Issues Concerning High Technology Managers from Multiple Cultural Backgrounds

In the high technology environment of “Silicon Valley”, California, the companies have a high percentage of foreign‐born employees, often with a strong sense of ethnic identity. An OD project in one such company with production problems revealed that organisational complexities needed greater teamwork from managers who were, due to their diverse backgrounds, unconsciously at odds in their assumption sets and values. Inter‐group team‐building workshops, coaching, added organisational structure, and cultural awareness training greatly improved working relationships.