BRIDGING THE CULTURAL GAP THROUGH THE ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE: A CASE STUDY OF INSTITUT FRANÇAIS INDONESIA

• Main Author: Rasydihartanti, Annisa
• Format: Theses
• Language: Indonesia
• Subjects: Manajemen umum
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/76075
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

The growth of multinational companies and institutions has occurred very rapidly in this era of globalization. National and cultural boundaries that were initially considered obstacles now tend to be ignored and replaced with expansion strategies to various regions worldwide. This phenomenon applies not only to profit-oriented companies but also to many non-profit organizations and government agencies. Therefore, the inevitable next thing is melting workers into diverse teams of different nationalities, cultures, languages , and habits. Institut Français Indonesia, also known as IFI, is a non-profit organization founded in 2012 due to a merger of cultural services at the French Embassy (SCAC) and French cultural centers (CCF), which have been present in Indonesia for the last 70 years. IFI's primary mission is to carry out cross-cultural cooperation between France and Indonesia, focused on five areas: culture, linguistics, education, global challenges, and science. With this purpose, IFI certainly faces many challenges regarding cultural differences; the penetration of the French perspective into the point of view of Indonesian partners is not always manageable. However, these challenges do not only occur on the external side. IFI employees, who generally consist of two nationalities (French and Indonesian), also experience obstacles in their daily operations. Differences in culture, language, and customs create distinctions of opinion and miscommunications that can hinder project collaboration. This research aspires to identify the root causes of the situation in the internal environment of IFI and to describe different alternative solutions and recommendations for implementing the chosen solution to overcome these problems. The research was conducted using a mixed-methods research; the research framework used is a case study with data collection methods through questionnaire, participant observation, and structured interviews. Some theories used in this study are national culture, the six dimensions of national culture by Hofstede, and organizational culture through the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI). The study results show a gap in expectations between Indonesian and French employees who work at IFI. The researcher proposes an organizational culture implementation plan that can bridge the gap, to maximize the effectiveness of the project management process in the IFI work environment.