The impact of cross‐cultural dynamics on change management

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to introduce a proprietary survey instrument – “ChangeTracking Survey ® ” – which measures employees' perceptions of organizational change and captures their experiences during the course of change management in their organizations. Design/methodology/approach – The authors present an empirical study of employees involved in change management projects in 146 organizations situated in 27 countries across a variety of industries, nationalities and languages, using robust statistical analysis. Hofstede's work is used as a foundation for understanding cross‐cultural differences in organizations from across the world. Findings – The paper finds significant differences in certain characteristics of change projects between different nationalities. Practical implications – The findings present new and recent knowledge of the cross‐cultural dynamics in change management projects, which would prove useful to change managers throughout the world. Originality/value – This research is recent and is extensive in its examination of the effects of national cultures on change management initiatives internationally.