The Internationalisation of PTT Telecom: A Cultural Perspective - Free

43competitor. (2) The management culture of one of the partners is not preparedfor a different form of control in an alliance. In particular, in minorityparticipation, the desired control of the partners can give problems. (3) Themutual relationships of alliances, subsidaries and business relations can producetension. The connection of an individual alliance to the management of anetwork of alliances can result in opposing interests. (4) Attention for smalldetails in the cooperation helps to prevent the alliance slowly dying. (5) Givingattention to the holistic relations of structure, organisational culture, nationalculture and strategy helps to prevent problems.Faulkner (1995), Cauley de la Sierra (1995), Lorange and Roos (1995) andYoshino and Rangan (1995) frequently mention cultural factors as causes offailing. Barkema et al. (1996) concludes that cultural barriers were morepronounced when the company had to accommodate both strange corporate andnational cultures in a joint venture. Cauley de la Sierra (1995: 195) thereforeclaims with reason, that the managing of cultural diversity is ‘one of the greatestchallenges of alliances’. The managing of cultural diversity however, as hasbeen discussed earlier in section 2.2.2, includes the managing of manifest formsof ethnicity. Other scientists also recognise the connection of culture and thestruggle for power in an alliance. Faulkner (1995) states that with the selectionof a possible partner two major qualities are sought: a strategic and a cultural fit.Lorange and Roos (1995: 174) also stress the need of studies on strategicintention and cultural diversity when two or more companies want to establish astrategic alliance. Both the strategic intention and cultural diversity also have astrong influence on the establishing and managing of strategic telecom alliances.Cultural differences can be held responsible for the collapse of many outwardlylogical partnerships set in motion with the best of intentions (Public NetworkEurope 1998, May Issue, pp. 27).The cultural factors mentioned involves different ‘levels’ of culture:organisational cultures, industrial culture, management culture and nationalculture. This raises the question as to how cross-cultural cooperation at thesedifferent levels can be studied.2.5 Model to Unravel Cultural Complexity in OrganisationsIn the previous sections the debates on intercultural management, organisationalculture and globalisation have been discussed to construct a theoreticalframework for studying cross-cultural cooperation in the telecom sector. Thisanthropological framework includes distinct levels of culture. Chanlat (1994)points out the necessity of a true anthropology of organisations by focussing onhuman behaviour and at the same time exploring all the relationships within theenvironment that runs through organisation life at different levels.The complexity of the problems that confront us both on national and aninternational scale, the importance of cultural elements, the emphasis onindividual aspirations…all of these influences have, in effect led us to