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Information’s pretty thin stuff unless mixed with experience. ~Clarence Day
Nearly every day, I work with colleagues who are eight or more time zones away. I’ve been doing this, with few interruptions, since the ‘80s. Back then, “geographically distributed” projects were run only by multinational corporations. Times have changed.
Global markets have become more interdependent, and collaboration across borders is now commonplace, even at smaller companies. Businesses know that they have to team up with companies in other regions to compete in the global “value creation” race*.
But a lot of companies struggle with this. In a June, 2009 survey by TMA World, 82% of respondents rated the performance of their company’s “global, virtual” teams as either ‘moderate’ or ‘poor’. Yet nearly all of those surveyed said that global teams were ‘very important’ to their organizations.
The reason for this disconnect is that going global is a relatively new undertaking for lots of businesses. Many organizations simply haven’t “re-calibrated” for a global marketplace, and they don’t have all the pieces to support a successful global strategy.
“Expert” Advice?
There’s no shortage of advice from experts on how to improve cross-cultural business performance. Their recommendations — depending on what they’re selling — range from adopting more robust collaborative tools to receiving cross-cultural training. Smart tools and interventions do have their place, but the missing piece at a lot of organizations is experienced talent, particularly at the leadership level.
Organizations interested in thriving on a global stage need leaders with high-level experience in regions where they’re operating, or at least in culturally similar markets. This is particularly true for companies working in developing regions where business conditions are undergoing rapid change.
The Virtues of Seasoned Leaders
Leaders with relevant international business experience can bring dexterity to handling cultural differences in communications styles, approaches to completing tasks, and ways of handling conflict which can become magnified over the life of a project.
At a tactical (project) level, seasoned leaders with strong relational skills can recognize whether a breakdown in a project stems from a misunderstanding due to cross-cultural differences or from another source. Seasoned leaders can take proactive steps to help their team to avoid the risks of cross-cultural misunderstanding.
In addition to interpersonal skills they’ve acquired, seasoned leaders can provide context to projects in developing regions where laws, commercial practices, and attitudes toward business are in flux.
Seasoned leaders can bring a rich perspective to multinational projects. Most of us who enjoy working in other markets are deeply interested in these regions. We become intimate with each country — its landscape, history, and politics. We devour every obscure book and report for the sheer joy of learning more, and we’re energized by putting the knowledge to practical use.
Lasting Value
Internationally-seasoned leaders can steer a steady course over the inevitable bumps and around the unexpected curves of cross-cultural projects. The positive impact can extend across the organization long after the project or campaign has ended. They can help to shape their organization’s culture by passing on their knowledge to the next generation of leaders.
Courses in cross-cultural relations can inform your workers about handling cultural differences. But, there’s no substitute for having leaders who’ve managed high-level assignments in relevant foreign markets. My advice is this: Be sure to add international seasoning to the mix.
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As always, I’d love to hear your views. What opportunities and challenges do you see in the global economy, and how do they affect you?
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* In their ‘08 book, The New Age of Innovation, C.K. Prahalad and M.S. Krishnan use the term R = G (Resources = Global) to describe collaboration across cultures as an imperative: “All firms will access resources from a wide variety of other big and small firms—a global ecosystem”. (I discussed the book here.)
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Want more info on this subject? Here are some recommendations from broad to narrow in focus:
I’d previously recommended Fareed Zakaria’s book, The Post-American World (W.W. Norton & Co., ‘08) which makes a compelling case for the rise of developing countries in an increasingly interconnected economy.
Parag Khanna’s book, The Second World: Empires and Influence in the New Global Order (Random House, 2008), makes a compelling case for understanding the world from the standpoint of Second World countries. I reviewed Khanna’s book here.
For a variety of books about doing business in cross-cultural settings, check out the resources at Intercultural Press.
INSEAD professor Horacio Falcao discusses how to avoid the pitfalls of cross-cultural negotiations featuring this short video on the subject. (When do we underestimate vs. overestimate the impact of cross-cultural differences?)
Related post: International Rules of Engagement, April, 15, 2009, and various posts on Emerging Markets topics.
What resources would you recommend?
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Tags: developing regions, global, International Business, international experience, international seasoning, R = G, seasoned leader