Cultural Feasibility

Correct Answer: Involve local stakeholders to understand concerns and adjust the plan.

Engaging local stakeholders to understand their concerns and adjust the plan accordingly is essential when introducing new technology in a region with cultural resistance to change. This approach ensures that the project considers local values, gains support from those affected, and modifies the plan to be culturally acceptable. Ignoring cultural resistance, enforcing strict adherence to the schedule, or focusing solely on technical training without addressing cultural concerns may not effectively ensure cultural feasibility and could lead to project failure.

Correct Answer: Hire a local anthropologist who is familiar with the region's cultural norms and values to assist the project team

The best approach for Ahmed is to hire a local anthropologist who is familiar with the region's cultural norms and values to assist the project team. This way, they will have someone who understands the local culture and can guide the team in respect to the cultural sensibilities. This approach will ensure cultural feasibility in the project implementation. Proceeding without considering the cultural sensibilities (as suggested in the second answer) could lead to conflicts and could harm the project and its relations with locals. Taking online courses on cultural norms (as suggested in the third answer) could indeed be beneficial, however, online courses might not offer the real-time input that an anthropologist on-site could provide. Also, they might not cover all cultural aspects. Hiring a translator (fourth answer) might help in overcoming language barriers, but they might not have a deep enough understanding of the local culture to advise the project team.

Correct Answer: Respect the hierarchy by involving senior management in key decisions.

In a culture that values hierarchical decision-making, it is important for the project manager to respect and adhere to local norms by involving senior management in key decisions. This approach ensures cultural feasibility by aligning the project's decision-making process with the expectations of the local culture. Implementing a flat structure or encouraging junior staff to make independent decisions would conflict with the cultural emphasis on hierarchy and could lead to misunderstandings or resistance. Bypassing traditional protocols would disrespect established norms and could damage relationships with key stakeholders. Therefore, involving senior management respects the cultural importance of hierarchy and facilitates smoother project execution.