Cross-Cultural Leader Problems

...

and Orientations Global mindset

Cognitive

complexity

Cosmopolitanism Personal literacy Able to deal with

complexity

Open-minded and

flexible in

thoughts and

tactics

Honesty and integrity Ability to cope with

certainties and

conflicts

Willingness and ability

to embrace and

integrate multiple

perspectives

Threshold Traits Integrity, humility

Inquisitiveness,

hardiness Personal literacy Resilient, resourceful,

optimistic,

energetic

Knowledge Global knowledge Business literacy Value –added

technical or

business skills In-depth business

and technical

knowledge and

managerial

competency

(Teagarden, 2007, p. 313).

Problems Associated with the Cross-Cultural Leader

Communication

Communication is a large problem of the cross-cultural leader. It may include the differences in languages, values of the culture and even the thought process.

The same words, tone, and gestures often have different meanings in different cultures. The varying rules about relationships between genders and social classes complicate things even further. To interact productively in today’s multicultural society, it is necessary to: 1. accept that the old way - believing there is only one effective way to communicate - no longer holds true, 2. expand the range of acceptable behaviors for accomplishing goals while maintaining a common focus on the goals and quality standards to be achieved, 3. respect other cultures and create new ways of integrating diverse groups to form a cohesive and responsible society, and 4. learn to become a cross-cultural communicator (Charlton and Huey, 1992, n.p.).

Non-verbal communication is also a major setback for the cross-cultural leader. For example, the Japanese like to be silent while considering an offer during negotiations. Americans perceive the silence to be unfavorable and may reduce the value of their offer in the hopes of getting the deal. This is an unnecessary thing for the Americans to do, because that is the Japanese way of negotiating. Eye contact is another form of non-verbal communication that causes problems. The Arabs use it more than Americans or the Japanese. Touching can also be a problem when communicating. Americans do not like to be touched while Latinos, Canadians and Swedish prefer it (Banutu-Gomez, 2002). The ability to communicate both verbally and non-verbally can cause problems with negotiations and employees.

Leadership Style

The literature presents varying definitions of leadership but the one constant is that different countries prefer different types of leadership styles. According to Callow (2007), there are three distinct types of cross-cultural leadership:

... fundamental leadership; results-oriented leadership; and business know-how leadership. The fundamental leader exhibits sound judgment, is adaptable, is a good coach and can walk the talk. The results-oriented leader is one who champions change, establishes plans, and leads courageously, but is less good at being adaptable or building relationships. India and Singapore prefer the business know-how style, while Mexico and Germany prefer results-oriented leaders. Other countries, such as the US, Canada, and the UK, do not have strong preferences for one style over the others (Callow, 2007, n.p.).

The Project Globe (2006) study delineates the culturally endorsed implicit leadership theory (CLT) which list attributes desired of cross-cultural leaders. The top six global qualities include: 1. Charismatic/Value-Based, 2. Team-Oriented, 3. Participative, 4. Humane-Oriented, 5. Autonomous, and 6. Self-Protective (Javidan, Dorfman, Sully de Luque & House, 2006).

Additional differences in leadership styles include: Leaders in the United Kingdom do not have a culture of reliability, like to show off their accomplishments and do not mind being watched. In France, it only takes a diploma to become a leader. The French believe in intellect and prefer to have rules. Leaders in Germany believe in punctuality and reliability. They place a high emphasis on professional and relevant knowledge and they work within the confines of a chain of command which operates from the top down (Barsoux, 1992). As shown above, there is a varying difference in leadership styles depending on the culture. Regardless of the leadership style one must be open to new cultures, have interpersonal skills, and have technical and organizational knowledge.

Conflict

Conflict is the result of differences in ideas or principles and has been around in the business arena for quite a long time because no two companies or cultures are exactly the same. Anyone in a leadership position should possess the ability to manage conflict. The cross-cultural leader usually faces conflict when they do not fully understand differences between their own culture and the cultural beliefs and customs of the country they are in.

The cross-cultural leader must realize that conflict may interfere with business negotiations or the ability to lead employees of a different culture. When conflict is managed appropriately, it may help leaders and employees confront the reality of a situation and work together to devise solutions to the problems at hand. The answer to conflict lies in learning how to mange it, and capitalize on the benefits of its advantages and minimize the disadvantages.

Ethical Dilemmas

Ethics has always been a problem for many leaders no matter what the culture. However, when you put a cross-cultural face on ethics it takes a different twist. The leader from one culture may try to apply the moral values used in their culture to the other, and although the values may be similar in nature, their applications