In this article we report findings from three longitudinal studies carried out to understand the social interactive processes in multicultural groups observed in their organizational settings. Its aim was to explore the dynamics of cognitive, affective and communicative aspects during the development of a shared understanding. In particular, crystallizing the effect of culture in a temporal setting was considered. Data give reason to believe that country-of-origin diversity aspects during this process depend on whether employees feel this is salient in a particular context. The findings are of particular value to intercultural managers in their role as project leaders. For successful cooperation among culturally diverse group members, they need to facilitate social interactive processes by balancing perceived differences.
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