Managing Multicultural Teams in Generation Global : a case study on MobileIron

Abstract: To cope with increasing demands and competition in the ever-growing global market, organizations have been increasing the use and formation of multicultural teams (MCTs). Though advantageous in numerous aspects, MCT literature lays significant focus on the struggles in managing communication and cohesion in these teams. Journalists and organizational psychologists propose an emergent generation of individuals who are eager and accustomed to working with people worldwide. This Generation Global is composed of individuals who possess a global mindset and cultural intelligence, allowing them to navigate multicultural environments successfully. This paper conducts a qualitative case study on an MCT in the global cybersecurity company, MobileIron, to observe whether the main challenges found in previous literature prevail in MCTs composed of Generation Global individuals. The results demonstrate that cross-cultural communication is a less significant issue and strains in team cohesion are nonexistent in these teams due to the collective cultural intelligence and global identity within the team.