Leadership competencies for global managers

• In our work with a wide range of international companies operating across many different markets and industries, it has become clear that the most successful business leaders consistently demonstrate a specific set of competencies.
• Successful global managers, particularly those leading the internationalization of domestic companies, demonstrate these same competencies but in a very distinctive way.
• These competencies fall into four distinct areas :

1. Business leadership
2. Functional leadership
3. Team leadership
4. Personal leadership

Business Leadership

• Business leadership in a global company has very specific challenges:

  1. The ability to build alliances and business partnerships is a key to successful business leadership in new markets.
  2. Relation to company structure and organizational dynamics
  3. Communication of corporate values and strategy

Functional Leadership

• Functional leadership is typically defined in terms of the specific functional skills an individual brings to a business situation.
• Deep skills in a functional area of relevance are critical because they give the global manager credibility.
• The individual's ability to leverage the corporate network
• The individual to maintain a functional edge so he or she does not become isolated from best practice

Team Leadership

• Team leadership is the first of the two 'soft' competencies that sets successful global business leaders apart from other managers
• Mentoring, coaching, motivating, and even day-to-day communication, can be difficult in an environment where cultural norms, symbols and values are all fundamentally different to those of the leader.
• The political, regulatory and business landscape can change quickly and without warning , so the ability to communicate a consistent vision, and inspire the troops to action in such an environment, requires a special kind of leadership.

Personal Leadership

• Our family life, sports clubs or religious affiliations, all provide rhythm and context for our business activities.
• Business leaders in the international context often lack these supports and accordingly require a level of personal leadership well beyond what is typically needed in a domestic environment
• For someone constantly traveling, it takes discipline, focus and maturity
• If an executive is to be successful working in another culture he or she must demonstrate a deep respect for, and sensitivity to, cultural differences.
• He or she must also remain grounded in his or her own culture and national identity
• A further aspect of personal leadership of successful global managers is the ability to continue to manage their own personal growth and career development
• Keeping networks alive and fresh, staying on the corporate radar screen, and maintaining one's edge when working at the coalface of international business is extremely difficult.

Emotional Intelligence

• Team leadership and personal leadership are linked through an overarching competence called Emotional Intelligence.
• Emotional intelligence is made up of five elements:

  • Three of these involve personal elements:
    • self-awareness
    • self-regulation
    • motivation
  • Two of the elements are social:
    • empathy
    • social skills

Global Manufacturing and Marketing Strategies

Manufacturing Strategy – Engineering Alliances/JVs

In the Automotive industry it is sometimes hard to work in a common vehicle platform where there are Japanese suppliers. For example, Ford works with Mazda in a common platform for an American vehicle.

How Japanese Keiretsus Work

The "manufacturers" Keiretsus, symbolized by vertical relationships, are integrating a pyramid of suppliers and component manufacturers in one structure.

They behave as if they were one company:

• Giving loans,
• technology,
• development costs,
• long-term supply agreements etc. from customers higher up in the pyramid to subcontractors.

• Manufacturers even absorb losses occurring in other sectors and pursue set prices.
• The result is a conformist structure producing high quality while shutting out foreign suppliers.
• The Japanese believe that they ensure full employment, the security of the nation and distribute risks ( it is their version of capitalism ).
• The Keiretsus can be seen to be adapting to changing conditions such as increasing globalization.
• Many of the old corporate groups are becoming more open to doing business with foreign partners and are even terminating old alliances that are no longer useful to them.

Marketing Strategy

• In the Marketing arena it is difficult to define a global vehicle for different markets as there are different regulations such as emissions and safety.
• The consumers themselves have different expectations and climate conditions and geographic considerations must be taken into account as well.
• Marketing communication should also be focused depending on the target market.

Conclusions

• The four leadership competencies all key elements of a successful business leader's skill set.
• Team leadership and personal leadership are particularly important in the international context.
• A leader needs to identify the needs of the culture that surrounds him, and adopt flexibility into the processes.
• Different markets with different cultures are difficult to work with but a leader needs to find the way to integrate the company vision, mission, best practices to achieve the best results in the globalization process.

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