Cross-Cultural Management Education: Core for Business Students in the 21st Century

ABSTRACT The study examines the impact of introducing several cross-cultural management courses in the undergraduate program of a business school on the students’ cultural intelligence level and on their ability to manage conflict more effectively. The experimental method is used where students in the experimental and the control groups respond to the same survey at three different times (240 students); the focus group method is used with a group of nine students from the experimental group to obtain a deeper understanding of the results of the statistical analysis. The findings suggest a positive and significant effect of the cross-cultural management courses on the cultural intelligence level and the conflict management styles of students with obvious differences between male and female students. The findings confirm the importance of these courses and recommend making cross-cultural management courses core for all students to support their future global employability. Furthermore, experiential and blended learning techniques can replace international exposure, which is timely considering the constraints imposed on international travel due to COVID19. The study suggests a helpful insight to international business educators that can support the process of developing their programs through introducing specific courses and complementary teaching techniques that are effective and timely.