Management and Change in the South African National Defence Force

Abstract

The military in South Africa has gone through major changes as part of the wider society’s transition from apartheid to democracy necessitating the integration of a multicultural force. This article develops a theoretical framework for understanding these cross-cultural dynamics. It reports an empirical management study investigating the perceptions of the different cultural groups to better understand the process of cross-cultural integration in an institution whose stability and success has major implications for Southern African society. It finds significant differences in attitudes among cultural groups. This has implications for understanding multicultural change processes in similar institutions in transition around the world.