October 1, 1998 - Poland Turns West Russia's economy is a shambles. But ex-Communist satellite Poland's economy is doing well. The reason is that Poland has self-consciously modeled itself on Western economic principles, abandoning the outmoded economic and organizational models of Communism that still influence Russia.
Poland's departure from Communist practices and uncoupling from the Russian economy is exemplified by the General Motors presence in Poland. In August 1998 a new $535 million General Motors plant started operation in southern Poland. General Motors is also investing $300 million to upgrade a plant in Warsaw, built or acquired six plants to supply parts, and set up a finance company to provide credit for Poles to purchase General Motors cars (New York Times, October 6, 1998 p. C1).
In addition, according to Albrecht Schmidt, chairman of Bayerische Hypo-und Vereinsbank of Germany, "Central and Eastern Europe's trade ties to Western Europe are far stronger than those to Russia. They have completely reoriented their economies to the West."
Web Exercise
A section in every chapter of International Organizational Behavior discusses pressures that push national cultures to become either more alike or different from each other. From the perspective of organizational behavior, a central issue is whether national culture affects organizational culture. Also if national cultures become more similar, the possibility that organizational culture and managerial practices will similarly converge.
http://www.gm.com
To explore pressures for convergence and divergence in national cultures and their effect on organizational cultures and management practices, look at the General Motors web site in the United States, in Poland, in other Eastern countries, and in other countries (these can all be found through the GM homepage).
E-Mail Exercise
- Does General Motors adapt to local cultures?
- Does General Motors attempt to create a uniform global corporate culture?
- Does General Motors appear to have multiple management styles depending on the culture it operates in?
Through e-mail or in a class discussion, present the major global influences that are driving General Motors to use the same management techniques worldwide. What factors would contribute to convergence? What factors would create pressures for divergence?
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