Leadership Concepts

Cultures, Social Networking and SPL Model Cultures The modern business environment has contributed to increased international operations by companies in attempts to enhance global presence and gain competitive advantage. However, international companies experience various challenges with regards to hiring and retaining employees in foreign countries or new cultures. As an individual spearheading a study in an international company, one of the major issues to address is determining the advantage or disadvantage of hiring locals or natives vs.

sending present company employees for short periods of time and necessary training for those operations. For the international company, sending present company employees for short periods of time is more beneficial than hiring locals or natives. This is primarily because the knowledge and skills required in the job in the host country are either in short supply or not present in the locals or natives.

Moreover, the existing employees have adequate knowledge of the firm and its operations, which is crucial for coordinating operations in the foreign country (Atchison, Belcher & Thomsen, 2000). However, these employees should be provided with training regarding the host country, cross-cultural communication, and how to manage expatriate assignments. Power distance is the degree with which less powerful members of the firm anticipate and accept the distribution of power unequally while uncertainty avoidance is the extent in which a culture feels comfortable or uncomfortable in unstructured situations.

Individualism is the extent of individuals' integration into groups while collectivism is the existence of societies where people are integrated into strong, cohesive groups, which are continually protected in exchange for absolute loyalty. Masculine refers to men's values from a country to another from assertive to competitive whereas feminine are women's values from modest to caring. Generally, men's values across societies largely differ are compared to women's values. Social Networking Social networking has increased across the globe in the recent past.

The increased use of social media has shaped business operations in several companies. This has primarily occurred because of the impact of social media in shaping consumer perspectives, particularly because social media amplifies what consumers are thinking about and acting on. While companies employ various means in their use of social media to collect information about customers, social media provides marketers with new insights and opportunities regarding new product and service. Therefore, consumers are in control of marketing processes and other aspect of business operations by companies.

The increased use of social media in this process has been fueled by the rise of a cultural-spiritual shift, which is driven by the emergence of the creative class, the rise of a new spirituality, and the birth of the civil society as a global force (Scharmer, 2009). JBS Bookkeeping, a company that creates innovative and complete accounts solutions and Verizon, a global telecommunications firm are two companies that use social media to gather information about customers. Both companies provide links that customers click on the social media websites.

Once customers click on the links, advertisers or marketers start collecting their personal information and information about products and services. They then develop and target free advertisements that are based on information provided by customers. Through this process, the companies discover what consumers are thinking about and acting on by monitoring the links and kinds of advertisements that they view.

When collecting the information, marketers identify new product and service insights and opportunities by engaging customers in conversation and enabling them to talk to each other through posting comments or various business issues and operations. SPL Model The Scholar, Practitioner, Leader (SPL) model combine scholarship and theory with practical knowledge and skills that are used in the working environment. Some of the major benefits of this model include exerting positive influence, capitalizing on lessons learned academically, socially and professionally, and discovery of personal blind spots.

Generally, the Scholar, Practitioner, Leader (SPL) model has been crucial in my understanding of the leadership process, especially the application of leadership theories in real life situations and business processes. As previously mentioned, one of the lessons from this course and the SPL model is the discovery of my blind spots. I have learned that blind spots can be the major reason project risks are either taken, ignored, avoided or undiscovered.

They are also reasons managers have difficulties in business communications when acting as leaders who deal with foreign cultures or diverse organizational cultures. Successful leadership requires the identification of these blind spots and effectively dealing with them as.