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Press Release
RVI, Volvo and Mack Trucks
Inter Cultural Management Associates (ICM), a Paris-based
consultancy, has won a contract to help Volvo Global Trucks (VGT)
to identify and bridge cultural differences between Volvo, Renault
VI and Mack Trucks. Volvo Global Trucks was created in January this
year to integrate Volvo Trucks, Renault VI and Mack. It is the world's
second largest truck manufacturer.
VGT has a unique challenge : it has to forge a new company by combining
the talents and experience of 3 distinct corporate cultures - at
the same time that each of the 3 companies will keep their own brands
in the market.
To analyze the cultural differences and similarities, ICM was asked
by VGT to run a "Cultural Integration Survey".
The survey helped senior management to establish a diagnosis of
the current situation by identifying similarities and differences
in the corporate cultures of the three brand companies. This served
to identify areas where cultural differences could create misunderstandings
that would block effective business cooperation. The survey is also
assisting VGT to:
appreciate differences that can contribute positively to diversity
within the Group and to
facilitate the development/negotiation of common
approaches necessary to bridge key differences.
As part of this program, communication tools (an e-newsletter and
communications kit for managers) were designed to share the results
of the cultural survey with all VGT employees, to raise awareness
of intercultural challenges, as well as to help managers coach their
teams on these subjects and shape a new core culture specific to
the new company. A culture Integration Barometer is also being designed
in order to monitor employee perceptions of the integration and
to measure the degree to which the values and behaviours associated
with the new core culture are effectively deployed across the company.
With 18 years experience of Culture Bridging in Europe, America
and Asia, and a team of 33 consultants from 18 different cultures,
ICM has developed a unique methodology to compare corporate cultures
in integration processes : This is the "Culture Bridging Fundamentals"
(CBF©) model. For the VGT survey, about 150 employees of the
three brand companies were interviewed about their own company values,
practices, approaches and their attitudes towards the integration.
Complementing these interviews, 3000 Culture Bridging Fundamentals©
questionnaires were used as well as 20 focus groups to bring into
focus the three corporate cultures.
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