INTRODUCTION 1.

1 Background In this global scenario, business organisations are greatly dependent on the intercultural communication as the business are more relied on foreign clients and most of the alliances are formed with organisation on other countries (Limaye & Victor, 1995). Cultural diversity is a reality in which nations and organisations do business globally and have international facilities (Harris & Moran, 1987). This diversity could be described as the greatest challenge in this 21st century and is the common factor in the global society which calls for the multi cultural organisation. Hence it could be argued that the success of multinational business highly depends on occurrence of cross cultural work ground and that the understanding of cultural values is highly essential in any cross cultural teams. However there is an increasing chance of misunderstanding and conflicts within the team which could certainly bring negative effect on the performance of the team (Austin et al, 1999). Thus it could be contended that capability of the team to be successful in any multicultural environment depends on the ability of the members and of course the skill of the leaders to handle the situation of conflict efficiently. This is the context where the importance of leadership has a great role to play. Proactive leaders are really an essential factor in the business so that they could efficiently participate not only in the conflict situation but also in all other functions of the company. There are many researchers (Hocker & Wilmot, 1991;Putnam et al, 1982; Rahim, 1986b; Thomas, 1976) who looked into the situation of conflicts in the organisation. According to these commentators conflict is a universal phenomenon which enters into numerous forms of human existence. According to the anthropologists who have dealt with intercultural communication, conflict and culture are interdependent. Sillars and Weisberg( 1987) argues that conflict can be defined in terms of culture and is a phenomena which can be controlled. Correspondingly Hocker and Wilmont( 1991) contends that conflict management should be done according to different cultures because each culture has different way of defining conflict and respective way of dealing with conflict. And hence it is possible to say that conflict management can vary with different cultures. For instance Japanese culture gives more importance to maintain public face in the conflict procedures and they use a combined style in settling the conflict where as in US conflict management is done by competitive strategies and uses the help of a third party for managing conflict within the productive limit (Cushman and King, 1985).

It is been evident from the previous researches (Hocker & Wilmot, 1991;Putnam et al, 1982; Rahim, 1986b; Thomas, 1976) that the success of an organisation purely depends on the extent to which the workers can perform in multicultural environment and that the organisations operating internationally are not successful as the managers really expect. This can be because of the fact that the workers are not able to understand the cultural differences in the environment that the organisations operate. And it is true to say that it is not likely to reach the understanding between the team members though they are using the same language of communication and the same technology. The tradition from where the worker is bought up is deep routed and they usually consider them to be true. Because of this fact misunderstandings and conflicts occur within the people and this causes serious obstructions in the organisations. The success in this case greatly depend on the effort that the people take in understanding the other culture and the compromise the workers can done. However the management pattern, the decision making and training and development of employees are also an important factor in the conflict resolution as stated by Novy et al( 1996). It could be thus contended that the conflict management plays a crucial role in human resource management. There are two views for the conflict management; some argues that conflict should be avoided whereas some others comment that conflict should be accepted. For instance Senge( 1990, pp 249) posit that conflict represents that a team is actually learning. Similarly Pascale(1990) argues that conflicts are very important in an organisation and it is a sign of organisational learning. However it is widely accepted by the researchers that the management of conflict is highly important in what so ever cases of conflicts (Hofstede, 1991; Smith and Peterson, 1988)

There is an increasing change in the global society which gives more opportunities in terms of cross cultural contacts both in the society as well as in the business world which has increased the need for cross cultural interactions. Hiebert( 1985) argues that in a communication between people of same community, 70 percent of what is told is understood by people where as in a cross cultural community only 50 percent of what is said is understood. These situations often give rise to conflicts. Grab( 1996) hold up this statements by stating that this conflicts can produce either positive or negative effects. This context brings in the importance of intercultural management. Intercultural management can be defined as managing and running organisations in an environment to two or more culture (Novy et al, 1996, pp76). Intercultural working teams are most common in the business world today. And hence it could be contended that intercultural management especially intercultural conflict management is highly important

in the business world. Horwowitz and Broadman (1994) are the two researchers who argued for the essentiality of a model for conflict management that will look into different cultures and value systems. Wall and Callister (1995) highlighted that there should be more researchers to explore the cross cultural conflicts and their management. This present research tries to explore the factors which will lead to the situation of cross cultural conflict and the ways by which this conflict situation could be handled. And as has been discussed earlier, leadership has a great role to play in the cross cultural conflict management. Thus this research looks into the importance of leadership in cross cultural conflict management along with the factors that lead to cross cultural conflicts. There are many organisations who work globally and there are many lessons that could be taken from the success stories of these companies possibly. And it is possible to say that the efforts taken by many Indian companies to operate in a multicultural environment and to be successful by overcoming all the obstructions in terms of cross cultural management make it significant. The success story of an Indian company will be worth quoting in situations of cultural conflicts and the role of leadership in conflict situations because of the fact that without the proper management of these conflicts by the great managers in these companies, it will be nearly impossible to bring in success and there by economic prosperity to the home country. Hence this particular research deals with one such Indian company which is evidently playing a crucial role in transforming India from a developing country to a developed country. There are different sectors in India that are playing an important role in bringing economic wealth to the country. IT companies, Pharmaceutical companies, manufacturing sectors are few which fall under this category. However this particular research only deals with one company in pharmaceutical industrial sector that is a part of the development of the country. There have been serious transformations made by the pharmaceutical industry by the process of mergers and acquisitions. This strategy has enabled them to go global and operate in a multi cultural environment. However it is not possible to argue that the mergers and acquisitions are the only strategy that helps a company to go global. There are certainly other factors that help the company in achieving their goals. One among those factors can be arguably the cross cultural conflict management. Thus this research looks into cross cultural conflict management of one such company. The company is Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals which is operating globally and is head quartered at Hyderabad, India. They are currently operating in 21 different countries incorporating different people from different cultures. The study on this company would

certainly help in better understanding of cross cultural conflict management and the success story would possibly narrate the role that leadership play in cross cultural conflict management. 1.2 Background of the Company

Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals is been shortlisted as the second largest pharmaceutical industry in Indian after Ranbaxy Industries. The company was started by scientist and entrepreneur Dr K Anji Reddy in 1984. The company expanded their business worldwide and is currently operating in US, India, Russia and Europe. Previous study on the company reveals that the main strategy that was adopted by the company in going global was the mergers and acquisition. However, as has been discussed earlier, it was not only the strategy that calls for the success of the company. The company has a well known corporate governance and businesses practices which make the company worth studying. Also there are so many recognitions that were gained by the company. This includes the Global HR excellence award from Asia Pacific HR congress and the best work place pharma industry by the economic times and great places to work institute. All these excellence awards make it clear that there are lessons that can be taken from the success story of the company. As the company successfully operates globally, it can be contended that the company is successful in cross cultural conflict management. Therefore this research deals with the cross cultural conflict management in Dr Reddys Pharmaceutical Industry. [Ref: www.drreddys.com]

1.3 Aims and Objectives of the Research The primary aim and objectives of the research are discussed in the following sections. 1.3.1 Aim of the Research This present research is aimed at exploring the impact of culture on a conflict situation in an organisation. This is achieved by interviewing the focal group consisting of employees and managers of a multicultural organisation called Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals. By this the researcher tries to find the factors that will lead to cross cultural conflict situations and the steps that will help in minimizing the harmful effects of cross cultural conflicts.

Further this research tries to explore the role of leadership in managing the conflict situations in the organisation. By this the researcher tries to find the necessary skills that the leader should have in managing the conflict situation effectively. Lastly the researcher explains both the negative and positive impact of conflict resolutions in the organisation.

1.3.2 Research Objectives The objective of the research is to explore the ways by which culture cause conflicts in multicultural organisations. There are many literatures (Hocker & Wilmot, 1991;Putnam et al, 1982; Rahim, 1986b; Thomas, 1976) which deal with the cross cultural conflicts and their resolution. A comprehensive review of these literatures is done to achieve the aim of the research. This secondary research on the topic will help in understanding the definition and meaning of the key words. The second objective of the research is to critically analyse the role of leadership in the conflict situations. The purpose of this would be to identify the skills and abilities of the leader should poses that can excel in a multicultural environment. The intention of the researcher also includes studying the difficulties that the organisation and the management faces in terms of cross cultural conflict situations. The next objective of the researcher is to study the outcomes that different conflict resolution techniques can bring to an organisation. For this review of many literatures are done in order to study different conflict resolution techniques that could be used in an organisation. 1.4 Research Questions The research questions of this present research will be
What are the factors which causes the conflict situation in the organisation?

How can the conflict situation be effectively managed? What are the different conflict resolutions techniques that could be used to manage the conflict situation in an organisation? What are the outcomes of these techniques? What is the role of leadership in managing a cross cultural conflict in an organisation? What are the essential skills that a leader to poses in excelling in a multicultural organisation?

1.5 Review of Chapters. The dissertation is structured into five chapters. The first chapter give an introduction on the topic under research along with the aim, objectives and research questions. This chapter is expected to give a brief on the reason why the topic is selected and will also give the background of the company in which the primary research is conducted. The second chapter deals with the studies conducted on the cross cultural conflict and the role of leadership in dealing with the conflict situation in an organisation. A comprehensive review of journals and books related to cross cultural conflict is done in this chapter. The third chapter will be the research methodology which explains the various methods adopted in conducting the research. The fourth chapter deals with the findings and discussion. This chapter explicitly brings out the findings from the interview conducted with the managers and employees of the Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals. The last chapter will be the conclusion chapter which will deal with the results got from the secondary research and primary research. It will also deal with some recommendations and guidelines of future research.

Literature review

Culture cannot be defined in a single word or by a sentence because Schenider and Barsoux(1997) have identified 164 definitions for culture which were put forward by many anthropologists. But after compiling all these definitions, Culture can be defined as a set of behavior, values, beliefs, expectations and assumptions ( Lassere, 2003;pp289). The author contends that culture could be divided mainly into four. They are 1. Corporate Culture: These are the assumptions, values, beliefs and behaviors that are inquired from the company history, the present leadership style and the organizational structure. 2. Industrial Culture: This consists of rules and regulations derived from the standard of the company. For instance, different sectors like manufacturing sector, oil and gas sector etc have their own rules and regulations and have their own professional standard. 3. Professional culture: This is something which is developed from the training and standard of a particular firm. 4. National Culture: This dimension consists of assumptions, values and behaviors that are inquired from ethnic, national and regional origin of the citizen. Lassere (2003); pp289 This particular research paper deals with the conflicts that are created because of the various cultural differences and the role of leadership in a cross cultural conflict situation. This particular section on this research paper deals with the review of existing literature based on cross cultural conflicts and the role of leadership in a cross cultural conflict situation. National Culture & National Cultural Differences Hofstede( 1980) defined national culture as a collective programming of mind that differentiate an individual of one country from another. This culture is thus said to affect the cores values such as good or bad, beautiful or ugly and right or wrong (Olie, 1996). There are many other authors who have tried and succeeded in studying the national cultural difference in specific dimensions (Hofstede 1980, Schwartz 2004; Trompenaars& Hampden Turner 1998 and Lewis

2006 etc). These commentators posit that these cultural differences can affect the organization in many ways. For instance, these cultural differences can bring difference in legal system, working style, and administration policies. More over these differences can bring difference in the beliefs and assumptions among employees in the organization. There are many researchers who have researched on the national culture. But the most common among them is Greet Hofstede. Hofstede (2006) argues that people in different culture behave differently. He did most of the work on national culture during the 1970s and early 1980s and has developed seminal theories on national cultures. Hofstede, while teaching in Switzerland interacted with people from different cultures, and professed four famous dimensions of national culture namely power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism v collectivism and masculinity v femininity. He has elaborated these dimensions in his famous book Cultural Consequences (1980). Later he had added a fifth dimension called short term vs long term orientation (Hofstede, 1993). The dimension of power distance explains that extend to which people could accept inequality in the organization. For example people in some countries like India, people will be more attracted to power and wealth where as in some countries like Denmark, the power distance relations will be less (Pagell et al, 2005). The dimension of Individualism vs Collectivism describes the ability of the people to take care of themselves and their immediate family. In individualism people will be only concerned of themselves where as in collectivism the team will be taken care off. Hofstede( 2004) reveals that countries like US, UK are more individualistic where as countries like Japan are more collectivist. The third dimension of masculinity vs femininity explains that people in some countries have more of masculine character where as in country people will have feminine character. For example in countries like Finland, people will have more emotional quotient and they will be more caring and give more importance to the family relations. On the other hand, people in countries like Japan, will be having masculine characters like tough and strong. The fourth dimension, Uncertainty avoidance describes the extent to which people can accept unexpected situation. Hofstede( 2004) argues that people in high uncertainty avoidance can easily accept inequality where as people in low uncertainty avoidance are not acceptable to inequality. For example countries like Greece are high uncertainty avoidance and countries like Sweden is having low uncertainty avoidance. The latest developed dimension called short term orientation vs long term orientation describes the extent to which people focus on their future. Hofstede (2004) argues that western countries are short term oriented and is less concerned about their future whilst countries like China are long term oriented.

Hardin et al(2007) contends that national cultural differences can influence the behavior and relations of the people in a team and can also effect the total performance of the team. On the other hand, Janssens and Brett (2006) pointed out that there are three different models by which a team can cope up with the cultural differences. These models were based on the assumption that people from different culture or ethnic origin have different cultural views and thus the people in organization behaves in different ways as they have different norms and beliefs. He further contends that the difference in the cultural views always lead to conflicts and affects overall performance of the team (Janssens and Brett 2006). The first model was named as dominant coalition model which proposes that one culture dominates over the other culture. For instance the culture of the home country can dominate over the culture of the host country in case of an international company (Canney et al, 1999). The second model is called as the identity model states that members working for a team may have a shared identity and well defined goals. Janssens and Brett (2006) posit that the identity model is culturally intelligent as the process loss associated with this model will be less. He further argues that it is seen that the third model known as the fusion model is adopted by many cultures to attain the best from other cultures. The fusion model suggests that the people working for team believes and respects the reality of diversity and will use these differences for better results (Dekker et al 2008). Conflict To understand on cross cultural conflict is important to analyze and examine the concept of conflict. Thomas (1976) suggests that conflict on organization falls under two models, the process model and structure model. The Process Model The process model on conflict explains the conflicts that occur because of the internal dynamics of conflicts and these dynamics can be divided into five events. 1. Frustration: where one team distinguishes other team by interfering with the fulfillment of ones needs and wants. According to Robbins( 1989), there are three factors which precipitate the condition of conflict because of frustration condition and they are Communication- Communication gap or poor communication can happen due to misunderstandings among people.

Structure- Conflicts can occur due to factors such as organizational structure, jobs assigned for team members, leadership styles, reward system etc.

Personal Variables- conflicts can occur due to personality characteristics, ego problems etc

2. Conceptualization: this is the situation where the conflict situation affects the behavior of the individual. 3. Behavior: the situation where conflict occur due to the behavior of each party. This conflict can affect the way of managing conflict and the goal of an organization. 4. Interaction: the author contends that the interaction between two parties can either calm down or worsen up the conflict situation. 5. Outcome: The author points out that the outcome for any conflict can range from an agreement to long term antagonism. There are many literatures that have supported the propose model. (Robbins, 1989, Schweiger et al., 1986; Wall and Nolan, 1986). However the last two stages called the interaction and the outcome is complied into a single stage. The structural model Unlike the process model, the structural model discovers the factors that will lead to a conflict situation. Thomas(1976) points out that there are four factors 1. Behavioral predisposition: and this consists of ones capabilities and personality. 2. Social Pressure: Includes the pressure that arises from a group, from ones culture, organizational culture, and from the public interest. 3. Incentive Structure: the conflict that arise from the relationship between two parties, from the interest in competitive issues. 4. Rules and Procedures: these include the decision rules, negotiation and settlement procedures. Thomas( 1976) finished off his study on conflict by proposing a theory called integrative theory which looked into the basic incidents and structural factors which will help in understanding the different symptoms of conflict in dyads. Thus to conclude with conflict can be defined as the interpersonal dynamics that are shaped due to the various internal and external factors. Further, these symptoms can affect the overall performance of the team. Diversity in groups.

Diversity in work groups can be defined as work force characterized by people with different human qualities who belong to different cultural groups. For an individual, diversity means including people who are different from ourselves in age, ethnicity, and gender or race (Vecchio and Appelbaum, 1995, p. 696). The main parameters of diversity are the difference that a person have from his birth and the differences that can affect ones life. This can be the learning style, the intelligence power, age, race, sex, physical capabilities and nationality. These parameters can shape a persons individuality and his perspective on world. Another parameter can be the changes a person adopts as he grows up. Nevertheless these secondary parameters seem to have less impact on a persons individuality. For instance parameters like education, religious beliefs, income, working environment and marital status are some which will affect a persons life as he grows up. (Vecchio and Appelbaum, 1995) Granrose and Oskamp (1997) argues that multi- national or multi cultural teams can help the employees to bring out the potential for coming out with innovative and quality solutions for the problems when compared to mono cultural teams. This is the reason why an successful multi cultural teams are efficient in bringing out a synergistic approach by incorporating different views of the individual team members (Maznevski& Peterson, 1997). The individual ideas put forward by different members will help in developing creative and innovative problem solving techniques. Nonetheless it is highly important to note that diversity in culture, working methods and assumptions (Bernard, 1995) can cause negative impact on various business practices in the internal business section. Harris and Moran (1987) points out that for a team consisting of members from different nations, to work effectively should be well disciplined and that these members should be a good intercultural communicator and a negotiator because this would help in promoting cultural synergy. Shutter( 1977) on his cross national studies argues that a group process are greatly influenced by cultural values. For instance team work reflects the cultural value towards risk. The commentator further argues that even in a small group, culture can greatly influence and affect various parameters like leadership, conventionality, cohesiveness or a persons like in an organization. And hence it is likely to say that team work and conflict is affected by culture

Schneider & Barsoux( 1997) points out five types of multi cultural teams. 1. Business development- this type of multi cultural team consists of members of different culture working together for the development of new products and services. 2. Regional Headquarters-this type of multi cultural team consists of members of different nationalities working together for regional harmonization. 3. Corporate Headquarters- this type of multi cultural team consists of members from different culture who are responsible for global responsibility. 4. Joint Ventures and Alliances- Includes managers and employees of different organisations working together. 5. Taskforces-consists of multi country teams who are responsible for a particular project. Adler (1997) argues that know- how and different perspectives of the members in a multicultural team can enhance the richness of an organization. He goes on to argue that the experience of the team leaders in various practices can help the team in achieving the target of a team. He further contends that miscommunication and misunderstanding between the members are the two major reasons for the failure of a particular project. Nonetheless once these problems are solved, a multicultural team could bring prosperity to an organization.

Cultural Diversity and Conflict A brief on culture has been discussed in the earlier sections. But for better understanding on cross cultural conflict, a concept on culture put forward by Adler( 1991) is discussed in this section. Adler( 1991) categorized culture into six dimensions. Nature of people Relationship of a person with nature Relationship of a person with his fellow beings A persons mode of activity His conception towards space His temporal orientation

Adler (1991) argued that the diversity in culture can be observed in these six dimensions. His study was conducted between North American and Chinese group members and found differences in the above mentioned dimensions. The differences are shown in the below table. North America China 1. Some people are good and some Mixture of good and evil in this case as people are evil. Also they accept well. However they are not readily changes very fast. 2. People are dominant over nature 3. They are individualistic acceptable to changes. People are harmony with nature They will be collectivist

4. People work very hard to achieve People work only for their survival their goals. 5. Conception of space will be private 6. People will be long term oriented Adlers explanation on culture and cultural diversity reveals that each person in a multi cultural work team bears difference from other members in their outlook, interpersonal relations and in their relationship with nature and world. However this research paper deals with the feature of cultural diversity that affects the organizational life. Conception of space will be public People will be short term oriented.

Steven et al (1998) argues that on every aspect, culture plays a great role in conflict management. He goes on to argue that cultural diversity for sure give rise to conflict in a team and that they affect two important parameters namely trust building and communication. Mistrust: Trust is very important especially in a multi cultural environment. Steven et al ( 1998) argues that building up trust is very difficult. Studies reveal that people try to stick on to a group with people of their own culture rather than sticking on to a group having people from different culture (Triandis et al., 1965). Steven et al (1998) further argues that mistrust can occur because of poor communication between the group members and that the condition of mistrust can be a cause for the conflict. Miscommunication: Cross cultural communication is a problem when people of different culture have to work together. Adler (1991) identifies three barriers for communication in a

cross cultural environment. He states that cross cultural misperception, cross cultural misinterpretation and cross cultural misevaluation are those three barriers for cross cultural communication.

Leadership and Cross cultural conflict Management The ever changing phase of organization in this highly globalised world is the biggest challenge that the organization is facing today (Johnston& Packer, 1987). As has been discussed earlier managing diversity is the most difficult process in an organization. Chatman et al (1998) argues that the attempt of managers to meet heterogeneity in organization has met with mixed results. Ayoko et al (2006) contends that diversity in work groups has resulted in poor cohesion and co-operation among the employees( Hambrick, 1994),. He goes on to argue that diversity has also led to conflict, poor turn over, no job satisfaction, stress and also encounter problems due to poor communication. (Alder, 1991; OReilly et al., 1989; Tsui et al., 1992; Zenger and Lawrence, 1989). Further to this the people with co workers that differ in gender, race and nationality have reported to have less job satisfaction and comfort( Tsui et al., 1992). These findings call for the importance of having a manager with skills to encounter conflict and to produce a team with no conflict situation. This particular section discusses on the role of leadership in managing a diverse work group. Before discussing any further, the researcher feels it important to define the term called diverse leaders and diversity leadership. Diversity leadership implies to someone who manage a heterogeneous work group. However diversity leadership is different from diverse leaders. Diverse leaders refer to leaders who are different in their ethnicity, race and cultural background (Ayoko et al, 2006). Leadership can be defined as the process that defines and implements various tasks, objectives and strategies which will create a strong organizational culture which will in turn shape peoples identity in various tasks in organization (Yukl, 1989a, b). Thus it could be contended that leaders develop various norms and visions which would affect the employees in their work satisfaction. Hofstede (1993) argues that a culturally diverse group prefers being led in different

ways. He goes to argue that to be successful in international business it is essential for an organization to have an efficient leaders who can manage diverse cultural groups. Brewer et al(1994) argues that the decisions and behaviors of a team leader have found to influence every aspect in team effectiveness. Further, the attitude and skills of a team leader will play a crucial role in developing other team members competency thru monitoring and coaching other members behavior. It is been found from researchers that the most important skill for people in the managerial post is the technical skill (Bass, 1990). Technical skill includes the knowledge about products and services, know how about working operations, various procedures, where about on machinery, the market condition, customers and competitors. Bass(1990) further points out that conceptual skill is also essential as it is the skill to analyze and perceive complex trends and events to understand changes and recognize problems and to find solution of problems, to use models and theories in conceptualizing complex ideas. Another skill which is evident in the literature is administrative skill and this refers to the ability to carry out various functions such as planning, assigning and supervising. The administrative skills consist of technical and interpersonal skills. It is thus argued that it is essential for any leader have all the above mentioned skill to bring out the potential of the group members. There are literatures (egs Bass, 1990) which identify the social skills necessary for people in the management positions. The various social skill according to Bass (1990) are understanding interpersonal and team processes, the skill to maintains relationship that includes conflict resolution skills. Social skills further consist of the capacity to understand the feelings, motives, attitude and various other verbal and non verbal behaviors. Among this social skill, the most important social oriented skill that a leader should poses is the conflict management skill. Another important skill that the leader should poses is the emotion management skill. Ayoko et al (2006) argues that it is essential for a leader to have cross cultural emotion management skill because social conflicts are taken birth from the negative emotions which arises from the dissimilarity in values and wishes. Literatures on management of emotions include the management of interpersonal intelligence (Gardner, 1983), management of social intelligence (Thorndike, 1920) and emotional intelligence (Jordan et al, 2002). These literatures reveals that effective emotion management consists of talent to recognize, supervise and control ones own as well as others emotions (Jordan et al, 2002). Salovey and Mayer (1990) argues that good emotion management skill improves the skill to process information efficiently which will thus help in motivating and encouraging the team members. Therefore it could be contended that if

emotional conflicts are not minimized, it will greatly influence the productivity and the effectiveness of the team. It can be argued that the most critical and complicated obstacle in the smooth working of a heterogeneous group is conflict (Jehn, 1995, 1997; Bantel and Jackson, 1989). And hence it could be contended that the most important skill that a leader should have is the managing social conflict. Ayoko et al (2006) points out that conflict management skills deals with understanding the type of conflict and understanding each and everyones role in conflict. Rahim (1992) identifies five distinct conflict styles. Competition: exemplifies high boldness and the use of power to be accepted in one position Accommodation: characterizes co-operation in satisfying another persons wish in the expense of ones own. Collaboration: this is a combination of the first two styles. In this all the persistent issues are brought out to find a solution which will include the perspective of all the people. Avoiding: This includes escaping an issue or an open discussion. Compromise: This deals with giving both parties the opportunity to open up and then to find a solution in the middle ground. However Rahim and Blum( 1994) argues that culture differ in relation to the above mentioned five styles of conflict management. Culture seems to influence the role of managers in resolving the subordinates conflict (Elangovan, 1995; Kozan and Ergin, 1998). Also it is noticed that different views on conflict and its management style can increase the probability of conflict in a culturally heterogeneous group( Ayoko et al, 2006). It is argued that more the dissimilarity of leaders in conflict management by the leaders and the group members, higher will be the perception of conflict in the team. Further, the more of dissimilarity of leaders and group members in their ethnicity and cultural background, the more will be the perception of conflict in the team. It is also argued that the link between the conflict and the outcome is greatly influenced by a leaders conflict management skills in a culturally hetrogenous group. Ayoko et al( 2006) argues that since organizational conflict affect the interpretation that members in the workplace, the team leaders of a cultural heterogeneous group should have cross culturall understanding of conflict. This is because an individuals character is deep rooted by their cultural and social experience and the culture shapes people behavior, and

because the conflict has a interpretive behavior. And thus he argues that the conflict management practices may vary according to ones cultural background (Triandis, 1994). For instance, in collectivist culture like that in Asian countries, people seem to like a harmony approach to conflict. On the other hand, in individualist countries like the Western countries, people prefer to have a regulative model on conflict which will depend on bureaucracy and organizational structure. Thus it could be contended that understanding of different cultural methods for conflict management can improve the effectiveness of a leader in cross cultural teams. It could also be contended that the more effective the leaders conflict management skill is, the more will be the position reaction of workers towards the event of conflict. Ayoko et al (2006) also identifies that an effective leader should not be partial to its team members. Impartial leadership will reduce the conflict in the group which will hence enhance cohesion and integration. Thus the overall outcome will be positive. Cross cultural conflict Resolution Cross cultural conflict resolution directs attention to problems related to intercultural communication, interpretation and problems associated with decision making. Kevin (2004) argues that conflict management in a cross cultural team will deal with differences in style and that the scholars who have dealt with cross cultural conflict have developed certain typologies for differentiating different types of culture, different intercultural problem areas and different types of conflict management techniques. And most of resolution methods in the literature have specified the method of negotiation rather than assigning a third party as a mediator in solving the conflict. Still now many researchers are using the distinction made by Hall( 1960) on communication styles for conflict management or resolution techniques. Hall (1960) explained two distinctions of communication styles namely low context and high context communication style. Low context style or culture deals with direct and unadorned use of language with less dependence on paralinguistic cues such as facial expression or body language. On contrary to this high context style or culture depends more on expressive and indirect language for communication. Kevin (2004) argues that this distinction of Hall (1960) on communication styles are interdependent with Hofstedes dimension of individualistic (low context) versus collectivist (high context) cultures. He goes on to argue that the two different communication styles is also co related with the basic beliefs of people on the nature of conflict resolution or on the negotiation process. When individuals of both two cultures namely low context and high context culture interact with each other at the time of conflict, the impact of difference between the cultures can be powerful enough to create miscommunication and misunderstanding

between the members. However many literatures have reported that national negotiation style by assuming more of homogeneity in the team have led to failure. These literatures identifies that the negotiation process should be by understanding the impact of cultural difference on conflict process. Ayoko et al(2006) argues that the most important factor that need to be understood is the dynamics of cross cultural communication because when they occur, it can be resolved in the most effective way. Mc Court et al (2003) identifies negotiation as the method for settling the differences both at individual level (between two individuals) and at collective level (between members in a team). For example negotiations between the management and trade union can be called as negotiations at the collective level. Lassere(2003) posit that a particular negotiation style can bring different impact on outcomes. He further argues that the international managers should have proper knowledge on cross cultural conflicts so that they can take precautions and can provide with recommendations that could prevent the failure due to cultural conflicts. Further, Rahim (2004) identifies two other strategies for conflict management. These are problem solving strategy and bargaining strategy. Problem solving strategy deals with concern for self and others where as bargaining strategy deals with the concern for either self or others. Increased use of problem strategy indicates that the management or the leader is more concerned with the satisfaction of both the parties and will try to find a solution which will not badly affect both the parties. On contrary to this bargaining power concentrates on either satisfying oneself or others and thus the solution will be beneficial for a single party. However when the resolution of conflict is not done properly it can incur many problems in the organization. Dana (2001) identifies five negative outcomes which can be caused due to bad conflict management. Wasted time Bad decision Lost employees Unnecessary restructuring Disruption, theft and damage De motivation

Loss in work time More health cost

Apart from this, conflict management can affect relationship of employee with organization. It could thus be argued that proper resolution will strengthen the relationship and thus will increase the co operation of employees and the organization. Summary From the review of literature, it can be concluded that cross cultural teams are highly important in an organization. And thus there is a need for proper management of these cross cultural teams. National cultural differences can occur in any team and in any organization. This can be because of the different culture from where the members are bought from. These culture inherited from their nation to a certain extend will shape the behavior of a person. These differences in national culture can often lead to cross cultural conflicts. Apart from the cultural conflict, there are many other reason which will drive to conflict in a team. Some of the other factors which will lead to conflict according to Thomas (1976) are frustration, communication problems, personal disposition, social pressure etc. The literature further reveals that the diversity in culture often lead to cross cultural conflict within the team. This is the situation which calls for efficient leadership. Cross cultural conflict to a certain extend can be resolved with proper leadership. There are certain skills that are necessary for a leader. Some of the skills according to the literatures are technical skill, emotional skill, conceptual skill, administrative skill and conflict management skill. However this particular research paper only deals with the conflict management skill of a leader. Five distinct conflict styles in the organization namely competition, accommodation, collaboration, avoiding and compromise are studied in detail for proper analysis of the primary data collected. Further it was clearly understood from the literature that the conflict management style can vary according to one cultural background and that different leaders will have different approach towards the conflict management.

It was also clear that the conflict resolution is highly linked to the communication process, decision making and problem solving and that the most commonly used method for the resolution of a conflict is the negotiation method. However there is two other methods namely problem solving and the bargaining process that can be used as a conflict resolution method. Nevertheless when these methods are not properly used and implemented, it can cause a lot of problems in the organization. So it can thus be concluded that the conflict management is a management style that should be implemented in a most efficient way. If not properly executed, it can cause lot of problems including employee loss.

METHODOLOGY

Methodology can be defined as the science that deals with the principles and procedures in research study. There are many different methodological approaches that are mentioned in the literature that would help in describing the way to gain knowledge (Guba & Lincoln, 1990). The word Paradigm is explained in this context by Guba and Lincoln (1990). Paradigm can be defined as a basic set of beliefs that guides action (Guba and Lincoln, 1990: 17). This chapter on methodology explains the various research methods together with the philosophical perspective of the research methods. The various methods described in this chapter include research approach, research strategy, time horizons, data collection and sampling and data analysis techniques.

3.1

Research Philosophy

Research philosophy explains the researchers philosophical position while conducting the research. This method includes the important assumptions and beliefs that highlight the research methods that can be used to conduct the research (Saunders et al, 2009). The selected philosophy will impact the methods that are used for the research. There are three main research philosophies and that are positivism, realism and interpretivism. Positivism is the researchers view in conducting the research with a clear vision on social reality and the results from the research will be generalized like that produced from scientists. In this type of philosophy the researcher will only believe what is observable and will use an already existing theory to create hypothesis. Realism is the second philosophical position of the researcher in which the researcher will exploit data as a real incident and the incident that he feels as real. Realism differs from positivism, in the perspective that in realism the data need not be an observable quantity, but what the researchers senses feel as reality is considered but in positivism, only observable quantity in taken into consideration. Interpretivism is the last and third philosophical position in which the researcher finds it essential to carry out the research among people and not in objects or phenomena. After studying different philosophical position, it was clear that interpretivism is used as researchers philosophical view for conducting this research as the main findings from the primary data collection technique will be interpreted

with help of literature review and primary data is collected with the help of a focal group from the organization under study. (Saunders et al, 2009)

3.2

Research Approach

Inductive and deductive approaches are the two research approaches that are commonly used in any research. In a deductive approach, a theory is first developed and then a strategy is designed for testing the hypothesis. On the other hand, in inductive method, first the data is collected and later a theory is used for the purpose of data analysis. Saunders et al (2009) identifies that the inductive approach is more of interpretation. He further points out that the deductive approach begins with a theory and then progress to data while inductive approach begins with the data and then progress to develop a theory with the help of the data collected. The research approach that is used in this present research is deductive as this research on cross cultural conflict in multicultural organization is very much wealthy of literatures. There are many researchers, who have about this particular topic and have come up with many theories on conflict, national cultural difference in organization, cross cultural conflict and cross conflict resolution. Though it was not practically possible to study all the theories developed in this context, some of the important frameworks on the topic are studied and interpreted according to the researcher perspective. Another important reason why the researcher chose deductive is that the time that is needed for the deductive approach is less when compared to the inductive approach and as the time for this research is less, the researcher have gone for deductive approach.

3.3

Research design

Saunders et al (2009), points out that the research questions selected for the research will help in pointing out various research methods such as research strategy, data collection techniques and analysis procedures, and the time horizons by which a research can be conducted. Research design is a plan which will help in answering the research questions and thereby reaching into a conclusion. Saunders et al (2009), identifies that a research design will include clear objectives that are formed from the research questions, various sources from which the researcher collect the data, methods used to analyze the findings and the time required to carry out the research.

The research will be based on an exploratory study as this research explores cross cultural conflict in a multi cultural organization. This will explicitly deal with the cause of cross cultural conflict as well as the resolution for the same. This research is conducted with the help of literatures available in the topic under study and with the help of data collected from Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals.

3.3.1

Research strategy and Time horizons

The research strategy used is a case study. Saunders et al (2009), explains case study as a strategy that involves in exploring an exact phenomenon that occur in the real life with clear source of evidence. This strategy according to Saunders et al (2009) will help to add the understanding of the topic under study and will help in getting the answers for questions like why? What? and how? . Further, this strategy will help in providing a clear idea about the subject under study. Parasuraman (2004), posit that case study is the most effective method for research as it portrait the subject very precisely. The case study used in this research will be a case study on Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals. The study is conducted by interviewing employees and managers of the organization under study. It is expected that, in the coming stages, the research will provide an imminent exploration of cross cultural conflict in the organization along with the role of leadership in dealing with the cross cultural conflict. There are two types of time horizons that can be used for a research and they are cross sectional and longitudinal. When a research is done on a specific event on a very specific time, it is called the cross sectional method. On the other hand, if the research is done by observing people or an event, then that method is called the longitudinal method. This present research is conducted with the help of longitudinal approach as the final aim is attained by observing the cause and the resolution method for cross cultural conflict on Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals by conducting an interview with managers and employees of the company. Further the same result for the research can be reproduced by exploring more on the topic. .

3.3.2

Sampling methods

Saunders et al (2009), explains sampling methods as a group of techniques or methods that helps the researcher in reducing the time required to complete a research. He further explains that the various sampling techniques are essential as in some cases of research it will not be possible to judge the whole population due to factors like time and budget. Saunders et al (2009) describes two type of sampling methods namely probability sampling and nonprobability sampling. In probability sampling, the probability of being included in a sample under research will be the same. But in non-probability sampling the probability of being included in a sample is unknown. The sampling used here is non probability sampling and only Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals in India is selected as the organization to conduct the research. This is because of the time constraint. Further, as the aim of the study is exploratory, the company is selected by self selection sampling method.

3.3.3

Data Collection methods

There are two methods by which a researcher can conduct a case study namely secondary method and primary method (Saunders et al, 2009). However, Stake (2005) have put forward six different sources with the help of which a researcher can carry out a case study. Documents, archival records, interviews, direct observation, participant observation and physical artefacts are those six different sources. Nevertheless the current research uses both the collection method and interview for the case study. This is because the researcher feels these methods are relevant for the research. Secondary datas are those data that can be obtained easily from other reliable sources. ( Parasuraman et al, 2004). Secondary data can be either qualitative or quantitative and can be used in both explanatory and descriptive research (Saunders et al, 2009). That is secondary data can either be in form of numbers or can be in the form of a theory or a framework. It will be commendable to, study the pros and cons of the secondary data before mentioning the methods used for the secondary data collection. Secondary data could also be described as readily available data. More over these are comparatively inexpensive and inconspicuous. Certain researchers mainly rely on secondary

data when it is very difficult to get primary data from an organization. However secondary data can only guide in getting answers to the research questions because secondary data rarely give precise answers to the research questions (Kotabe, 2000). For example, some of the purpose of secondary data is to identify a problem, define a problem, find an approach to a problem, find a research design and finally to answer the research questions. However there are many problems with the secondary data. The accuracy for these types of data can be less because the data need not be current can be less relevant in the current period. Therefore to justify the secondary data collected, it is highly important to carry out a primary data collection method. This can add to the understanding of secondary data collected. The present research deals with national cultural differences and the conflicts that can occur with national cultural differences in a group. Further it will deal with the role of leadership in
managing the cross cultural conflicts. There are many literatures that have dealt with the national cultural differences (egs: Hofstede, 1980, 1990, 1993 etc), conflicts (egs: Thomas, 1976), cross cultural conflicts (egs: Adler, 1991), role of leadership in cross cultural conflicts (egs: Ayoko et al, 2006) and cross cultural conflict resolution (Hall, 1960; Kevin, 2004 etc). The secondary research has dealt with all the above mentioned topics by reviewing the journal articles and books related to the topic under research. The research questions are thus developed from the secondary research done and has helped to a certain extend in answering the research questions.

Malhotra( 2004), defines primary data as the data that are used for addressing a problems and also posit that it has various steps. He further argues that the primary data collection method take more time and cost. But, when compared with secondary data, these type of data are reliable and will be current. There are various methods by which a researcher can conduct primary data collection. The first and foremost is the case study method which has been discussed in the earlier stages of this chapter. The next important method is the questionnaire. The last one and the one used in this present research is the interview method. An interview is a purposeful discussion that takes place between two or more people. (Kahn and Cannell, 1957). The method of interview can help the researcher to get very important and dependable information about the subject under study. According to King (2004), interviews can occur in three forms. The first one can be very formal and highly standardized. The second one can be casual and can be unstructured. These types of interviews are also called in depth interviews. The last one and the one used in this research is the semi structured interview. Both semi structured and in depth interviews are also known as qualitative research interviews. The

qualitative interviews can be conducted in different modes like face to face discussion, telephonic discussion or my any other electronic means. (Kings, 2004). Primary data is collected with the help of interviewing managers and employees of the company under research. Three international managers of the company were asked questions on national cultural differences, group work, conflicts in the group and the resolution method. These questions that arose from the secondary research were managed in a very clear way to avoid confusion at the time of interview. The managers were asked these previously developed questions in order to explore more on the topic under research. The employees were also interviewed to know the topic from an employee perspective. The employees were also asked on the leadership pattern followed in the company and whether they are happy with the methods adopted by the leaders in the time of cross cultural conflict. And finally the primary data collected is analyzed and interpreted with the help of frameworks which has been developed already. Telephonic interview is used for collecting primary data because of the difficulty of the researcher to travel from UK to company headquarters in Hyderabad, India. This was because of the time consumption and expensive feature of face to face interview method. Also as it was agreed with the organization that the data collected will be confidential, the discussion between the interviewee and interviewer was not recorded. However the answers were written down when the interviewee answered the questions. This hand written notes was used for the interpretation of the results and has helped in to get the answers for the research questions.

The interview was conducted with three international managers of Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals, India to explore the management of cross cultural conflict in the organization. As cross cultural conflict is an issue that revolves around team working, the managers interviewed were responsible for the effective working of the team. Also to understand more on the cross cultural conflict and the resolution methods taken by the leaders, a group of 15 employees were interviewed. The questions that arose from the secondary research were downsized according to the relevance due to time limitations. 3.4 Data Analysis

Quantitative and Qualitative are the methods with which a research can conduct a research (Schiffman and Kanuk, 2000). The choice of the method mainly depends on the type of data required. Qualitative research method is used in this present research. Easterby et al( 2003), explains qualitative methods as the compilation of interpretative methods that describes, decodes and translates the significance of a real phenomena in the world. Therefore a qualitative research is gathering, examining and unraveling the data that cannot be measured quantitatively. Qualitative method is thus known as soft research. As has been discussed earlier, non- structured is often referred to as qualitative research. However a large sample of data cannot be referred to as qualitative even though they are non structured questions. And thus it is likely to say that qualitative research only deals with a small sample size. The two features of qualitative analysis namely the small sample size and the non structured questions will obviously help in understanding the problems and will recommend timely action. On the other hand, a quantitative research will be structured and will have large sample size. Quantitative research is mainly used to test hypothesis and is only used when the research is inductive. Further, the quantitative research is only used in conclusive researches (Parasuraman et al. 2004). This present research uses the qualitative data that are gathered from the semi structured interview conducted with the managers and employees of the organization under study. For a better result, the data collected are analyzed in order to reveal the main characteristics of the data collected (Parasuraman, 2004). Analysis can also help in future research as it often helps in developing a theory or framework from the data collected. But this research only deals with interpreting the data collected from the organization under study with the help of already exciting theory. Analysis of the data is done according to the relevance of the research questions. 5 Limitations This research only deal with a single organization called Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals because of the limitations of time. And analyzing the problems from a single organization will not provide deeper in sights of the research. The selection of the organization was done on the basis of easily available data. The organization under study currently operates in 21 different countries. However this research is restricted to their head quarters in Hyderabad, India. This is

also due to the limitation in time. Further to this the data is collected through telephonic interviews with the managers and the employees of the company. The telephonic interview will not help in capturing the non verbal conversations like facial expression. This is because of the fact that the researcher is based on UK and the company under research is an Indian company that has many cross cultural groups. More over the sample size is chosen to be 15 employees and 3 managers because of time factor and thus this research is only qualitative and cannot be interpreted in the form of numbers

4 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION This chapter deals with the primary data collected from the interviews conducted with the managers and employees of Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals India. The questions for the interview was developed from the secondary research done on cross cultural conflict and the role of leadership in managing cross cultural conflict. Employees of the company were also interviewed for better understanding of the topic under research. The design of this chapter is as same as that of the literature review. Before interviewing the managers and the employees, a research was done for understanding the impact of national culture and national cultural differences on the organization. The explanation on this research is done in the next section with the help of Hofstedes dimensions on national culture. Further these dimensions were tested by asking questions to the employees about their basic beliefs and assumptions. To brief of the interview questions, the managers were primarily asked to explain a conflict situation at the organization. The next question put forward was to identify the various sources by which a conflict situation arises in the organization. The managers were also asked to narrate the role of management in a conflict situation. The employees were asked the various steps that the management has adopted in resolving the conflict solutions. This was done to understand whether the employees were happy in the conflict resolution methods of the organization. 4.1 National cultural differences As has been mentioned before, the basic characteristics of people in India as well as the basic features of an organization in India was done as per the dimensions of Hofstede. This was done because the organization under study was in India and the researcher expects that the study on the basic beliefs and assumptions of the people in India can enhance the understanding of a conflict situation and the various source of conflict in the organization. India is a country with deep rooted culture which has certainly impacted the behavior of people and hence organizations there (Eaton, 2006). It is likely to say that business in India gives more importance to the social relationships and hence one could contend that a person from different culture working in such an environment can bring in conflict within the organization (Mandelbaum, 1970). According to Kanungo (2006) India is on a transition stage from developing country to a developed country. This statement is very true and is evident from the growth of many organizations by collaborating with the foreign organizations. Thus it is

obvious to have cross cultural teams and hence cross cultural conflict in organizations. The secondary research has led to the conclusion that the cross cultural conflict can be managed by studying the basic behavior of the people in the organizations. This is context where Hosftedes dimensions on national culture have great role to play. Below is the diagrammatical representation of Hofstedes score on India.

Fig 1: Hofstedes Score on India Source: http: //www.geert-hofstede.com/ Hofstede (1991), contends that India has a score of 77 on power distance dimension which is the highest on the world because the world average for this dimension is only 56.5. This highest score portrays that there is high inequality in power and wealth distribution within India and this means that people will be more attracted to power and wealth. Studies by Hofstede(1993) shows that India is long term oriented and the score on this dimension is 61 where as the world average is 48. And this depicts that people in India will be very much concerned about future when compared to other Western countries. India can be said as a masculine nation and the score on masculine dimension is 56, which is slightly higher the world average of 51. The high masculine score implies that people in India have more masculine characters like tough and strong. Studies also revealed that Indians can take risks and can accept risks as it comes. The score on uncertainty avoidance is only 45 where as the world

average on this dimension is 65. Thus it could be contended that India is a country that have fewer rules and regulations that will avoid risks. The score on the last dimension individualism is 43 which show that India falls under collectivist category. Thus it can be concluded that Indians give more importance to their people in near relations than they care for themselves. The basic character, beliefs and assumptions of people in India was understood for proper analysis of the primary data collected. Before going to the conflict section, the managers were asked to explain the team working in the organization. The response from the three managers who were interviewed was almost the same. The managers responded that most of the projects in the company were done by a group of people who are experts in the field and consists not only Indians but also consists of other nationals. They further said that if the project is an international one, the team would consists of people working in other branches of the company who contact through electronic media or face to face. This comment would point out very clearly that the organization depends on diversity on groups for their project. The interviewer further asked the managers to identify a way by which the team members cope up with the cultural differences in the team. One of the managers started off by saying that, in organizations there were situations of misunderstandings due to different cultural views and norms. However, he pointed out that in cases the members themselves have taken initiative to resolve these misunderstandings by mutually respecting each others culture and their beliefs. And in some cases the managers have to interrupt to solve the problem. Thus it could be contended that in organization under study the people is seem to follow the fusion model put forward by Janssens and Brett( 2006) which says that when people from one culture respects the diversity, better performance and results are made in the organization. However in some other cases, there should be proper conflict resolution as well as proper leadership in the cases of conflict.

4.2 Conflict The initial question on conflict to the managers was to define conflict in an organization. The responses from the managers were varied as none of the managers were happy and they shied to define conflict situation or conflict. Instead they replaced the terms like misunderstanding, tension, cultural misunderstanding, problem etc for conflict. However the interviewer

continued to address the term conflict as it was the subject area under study. After the response for the initial question, the managers were asked to identify various conflict sources in the organization. The reply for this question was interesting as the managers could easily figure out many sources for conflict. Nonetheless some of the factors like frustration, poor communication, less satisfaction with the organizational culture and ego clashes between the team members went along with the process model put forward by Thomas (1976). According to the process model, the various factors which drive to conflict are frustration that can include poor communication, structure, and personal variables, conceptualization, behavior, interaction and outcome. Another manager pointed out some other factors which will falls under the structural model proposed by Thomas (1976). These factors include the pressure from the management, payroll, rules and regulations of the organization. However these factors can be complied and called as the organizational culture and hence it could be argued that if the employees in an organization is not happy with the organizational culture, then a conflict situation can arise. 4.3 Cultural diversity and conflict The managers were asked to make opinion on how cultural diversity causes conflict within the team. One of the managers responded that people working in a team will only have single objective though the work will be divided within the team. This has seen to create ego clashes within the members and also the there seems to have idea clash within the members. Being brought up in different culture, the members will have different perspectives towards the work. The manager continued quoting an example from his experience. He said that in a team that consists of both UK nationals and Indians, there will be a difference in opinion on team working itself. He goes on saying that Brits are more individualistic, and they only wanted their work to be done in time where as Indians are more concerned about the team. These findings are in accordance with the findings of Hofstede (1993). He further said that the mixed opinion has certainly led to clashes between Indians and Bits and created tensions. This situation has in turn demand the interference of the managers for calming down the situation. Both the other managers agreed with the example as well as the two factors called ego clash and idea clash that was put forward by the first manager. One among these two managers took over the conversation and said that gender difference in team have also caused tension in the team because the outlook towards the work for both the genders can be different and can also cause arguments in many situations. The third manager argued that apart from this there are two main factors that create tension in a team. He referred this two factors are poor communication and

mistrust within the team. This response from the third manager was in line with the findings of Steven et al( 1998) who contends that miscommunication and mistrust are the two important parameters that are root cause of all problems in a team that have cultural diversity. The manager who spoke about miscommunication pointed out that communication problem can cause lot of problems in the organization. The interviewer understood from the interview that there are four keys to communication namely proper use of communication, respecting each others perception, role of ethnocentrism and recognition of stereotypes. The manager from his experience spoke out that if a team member fails to effectively use the language in conveying a matter, then it can be an insult for the other team members. Coleman (1995a) identified that this type of problem can be the most stressful experience when trying to adjust with cultural diversity. Nevertheless, in the organization under study the common language used for communication is English and thus one could argue that the problem caused due to the improper use of language will be less in Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals. The second key of communication identified by the interviewer is perception. Ormond (1995) defined perception as the meaning that the people link to the information that they gain through senses. It was understood from the interview that the perception can be a crucial problem in cross cultural communication. Different person can have different views towards different things and if not properly understood, these perspectives can affect the performance of the team. In this context, the manager identified that there are certain employees who make premature judgments in certain decision making. This nature of the employees can cause problems with other employees. The third key to communication that was identified was the ethnocentrism. Hiebert (1996) defined ethnocentrism as the emotional response that the people give when they face another culture. The author argues that the ethnocentrism is linked with the attitude and is not caused as a result of understanding. Likewise the managers pointed out that people in certain culture, are dominant when compared to people from other culture and this dominance can make other people respond negatively and thus can create tension. Further the consciousness of employees to various work values can also cause negative effect in the organization. The manager further added that it is very important for an employee in a global to be a learner because the skill to learn and accept new culture can impact the performance of a team with cultural diversity. The last key to communication that was identified was the recognition of stereotypes. The manager mentioned that in all organizations there exist many stereotypes who always believe them to be right. Handling these kinds of employees are really a difficult task and should have efficient management, the manager added.

4.4 Leadership and Cross cultural conflict Management The next question to the managers was to describe the various conflict management techniques that they adopted in the organization. They were also asked to explain the role of leadership in managing a conflict situation. The three managers came up with three different methods that they adopt to manage the conflict situation. All the three methods are discussed below 4.4.1 Empathize with the Team members The manager described empathy well. If I stand on a managers position, I may not feel that there is a problem persisting in the team, but if I stand on employees shoes, I can feel the tension.Finding a solution from their point of view will help in reducing the tension. The managers statement of empathy made the definition of empathy very clear. Empathy is a situation in which the management thinks and acts from the employee perspective. It is simply walking on someone elses shoes. Empathizing with the employees can always reduce the tension persisting. The manager goes on to argue that a tension situation will not be satisfactorily resolved until and unless the decision is favorable to the employees and that favorable solution cannot be made until the management understand their point of view and act accordingly. He further says that empathy cannot be created or made but should be automatic and should be the immediate response from the management. He went on saying that the empathy with the team members can reduce the ethnocentrism and will add to the understanding about the beliefs and assumptions of people in other culture.

4.4.2 To develop multiple perspective According to the manager, for proper management of conflict one should try to view the world from different angle. The manager argues that for developing various perspectives, one should essentially have self awareness and that the managers should be able to teach the employees to view a problem situation from different angle. He goes on to argue that the multiple views on a particular situation can calm down tension or the so called conflict in a team with cultural diversity. 4.4.3 Suspend Judgment

According to the manager, for a multicultural organization, the most essential skill that the manager should have is the ability to suspend judgment. He explained the situation as follows there might be a problem for the employees that needs a solution which might not be favourable for the managementthe employees therefore will not present directly but uses a third party to catch up with the managementsince they use a third party interference, the management cannot make a cut and straight judgment, instead have to maintain a balance and hence will take time to make a judgment Horowitz and Boardman (1994) pointed out that for settling a conflict in a diverse workforce, there is a need for a third party called business organization.

Apart from these qualities, the managers pointed some other skills which are required for conflict management. One of the managers pointed out that the leaders should essentially have technically skill and administrative skill. He argued that if the leader has administrative skill, he will certainly have both technical skill and interpersonal skill. This argument was in line with the argument put forward by Bass (1990). However the manager didnt mention the other skills like social skill, emotion management skill and cross cultural emotion management that was put forward by Bass (1990). Another manager mentioned that all the leaders should have the ability to mentor the employees. They should essentially know to teach the employees to empathize with the employees, develop multiple perspectives and to suspend judgment. The third manager pointed that another skill which is highly required is to study the communication skills. As has been discussed earlier communication process can do a lot in managing conflict and hence the ability to learn communication skill is another important skill that is required for a manager. All the three managers acknowledged that there should not any discrimination to the employees and that the discrimination can be the worst part that could produce negative impact for the conflict and hence the performance. The managers also indicated that employees are happy and will put an effort to reduce conflict if they are given adequate recognition. This indication was in line with Steyn (2001) who argues that a good leader should be a detective and should be well aware of the recognition that an employee should get. Thus it could be concluded that for proper management of conflict, there need to have lot of essential skills for a leader. Some of the skills that the leaders think that they should have are the ability to empathize, the ability to view the world from different angle, ability to suspend

the judgment, and to incorporate these qualities into the employees. Some of the other skills according to the managers are administration skills and technical skills and to learn communication skills. Further there should not be any discrimination on any basis to the employees. Among the five distinct styles of conflict management by Rahim (1992), the participants specifically mentioned the term compromise and combination. The three managers who participated in the interview agreed that these are the two styles used by the management. They continued saying that they will either use a compromise style in which all the view point both the parties are heard separately and a solution is found on a middle ground. Or they will use a combination style in which the parties are allowed for an open talk and a solution is found which will not badly affect the parties and the management. However, they said that an open discussion in most cases will not be possible due to many reasons and hence they will have to stick on to the compromise style. Thus it could be contended that apart from the various skills that the manager should have, there are particular styles that a manager should follow in conflict management. One of the managers specifically pointed out that if there is a cross cultural conflict in a team, the manager dealing with the conflict should be very careful because the outcome can be positive or can worsen up the situation. Because in managing a cross cultural conflict, a manager should aware of the cultural background of both the teams. This comment from the manager was in line with the argument made by Ayoko et al (2006) who argues that the organizational conflict can affect the elucidation of employees in the workplace and hence the team leaders should have cross cultural understanding. Therefore it is evident from these discussions that it is not only the skill of a leader that matters in managing a conflict situation but it is the style by which a leader manages the situation. Hence it could be argued that the leaders play a great role in conflict management in any organization and that the leaders have the ability to either calm down a conflict situation or to worsen up the situation. And thus it could be contended that any steps taken by the leader can affect the whole functioning of the organization.

4.5 Cross cultural conflict resolution This particular section deals with the responses from the employees on the various conflict resolution styles and techniques used by the management. The interview was conducted with

the intention to understand the conflict management from an employee perspective and thus to give valid recommendations to the management. The employees were asked about the conflict management methods and whether they are happy with the methods. Among 15 employees interviewed ten employees said that they are happy with the techniques that the management used. They also mentioned the various skills of the leaders like empathizing with the employees and suspending the judgment. They further told that they are happy with the management styles of the leader and that the most of the leaders use a compromise style. However the other five employees pointed out most of the leaders use an avoiding method for the conflict resolution. This means that the leaders avoid or escape from the situation of conflict in the team. These five employees had the same opinion but they refused to mention the leaders name and they agreed to the fact that not all the leaders in the organization are the same. It was thus evident from the employee response that the employees were not happy with the management style that was followed by certain leaders. Some of the employees also mentioned that the leaders should be proactive and that the leaders should be well aware of the situation and should not give time for a conflict instead they have to be acting accordingly. Some other employees interviewed also indicated that the essential skill that the leader should have is the problem solving technique. These comments of the employees were in line with Steyn (2001) who argued that the problem solving technique is the most essential quality that a leader should poses. It can be thus contended from the response of the employees that some of the employees are happy and satisfied with the leadership skill and style of the leaders. But some other employees whose responses taken were not happy with the leadership skills used for the management of conflict. Next the employees were asked the way by which the managers deal with cultural difference in the organization. Among the employees interviewed, eight of them responded that most of the cross cultural conflict occurs because of the team division by the management. They went on saying that it is true that multicultural team produce good result that a homogenous team can bring in. But if the management takes a monopolistic approach in team division, it will lead to dissatisfaction in employees and thus will affect the performance of the team. However the rest of the employees supported the management in the team selection and argued that it is not possible for the management to ask opinion to the employees before dividing the team for the project. Further the employees were asked to mention some of the factors that will lead to cultural conflicts within themselves. The employees came up different cultural factors that have resulted in conflicts. Indians mentioned that in a team that consist of

Asians and Westners, the westners are only concerned for themselves and give less importance for the team members. These attitudes have resulted in many problems within the team, one of the Indian employees remarked. This statement was in line with the dimension of Individualism versus collectivism of Hofstede(1993). Another employee who was a Brit remarked that Indians are not punctual and this has created tension within the Brits. These comments echoed the findings of Hofstede (1993). These observations of the employees on the cultural conflicts and the factors that lead to the cultural conflicts in the organization were echoed by the findings of Hofstede on his study on national culture and cultural differences. Thus it could be concluded that these cultural differences can be a major problem in any organization if not properly managed. 4.6 Summary Fifteen employees and three managers of Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals were interviewed to explore on the conflict situation and the various conflict techniques used by the leaders. It was understood from the interview that conflict in any organization is unavoidable and that these conflict can be because of many reasons. But whatsoever the reasons are it is essential for the management to understand and resolve these conflicts before it can bring in endanger to the organization. Among the employees interviewed some were happy with the conflict resolution styles adopted by the management of the organization under study where as some others were not happy on the various methods adopted. Many of the responses that were given by the interviewees were in line with the secondary research done on the topic under research. Thus both the primary research and the secondary research helped in gaining a proper understanding on the topic under research.

5 Conclusion It is likely to say that the cultural diversity can impact the relationships in an organization and thus a cross cultural work force can affect the whole functioning of the organization including the communication. Literatures [egs, Thomas (1976), Adler (1991)] reveals that miscommunication is the greatest challenge an organization is facing today and that the miscommunication can often lead to tension and conflict in the organization. It is therefore essential to have a clear understanding on the process of communication and cross cultural conflict. Cross cultural conflict can bring either positive or negative effect to an organization. It

was thus necessary to explore the factors that drive the conflicts in the organization and the various methods by which a conflict situation can be managed. It is also necessary to investigate the role of leadership in managing conflict in the organization. To explore and investigate about cross cultural conflict, a multi cultural organization called Dr Reddys Pharmaceuticals is chosen as the case study. Though the company is a global company that operates 21 countries, the present research only deals with the head office in India. This is due to the limited time and non availability of data. Before the primary research is done on the company, a secondary research is presented and has added to the understanding on cross cultural conflict and the role of leadership in managing a conflict situation. The secondary research has also helped in proper interpretation of the findings from the primary research. Initially, a study was done on the national culture and cultural difference in organization. Though there are many scholars who have dealt with this particular area, the current research have concentrated on the framework on national culture by Hofstede (1980, 1990, 1993 etc). This is because the validity and reliability of the framework was tested by many other scholars like Skeenkamp( 2001), McSweeney( 2002). However it can be argued that there are many limitations for the framework by Hofstede. But the limitations are not considered in the current research as the subject under interest mainly deals with conflict in the organization. Apart from Hofstede, there are some other scholars like Jansons and Bret (2006) who have demonstrated national culture and cultural differences. Therefore, for more understanding on the topic the frameworks of Hofstede (1980, 1990, 1993 etc) and Jansons and Brett (2006) is used for analyzing the primary data and to answer the research questions. The studies revealed that the culture and cultural differences in any organization can impact the organizational functioning in many ways because culture is that critical factor that molds a person in his beliefs and assumptions Hofstede (1993) and hence better understanding of culture is essential before judging any issues in the organization. Thus to study the basic beliefs and assumptions of people in India, a review of Hofstedes dimensions on Power- Distance, Individualism versus Collectivism, Uncertainty Avoidance, Short term oriented versus long term oriented and masculinity versus femininity is done. This particular study has helped in exploring the major issues that arise in a team with people from different nations. It is possible to conclude from the secondary research that the conflict in any organization is inevitable and can cause due to number of factors. However the literatures [ Hofstede (1990), Lassere (2003) etc] reveals that culture is main and primary cause of conflict in any

multicultural organization. This is the context which thrives to understand the importance of cross cultural conflict management. From the secondary research a precise understanding of conflict management was made. It was well explored that by various methods conflict management can be done. Nevertheless some of the methods for which the interviewees gave emphasis were to empathize with the employees, to develop multiple perspectives and to suspend the judgment. Further the various skills required for a manager to manage a conflict situation were also understood. Some of the skills according to the managers are technical skill and administrative skill but the literature review explains more skills that are essential for a leader and they are technical skills, administrative skill, emotion management skills, conflict management skills, social skill and so on. Literature as well as the primary research discloses that it is not only the skills that matter but also the style by which various skills are presented. Cross cultural communication was the important area discussed in the interview. Cross cultural communication often cause confusion, tension and misunderstandings among employees and therefore proper resolution method is essential. The managers who were interviewed mentioned some of the methods that were followed in the company. However the employees of the organization were also interviewed to explore conflicts from an employee perspective. Some of the employees who were interviewed opened up and indicated that they are not happy with some of the management style and the method used for resolving the conflict. They also mentioned some other techniques like problem solving that can be used in addition to the methods that are currently used. Some of the employees were also disappointed with the team division in the organization and argued that the team division by the management often led to conflict within the team. However there are some employees who did not agree with the others opinion on team division and also they argued that it will not be possible for the management to get an opinion from all the employees before the team division. The interview from the employees also revealed some of the factors that have led to conflict situation in the organization. According to the employees the basic beliefs as well as the culture from which they are brought from has led to conflict in the organization. Both the literature review and the interview disclosed that leadership is very important for any organization especially in a conflict situation. And hence it can be argued that without proper leadership, a conflict cannot be resolved. Also for any leader to resolve a conflict situation, he should have very good awareness about the culture from which the employees are brought from. 5.1 Recommendations

After the review of literature and after the primary research, a few recommendations can be given to the organization. Though the employees and the managers are well known to the various conflict resolution techniques used in the organization, the managers are needed to have advance knowledge in this area and hence they should be given more training on the various other conflict management that can be used. Further they should also be given special instruction to mentor the other employees on the various other conflict management method. This recommendation is in line with Grab (1996) who argues that sharpening of conflict management skills by the managers helps in ensuring the best future of an organization. This argument is echoed by Mayer (2000) who contends that a learning process can enhance a leaders knowledge about unique cultural looms towards conflict and conflict management. It is also recommended to conduct an induction program for all the new employees and to specifically train on the various cultures and various cultural norms. 5.2 Guideline for further research The present research only deals with a few employees and their managers of the organization. It will be advantageous to conduct the research on more employees and managers of the company. This will certainly help in analyzing the results more precisely and will also help in giving a more precise recommendation to the organization. Also the primary research has dealt with the training program conducted in the organization. An exploration on the training program can also add to the recommendations that can be given to the management. Further research on culture can also be done considering the limitations of various frameworks. Moreover research on another branches of the company will be advantageous and will give more clear results on cross cultural conflicts.