Cross-cultural Competences Required for Department Managers of Selected Chinese Transnational Companies in the Amata City Industrial Estate of Thailand

Abstract

          The research design used in this study was mixed methods research. The quantitative method was conducted by using questionnaires to collect data from 111 department managers in the selected Chinese transnational companies in the Amata City Industrial Estate of Rayong province, Thailand in order to identify the required crosscultural competences for department managers to work successfully in Thailand. The statistics used in the quantitative method were frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, T-test, and F-test. The qualitative method was conducted by in-depth interviews of 10 department managers in order to explore the cross-cultural barriers affecting department managers’ work efficiency and find the improvements which are needed to help develop their cross-cultural competences. The quantitative results indicate that Chinese department managers perceived cross-cultural competences of knowledge, skills and personal attributes as important for their successful cross-cultural work with average means of 3.87, 4.20 and 4.13, respectively. The qualitative results reveal that the cross-cultural barriers which affected department managers’ work efficiency are the differences of culture both at work and in daily life, communication skills, and personalities. The improvements needed to help develop their competences are knowledge of Thai culture, Thai language skills, and the ability to control emotions.