Marketing - Management Skill Analysis- Global Management Skills Essay Writing Assessment Answer

Global Management (GM) capability is a trait business leaders look for in their managers for their career development as well as for their own succession planning. This capability plays a crucial role in the cross-cultural adaptation of managers as well as in enabling them to effectively manage their global business responsibilities.

Personality refers to the exhaustive group of qualities that form an individual’s unique character (Ashton, 2013). Capability refers to the extent of ability that one holds in a specific area of skill or work (Weiner & Greene, 2011). For example, if an individual bears high capability in public speaking, it suggests that the person bears the potential to develop into an effective public speaker (Daft & Samson, 2015).

Global management capability refers to an individual’s ability to manage one’s business globally by being adept at managing cross-cultural stakeholders as well as making globally effective decisions (Mendenhall & Osland, 2012). It is highly likely that an individual’s personality and its characteristics shape up his/her overall capability for Global Management to some extent.

Thesis Statement

This essay reviews the existing literature on the capabilities required for Global Management and the personality factors that may significantly affect this capability. Two such GM capabilities are ‘Strategic Perspective’ and ‘Willingness to take risks’ and the associated personality factor that will be focused upon is ‘Neuroticism’. The review is followed by an evaluation of my own capability to take risks in Global Management scenarios. The methods used for this evaluation are the Big 5 Personality Test, Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Test and Woodworth Psychoneurotic Inventory (WPI) personality test with a focus on neuroticism factor. Evaluation is followed by reflection wherein I use the DIEP model of reflective writing. The results are used in creating a plan for further development of my strategic perspective and risk taking capabilities in global management scenarios by working upon my traits of neuroticism.

Literature Review

Global Management capabilities

(Zenger, 2014) has listed the capabilities that a global manager needs to be successful as detailed below:

• Strategic Perspective: A global manager needs to envision, foresee and drive the future of the business in the intended direction (Stroh, 2014). S/he should be able to anticipate economic and market trends and use his/her cross-cultural proficiency to build out a strategic advantage for the organization. Taking a long-term view of the business, a global manager would effectively translate strategy into specific goals and objectives for the employees.

• Customer Centricity: Global managers listen keenly to their customers and understand their needs, requirements and concerns well (Daft & Samson, 2015). They strive to develop a long term relationship with their customers and look upon themselves as a partner in achieving the goals and objectives of the customer’s business.

• Ability to recognize patterns in data and extract relevant insights: A global manager would have an eye for detail in addition to being able to see the macro picture. S/he is therefore able to ‘connect the dots’, to decipher the trends in data and the crucial insights that the datasets subtly suggest.

• Inspiring teamwork amongst employees: Global leaders inspire commitment and teamwork amongst their employees. They are able to draw out performances from their teams seated across multiple global locations that meet stretch goals and objectives of the business.

• Panache for risk-taking: Global managers don’t shy away from taking calculated risks when it counts. They also empower others and delegate their risk-taking ability effectively.

• Up-to-date and competent: A global manager would strive to keep himself/herself up to date with the global developments happening every day. S/he would also develop and hold a deep level of expertise and knowledge in the core competencies of their organization.

(Vilet, 2013) suggests that there are 5 critical competencies that are a must-have for any successful global manager:

• Openness towards new experiences: In a global setting marked by cross-cultural differences and distinct legal and economic environments, global managers strive to mingle with the locals and adopt their way of living. They are curious, inquisitive, talkative, warm, open and constantly willing to learn one thing or the other.

• Taking multiple perspectives in stride: True global leaders go a step ahead in being considerate towards the varying sensibilities and perspectives that people from different countries bring across. They yearn to break barriers and boundaries and develop long-term associations with whosoever they meet, whether professionally or personally (Daft & Samson, 2015).

• Donning different hats: Global managers switch their style of working based on the applicable norms and guidelines of the place they are at. Their motto remains to bring positive change with minimum social turbulence.

• Maintaining balance in interactions: Global leaders would stay away from adapting too much to overseas cultures. It’s a give and take story for them, where they teach their overseas employees as well as seek to learn at other times.

• Adapted business models: Great leaders understand the importance of localizing their business models and strategies according to the tastes and preferences of the local customers (Kaplan, 2012).

The Big 5 personality factors

(Barondes, 2011) has suggested that there are 5 broad dimensions to the human psyche and characterization that define his/her personality:

• Openness to experience: This factor indicates the level of inclination an individual has towards art, adventure, being emotionally expressive, thinking creatively and out of the box, being curious and inquisitive and being open to life in general. People with low openness to new experiences generally come across as consistent, stable, secure, focused and cautious towards embracing adventure. Those with high openness to experiences come across as imaginative, creative, adventurous and prefer frequent changes in routine over consistency and discipline.

• Conscientiousness: This personality factor contrasts efficient and organized personalities with attributes such as ‘easy-going’ and ‘carefree’. People with a high level of conscientiousness tend to be planned, organized, self-disciplined, dutiful, achievement-oriented and methodical. Those with a low level of conscientiousness are often flexible, spontaneous, impulsive and moody.

• Extraversion: This factor contrasts the outgoing and the energetic against the solitary and the reserved. People with extraversion are characterized by high energy levels, assertiveness, positive emotions, sociability and talkativeness. People with introversion are often analytical, reflective, prefer solitude over sociability and may come across as aloof or self-absorbed.

• Agreeableness: This personality factors contrasts the attributes of friendliness and compassion against the traits of being analytical and detached. People with a high level of agreeableness tend to be cooperative and compassionate rather than suspicious or antagonistic towards others. They are often trusting and helpful by nature. Those with a low level of agreeableness come across as competitive, argumentative or untrustworthy.

• Neuroticism: This dimension differentiates the sensitive and the nervous from those who feel secure and confident. Neuroticism refers to the tendency to experience negative emotions such as anger, hate, depression, anxiety and vulnerability easily (Clifton, 2014). Sometimes ‘emotional stability’ is regarded as an antonym of neuroticism. Emotionally stable people are calm, composed and relaxed while those with a high level of neuroticism could come across as excited, dynamic and inspiring.

(Lee & Ashton, 2013) have also discussed the Big 5 personality model and emphasized that no single trait is right or wrong for being an effective manager. However, when we bring the specific instance of the capabilities essential to become a successful global manager, there would be traits that are more likely to make such managers successful rather than those who lie on the other extreme.

The argument that personality and global management are highly inter-related is also supported by the fact that the real world is full of examples of deviations and biases that draw it apart from the world of sacrosanct academics. It is for this precise reason that certain personalities are more likely to draw that elusive customer appreciation, have that knack for making the right decisions, possess that fervor to anticipate external developments well in advance and bear those guts to take calculated risk when it really counts.

Evaluation

• Big 5 Results

As far as my Big 5 Personality Test results go, I scored a 100% on Openness to new experiences. Indeed, I share a fondness for art and adventure. I am also a highly conscientious person – organized, methodical and hard-working. This reflects in my conscientiousness score of 100%. My score on extraversion lies at 70%, which is moderately high. I am indeed a friendly, ambitious and enthusiastic person. My agreeableness score lies at 90%. It rightly suggests that I am a kind, helpful and cooperative individual. My Neuroticism score is 0, which makes me think how I can develop a more dynamic yet balanced personality. My neuroticism score also lies low at 6/116 in the Woodworth Psychoneurotic Inventory (WPI) personality test.

• MBTI Results

In the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) test, I got a personality result of ESFJ-A (Extraverted-Sensing-Feeling-Judging-Assertive). My score on extraversion is 84% which reflects that I am a socially active person. I am 75% sensing type of person which means that I invest my energy in my real surroundings instead of doing imagination. I am a 76% feeling type of person which means that my decisions have a high element of emotions in them. I am a 68% judging kind of person which reflects my accurate, judgment based approach to planning and work. My assertiveness score cam out to be 100% which means there is no turbulence in my temperament.

• Personality Analysis for Global Management Skills

The GM competency of Strategic perspective needs one to hold a vision. It requires me to have a rich imagination and focus, an excellent know-how of my business and a insatiable appetite for new experiences and learning. While my being open to adventure and conscientiousness help me think strategically, I need to work on my imagination skills to form a better strategic perspective for global management. From a neuroticism point of view, I can indeed develop some level of dynamism and charisma in my personality which would help me become a more effective global manager. Risk-taking ability, on the other hand, needs me to be both adventurous and dynamic while maintaining business sense.

An inclination to be extrovert gives me a practical know-how of business and openness to new learning. Being observant rather than intuitive helps me develop a good global business sense. Being a feeling rather than thinking type of person gives me a good connect with people while my judging ability at work helps me anticipate and estimate business trends and events to quite an extent. Being assertive rather than turbulent helps me call spade a spade in business. The take away from MBTI test is that I need to develop my intuition a bit more, which can be linked to the need to be more imaginative as per Big 5 test analysis.

Reflection using the DIEP model

• Describe (D)

I began writing this essay in order to establish that personality factors do have a role to play in the success-demonstrating capabilities of a global manager. I conducted a detailed review of the existing literature on personality models and the capabilities required for successful global management which helped me establish a relationship between the two. Subsequently, I took the personality tests of Big 5, MBTI and WPI which gave me results on the respective personality dimensions. I then conducted a self-evaluation and assessed how capable I am as a global manager based on my personality characteristics. I particularly focused on the personality factor of neuroticism, GM capabilities of strategic perspective and risk-taking ability and found the strength and development areas for myself.

• Interpret (I)

The sequence of events I have described above and the new knowledge I have gained about myself are a revelation to me. I now believe have the potential in me and what it takes to become a highly capable global manager based on personality characteristics and existing skillset. Indeed, there is a path I need to carve out for myself towards becoming a successful global manager and I need to learn, do and become a lot more. For instance, I need to develop myself on the dimension of neuroticism and also on imagination and intuition. Developments such as these would enable me to develop the capabilities of strategic perspective and risk-taking ability required for a successful global manager.

• Evaluate (E)

This is a healthy and a fruitful exercise for me that has helped me know some of my hitherto hidden strength and development areas. The exercise has also given me a goal to focus upon and some ways around how I can carve the path to become a successful global manager. It matters how I actually proceed on the path and that is going to make all the difference from now on. The experience of attempting this exercise has been highly value-adding for me. It has given me a new, clear direction on which I can proceed with conviction, with out a second thought and enjoy the journey while I am at it. Global management is a challenge and it takes considerable hard work and dedication for any one to do justice to the role of a global manager. And I’ve accepted this challenge hands on. What I need now is a comprehensive plan to begin executing my journey to become a successful global manager. I would also need to think about achieving and maintaining consistency in such a role at a future point of time. I am fully convinced that I will leverage upon my existing strengths and work upon my development areas to evolve them as my future strengths.

• Plan (P)

I now need to plan how I can achieve my goal of becoming a capable global manager – one who has a good strategic perspective, has risk-taking ability on a calculated basis and is customer-centric and able to connect the dots in the macro picture of business. I am going to use the S.M.A.R.T goals framework to plan my goal:

Specific (S): The focus GM capabilities for me are strategic perspective and risk-taking ability. The focus personality factor for me is neuroticism. I understand that I need to improve upon my neuroticism dimension so I can make my personality more dynamic and imagination ore vivid and rich. This, in turn, would give me the ability to develop focused future visions for my business and allow me to take calculated risks to maximize returns.

Measurable (M): I can measure my neuroticism scores using Big 5 test and WPI test and can track progress on a periodic basis. I can also quantify my strategic perspective and risk-taking capabilities by taking specific online tests designed for the respective purposes. Subsequently, I can map the progress of the two scores with each other and take action as suitable from time to time.\

Actionable (A): These goals and activities are definitely actionable as I can devote dedicated time to taking personality tests online. I can also refer to offline books and material for this purpose with the guidance of my faculty members specializing in these specific areas.

Realistic (R): These activities are realistic because there is a specific end result or target score that I would be assigning to each of these personality metrics. Once I have achieved the target score as confirmed by the tests taken by me and within the required timeline, then I am going to look to execute these capabilities and internalize the learnings that would come to me on a continuous basis. My work place, my family, my friends and my social network are going to play important roles in helping me achieve these goals.

Time-bound (T): I would prepare a schedule in order to perform all the tests, reflective writings, analyses and self-assessments on time and with the rigor required.

• Conclusion

Personality factors do affect global management capabilities one way or the other. This analysis helps establish that high levels of agreeableness and extraversion are likely to add to the strategic and risk-taking capabilities of a global manager. Likewise, conscientiousness and openness to new experiences need to be moderately high while neuroticism is best had at moderate to low levels.

The extensive literature review in this essay helped establish these likelihoods that increase the probability of success of a global manager. Since we are talking in probability terms, these assertions stand justified on the grounds of being consistent with what the current literature has to say.

The learnings researching and writing for this essay came across as a pleasant surprise. They exposed my hidden strengths and development areas to me. I would definitely utilize this knowledge and revelation to achieve my goal of becoming a successful global manager and be consistent in my performance and career growth.