of time, cost and quality. Construction projects are different from other types of projects in the way they are taken and rely on different processes that might not be significant in other industries projects such as the IT or software development projects. Factors such as safety might not be important in describing a software development project success as it doesn’t have to deal with the use of equipments or machineries that are hazardous and although they could be considered but their impacts are too minimal to really have an impact. Baccarini (2004) suggests that project success is dependent on criteria’s based on two components which he called product success and project management success. He discussed that project management success depended on the project processes and stresses the importance of stakeholders and a good managerial process being in place. Product success has to deal with the final product or output of the project and how it satisfies the purpose of execution. Both of the components identified by Baccarini consists of underlying criteria’s which he used for the measurement of project success which are quite similar to the same criteria’s used by other researchers and are listed below. Project management success component * Meeting time, cost and quality requirements Project management success component * Meeting time, cost and quality requirements * Project management process quality Satisfying stakeholder project management process expectations * Project management process quality * Satisfying stakeholder project management process expectations Product success components * Meeting project owners strategic organizational objectives (client) * Satisfying user needs * Satisfying stakeholder where they relate to the product (users/customers) Wateridge (1998) suggests that in the IT industries, project succes s can be measured by some factors which he observed from studying other researchers work on project success measurements. His (Wateridge 1998) research led to his conclusion that IT projects success can be measured through the factors of; Meeting user requirements, achieving purpose, meeting timescale, meeting budget, user satisfaction and quality. An analysis of World bank projects (Ika, Diallo, and Thuillier 2012) suggests that the failure rate of these projects in Africa was at about 50% until 200 and also that these failures can be attributed to managerial and organizational factors, including poor project design, stakeholder management, delays, budget and in execution coordination. The findings from the study suggested that project success criteria’s that are effective in accomplishing success in these projects can be said to be in the measures of Time, cost, clear objectives, countries, benefits, impacts, sustainability. Atkinson’s studies (1999), on project success, have been widely used as a model by most researches in the measurement of project success. Atkinson’s model for measuring project success was derived from the primary project success measurement criteria of time, cost and quality and he accomplished his by dividing project into three stages, the delivery stage which was concerned with the efficiency of the project management process measured by Time, Cost, Quality and efficiency of the project management process; the post delivery stage which measured the product (resultant system), the product requirements and its benefits to stakeholders and another post delivery stage which measured the benefit and impacts to users and cust omers (Atkinson 1999). Based on these arguments, a list of project success factors that can be used as effective measures of success in projects are listed below, * Time, cost and quality are essential for project success * Efficient team participation is necessary for project success * Efficient project management process helps in improving project success and establishing a clearer objective * Ability to satisfy the organisations goals and purpose * Benefits to the user * Benefits stakeholder * Good conflict management * benefits to the clients CULTURAL DIFFERENCES Understanding Culture and Cultural Difference Edward Hall defines culture as â€Å"the way of life of a people, the sum of their learned patterns, attitudes and material things† (Hall 1980). Geert Hofstede (2005) defines culture as â€Å"the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the member of one group or category of people from another†. Programming of the mind as proposed by Hofstede refers to the thinking patterns of every individual developed by their learning through their lifetime. Following Hofstede’s theories on cultural diversity, it can be inferred that there is an underlying impact on organizations and while some researchers argue that, cultural differences brings creativity and innovation into organizations, others seem to contend that it leads to complexities and indecisiveness. Explicably, these theories will be applied into this research to understand the role of cultural diversity in an organizational framework. The cultural differences refer to the individual differences in the cultures of people living together in a common society. By neglecting cultural differences and the refusal for its acceptance has been a problem and as Garcia (2011) suggests in her study of the long non-acceptance or recognition of cultural diversity in Europe and how it stands as a problem to the new Europe and the need for an understanding and education on the issues of cultural diversity for promotion to individuals of the future so as to cultivate an early awareness of it. Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions theory Hofstede’ 5 Cultural Dimensions Geert Hofstede’s (2005) studies on cultural diversity helped in proposing a systematic framework for Identifying cultural diversity based of the different values of people which is known as the cultural dimension theories. His work on cultural diversity by breaking down the different values into 5 dimensions by studying different cultures has been accepted by so many researchers in the study of cultural diversity and has become one of the focal points in the study of cultural diversity. Hofstede’s cultural dimensions divided cultural diversity by comparing values between countries and he observed that different countries had different cultural values which he grouped into Power distance Index, Individualism, Masculinity, Uncertainty avoidance and later on, Confucian dynamism or Long-term orientation. EXHIBIT-1 ____________________________________________________________________ Power distance Hofstede’s (Hofstede and Hofstede 2005) power distance dimension explores the extent to which the less powerful members of an organization or institution within a country expect that power is distributed equally or unequally. This dimension stressed that individuals in a particular institution or organization in a country were not equal and points out the views of power holders in the country and the general acceptance by other less powerful members of the country. Individualism This dimension emphasizes the degree to which members of a society maintain interdependence among its members. Hofstede (2005) used the relationship of a society of being individualistic or collectivists by nature, individualistic cultures tend to have the attribute of being self committed and are more concerned with their self values and also their immediate families only. Collectivists on the other hand are more group oriented and members of the collectivist society are expected to be loyal to their groups. Loyalty in a collectivist society was important and overrides societal rules and regulations. Masculinity The masculine society is driven by competition, achievements and success with an emphasis on being on top, this dimension stresses the manliness of cultures and their zeal in trying to be the best. Collectivist societies on the other hand tend to demonstrate a leaning towards feminine values of caring for others and quality of life. This dimension clearly identifies societies and cultures with distinction between male and female roles in the society and stresses on sexual inequality between the male and female species of human beings (Hofstede and Hofstede 2005). Uncertainty Avoidance This dimension illustrates how a society accepts the unknown, Hofstede (2005) defines it as a the extent to which members of a culture feel threatened by ambiguous or unknown situations and have created institutions and beliefs that try to avoid these unknowns. Rules and norms are usually much emphasized in societies with high uncertainty avoidance rates and there is a fear for taking risks. Time Orientation This dimension was adapted from the teachings of confusions and was meant to illustrate the rapid economic development of some Asian countries. This dimension emphasizes on the societal values of having a long-term or short-term orientation, and this dimension stressed on how these orientation helps to achieve success using china and other Asian countries as a focus (Hofstede and Hofstede 2005). Organizations today usually promote a long term orientation or short term orientation, long term orientation tends to work with the idea of future success and goals. ____________________________________________________________________ The Effect of Cultural Difference on Project Success Cultural differences amongst team has been attributed with some negative outcomes such as conflicts, misunderstanding and poor performance (Matveev and Milter 2004). The study suggests that cultural diversity created problems in communication, coordination and control, team dispersion within teams and further suggests that an intercultural competence model for use with multicultural teams depends on three components; cultural knowledge, skills, and personality orientation. Cultural knowledge relates to the understanding of cultural diversity amongst teams and a recognition of cultural differences in communication styles and interaction, fostered by being skillful in understanding and communicating among cultural diverse members and their personal orientation towards accepting what is represented as culturally diverse, in other words, their reaction towards diverse cultured members based on their emotions and behaviors. Previous studies tend to show an alignment to this understanding of the effect of the differences in cultural dimensions on Project success. Tukiainen et al. (2004) also affirms that cultural differences in project organisations produces creativity in problem solving but it also leads to problems of higher ambiguity and suspicion among members of global project teams. They also argue that cultural differences, in global projects, leads to problems in the outcome formulation of projects, project execution and outcome assessments, suggesting also that the existent of locus of power also affects the interaction between project teams. Table [ 2 ]. : Five cultural dimensions [as referred by Hofstede (2005)] and attributes drawn from the literature Cultural Diversity| High Index| Low Index| Power Distance| * High discipline within employees. * Poor employee-top management relationship. * Poor group decision making. | * Greater awareness of their responsibilities. * Poor group supervision. | Individualism (Low Individualism is usually collectivist). | * Poor decision making based on individual judgment. * Low conflict identifica tion. * Poor teams. * Good decision making due to greater creativity and innovation. * Emphasis on team work. * Better conflict resolution. * Good group relationship. * And interdependence. * Higher job commitment. | Uncertainty Avoidance| * Low acceptance of innovative ideas. * Low creativity. * High Risk avoidance. * Better product quality. * Less ambiguity| * Better precision in handling tasks. * Better job satisfaction. | Masculinity (Low Masculine Index are Feminist)| * Greater efficiency in handling task. Good productivity. | * Better work relationship between employees. * Better decision making. * Lower job stress. | Long Term Orientation (Low index are short term)| * Task executions are based on attainable ideas. * Adherence to tradition * Persistency in achieving goals. | Greater goal orientation. | The effect of cultural diversity in teams can be seen from Higgs’ (1996) study based on 4 of the cultural dimensions of Hofstede. He suggests that each of the dimensions have underlying advantages. It was easier to see the impact of cultural differences through the identification of patterns in management styles and motivations and effective cultural diversity management is related to certain positive factors of team performance which he stated as; a shared understanding and commitment to team goals and objectives, a clear understanding of team member roles and contribution, an understanding of the value of diversity and an effective pooling of knowledge and skills (Higgs 1996). The 5 Cultural dimensions and their nderlying characteristics are shown in table 2. 1. HYPOTHESES DEVELOPMENT H1: All the Hofstede’s Cultural dimensions relates to Project Success among managers of private sector organizations in Miri The above hypothesis is drawn based on the past findings of a relationship between Hofstede’s cultural dimensions and its influence on managers and project success. Based on this hypothesis a regression model has been generated to test the varying relationshi p between each of the 5 dimensions of Hofstede as shown below, Y= 0+1 X1t+2 X2t+†¦ p X5t+et Where p= no. of independent variables and t= no. of respondents. A hierarchical regression analysis will be conducted based on the model below with the 5 cultural dimensions of Hofstede as predictors. PSt = 0+1 PD1t+2 IND2t+3 MAS3t+4 UA4t+5 OAS5t+et (Where PSt = Project Success, 0 is a constant (the intercept) that describes the value of PSt when all Xs’ are 0, PD = Power Distance, IND= Individualistic, MAS = Masculinity, UA = Uncertainty Avoidance, LTO = Long Term Orientation, t= no. Of respondents, et = error term) H1a: There is a relationship between Power distance in managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. The above hypothesis is drawn from the following literature review; In a project organization context, Power distance can be a negating or contributing factor to how their project goals are accomplished that depends on how the relationship between subordinates of different organizational level such as managers and employees influence the achievement of their organizational goal. K’Obonyo and Dimba (2007) in his study of the impact of cultural diversity on human resource management in Kenya claimed that the impact of the Kenya high power distance index creates a barrier between managers and employees in which employees see themselves as different from managers, while the managers are reluctant to allow the employees to engage in such things such as decision making. High power distance relates to the difference in equality between employees and top management which in turn affects how decisions are made in such organisations, decision making is not collective and the top management makes all the decisions. This emphasizes that in countries with a high power distance index, decision making is not a collective process and most decisions are usually taken by top management alone without the employee involvement. Power distance is relational to poor employee-top management relationship, with decision making only done by top management. Uncertainty avoidance high dimension was attributed with the non acceptance of innovative ideas and behaviors and low job mobility, that is, employees were more satisfied with their current job situations (Kundu 2001). Another study on the effect of cultural diversity using Hofstede’s first 4 dimensions was done on construction industries in Singapore and china (Pheng and Yuquan 2002). They suggested that low power distance is prone with less supervision of employees and decentralisation of task. High Power Distance was relevant and would have a similar effect on quality effectiveness in both high and low power distance cultures. (Kull and Wacker 2010) Higgs (1996) suggests that each of the dimensions have underlying advantages. Low power distance index in organisations tends to create awareness on employees responsibilities and a high power index creates discipline. H1b: There is a relationship between the Societal Collectivism (Individualistic/Collectivist) attribute of managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. The above hypothesis is drawn from the following literature review; Individualism and collectivism illustrates the nature of relationships between peers in different countries. Individualism relates to countries in which there was a low relationship between individuals and is more centered on self while collectivism were countries that are more group oriented (Brewer and Sunil 2011) . Thus, it can be inferred that collectivism contributes to better decision making based on the collection of minds and the interpersonal relationship that exists between them. Kundu (2001) suggests that high individualism contributes to individual decision- making, while collectivist nations had less individual decision making. Vosedek (2007) researched into the effect of cultural diversity on outcomes of work group tasks based on the individualistic and collectivist dimensions of Hofstede in relation to group and task conflicts. He (Vodosek 2007) suggests that when it comes to cultural diversity in organizations, three types of conflicts were present which he referred to as Relationship conflicts; characterized by incompatibilities between members of culturally diverse organizations and having the attributes such as tension and annoyance. Task conflicts were characterized by group member disagreements based on the non acceptance of decisions, ideas and opinions and lastly process conflict which was characterized by disagreement on how task should be done or handled. He also suggests that there was a general acceptance of opinions between people of the same group, than those of other outer groups and aligns that the organizational outcomes where harder to actualize in culturally diverse groups due to problems in their process, errors in communication and perceived prejudice that is associated with cultural diverse groups. Cultural diversity from his studies was related to group satisfaction and indicates the way the group performed in handling tasks. K’Obonyo and Dimba (2007) also suggests that employees in collectivist nations were more involved with group decision makings due to the good relationship and closeness between employees but were very poor at top management appraisal to employees. Subsequently, Kokt (2003) in his studies of the impact of cultural diversity on team performance in south Africa, suggests that team formation was more negatively realistic in cultural diverse groups than culturally homogeneous groups and that the problems in cultural diverse teams was more based on language, communication (Canen and Canen 1999) and the non recognition of the ability of cultural diverse individuals to be loyal to their groups but, that cultural diverse teams were also attributed with a better management of conflicts and engaged more diverse ways in problem solving and creativity which was positive to organizational success. His findings also suggests that assertiveness which is an individualistic nature had a negative impact on quality effectiveness as it was characterised low group decision making and poor conflict identification. (Kull and Wacker 2010). Collectivists are generally more committed to their jobs (Higgs 1996). H1c: There is a relationship between gender differentiation of social values (Masculinity/Femininity) among managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. The above hypothesis is drawn from the following literature review; Higgs (1996) suggested that while masculine dimension tends to promote efficiency and increased productivity, feminine dimension tends to personal service and custom building. The view of cultural diversity as an edge to gaining competitive advantage by organizations is important in achieving organizational goals. Feminine dimension tends to contribute to better job satisfaction with organizations of countries of high index as it stresses more on interdependence between employees and reduced stress (Brewer and Sunil 2011). Low masculinity dimension countries had a good decision making process and lower job stress, while High masculinity cultures had a higher work performance K’Obonyo and Dimba (2007). H1d: There is a relationship between uncertainty avoidance or the fear of unknowns among managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. The above hypothesis is drawn from the following literature review; A low uncertainty index is associated with lesser ambiguity and lesser fear of tasking risks, with a staff who were less ambitious (Pheng and Yuquan 2002). Uncertainty avoidance dimension is effective in improving quality as cultures with high uncertainty avoidance index are more aware of their process controls and ensured the use of quality standards based on the international organisations for standardization (Kull and Wacker 2010). Higgs (1996) found out that high and low uncertainty avoidance creates lower innovation and precision respectively. H1e: There is a relationship between Long term orientation for goal accomplishment among managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. The above hypothesis is drawn from the following literature review; An important factor associated with project success is Quality which depends on an effective quality management system. Study of (Kull and Wacker 2010) on quality management in Asia based on the Globe dimensions which are adapted from Hofstede’s dimensions suggests that future orientation (Hofstede Long term short term orientation) is not significant in improving quality, though, short term orientation are more goal oriented while long term orientation depended on past ideas which are more attainable. The long term orientation is being used in this correlation but it was not used in Hofstede’s research on Malaysia and so there is no scoring available for the dimension in Malaysia, but can be significant if we derive any result for this particular cultural dimension. Hofstede (2005) in his study suggested that this dimension in workplaces had an emphasis on family values, in which these organizations where seen as closely knit families with attributes such as having a sense of thrift (saving for future), shame (fear of losing face which breeds commitments in Long term orientation), persistence in achieving goals and respect for tradition (sticking to traditional rules that could impede innovation). H2: There is a group difference between Malaysian and non-Malaysian managers (in private sector organizations) in Miri and determinants of project success. This hypothesis is developed to find out the inherent difference that exists between Malaysian Managers and Non-Malayasian managers in Miri in actualizing their project success based on this question, Do Malaysian managers get better project success than non-malaysian managers?. Appendix B shows an illustration of the past studies and the possible relationship between Hofstede’s cultural dimensions at workplace and the project success. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK AND HYPOTHESIS H1c Project success Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions, (Power distance, societal collectivism, Gender Differentiation, Uncertainty Avoidance and Long term orientation) Power distance Individualism/Collectivism Masculinity/Feminism Uncertainty avoidance Independent Variables Dependent Variable Long term orientation H1a H1b H1d H1e H1 Nationality (Malaysian/Non-Malaysian) H2 Figure [ 2 ]. 1:Research Model Figure 2. 1 shows the conceptual framework above shows the relationship between the dependent variable and independent variables. The development of hypotheses is directed at answering the research questions and to investigate the relationship between Hofstede’s cultural dimensions and determinants of project success. * RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 1. 0 INTRODUCTION Kumar (2005) suggests that a research project type is categorised based on three perspectives, which he listed as, * Application of the study * Objectives of the study * Mode of enquiry used in conducting the study This research type has been classified based on this three perspectives and this suggestion is being applied to how this research has being undertaken. Application of study In view of what this research seeks to find out, the research study is an applied research, applied research involves the use of traditional research methods in the collection of information in other to find out or enhance a phenomenon. Objectives of the research The research is a correlation research. Correlation research is done to discover a relationship between two or more aspects of a situation (Kumar 2005). Thus, this research is deemed to be correlation because it seeks to explore the relationship which Hofstede’s cultural dimensions have on project success among managers in Miri. Stangor (2010) suggests that an advantage of a correlation research is that it can be used in assessing behavior as it occurs in peoples’ everyday life by measuring the research variables and trying to find the linking relationship between the variables. Mode of enquiry This research employs a structured approach to how it is undertaken. A structured approach involves a research in which all the research process is predetermined. This research employs the use of quantitative research methods for data collection. A content analysis has been carried out to define the constructs and variables that will be used in creating the questionnaires for the quantitative analysis. (Hseih and Shannon) suggests 3 approaches of qualitative content analysis namely; conventional, directed, or summative. We have used directed approach which starts with a theory or relevant research findings as guidance for initial codes. Due to time constraint the other two approaches cannot be taken which may have more error free coding. The justification for the use of quantitative method is based on the sample collection method, which involves the use of a set of self completion questionnaires aimed at measuring project success and identifying the different existing dimensions of cultural diversity. The research process used is based on research guidelines and operation steps as suggested by kumar (2005), as listed below * Formulate research problem * Conceptualization of a research design * Constructing an instrument for data collection * Selecting a sample Writing a research proposal * Collecting data * Processing data * Writing a research report FORMULATION OF RESEARCH PROBLEM The research was formulated based on the notion to identify an understanding on how cultural diversity can be used as a determinant of how success in projects is achieved in organisations with cross-cultural employees of different diverse background. The cultural dimensions of Hofstede has been used in the identification of different cultural characteristics that are inherent in employees and these has been used as an underlying construct in investigating how it affects project success in these organisations. Kumar (2005) suggests that a main function of formulating a research problem is to decide what you want to find out in the research. CONCEPTUALIZATION OF A RESEARCH DESIGN A research design helps to provide a workable and doable detail on how a research question will be answered. It involves detailed information on the how, when and where a research is going to be carried out. An in-depth review of past literatures and studies concerned with a research is fundamental to creating a research design and a timeframe in which the research is going to be carried out is instrumental in establishing duration of the research. This research is carried out by identifying how managers in private sector organisations located in Miri view the impact of cultural diversity in their organisations on project success. The timeframe of this research is developed from the time-frame that was given by the department for the completion of this research and is shown in Appendix A. Kumar suggests that a thorough literature review helps to bring clarity and focus to the research problem, as well as improve the research methodology, broaden the researcher knowledge on the research area and conceptualize the research How to cite Identification of the Impact of Cultural Diversity, Essay examples