Project Management in Large-Scale with International Settings:

Challenges Faced with Multiculturalism

Luana Mendes

, Vinicius Faria

and Cristiano Maciel

Foundation for Support and Development of the Federal University of Mato Grosso, Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil

Institute of Computing, Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT), Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil

Keywords: Project Management, PMBOK, Research Project, Multiculturalism, Bureaucracy, Platform Development.

Abstract: Managing large-scale international research projects involving multicultural teams poses multifaceted

challenges requiring a nuanced and adaptive project management approach. This article explores the strategies

employed to manage a multifaceted research and innovation initiative within the "ELLAS - Equality in

Leadership for Latin American STEM" Network, focusing on gender gap reduction in STEM fields across

Latin America. Combining elements from PMBOK® and agile methodologies. The project integrates a

diverse array of institutions and stakeholders from multiple countries. Our study delves into the project's

objectives, team structures, deliverables, and the unique challenges encountered, including multilingual

communication, bureaucratic complexities, managing multiple currencies, and ensuring data quality. We

detail solutions applied to navigate these challenges, such as tailored communication strategies, hybrid project

management methodologies, and proactive stakeholder engagement. By delineating these challenges and

solutions, this article brings insights into managing complex international research projects while fostering

cultural diversity and achieving project objectives.

1 INTRODUCTION

Project management is the application of knowledge,

skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to

meet project requirements. By effectively applying

these elements, project managers can significantly

increase the likelihood of project success, leading to

greater efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and value

creation for organizations (Project Management

Institute, 2017). In multicultural teams each member

provides a different view through its diverse way of

thinking and, in total, a variety of skills are offered

(Earley and Mosakowski, 2000), but an essential

aspect of project management involves effectively

handling both positive and negative risks through a

proactive and consistent approach from the project's

outset. Although every successful project demands

effective project management, the approach varies

significantly from one project to another. The

efficiency of project management holds critical

importance for both research in project management

https://orcid.org/0009-0003-4322-5680

https://orcid.org/0009-0005-4439-7366

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2431-8457

and for managers in real-world practice (Thomas &

Mullaly, 2007). However, the literature lacks

coverage on crucial facets of project management's

influence (Kaufmann & Kock, 2022).

The research and innovation project entitled

“Latin American Open Data for gender equality

policies focusing on Leadership in STEM" is an

initiative within the network affectionately known as

"ELLAS" acronymically representing "Equality in

Leadership for Latin American STEM" (IDRC, 2022).

This network comprises seven institutions located in

three different countries: UFMT - Federal University

of Mato Grosso (Brazil), UFSC - Federal University

of Santa Catarina (Brazil), UFF - Fluminense Federal

University (Brazil), UTFPR - Federal Technological

University of Paraná (Brazil), UCB - Catholic

University of Bolivia (Bolivia), UMSA - Major

University of San Andrés (Bolivia), and University of

Lima (Peru), besides being funded by an important

international institution, IDRC - International

Development Research Centre, from Canada. Apart

Mendes, L., Faria, V. and Maciel, C.

Project Management in Large-Scale with International Settings: Challenges Faced with Multiculturalism.

DOI: 10.5220/0012631900003690

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 26th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems (ICEIS 2024) - Volume 2, pages 29-40

ISBN: 978-989-758-692-7; ISSN: 2184-4992

from the nations and institutions forming the ELLAS

Network, CalPoly - California Polytechnic State

University, from Los Angeles (USA), plays an

advisory role in the Project (Maciel et al., 2023)

Given the magnitude of the involved team, the

temporal nature, the social and geographical

differences among the participating institutions, and

the fact an Open Linked Data Platform is to be

developed within the project, effective project

management and the necessity to handle the

bureaucratic requirements inherent in a research

project led by a Brazilian federal university

demanded the adoption of a combined approach

between the knowledge areas of PMBOK

® (Project

Management Body of Knowledge) and the

fundamentals of agile project management.

The current article explores and describes (GIL,

2018) the strategies used to manage this research and

innovation project executed by the "ELLAS"

Network in the STEM field. It also discusses some of

the methodological and technological solutions

adopted to make this project feasible, considering the

development of a system within the research.

As a general objective, the study aims to identify

the challenges and solutions for managing a large-

scale international project, particularly considering its

multicultural nature.

2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

To comprehend how prior research projects

addressed the challenges inherent in a research

project encompassing information systems

development, a Qualitative Systematic Review was

carried out (Grant & Booth, 2009). This review

utilized a specific string to identify reports from other

multicultural projects that encountered similar

challenges and how the ten areas of knowledge were

applied to avoid or potentially resolve those issues.

2.1 PMBOK® Knowledge Areas

The PMBOK® Guide encompasses all project

management areas and aims to suggest best practices

for all stages of a project, from initiation to

completion. It is an excellent guide; however, it is not

a project management methodology. With the 6th

edition released in 2017, the PMBOK outlines ten

knowledge areas critical to project management.

Here's a brief overview of each area:

1. Project Integration Management coordinates

processes for smooth execution, involving

creating a management plan and directing,

managing, monitoring, and controlling project

work.

2. Project Scope Management defines and manages

required work, ensuring completion.

3. Project Schedule Management ensures timely

completion by defining activities, estimating

resources, developing, and controlling the

schedule.

4. Project Cost Management plans, estimates,

budgets, finances, funds, manages, and controls

costs for on-budget completion.

5. Project Quality Management covers planning,

assurance, and control for stakeholder-aligned

project outcomes.

6. Project Resource Management includes planning,

acquiring, developing the team, and managing

resources.

7. Project Communications Management plans,

manages, and controls project communications

for timely information flow.

8. Project Risk Management identifies, assesses, and

responds to risks for project success.

9. Project Procurement Management involves

planning, solicitation, source selection, contract

administration, and closeout.

10. Project Stakeholder Management engages

stakeholders for their needs throughout the project

lifecycle.

2.2 Related Research

The increasing trend of globalization has led to

culturally diverse teams becoming more prevalent.

This trend has resulted in the emergence of

multicultural teams of diversified team members

(Nnaji, 2023) and multiculturalism has become core

for project management success in the 21st century

(Deshpande et al., 2010; Kappagomtula, 2017).

Multiculturalism entails assembling a project

team comprising individuals from varied cultural

backgrounds, encompassing differences in ethnicity,

religion, and nationality (Heldal et al., 2020) enabling

teams to comprehend and honor cultural distinctions

is crucial, particularly in the development of products

or services intended for a diverse global audience

encompassing various cultural backgrounds (Heldal

et al., 2020; Vigier & Spencer-Oatey, 2017) such as

an Open Linked Data Platform that the Project aims

to generate.

Aligning the input from culturally diverse teams

can present challenges. These cultural disparities

have been recognized as a major factor contributing

to divisions within project teams, often resulting in

detrimental interpersonal conflicts among team

ICEIS 2024 - 26th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems

members (Ayega & Muathe, 2018) where diversity in

ethnic, religious, or national traits often leads to

disagreement and confrontation among individuals,

which can impede team productivity (Krawczyk-

Bryłka, 2016; Lima & Patah, 2016). Cultural

disparities within software development teams can

also lead to underperformance and misunderstandings

(Ogbodo, 2014)

Effective communication is deemed vital in

meeting project expectations, under the belief that it

cultivates robust working relationships. (Ochieng and

Price, 2010). Furthermore, the literature review

highlights instances of miscommunication stemming

from limited linguistic abilities. (Vignovic &

Thompson, 2010, Saidoun 2016; Luckmann & Farber

2016).

This paper aims to show how the Project

Management team, composed by a Project Manager

and a Project coordinator of a multinational research

Project, has dealt with all these cultural differences

and the bureaucratics of a Federal Project in Brazil in

a large-scale project.

3 PROJECT MANAGEMENT

APPROACH

This section discusses the project and how its

knowledge area is addressed and managed within the

project framework.

3.1 The Project

This section delves into the project's structure,

operational framework, objectives, timeline,

milestones, and team roles. The goal is to offer

transparency and clarity on the project's strategic

direction and implementation plan. Additionally, a

Qualitative Systematic Review (Grant & Booth,

2009) was conducted, integrating and comparing

results from selected qualitative studies through an

intentional sampling of relevant references.

3.1.1 Project Objectives

Recognizing that part of the problem concerning

gender gaps in STEM in Latin America is related to

the lack of recent and reliable data, the project aims

to contribute to the generation of cross-country

comparable data to assess policies and interventions

to reduce the gender gap in STEM, especially by

increasing the number of female leaders at

universities, industries, and public institutions. We

plan to map out the factors that influence the career

development of women in STEM, as well as

document and analyze successful and less successful

initiatives and learn from them.

The main overall objective is to contribute to the

generation and use of cross-country comparable open

data in order to assess policies and interventions to

reduce the gender gap in STEM, to promote public

discussion aimed to increase the number of female

leaders at universities, industries, and public

institutions, and to foster the development of mobile

and web applications based on open data to increase

the awareness of the importance of women in STEM

(Maciel et al., 2023).

The Specific Objectives (SO) intrinsically related

to the objectives are:

• SO1: To map out the factors, actors, and policies

that influence the career development of women in

STEM, collect related data, and analyze this data.

• SO2: To build and deploy an open data platform

that integrates primary and secondary data about

career growth of women in STEM;

• SO3: To promote the use of open data about

women in STEM leadership to increase public

awareness of gender issues in the field.

• SO4: To provide recommendations for

policymakers in Latin America to increase the female

representation in STEM with a focus on gender

equality and diversity.

3.1.2 Project Timeline and Milestones

The project was segmented into three distinct phases

planned for execution over three years, not

necessarily aligned with calendar years, for example,

Phase 1 started in February of 2022 and it was

concluded mid-2023. Notably, each phase comprises

specific activities with individual timelines, some of

which are continuous throughout the project.

While aspects of agile project management have

been incorporated, the decision to retain significant

elements of the waterfall methodology underscores

its continued relevance in specific contexts. As noted

by Adenowo (2020), this structured approach is

particularly suitable for projects with well-defined

requirements and predictable scope. By adhering to a

structured framework, the project ensures clear

communication, organized development, and

efficient resource allocation, ultimately contributing

to its success.

Phase 1 signifies the formal initiation of the

project, set to occur in all participating nations. This

phase aims to convene a wide array of stakeholders,

encompassing policymakers, academic institutions,

local and governmental representatives, as well as

Project Management in Large-Scale with International Settings: Challenges Faced with Multiculturalism

civil society initiatives. The project launch will be

succeeded by a sequence of awareness seminars

specifically targeting distinct stakeholder groups,

fostering their understanding of the project's

objectives, encouraging active engagement, and

potential adoption of the data platform. The primary

focus during these seminars will be on policymakers

and the academic community, including both public

and private universities in each participating country.

The activities of Phase 1 have had their results

published in: Activity 2 (Guzman et al., 2024;

Rodríguez et al., 2023; Casagrande et al., 2023);

Activity 3 (Frigo et al., 2024); Activity 4 (Drummond

et al., 2023); Activity 6 (Fritoli & Berardi, 2023);

Activity 7 (Martins & Ribeiro, 2023; Michelon &

Berardi, 2023; Souza & Berardi, 2023); Activity 8

Activity 9 was conducted following ethical principles

that ensured the safety, confidentiality, and care of the

participants (Batista; Andrade; and Bezerra, 2012).

The project and survey protocol were submitted for

review by specific ethics committees in Brazil,

Bolivia, and Peru, with Brazil as the coordinating

center, and received the Certificate of Presentation for

Ethical Review No. 66296922.6.0000.5690.

Table 1 includes all the activities associated with

Phase 1 with their respective descriptions.

Phase 2 will encompass the collection,

structuring, and examination of data, underlining the

paramount importance of socializing this information

(Lima et al., 2023; Berardi et al., 2023). Socialization

efforts will focus on disseminating the gathered

information and interpreting it within the various

contexts where the project operates. The project team

will actively engage in academic forums and other

public domains conducive to sharing, conversing, and

deliberating on STEM-related subjects. Concurrently,

a sequence of instructional workshops will be

arranged to facilitate stakeholders and interested

community members' access, exploration, and

utilization of both the data and the established

platform. All of it is distributed among activities 10

to 16 (Maciel et al., 2023).

Phase 3, that ranges from activities 17 to 22

(Maciel et al., 2023) will center on the dissemination

of the open data platform and the application derived

from the available data, along with the policy

recommendations. This dissemination effort will

encompass academic settings (such as conferences,

seminars, and analogous gatherings) as well as events

arranged explicitly by STEM leadership to engage the

wider public. Academic papers will be prepared at

two distinct levels. Firstly, a country-specific analysis

https://ellas.ufmt.br/pt/inicio/

Table 1: Phase 1 – activities.

Phase 1

Activity 1: Make

strategic alliances

with interest

groups

Creating partnerships with non-

profit organizations, universities,

government, gender equality,

diversity, inclusion, and/or ethnic

and race organizations.

Activity 2:

Mapping of

policies in each

country

Mapping of existing government

and private organization policies to

promote gender issues in STEM.

Activity 3:

Mapping Women

STEM Initiatives

from stakeholders

by country

Mapping of existing initiatives to

promote gender issues in STEM.

Activity 4:

Mapping context

aspect that

influences women

in STEM

Investigating how universities and

schools encourage (or not) the

inclusion of girls in Computing;

Activity 5:

Research design

for each country

Implementing an extensive multi-

country to test the hypothesis

explaining the low participation of

women in STEM in general and in

leadership positions in particular

Activity 6: Data

modeling

considering the

social and cultural

aspects of each

country

Collecting and filtering the data

previously collected by the surveys

and workshops. Data must be

present in the platform to be sharde

by the consortium partners and

other interested groups.

Activity 7: Design

Ontology:

metadata &

governance.

Defining how to describe the data

collected in the Survey.

Activity 8:

Launch Project

website

Developing a website that

describes the project, universities,

partners, sponsors, project

progress, productions and contacts.

Activity 9: Obtain

approval of ethical

committees.

Elaborating ethical protocols for

the project describing all activities

that collect human data. Submitted

to an ethical committee of each

country.

ICEIS 2024 - 26th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems

will utilize the data platform and address the

specific themes identified in the preceding phases.

Secondly, a comparative analysis will be conducted,

providing an opportunity to explore and scrutinize

STEM-related issues from a comparative and

interdisciplinary standpoint.

In addition, there were certain ongoing activities

planned as continuous. Table 2 includes some of

those activities, accompanied by their respective

descriptions.

Table 2: Continuous activities.

Activity 23: General

meetings amongst

consortium partners

Periodic virtual meetings to

direct, monitor, evaluate the

ongoing activities.

Activity 25:

Awareness

workshop/seminar

in each country

Workshops to share experiences

and knowledge promoting

integration, engagement and

alignment, called WELLAS

Activity 27:

Scientific

divulgation

Technical reports and scientific

articles to be published with the

results of the project activities.

3.1.3 Team Roles and Responsibilities

The project structure includes a general coordinator,

project manager, local managers, local leaders,

consultants, interns, and volunteers. Local managers

attend meetings, revise project details, oversee

budgets and staffing, communicate updates, address

issues, and ensure team engagement. Local leaders

attend meetings, provide progress reports, guide

interns, maintain focus on objectives, and evaluate

prototypes.

The General Coordinator and General Project

Manager collaborate closely, overseeing all project

activities. They are responsible for orchestrating the

execution of each phase and identifying a leader for

each activity. The Coordinator's duties encompass

mediating conflicts within the entire team and the

responsible institution, UFMT. Additionally, the

Coordinator serves as the project's representative and

is authorized to approve anything beyond the

predefined scope. They also liaise with the project's

funder, IDRC, when their approval is required.

On the other hand, the General Project Manager

handles the bureaucratic aspects of the project,

involving communication with the project's financial

overseer, the Uniselva Foundation. Given that the

project is associated with a federal university and

receives external funding, every transaction requires

a detailed process to justify the expenses incurred.

The roles and responsibilities within the project

framework can be seen on Figure 1.

Figure 1: Project’s organogram.

3.1.4 Project Deliverables

Contribution to the generation and utilization of

interconnected and comparable open data (OpenData)

across countries, aiming to evaluate policies and

interventions in reducing the gender gap in STEM,

fostering public discourse to increase the presence of

women leaders in universities, industries, and public

institutions, and to promote the development of a web

application based on open data. This is intended to

raise awareness regarding the significance of women

in STEM.

The project targets the following key outcomes

directly associated with the Open and Connected Data

Platform as our primary resulting product:

1. Policy-makers leverage the open and

interconnected data platform and project

suggestions.

2. Stakeholder collectives utilize the open data

platform for crafting applications that

advocate for women in STEM.

3. Accessible academic outcomes for the public.

4. Dissemination of gender-related STEM

concerns to the broader populace.

5. Unified structure for organizing data.

6. Augmentation of scientific insights into

gender-focused STEM subjects.

Both main discrete outcomes, the open data

platform and the policy recommendations for Women

in STEM-Leadership, require researchers and

collaborators to keep a close collaboration at the

different project stages.

3.2 Application in the Project

As mentioned, given the project's nature and involved

institutions, a hybrid management style was deemed

necessary. This approach integrates elements from

Project Management in Large-Scale with International Settings: Challenges Faced with Multiculturalism

waterfall and agile methodologies. The following

outlines these approaches based on the knowledge

areas from PMBOK.

3.2.1 Integration Management

To ensure integration among project members and

activities, various tools have been incorporated into

the project's daily operations.

To enhance organization and oversight of project

activities, all tasks have been integrated into a Trello

board. The team operates using the Pull system and

utilizes Trello's comprehensive functionalities,

including comments on activity cards, ensuring the

team and managers remain informed about ongoing

activities.

On Trello, all project activities are categorized by

color based on their respective execution phases, as

can be seen on Figure 2.

Figure 2: Project’s Trello Board.

Moreover, for organizing and centralizing all

generated content, the project employs Google Drive.

Each activity possesses its designated space within

Drive, facilitating the addition, editing, improvement,

and storage of documents. This system enables

remote access to documents from any location and

promotes collaborative work among team members

on shared documents.

3.2.2 Scope Management

Given that the reference project is a research and

innovation initiative funded by an external institute,

the project scope underwent approval from the

funding entity prior to its commencement, and

minimal alterations are permissible thereafter. To

maintain focus on our established scope, two artifacts

were developed during the project's conception phase

(prior to approval), and these artifacts are continually

reviewed and amended as deemed necessary

throughout the project lifecycle. These artifacts

include the Theory of Change, and the Project Plan,

detailing the division of phases along with activity

descriptions.

As previously outlined, the structure

encompassing phases and activities was clearly

defined initially. Presently, we primarily track these

elements using Trello. Additionally, bi-weekly status

report meetings are conducted—one session involves

managers and leaders, while the other involves the

entire team, including volunteers and interns. These

meetings serve to communicate our progress and

address any challenges encountered by the team.

3.2.3 Schedule Management

The project's schedule, encompassing all its distinct

phases and activities, was devised during the project's

conceptual phase, before receiving approval from our

financier, and was transformed into a Gantt chart.

Since its inception, the Gantt chart has undergone

several updates as the project progresses. Managing

the schedule of a research project poses a significant

challenge due to the endeavor's nature of addressing

predominantly open-ended inquiries. In our case, this

is further complicated by bureaucratic processes

mandated by the laws of one of the three countries

involved, the requirements of one of the seven

institutions, and even those stipulated by the

Uniselva.

The timetable of a research project is also subject

to influence by the involved researchers. This is

attributed to the rotation of individuals engaged in the

project, akin to what is commonly observed in the

private sector and development projects, primarily

involving volunteers. Furthermore, it differs from

corporate settings where individuals are designated to

specific projects.

To ensure comprehensive team and project

management in adherence to the schedule, pivotal

tools include status report meetings and the Kanban

Board.

3.2.4 Cost Management

Cost management in an international project spanning

multiple countries with diverse currencies presents

considerable challenges. Initially, the funding

provided by our supporter, IDRC, is in US dollars but

is calculated using the Canadian dollar, as our

supporter is based in Canada. Subsequently, when

these amounts arrive in Brazil, they are converted into

Brazilian Real, the primary currency used for all

project-related expenses.

When making payments to other involved

countries, the amounts once again need to be

converted. However, the Brazilian National Bank

ICEIS 2024 - 26th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems

prohibits these transfers in the recipient country's

currency. Consequently, these transfers are conducted

in US dollars, and upon receipt, they are further

converted into the respective country's currency.

Factors not initially accounted for in the project's

initial budget include the taxes involved in currency

conversion and international transfers, as well as the

volatility of exchange rates, which can fluctuate

significantly from day to day.

Managing these dynamics proves to be

challenging as they are unpredictable, and the

economic conditions of each involved country can

either improve or exacerbate the situation.

3.2.5 Quality Management

Quality assurance has been distributed across various

facets of the project. As the project culminates in the

development of an open linked data platform, it

became imperative to not only ensure the credibility

and accurate collection of data derived from the

survey application but also validate other data

obtained from existing sources, ensuring its

coherence with the survey data. To accomplish this, a

team of ontology specialists was required. Their role

encompassed not only the creation of the ontology

model but also the validation of all incoming data

within it.

Furthermore, to guarantee the comprehensibility

and usability of the platform among end-users, we

assembled a team of Human-Computer Interaction

(HCI) experts. Their expertise aimed to comprehend

the needs and preferences of our end-users, thereby

assisting in the creation of a user-friendly platform

tailored to meet the specific requirements of our

targeted audience.

3.2.6 Resource Management

This poses another set of challenges for a multi-

country project affiliated with a Brazilian Federal

institution. Since the project originates from UFMT,

a prerequisite is that at least one-third of the project

members must have ties to UFMT. Additionally, as

the project aimed to engage students through

scholarships, navigating the process of hiring interns

from other countries became essential, as this had not

been previously executed by Uniselva.

Managing researchers and interns across diverse

institutions and varying time zones presents a notable

challenge, particularly concerning coordinating

meetings or ensuring their presence at in-person

events where collective participation is required.

The management of physical equipment and

materials within the team also poses a challenge. As

the primary institution responsible for the project is

federal (public), any equipment procured during the

project must become institutional property,

necessitating a donation process if allocated to

institutions other than UFMT. Furthermore, as part of

the agreement among the seven institutions, each was

to provide physical resources for their professors,

interns, and volunteers to facilitate their work on the

project. However, monitoring the utilization of these

resources is beyond what we can actually do.

3.2.7 Communication Management

To facilitate team communication both internally and

externally, additional tools were also adopted.

For centralized communication, the adoption of

Slack has been instrumental. All project members are

enrolled in Slack, utilizing specific channels for

sharing knowledge and messages. Each activity

corresponds to a dedicated channel, allowing for the

creation of new channels as needed, thereby

facilitating efficient organization and exchange of

information.

For formal communication, such as conveying

important reminders or announcements that require

significant attention, we maintain the use of emails.

This method is particularly employed when

communicating with external partners, companies,

individuals outside the project working on its behalf,

and when corresponding with the Uniselva.

For day-to-day communication, rapid reminders,

and queries, we have utilized the WhatsApp platform.

A group was established comprising leaders,

managers, consultants, and coordination to facilitate

swift and readily available communication. The project

activity coordinators, as mentioned in section 3.1.2,

commonly establish subgroups within this application

to streamline communication among the members.

This not only enables efficient communication but also

facilitates the sharing of project-related findings, such

as online events, conferences, and publications

encountered during the project.

3.2.8 Risk Management

Risk management is a systematic process involving

planning, identification, analysis, response, and

monitoring of project risks, encompassing processes,

tools, and techniques (Shenhar and Dvir, 2009). The

effectiveness of risk management has been a major

concern for executives and professionals engaged in

project management, particularly after the 2008 crisis

(Rabechini Junior and Carvalho, 2012), and while

significant literature exists concerning risk

management in various domains, particularly in IT

Project Management in Large-Scale with International Settings: Challenges Faced with Multiculturalism

(Information and Technology) and computing, there is

relatively limited discussion related to its application in

research and innovation projects, like ELLAS.

However, implementing robust risk management in

research endeavors is crucial to guarantee project

success and yield effective outcomes.

In addition to the routine risk management

involved in successfully executing a project within

the set schedule, a research project faces challenges

related to ensuring the credibility of the content it

generates within the community. Moreover, the

development of an application intended to showcase

our findings and impact the audience entails enabling

users not only to access the information but also to

contribute further data, fostering its growth.

Verifying the reliability of both the platform and

its data is a significant challenge, given their diverse

origins. However, an even greater challenge lies in

ensuring that the platform, aside from being user-

friendly, remains adaptable for easy manipulation,

expansion by adding new data and updating the

ontology itself.

3.2.9 Procurement Management

Procurement management poses a complex challenge

in the context of research projects within public

institutions. In Brazil, regulations mandate that any

procurement by a public institution must undergo a

competitive bidding process. Consequently, the

process of hiring a company or procuring any items

within the project tends to be considerably time-

consuming.

A recent instance exemplifying this challenge was

the hiring process for a company tasked with

conducting the survey developed by the project team

across all three countries. This involved consulting 11

companies, a procedure that extended over a period

of slightly more than six months.

While this bureaucratic process is compulsory, it

not only has the potential to impact costs but can also

significantly influence schedule management.

3.2.10 Stakeholder Management

Stakeholder management encompasses a diverse

array of companies and entities vested as interested

parties, such as:

Sponsor management - In the capacity of a

research project, comprehensive expense and

progress reports must be furnished to the supporting

institute. These reports are separately drafted by the

groups overseeing each activity and subsequently

consolidated by the Project Manager into a

comprehensive technical report submitted in its

entirety.

Uniselva Foundation - Serving as the project's

financial custodian, close coordination with Uniselva

is pivotal. In addition to processing all payments,

contracts, and acquisitions, Uniselva facilitates

student recruitment through its call for interns.

Nurturing an open and positive relationship with them

remains fundamental.

Educational Institutions - The ELLAS Network

encompasses seven educational institutions forming

the agreement. Given the direct involvement of

professors from these institutions as researchers in the

project, maintaining robust relationships is essential

for mutual benefit and alignment.

Partnerships - Activity number 1 focuses on

establishing alliances across all three countries

between the project and companies and institutions

associated with gender equality, women in

leadership, IT, STEM, or those supportive of the

cause. While several potential partners across the

three countries were engaged, cultural differences

posed significant barriers, with one country

exhibiting more initiatives in this domain than others.

As a way to reach more people who could become our

partners, an online form was added to the ELLAS

Website, so anyone can register to be an ELLAS’

partner.

4 CHALLENGES AND

SOLUTIONS

Managing a substantial project presents its own set of

challenges, particularly when multiple individuals are

working toward a common objective but at different

paces and with varying perspectives. However, when

cultural and social differences are added to this

scenario, the challenge becomes more complex.

This research project navigates a complex terrain

of interconnected challenges. To successfully

develop and implement the Open Data Platform,

we've actively employed the 10 knowledge areas of

the PMBOK® guide, tailoring their application to our

unique context, and like that, the main Challenges can

be listed as:

Challenge 1: Multilingual Communication and

Cultural Diversity:

● Communications Management: Implementing a

primary language (English) for communication

while accommodating varying language

proficiencies among team members (Portuguese,

Spanish, and English) necessitates efforts to

ICEIS 2024 - 26th International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems

ensure mutual understanding, especially

involving interns and volunteers.

● Scope Management: Addressing bureaucratic

challenges related to official documentation

required in Portuguese for a federal institution

while needing signatures from parties unfamiliar

with the language; a solution involves dual-

language document creation and signing.

● Stakeholder Management: Managing diverse

stakeholders with varying language preferences

and proficiencies demands tailored

communication strategies to ensure effective

engagement and understanding.

Challenge 2: Managing a Multi-Country Project:

● Integration Management: Utilizing Trello and

Google Drive facilitates centralized

communication and document sharing across

teams and countries.

● Scope Management: The Theory of Change and

Project Plan serve as guiding documents,

reviewed and amended as needed.

● Schedule Management: The Gantt chart, bi-

weekly meetings, and the Kanban board aid in

tracking progress and ensuring adherence to

deadlines.

● Cost Management: Currency fluctuations and

international transfers require close collaboration

with Uniselva and proactive budgeting.

● Communication management: As mentioned,

Whatsapp is one of the communication platforms

adopted in the project, and managing it when each

country is in a different time zone also becomes a

personal challenge.

Challenge 3: Managing Multiple Currencies and

Financial Complexity:

● Cost Management: Handling currency

fluctuations impacting the budget allocated in

Canadian dollars, converted to Brazilian Reals,

and utilized across multiple countries (Brazil,

Bolivia, Peru, USA) poses financial complexities.

● Procurement Management: Dealing with foreign

transactions incurs additional taxes affecting the

project's budget, especially concerning payments

to one-time service providers in different

currencies subject to exchange rate volatility.

● Resource Management: Currency fluctuations

affect project members' income in other countries,

leading to income uncertainties due to varying

exchange rates for payments received in their

respective currencies.

● Risk Management: Negotiating the bureaucratic

procedures, obligatory public procurement

processes, and additional regulatory requirements

mandated for research projects within Brazilian

federal institutions poses a significant challenge,

hindering agile project management

methodologies' seamless implementation.

Challenge 4: Overcoming Bureaucratic

Complexities in Federal Institutions:

● Risk Management: Navigating the extensive

bureaucratic procedures, obligatory public

procurement processes, and additional regulatory

requirements mandated for research projects

within Brazilian federal institutions significantly

hinder the flexibility and agility of project

management methodologies.

● Procurement Management: Strict adherence to

bureaucratic protocols and procurement

procedures within federal institutions lengthens

the procurement process, delaying the acquisition

of necessary resources or services vital for project

execution.

● Integration Management: Aligning project

timelines with bureaucratic timelines becomes

crucial due to the rigid framework of federal

regulations, often causing delays in project

milestones and integrated change control.

● Stakeholder Management: Engaging and

managing stakeholders within the constraints of

bureaucratic processes requires tailored

communication and engagement strategies to

ensure continued support and cooperation.

● Scope Management: The regulatory framework

necessitates detailed and comprehensive

documentation, adding complexity to defining

and managing project scope, as well as

incorporating any scope changes within the strict

bureaucratic guidelines.

Challenge 5: Ensuring Data Quality and User-

Friendliness:

● Quality Management: Ontology specialists

validate data accuracy and coherence, while HCI

experts ensure platform usability.

● Resource Management: Collaboration with

educational institutions provides access to

expertise and resources.

● Communication Management: Slack and email

facilitate internal and external communication,

fostering transparency and collaborative problem-

solving.

Challenge 6: Overcoming Bureaucratic

Obstacles:

● Procurement Management: Navigating public

procurement processes requires careful planning

and adherence to regulations.

● Stakeholder Management: Maintaining open

communication and building strong relationships

are crucial for project success.

Project Management in Large-Scale with International Settings: Challenges Faced with Multiculturalism

Challenge 7: Adapting to Cultural and Linguistic

Differences:

● Communication Management: Employing

English as the primary language while

accommodating diverse proficiency levels, but

always being open to letting the team speak in

their mother tongues (Portuguese and Spanish).

● Risk Management: Proactively identifying and

mitigating potential cultural and linguistic

barriers.

Challenge 8: Balancing Agile and Waterfall

Methodologies:

● Integration Management: Employing hybrid

methodology necessitates clear delineation of

responsibilities and communication channels.

● Schedule Management: Regularly updating the

Gantt chart and maintaining flexibility while

adhering to key milestones.

Challenge 6: Engaging Volunteers and Interns:

● Resource Management: Providing clear

expectations, mentorship opportunities, and

recognition for contributions.

● Communication Management: Utilizing a variety

of communication channels to ensure inclusivity

and engagement.

Challenge 9: Organization of international

events:

● Resource management: Ensuring that all

managers, consultants and leaders are present and

managing to bring interns and volunteers within

the budget.

● Integration Management: Balancing the

languages spoken across the team, so the event is

understandable to everyone.

● Risk Management: Dealing with international

connections, different departure and arrival times,

jet lagging of the participants and cultural

differences of participants to the event location.

● Schedule Management: Working out the whole

team’s agenda to bring them all together

presentially for each event.

● Communication Management: Proving clear

communication not only to the participants of the

event but also to all parties involved such as

services, IDRC and Uniselva.

5 FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

The ELLAS project, a collaborative effort across

three countries, aims to bridge the gender gap in

STEM fields. Its main goals include gathering data

for comparison, assessing policies to narrow the

gender divide, and supporting women's leadership in

STEM through open data and applications. This

initiative maps out factors impacting women's STEM

careers and suggests policy improvements.

Handling a project of this size across different

cultures and within a Brazilian federal institution

presented various challenges. Communication issues

due to diverse languages and cultures were significant

obstacles. Dealing with multiple currencies,

bureaucracy, and strict regulations added complexity.

Sustaining data quality, creating user-friendly

platforms, and engaging stakeholders faced ongoing

hurdles. Creating solutions for managing a large-scale

international project, particularly considering its

multicultural nature is, by itself, a complex task.

Creating an article summarizing the operational

aspects of such a complex project, especially at the

intersection of research, multiculturalism, and

Brazilian bureaucracy, is challenging. The lack of

specific literature on these topics complicates

presenting practical project management experiences

in academic writing. It's challenging to balance

detailed operational aspects with scholarly

expectations for theory and background literature.

Despite numerous challenges, the project

demonstrates effective hybrid project management,

combining elements from waterfall and agile

approaches. Overcoming these challenges offers

insights into stakeholder management, resource

allocation, and navigating cultural and bureaucratic

complexities. Future work might involve

documenting project conclusions, achievements, or

discussing management strategies for broader

knowledge sharing.

In order to achieve greater gender equity in

STEM, it is of utmost importance to finance and

execute large-scale projects. In these endeavors,

project management plays a fundamental role.

Through scientific and technological research and

development, we can progress further towards a more

equal and just society.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors would like to thank the International

Development Research Centre - IDRC for the

opportunity and support for the project (Grant no.

109798–001), and the UNISELVA Foundation for

the administrative and financial management of the

project. They would like to give special thanks to the

entire team involved in the project, working on

different fronts for its success, and advocating for

more women in STEM.

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