‫وزارة التعلمي التقين والفين‬

‫الهيئة الوطنية للتعلمي التقين والفين‬

‫ادارة اللكيات التقنية‬
‫لكية العلوم التقنية – بين وليد‬

‫مقرتح حبث اجازة علمية حتت عنوان ‪:‬‬

‫‪Cultural Differences in International Projects: A Study of the‬‬

‫‪Impact and Management of Cultural Differences on Project Success‬‬

‫اعداد‬
‫م‪ .‬منترص عطا قامس‬
Abstract:
Project management is a challenging field, but international projects are even more difficult to
handle due to many factors than local projects. In local projects, project managers are only
required to look for cost, benefit, supply, people, etc. However, in international projects, there
are many challenges, such as cultural gaps and communication gaps, which can lead to the
failure of projects.
This research intends to study the challenges faced by project managers in international
projects. The study will be based on both primary and secondary data to assess the factors
accurately. The study will be based on interviews with project managers involved in
international projects who have experience with such difficulties to talk about their experience
and provide suggestions accordingly.

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TABLE OF CONTENT

1. INTRODUCTION
2. OBJECTIVE

3. Problem statement

4. Proposal structure

5. METHODOLLOGY

6. EXPECTED RESULTS

REFERENCES

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 1. Introduction:
A project is defined as “a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service,
or result” (PMBOK, 2009).Projects today have dramatically increased in various fields such
as construction, I.T., design of the plan, research, and new product development.

Nowadays, there is a number of firms involved in carrying out global projects worldwide.
Companies that extend their businesses abroad have to face cross-cultural communication,
language barriers, ethical issues, and time zone, last but not least, gender issues. This research
will put light on these issues and their resolution.

2. Research aim and objectives:

This research aims to pinpoint some of the challenges associated with culture faced by project
managers in carrying out international projects and how to respond to the problems effectively.
The aim will be achieved through the following objectives;

 To understand international project management.

 To examine the difficulties faced by project managers in international projects.
 To identify the impact of cultural differences in managing projects in foreign countries.
 To discuss how the effect of these differences can be minimized

3. Problem statement

For project managers, international projects require much higher efforts than local projects as
there are many difficulties they face in terms of culture, language, communication, laws,
preferences, etc. Therefore, it requires detailed planning before starting an international
project.
There are even a few issues that cannot be resolved through planning, such as language and
cultural difficulties. Therefore, this topic is selected because it holds great significance in
project management. A project manager must be aware of difficulties he may face in
international projects and how the adverse impact of such challenges can be minimized.

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 4. Proposal structure

The proposal is structured in a very simple and understandable way; the first section is the
introduction in which the aim and objectives are discussed and the background of the study
and structure of the proposal. The second section is literature review in which an overview of
previous studies is provided in detail. The third section is a research methodology in which
methods that will be followed in the study are discussed, such as research design and data
collection method and analysis, etc.

Literature Review

The majority of firms involve themselves in international projects because they expect higher
profits or other benefits from international projects. However, Lientz and Rea (2012) stated
that managing international projects is a hug responsibility and challenging task because every
single thing from people, their perception and preference to culture is different.
Additionally, few countries in which one cannot operate without learning their language make
communication very difficult. Project managers face huge challenges while managing
international projects. They have to act according tithe culture and environment and
communicate with people, so they understand. Köster (2009) stated that different languages
might result in a communication gap and misunderstanding, due to which project operations
may get affected.
According to Burke (2013), project management is a huge field. International project
management is a field in project management because it requires huge efforts and time to
effectively and efficiently conduct such projects. Ika (2009,p.8) stated that one of the major
challenges that project managers face in international projects is cultural diversities,
specifically if they have to initiate a project in a country having a completely different culture.
For example, a project manager from a Muslim country will find it very difficult to carry out
a project in some European countries due to cultural differences.
Further, Meredith and Mantel (2011) documented that communication is the second most
significant challenge for international projects; poor communication can cause the failure of a
global project. These are the things that a project manager must consider and try hard to

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minimize their negative consequences. This research will help a project manager identify high
risks in international projects and minimize their negative outcomes.

5. Research Methodology

Research design and approach

The research will be based on a qualitative design which refers to research based on insights
and experience of participants. This design is selected because it will provide accurate results
based on actual happenings and experiences of participants to assess the impact of cultural
differences in international projects (Taylor and DeVault, 2015). Further, the research
approach will be inductive, which makes information general because each participant will
provide his own experience, and the result will be based on responses of all participants
(Wiersma and Jurs, 2005).

Data collection method

Both primary and secondary data will be collected to make the research more reliable
(Neuman, 2013). Primary data will be collected through the interview from project managers
who are or have been involved in international projects. On the other hand, secondary data will
be collected through academic journals and articles through genuine internet sources.
Sampling

Interviews will be conducted with 10 international project managers using convenience

sampling because this sampling technique will help the researcher save his effort and time.
Data analysis plan

Data is qualitative and, therefore, will be analyzed through thematic analysis. Thematic
analysis is a tool used to extract meaning from participants’ responses (Cooper and Sun, 2006).
Questions regarding their experience in international projects and challenges faced during such
projects will be included in the questionnaire. They will also be asked to suggest how such
adverse impacts of difficulties can be minimized.

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 6. Following is the expected outcome of the study:

 Organizations and project managers will get increased knowledge regarding cross-
culture and communication in international projects.
 Major challenges in international projects will be assessed like communication, cross-
culture, ethical issues, gender issues, and language barriers.
 Project managers will understand the importance of tools to minimize the negative
consequences of culture and communication barriers.
 A major success factor, i.e., communication and its importance in global projects, will
be assessed. Project managers will become aware of how the communication gap fails
projects.

7. Conclusion:
The study will contribute to the existing body of knowledge on project management by
examining the impact of cultural differences on international projects and the strategies for
managing them. The findings of the study will be useful for project managers and organizations
that are interested in improving project outcomes in international projects by effectively
managing cultural differences and building cultural competence.

References
1. M. PETE SPINNER ″ Project Management Principles And Practices ″, 3rd Edition,
Prentice Hall, Inc., New Jersey, 1997.

2. British Standards Institute, BS 6079: guide to Project Management, BSI, 2000

3. Christopher Schwindt ″ Resource Allocation in Project

Management ″, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, Germany 2005.

4. Earl Hall , Julianne Johnson, ″ Integrated Project Management″,

Prentice Hall, Inc., New Jersey, 2002.

5. James P. Lewis ″ Project Planning, Scheduling and Control A Hands-On Guide to

Bringing Projects in On Time and On Budget″, 3rd Edition, McGraw-Hill ,Inc,2001.

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6. Larry Richman , ″Project Management Step _By_Step″,1st Edition, McGraw-Hill
,Inc,2001.

7. Quentin W. Fleming , ″ Project Procurement Management ,Contracting,

Subcontracting, Teaming ″, Prentice Hall, Inc., New Jersey, 2002.

8. Eric Verzuh, ″ The Fast Forward MBA In Project Management″, McGraw-Hill.Inc,

2005.

9. James P. Lewis, ″Fundamentals Of Project Management″,2nd Edition, McGraw-

Hill ,Inc,2004.

10. Sarosh Talukdar and Clark W. Gellings, Load Management , IEEE Press, 1984
editorial board .

11.Burke, R., 2013. Project management: planning and control techniques. New Jersey,
USA.

12.Cooper, D.R., Schindler, P.S. and Sun, J., 2006. Business research methods (Vol. 9).
New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.

13. Ika, L.A., 2009. Project success as a topic in project management journals. Project
Management Journal, 40(4), pp.6-19.

14. Köster, K., 2009. International project management. Sage.

15.Lientz, B. and Rea, K., 2012. International project management. Routledge.

Meredith, J.R. and Mantel Jr, S.J., 2011. Project management: a managerial
approach. John Wiley & Sons.

16. Neuman, W.L., 2013. Social research methods: Qualitative and quantitative
approaches. Pearson education.

17.Taylor, S.J., Bogdan, R. and DeVault, M., 2015. Introduction to qualitative research
methods: A guidebook and resource.John Wiley & Sons.

18.Wiersma, W. and Jurs, S.G., 2005. Research methods in education: An introduction