ABSTRACT
In today’s global business environment and its high-speed interactions, engineering organizations have evolved from being simple 10-to 15-people traditional technology departments to complex, interactive, and cross-functional matrix organizations. Many international projects in research, development, manufacturing engineering, and customer support require various disciplines of technology. These international project teams are made up of different types and levels of engineers and technicians from several different countries. You might have an engineer working with a project team on an automated assembly project installation in Malaysia for a year, and that person might report on a dotted line to a project manager in Malaysia. To enhance your customer base and support in Japan, it might be necessary to bring a couple of Japanese engineers to your U.S. base to train for 6 months to learn the complicated test procedures for future products. These Japanese engineers would report to you on a dotted line for 6 months. Or, if your team is designing a new communication chip in the United States whose several components are being designed in Munich, Germany, then you and your team members must be in continuous communication with your counterparts in Germany.
