Cultural Aggregates in Constellation : A Step Beyond Hofstede and Others for a New Paradigm

We present an alternative to management's prominent approach to culture, which is considerably influenced by Hofstede, and used by most competitors, i.e based on some statisticalisation and formed by interdependent layers, with national culture as the pivot. They aim at managing culture confrontations, rather than individuals as the holders of cultures, actually working in team. Our approach, the fruit of six years of governmentality-oriented field research performed on intercultural ground, desolidifies the vision of culture and helps install governmentality closer to team members' reality. It involves freeing governmentality from statistics and culture constructs, whilst acknowledging the multiple sources of culture that actually influence the team, suggesting further categories, which we call 'aggregates' and imagining them arranged in constellations because although they interact, they are not interdependent and their influence is variable over time and contexts. The uncertainty thus created is an opportunity for the manager to better understand people's real behaviour.