Global Leadership
MGMT5006 Global Leadership Week 3: Global Leadership Competencies
Students can pick up a Unit Outline and a number card on the way into class
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Overview
Looking back to Week 2
What are global leadership competencies?
How do we measure global leadership competence?
What are some ways of developing these competencies?
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Looking back to Week 2 Leading in the Global Business Context
Last week we considered:
“what is global leadership?”
“what is an effective global leader?”
We recognised that global leadership:
involved leading multi-cultural teams
is characterized by ‘distance’ – physical, cultural and psychological
is culturally contingent – it means different things to different cultural groups
Questions for discussion (open)
Questions for discussion are:
1. What does the world in which I have to function as a leader look like?
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Linking to Week 3 Global Leadership Competencies
We learnt that effective global leaders are culturally competent. They are able to
adapt to differences in cultural situations and interactions
inspire culturally different followers, with different ‘leadership expectations’
This week, we explore the theory behind effective global leadership, asking:
What are global leadership competencies?
How do we determine or measure someone’s global leadership competence?
How do we develop these competencies?
What is a competency?
First, let’s consider the idea of ‘competency’
Woodruffe (1993:29) states:
“Competency is the set of behaviour patterns which are needed to allow the incumbent to perform tasks and functions with competence”
Competencies relate to a person’s behaviour, and may be linked to:
personality traits and motives
attitudes and values
knowledge and skills
What are global leadership competencies?
Following Woodruffe, global leadership competencies are the “set of behaviour patterns” that enable a leader to perform the tasks and functions of global leadership with competence (ie: effectively).
Researchers have identified long lists of competencies that impact global leadership effectiveness
Over 160 global leadership competencies identified (Bird 2017)
Competencies are multi-faceted, reflecting the complex nature of global leadership
Other researchers have developed frameworks or categories to make sense of these many competencies.
Lets’ explore some of the frameworks from the readings…
Global leadership competency frameworks
Henson (2016): Model for understanding global leadership
Context
Org. Climate/ Support
Development Experiences
Work/Situational Factors
Outcomes
Personal
Relationship
Performance
Team & Organizational
Antecedents
CQ
Personality
Cross-Cultural Contacts and Experiences
Self-Awareness
Fundamentals
Bus. And Org. Savvy
Results-orientation
Integrity and ethics
Interpersonal -Communication Skills Cultural Sensitivity
Learning Agility
Competencies
Global Leadership
Global Mindset Dispositions
Flexibility
Acceptance
Curiosity
Empathy
Global leadership competency frameworks
Key points from Henson (2016):
Competencies are considered to be one aspect of global leadership construct
Global leadership outcomes (ie: successful or not) are impacted by contextual factors
Global leadership competencies include:
Interpersonal Communication Skills
Clear, context-sensitive
Importance of non-verbal communication
Cultural Sensitivity
Building and maintaining relationships
Emotional sensitivity
Learning Agility
Ability to quickly learn
Ability to apply knowledge to different situations
Listening
Importance of global mindset
Reflexive of own culture
Adaptive/ flexibile
Self-reflective
Global leadership competency frameworks
Bird (2017) recognises the wide range of global leadership competencies that include aspects of:
Personality
Attitudes
Cognitive capabilities
Knowledge bases
Behavioural skills
Bird proposes three core categories of competencies as ‘buckets’ for the many competencies identified in research:
1. Business and Organisational Savvy
2. Managing People and Relationships
3. Managing Self
Global Leadership Competencies - Bird’s framework: Business & Org. Acumen
These three competency groups account for 80% of competencies in this category
Business and Organisational Acumen
Vision and strategic thinking
Business savvy
Managing communities
Organisational savvy
Leading change
Global Leadership Competencies - Bird’s framework: Managing People & Relationships
These three competency groups account for 70% of competencies in this category
Valuing People is deemed the most important - a ‘foundational’ competency
Cross-cultural communication
Valuing people
Teaming skills
Managing People and Relationships
Empowering others
Interpersonal skills
Global Leadership Competencies - Bird’s framework: Managing Self
Inquisitiveness
Global Mindset
Managing Self
Flexibility
Character
Resilience
Global Leadership Competencies - Bird’s framework
Each of these competency groups contain a large number of dimensions, including:
Predispositional / personality traits
Attitudes
Cognitive capabilities
Knowledge bases
Behavioural skills
Key point: global leadership competencies are highly varied, and encompass aspects of business and organisational expertise, people and interpersonal relationships, and management and development of the self.
Successful global leadership may depend on development of competencies in all of these areas.
Please read Chapter 4 of the Mendenhall book for further detail and deeper understanding
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Global Leadership Competency frameworks
Some issues to consider:
Many frameworks are developed using a ‘western lens’ (Cumberland et al 2016)
This means that they may not reflect that the most important competencies may vary according to context (ie: cultural, industry, role)
This is important when considering assessment and development of global leaders
One size may not fit all
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What do you think?
Reflecting on your own experience of leadership and your cultural context, can you identify certain groups of competencies to be more important than others?
Assessment of Global Leadership Competencies
Read Cumberland et al (2016) for further detail of types of assessment tools
What?
Measurement of the current level or potential competency level
Why?
Can assist in the identification, selection and development of global talent
How?
Personality and Disposition: psychometric testing, interviews
Act as “building blocks” for talent identification
Knowledge and skills: questionnaires, observation, simulations
Behaviours: observations, simulations, 360degree feedback, specialist assessment centres
Assessment of Global Leadership Competencies
Some issues to consider:
It’s important to identify which global leadership competencies are most important for the organisation / role / context
Not all competencies will be equally as important and will vary by context
Use a targeted approach to assessment
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What do you think?
Do you possess some of the global leadership competencies?
What are your strengths?
What are your areas for development?
Developing Global Leadership Competencies
We will look at this in more detail in the final class
Briefly,
There are many ways to develop global leaders
Cumberland et al (2016) identify four key approaches:
SELF-AWARENESS
DIDACTIC TRAINING
EXPERIENTIAL OPPORTUNITIES
IMMERSION
For individuals and organisations, the most effective approach is a combination or variety of development opportunities
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Developing Global Leadership Competencies
Self-awareness
The foundation! “Know thyself”
Self-reflection, mentoring, peer feedback
Didactic training
Formal education programs eg: diversity, language, cultural awareness
Information oriented
Experiential Opportunities
Working overseas, business travel, global team member, cross-cultural volunteering
Immersion
Identification of cultural biases and assumptions
Simulation exercises
"Learn by doing"
Long-term international assignments, immersive language training
Enhance all areas of global leadership competencies
"Learn in the field"
What do you think?
Have you participated in any of the types of development described?
How have your personal experiences contributed to your global leadership development?