Culture dimensions in software development industry: The effects of mentoring

Software development is a human centric and sociotechnical activity and like all human activities is influenced by cultural factors. However, software engineering is being further affected because of the globalization in software development. As a result, cultural diversity is influencing software development and its outcomes. The software engineering industry, a very intensive industry regarding human capital, is facing a new era in which software development personnel must adapt to multicultural work environments. Today, many organizations present a multicultural workforce which needs to be managed. This paper analyzes the influence of culture on mentoring relationships within the software engineering industry. Two interesting findings can be concluded from our study: (1) cultural differences affect both formal and informal mentoring, and (2) technical competences are not improved when implementing mentoring relationships.

[1]  Xianghua Lu,et al.  Cultural Influence on IS Practices in China: A Literature Analysis , 2009 .

[2]  Hannu Jaakkola,et al.  Multicultural Software Development: The Productivity Perspective , 2011, Int. J. Inf. Technol. Proj. Manag..

[3]  Jane Jackson.  Globalization, internationalization, and short-term stays abroad , 2008 .

[4]  J. Cotton,et al.  Mentor functions and outcomes: a comparison of men and women in formal and informal mentoring relationships. , 1999 .

[5]  Judith S. Olson,et al.  Culture Surprises in Remote Software Development Teams , 2003, ACM Queue.

[6]  Joseph W. Rottman,et al.  Effects of offshore outsourcing of information technology work on client project management , 2009 .

[7]  Rafael Valencia-García,et al.  Exploitation of social semantic technology for software development team configuration , 2010, IET Softw..

[8]  Edmundo Tovar Caro,et al.  Identifying Technical Competences of IT Professionals: The Case of Software Engineers , 2010, Int. J. Hum. Cap. Inf. Technol. Prof..

[9]  Leslie P. Willcocks,et al.  Global software development: Exploring socialization and face-to-face meetings in distributed strategic projects , 2007, J. Strateg. Inf. Syst..

[10]  Richard V. McCarthy,et al.  Knowledge Management Formal and Informal Mentoring: An Empirical Investigation in Lebanese Banks , 2008 .

[11]  Ita Richardson,et al.  Virtual teams: understanding the impact of fear , 2008, Softw. Process. Improv. Pract..

[12]  Orni Meerbaum-Salant,et al.  An Agile Constructionist Mentoring Methodology for Software Projects in the High School , 2010, TOCE.

[13]  Shawn M. Carraher,et al.  Mentoring across global boundaries: an empirical examination of home- and host-country mentors on expatriate career outcomes , 2008 .

[14]  Daniel B. Turban,et al.  Who Is a Mentor? A Review of Evolving Definitions and Implications for Research , 2011 .

[15]  Dee G. Appley.  Beyond Culture , 1977 .

[16]  A. Kimball Romney,et al.  Variations in value orientations. , 1961 .

[17]  N. Dayasindhu,et al.  Embeddedness, knowledge transfer, industry clusters and global competitiveness: a case study of the Indian software industry , 2002 .

[18]  S. Knouse.  Virtual mentors: mentoring on the internet , 2001 .

[19]  Y. Aharoni.  Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind , 1992 .

[20]  Nancy R. Mead.  Software Engineering Education: How Far We've Come and How Far We Have to Go , 2008, 2008 21st Conference on Software Engineering Education and Training.

[21]  Philippe Rosinski,et al.  Coaching across cultures : new tools for leveraging national, corporate and professional differences , 2003 .

[22]  Péter Fehér,et al.  The role of Knowledge Management Supporters in software development companies , 2006, Softw. Process. Improv. Pract..

[23]  Hannu Jaakkola,et al.  Towards a Globalized Software Industry , 2009 .

[24]  Sun-Jen Huang,et al.  Exploring the relationship between organizational culture and software process improvement deployment , 2010, Inf. Manag..

[25]  Abraham Zaleznik,et al.  Managers and leaders. Are they different? 1977. , 2004, Harvard business review.

[26]  Gerhard Blickle,et al.  Self-initiated mentoring and career success: A predictive field study , 2009 .

[27]  Cristina Casado-Lumbreras,et al.  Mentoring programmes: a study of the Spanish software industry , 2009 .

[28]  Macarena López-Fernández,et al.  Human Resource Management on Social Capital , 2010, Int. J. Hum. Cap. Inf. Technol. Prof..

[29]  Anneli Heimbürger,et al.  Knowledge-oriented software engineering process in a multi-cultural context , 2010, Software Quality Journal.

[30]  M. Hosein Fallah,et al.  Global innovation performance: Strategic challenges for multinational corporations , 2008 .

[31]  Erran Carmel,et al.  Tactical Approaches for Alleviating Distance in Global Software Development , 2001, IEEE Softw..

[32]  The Benefits Associated with Workplace Mentoring Relationships , 2008 .

[33]  Rakesh M. Verma,et al.  Improving an undergraduate data mining course with real-world projects , 2010 .

[34]  Val Singh,et al.  Informal Mentoring as an Organisational Resource , 2002 .

[35]  Mark L. Poteet,et al.  Career benefits associated with mentoring for protégeé: a meta-analysis. , 2004, The Journal of applied psychology.

[36]  Tony Gorschek,et al.  Empirical evidence in global software engineering: a systematic review , 2010, Empirical Software Engineering.

[37]  K. Praveen Parboteeah,et al.  Multinational Management: A Strategic Approach , 1998 .

[38]  Allen E. Milewski,et al.  Global and task effects in information-seeking among software engineers , 2007, Empirical Software Engineering.

[39]  Atreyi Kankanhalli,et al.  Cross-cultural differences and information systems developer values , 2004, Decis. Support Syst..

[40]  F. Strodtbeck,et al.  Variations in value orientations. , 1961 .

[41]  G. Hofstede,et al.  Culture′s Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values , 1980 .

[42]  R. Bennett,et al.  THE RELATIVE EFFECTS OF SITUATIONAL PRACTICES AND CULTURALLY INFLUENCED VALUES/BELIEFS ON WORK ATTITUDES , 1999 .

[43]  Shawn M. Carraher,et al.  Global mentoring as a means of career development and knowledge creation: A learning‐based framework and agenda for future research , 2005 .

[44]  Terri A. Scandura,et al.  A needs-driven approach to expatriate adjustment and career development: a multiple mentoring perspective , 2005 .

[45]  Felix B. Tan,et al.  Beyond Models of National Culture in Information Systems Research , 2002, J. Glob. Inf. Manag..

[46]  Edward Ochieng,et al.  Managing Cross-Cultural Communication in Multicultural Construction Project Teams: The Case of Kenya and UK , 2010 .

[47]  Lillian T. Eby,et al.  Protégés’ and mentors’ reactions to participating in formal mentoring programs: A qualitative investigation , 2005 .

[48]  Cristina Casado-Lumbreras,et al.  Shaping human capital in software development teams: the case of mentoring enabled by semantics , 2010, IET Softw..

[49]  E. C. Stewart.  American Cultural Patterns: A Cross-Cultural Perspective , 1971 .

[50]  Valentine Casey,et al.  Imparting the importance of culture to global software development , 2010, INROADS.

[51]  Lillian T. Eby,et al.  PREDICTORS OF OBJECTIVE AND SUBJECTIVE CAREER SUCCESS: A META‐ANALYSIS , 2005 .

[52]  Alfons Trompenaars,et al.  Riding the Waves of Culture: Understanding Diversity in Global Business , 1993 .

[53]  Ita Richardson,et al.  Implementation of Global Software Development: a structured approach , 2009, Softw. Process. Improv. Pract..

[54]  Dorothy E. Leidner,et al.  Globalization, culture, and information: Towards global knowledge transparency , 2010, J. Strateg. Inf. Syst..

[55]  Charlie C. Chen,et al.  Relationships among interpersonal conflict, requirements uncertainty, and software project performance , 2011 .

[56]  Li-Min Chuang,et al.  Applying bass model and KK model to forecast multinational diffusion in LCD TV industry: Empirical evidence from Asian and North America , 2010 .

[57]  Kraiwinee Bunyaratavej,et al.  Services cultural alignment in offshoring: The impact of cultural dimensions on offshoring location choices , 2010 .

[58]  G. Nabi.  Predictors of objective and subjective career success , 1999 .

[59]  T. Judge,et al.  A quantitative review of mentoring research: Test of a model , 2008 .

[60]  Chen Wang,et al.  Preliminary approach to improve knowledge management in engineering management , 2010 .

[61]  Ricardo Colomo Palacios,et al.  An Empirical Analysis of the Relationship Between IT Training Sources and IT Value , 2010, Inf. Syst. Manag..

[62]  K. Kram.  Mentoring at Work: Developmental Relationships in Organizational Life , 1985 .

[63]  Gerhard Blickle,et al.  Mentoring support and power: A three year predictive field study on protégé networking and career success , 2009 .

[64]  Ricardo Colomo Palacios,et al.  A Qualitative Study of Hard Decision Making in Managing Global Software Development Teams , 2010, Inf. Syst. Manag..

[65]  Kerstin V. Siakas,et al.  Software outsourcing quality achieved by global virtual collaboration , 2006, Softw. Process. Improv. Pract..

[66]  G. Sadri,et al.  Examining career-related mentoring and managerial performance across cultures: A multilevel analysis☆ , 2008 .

[67]  Alain Abran,et al.  The Guide to the Software Engineering Body of Knowledge , 1999, IEEE Softw..

[68]  Y. Y. Kim.  Intercultural personhood: Globalization and a way of being☆ , 2008 .

[69]  B. R. Ragins,et al.  What matters most? The relative role of mentoring and career capital in career success , 2009 .

[70]  A. Zaleznik.  Managers and Leaders Are They Different , 2004 .

[71]  K. Johnson,et al.  Agile methods for software practice transformation , 2010, IBM J. Res. Dev..

[72]  Didar Zowghi,et al.  Critical success factors for software process improvement implementation: an empirical study , 2006, Softw. Process. Improv. Pract..

[73]  N. Bozionelos.  Mentoring provided: Relation to mentor’s career success, personality, and mentoring received , 2004 .

[74]  Sundeep Sahay,et al.  "I am kind of a nomad where I have to go places and places"… Understanding mobility, place and identity in global software work from India , 2007, Inf. Organ..

[75]  Tammy D. Allen,et al.  Mentoring Relationships From the Perspective of the Mentor , 2007 .

[76]  Belle Rose Ragins,et al.  The Handbook of Mentoring at Work: Theory, Research, and Practice , 2007 .

[77]  Philippe Kruchten,et al.  Cultural patterns in software process mishaps , 2005, ACM SIGSOFT Softw. Eng. Notes.

[78]  T.C. Lethbridge,et al.  Guide to the Software Engineering Body of Knowledge (SWEBOK) and the Software Engineering Education Knowledge (SEEK) - a preliminary mapping , 2001, 10th International Workshop on Software Technology and Engineering Practice.

[79]  C. Earley,et al.  Creating hybrid team cultures: An empirical test of transnational team functioning. , 2000 .

[80]  Eric L. Lesser,et al.  Communities of practice and organizational performance , 2001, IBM Syst. J..

[81]  L. Willcocks,et al.  Global software development: exploring socialization in strategic distributed projects , 2007 .

[82]  Globalization and the Dynamics of Cultural Identity , 2008 .

[83]  Bramwell Osula.  Cultural Awareness in Intercultural Mentoring : A Model for Enhancing Mentoring Relationships , 2009 .

[84]  Ramkumar Ramaswamy.  Mentoring Object-Oriented Projects , 2001, IEEE Softw..

[85]  Charles Hampden-Turner,et al.  Riding the waves of culture : understanding cultural diversity in global business , 1998 .

[86]  N. Bozionelos.  Mentoring and expressive network resources: their relationship with career success and emotional exhaustion among Hellenes employees involved in emotion work , 2006 .

[87]  Vinod Kumar,et al.  Identifying some important success factors in adopting agile software development practices , 2009, J. Syst. Softw..

[88]  T. Allen,et al.  Career Success Outcomes Associated With Mentoring Others , 2006 .

[89]  William E. Hefley,et al.  People Capability Maturity Model. SM. , 1995 .

[90]  T. Allen,et al.  A Meta-Analytic Investigation of Gender Differences in Mentoring , 2010 .

[91]  G. Hofstede.  Culture′s Consequences: Comparing Values, Behaviors, Institutions and Organizations Across Nations , 2001 .

[92]  Terri A. Scandura,et al.  Mentoring and Transformational Leadership: The Role of Supervisory Career Mentoring. , 2004 .

[93]  William E. Hefley,et al.  People Capability Maturity Model (P-CMM) Version 2.0 , 2001 .

[94]  Terry A. Beehr,et al.  Formal mentoring versus supervisor and coworker relationships: differences in perceptions and impact , 2003 .