Cross cultural leadership practices and effectiveness

Cross Cultural Leadership

There is a strong connection between the vision of the organizations and the strategies that they use in order to function in an efficient and efficacious manner. In addition, the organizational vision is connected to the organizational structure. A company's vision reflects its culture, while it is, at the same time supported by it. It is needless to say that the hiring policies and the reward systems are chosen depending on the organizational values. As far as the executive leadership roles and responsibilities are concerned, they are also influenced by the organization's culture.

The alignment of all these elements is not an arbitrary decision, but an element of necessity. The reason for this situation is represented by the need for a coherent functioning. People will act according to their values and beliefs. Therefore, they need to organize themselves in harmony with the things that motivate them and in which they believe. It is the same thing with an organization, regardless of its type.

All the organizational strategies have a starting point, which is of crucial importance because it defines their main purpose. This starting point is represented the mission. And the mission can not be conceived outside the vision. Hence, the close relation between vision and strategy. Since an organization is founded on some principles, should it choose to organize itself or to function according to values which are not assumed, the consequences would be highly negative, especially on a long-term basis. It would be like acting against one's nature. It is needless to underline the disadvantages which derive from this particular choice.

The hiring policies and the reward system are also derived from an organization's core functioning values. A company will try to bring in people who share the same values and can work according to a precise set of rules and principles. These principles are at the same time, the very criteria that will allow the employees to be awarded for the achievement of their tasks or, on the contrary, to be sanctioned for their mistakes.

It is practically impossible for an organization, regardless of its type, to function peacefully at all times. The business environment and its current development patterns, as well as all the changes which occur and might occur from other areas and which can affect industries, economies and business make it highly possible for any company to encounter a difficult moments and even a crisis situation.

One of the most important factors which can help an organization surpass a period of crisis is represented by communication. First and foremost, people need to understand its importance and then act accordingly. In times of hardship, communication can make miracles if it is well managed, since it is the fundamental basis for collaboration. As far as its target is concerned, it is safe to say that both internal and external communication processes share an equal importance. Actually, a 360 degrees communication process would be preferable.

Internal communication must function at all levels, on the horizontal and on the vertical. If a problem exists, then it must be clearly stated. Its possible causes must be individuated and communicated to all the stuff. People need to know what they are confronted with, why the situation is like that and what is it that they must do in order to solve the situation. Under these circumstances, communication must be used and also perceived as a means of collaboration.

In addition, feedback is highly important in times of hardship. It is worth underlining though, that in order for feedback to be efficiently used, data bases need to be created. It is in this way that organized information may give insight regarding the best possible solutions.

As far as external communication is concerned, it must be said that all the target audiences must be clearly defined. The declarations of the organizations must be clear and not leave room for interpretation. In addition, the organizations must make it clear that they have nothing to hide and try to convince that they are doing everything in their power to solve the crisis (using supporting evidence).

Leadership is a notion which is strongly connected to the one of power. Power and authority also prove to have a strong relation. Leadership can be based on power, either financial or at a know-how level. It may also be the case that leadership puts you in a position of power. Under these circumstances, it can be stated that the bases of leadership can come in a variety of forms. I personally have the tendency to assume the leader role whenever group work or generally speaking, group activities is involved.

This comes from my desire to do things perfectly and have the best possible outcome. I am not at ease if I leave things to be decide by others. In my opinion, in order to achieve a task, one must be very well organized. The purpose must be clearly stated and specific roles must be assumed by the team members. Some people are better off when they are told what to do, while others would rather be in the position of the "tellers." I usually find myself more comfortable in the latter position.

It is very important for leaders to be accepted as what they are by the persons with which they need to work with. One may be talented and very good at what he does, if he does not succeed in creating a trust-based relationship with his team, it will more difficult to achieve a purpose, even a common one. From this point-of-view, I consider that one way to improve my leadership skills is the improvement of the socializing skills. In addition, I could work upon my psychology knowledge, improving my information in the area of motivation and influence. Furthermore, experience in working with people and contact with a variety as large as possible of people from numerous fields of action can also be helpful in this regard.

Executive leadership is highly important for the successful functioning of any organization. The executive functions can not be neglected if one wishes to have a company which functions efficiently and efficaciously. There are nevertheless several competencies that an executive leader should have in order to achieve his tasks in the best possible manner. A professional executive leader must be able to create efficient teams, succeed in making alliances with other organizations, serving the best interest of both the company and the clients.

Leading change is a fundamental competency that one must have once in the position of the executive leader. Strategic changes must be efficiently managed, whether they take place within the organization or outside it. No matter the case, the executive leader must be a good communicator, managing to motivate people in the context of change and to help them adapt. From this point-of-view, it can be stated that one has to be creative and come up with efficient approaches. Innovation must also be encouraged and supported through all the possible techniques.

External awareness is another competency that can be of great help as far as executive leadership is concerned. The business environment undergoes constant changes and one must know how to react to them. In addition, one must be able to think proactively. Having constantly updated information about what's going on in all the fields of interest (the ones which might have an impact upon one's activity or area of activity) as well as an analytical perspective, may allow one to predict future changes and prepare for them in the most efficacious manner. Strategic visionary thinking is essential from this point-of-view.

Another important competency refers to leading people. In other words, helping them carry their tasks in the best possible manner, accordingly to the values and the mission of the organization. One must encourage teamwork as well as collaboration between all the activity levels within an organization. At the same time, one must be able to properly stimulate and motivate people in order to have them give their best. In addition, the executive leader must be able to solve conflicts in the best manner for the company, without hurting any of the employees' interest either.

One core competency for the executive leader is represented by the one to manage conflict. This means that one must have a good knowledge of the way the employees think, about their motivations. In addition, one must have the capacity to encourage competition between the employees, but in a creative manner. This will drive the organization ahead. Differences must be encouraged and supported. However, the task of the executive manager is difficult under these circumstances because the forces driving the company must function in synergy. Reaching this harmony is his task.

Inspiring people to work in teams is another ability that the executive manager must have. He must provide people with constant opportunities to express themselves and improve themselves. Constant feedback must be given to people in order to support them.

Furthermore, the executive leader must be result oriented. From this point-of-view, it is his task to clearly define the objectives to be met, as well as the phases of the process that will help achieve this objective. Internal and external customers are both considered important and their needs must be anticipated and satisfied in the most suitable manner. The decisions that the executive leader makes must be based on solid information. He must be aware of the consequences of his decisions. At the same time, he must have a long-term perspective and make the best choice even if at the beginning its consequences might seem negative.

A further competency that must be taken into consideration refers to the ability to efficaciously manage strategic resources including the human ones, the financial ones and the information ones. From this point-of-view, one needs to be updated with the technological development which are relevant for his work area. In addition, he must make sure that everything from the recruitment process to the selection and rewarding of the staff members is done in the manner which best serves the organization.

A leadership network is highly important for a company or organization which wants to achieve success. Senior leaders are brought together in order to create a top class team which bases its efficaciousness on experience and know-how. The best way to create such a network is by bringing together top qualified people who have a common purpose. The most difficult task under these circumstances is to provide them with this common goal. This goal could be represented by the mutual advantages that they and their organizations would have from this cooperation.

Once the network is created, it must be managed just like one would manage any other team. Training is welcome in order to allow the members of the network clearly understand what their purpose is and what is their role in the process of achieving it. Furthermore, the relationship at the bases of the network must be based on trust. The most obvious advantage that the network presents is the problem-solving capacities of its members, a capacity which can help each of the involved organizations achieve fast results. Another advantage is represented by the cumulating of resources. Communication is a fundamental factor for the efficient creation and use of leadership networks.

Any organization depends on its members for its functioning. People however need to be motivated in order to perform their tasks. It is not an easy task to increase the motivation of the employees. The differences between people, their interests and desires, as well as the characteristics of their jobs, together with their abilities make it difficult to come up with an unique motivation scheme for the entire group of people part of an organization. There are various theories regarding motivation. One of the most famous ones is represented by the hierarchy of needs, a theory conceived by Maslow. An organization can motivate its employees through the satisfaction of the five types of needs that Maslow has individuated. The physiological needs for example can be satisfied by the wages. The financial motivation is extremely strong since the amount of money that people gain influences their status and thus their opinion regarding themselves.

Another basic need that people have refers to safety. An organization satisfies this need through the benefits that it offers. The need for affiliation is satisfied by creating a feeling of belonging to a group or even a family, which is represented by the organization itself. The esteem needs can be satisfied through the recognition of the merits. In addition, people must be given tasks which are at their level. Giving them tasks under their level is a sure way to diminish their motivation. Tasks which are challenging not only motivate people, but they also give them the chance to fulfil their potential and even develop themselves.

There are other ways to motivate people, regardless of the cultural environment where they live. People have a constant need to develop themselves, to grow at professional and personal level. From this point-of-view, it is wise to allow them and to stimulate them to be creative. Giving people opportunities for self development is a highly important motivation technique. It must be nevertheless adapted to the cultural background of the individuals.

In addition to being motivated, people can also be influenced. It might be said that it is more politically correct to motivate people into doing the things which are good for both them and the organization that they are part of. However, one does not always have the strategic resources needed in order to efficiently motivate large groups of people within which a large array of diversities can be met. Furthermore, due to cultural differences, it is often the case when people are influenced by things others would not expect. It is important from this point-of-view to understand what is it that can influence people.

From this point-of-view, we can speak about several influence strategies. One of them refers to higher authority. Authority and power are closely connected. One in a position of authority can influence others through his status alone. Another influence strategy refers to sanctions. People might choose to do something in order to avoid various types of sanctions, starting from the financial one to the more important psychological ones. Assertiveness is another influence strategy that has been proved to be efficient in various cultural contexts.