managing culture in international projects: developing ... · pdf filemanaging culture in...

Managing Culture inInternational Projects:

Developing Global People

Helen SpencerHelen Spencer--OateyOatey &&

Stefanie StadlerStefanie Stadler

• Introduction

• Case Study (Interactive discussionsession)

• Global People resources

– Global People Toolbook

– Global People Website

• Question and answer session

OverviewOverviewOverviewOverview

IntroductionIntroduction

• Set of Sino-British collaborative projects oneLearning in education

• Funded by HEFCE (£4M) & supported byChinese MoE

• Involved British and Chinese universitiesworking in partnership

• 4 initial projects, 3 follow-up projects, with eachproject having core team of about 16 to 35

eChinaeChina--UK ProgrammeUK Programme

Phase 1 (Initial projects): 2003–2005

• 3 Sino-UK project teams workedcollaboratively to develop e-learningmaterials in teacher training

• 1 project conducted overarchingresearch

See http://www.echinauk.org/


Phase 2 (Follow-up projects): 2005–2007

• 3 Sino-UK project teams workedcollaboratively to develop e-learningmaterials for further aspects of teachertraining:

– English for Chinese academics

– e-Educator project

– Intercultural pedagogy

See http://www.echinauk.org/


HEFCE

Open/Cambridge

U ofNottingham

MoE

BFSU

Tsinghua U

BNU

WUN

AcademicsTechnical

StaffSenior

Management

Stakeholder/Management

LeadUniversities

TeamMembers

Trainees

Key Parties in the ProgrammeKey Parties in the Programme

Key Aims of the eChina-UK Programme

• Develop & pilot innovative online teachertraining courses for teachers at secondary andtertiary levels

• Strengthen collaboration between China andthe UK

• Disseminate generic insights on a range ofissues, including the benefits & challenges ofworking interculturally


Phase 3 (Global People): 2008–2009

Key Aims

• Review the literature on interculturalcompetence and on working across cultures

• Analyse data from the eChina-UK Programme& Projects from an intercultural perspective

• Develop a resource bank that is of practicalvalue to those working in internationalprojects (especially in HE)

Global People ProjectGlobal People Project

Case StudyCase Study

Developed by

Nigel Ewington, Stuart Reid, HelenSpencer-Oatey & Stefanie Stadler

Global People Resources:Global People Resources:ToolbookToolbook

Rationale: Intercultural effectiveness is vitalfor the success of projects yet is oftenoverlooked in the planning

Purpose: Provide a practical, step-by-stepguide to managing the interculturalaspects of an international collaboration orpartnership

- with Activities, Tips and Tools

Global PeopleGlobal People ToolbookToolbook

Audience: Academics, project managersand other staff responsible for planning,managing or reviewing internationalpartnerships and collaborations

Sources of Information: Research based,with authentic examples from the eChina-UK Programme


• Five-stage life cycle model

• Core activities for each stage

• Set of intercultural competencies tounderpin the successful achievement ofthe activities

• Learning process model – builds activelearning into the collaborative process


Five-stage life cycle model

• Preparation

• Initiation

• Experimentation

• Consolidation

• Transfer


For each stage of the life cycle model:

• Main activities for the stage

• Authentic case study from the eChina-UKProgramme

• Commentary on the case study

• Key tips

• Project management tool


Practical focus:

• Activity-oriented

• Illustrated with authentic case studies

• Practical tips

• Tools for use

• Guidance on using the Toolbook inpractice

• Additional material on the website


Global People Resources:Global People Resources:WebsiteWebsite

• Overview of the Global People Life CycleModel

• Competency framework

• Learning process model

• Research bank with pdfs of all documents

Global People WebsiteGlobal People Website

Competency framework

• Four competency clusters:

– Knowledge & Ideas

– Communication

– Relationships

– Personal qualities and dispositions


Competency framework

• Descriptions of the competencies in each of theclusters

• Authentic examples (some with audio clips) ofeach of the competencies, to illustrate

- How the competency manifests itself;

- Why the competency is important or is needed;

- How the competency can be displayed in behaviour;

- What problems may occur when the competency isnot present.


Learning Process Model

• Highlights three main phases:

- Acquisition

- Awareness

- Embedding


Learning Process Model

• Emphasises the key phases that requireconscious attention for effective learning

• Provides a simple model to use in theplanning and management of a project

• Makes it easy to link the learning stages tothe main life cycle stages and to the keyintercultural competencies.


Learning Process Model: Practical Focus

Suggests how to use the model by:

• Planning for learning

• Building in reflection

• Sharing and embedding

• Reviewing, reflecting, revising


Resource Bank

Hard copy of the Toolbook

Pdf documents (free of charge):

• Intercultural Effectiveness in GlobalEducation Partnerships. (A LandscapingStudy) Stuart Reid, Stefanie Stadler &Helen Spencer-Oatey


Resource Bank


• Global People Toolbook: Managing theLife Cycle of Intercultural Partnerships.Nigel Ewington, Stuart Reid, HelenSpencer-Oatey & Stefanie Stadler

• An Intercultural Competency Framework.Helen Spencer-Oatey & Stefanie Stadler


Resource Bank


• A Learning Process Model for InterculturalPartnerships. Stuart Reid

• The Learning Process in InterculturalCollaboration: Evidence from the eChina-UK Programme. Stuart Reid


Resource Bank


• Sino-British Interaction in ProfessionalContexts. Stefanie Stadler & HelenSpencer-Oatey


Any Questions?Any Questions?

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