International Manager

There are some basic functions that every business manager has to perform routinely. These functions apply to international managers as well. Due to the peculiar nature of international business, however, international managers have to perform them a little differently.

International business basically refers to commercial transactions that involve more than one country. Globalization has made it possible for business organizations and nations to carry out such transactions.

Business managers have to perform several important roles to earn profits and minimize losses. Since cross-border transactions require large-scale operations, management becomes very difficult. Due to this reason, international management has gained immense significance over the years.

Need for International managers

For many of the most powerful businesses, this is the future scenario, and the most successful will be managed by people who can best embrace and thrive on the ambiguity and complexity of transnational operations. Despite the rapid Internationalization of businesses there are still few really international managers but the creation of cross-cultural managers with genuinely transferable management skills is the goal for the global companies.

Role of International Managers

Planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling are basic functions of management. Given the peculiar characteristics of international business, these functions also require some changes in implementation.

Planning

To do business internationally, managers must first plan their approach well. They have to decide how exactly will they be conducting their activities.

This includes deciding whether they will export products or enter into joint ventures with a local business. They may even function as an MNC by opening offices in various countries by operating from one location.

International planning always requires a thorough understanding of local political, social and economic environments. These factors also include political stability, government pressure, intellectual property policies, competition, etc.

Organizing

It is not possible for an international business to operate in multiple countries using standard and common practices. International managers always have to organize their business to adapt to local requirements of all countries.

Firstly, they have to create a command hierarchy that involves people operating in multiple countries. Then, they have to adhere to local laws and regulations of the nations they operate in. Managers even have to keep local business practices and customs in mind while organizing.

International businesses also have complicated management hierarchy structures as people operate from many nations. Managers must ensure that they have a robust communication protocol to deal with this problem. Employees must always be able to address their grievances, ideas and suggestions.

Staffing

International managers next have to figure out whether they will hire local employees or send their own staff abroad. Consequently, they will need to be aware of all local labour laws if they decide to hire employees locally.

Directing

Directing can often become very difficult when people from multiple countries work together. Since cultural differences influence people to work differently, managers have to adapt themselves in every unique situation. Even language can become a barrier in cross-border business.

To deal with such problems, managers can try to involve people of diverse cultures and nationalities in management. Human resource departments of large companies always try to encourage cultural diversity in their organizations. They even conduct sensitivity seminars to make employees and managers aware of diverse cultures among their workforces.

Controlling

The problems that affect the function of directing apply to the process of controlling as well. Controlling requires meetings between people which helps in the exchange of information on a routine basis. Reporting and inspections are also important aspects of control.

Cultural differences amongst employees can always affect these kinds of functions. Managers, thus, should be able to adapt to all peculiarities and facilitate the controlling process.

Attributes of a Good International manager

1. An International manager must be able to cope with cognitive complexity and be able to understand issues from a variety of complicated perspectives;
2. He should have cultural empathy, a sense of humility and the power of active listening. Because of their unfamiliarity with different cultural settings international managers cannot be as competent or confident in a foreign environment;
3. A good manager should have emotional energy and be capable of adding depth and quality to interactions through their emotional self-awareness, emotional resilience, ability to accept risk and be able to rely on the support of the family;
4. A good International manager should demonstrate psychological maturity by having the curiosity to learn, an orientation to time and a fundamental personal morality that will enable them to cope with the diversity of demands made on them.

Qualities of a good International Manager

A number of researchers have emphasized the need for managers to be able to handle national differences in business, including cultural divergence on hierarchy, humour, assertiveness and working hours. In France, Germany, Italy and a large part of Asia, for example performance-related pay is seen negatively as revealing the shortcomings of some members of the work group. Feedback sessions are seen positively in the US but German managers see them as ‘enforced admissions of failure “.

The international manager, therefore, must be more culturally aware and show greater sensitivity but, it can be difficult to adapt to the culture and values of a foreign country whilst upholding the culture and values of a parent company. Whilst the only way is to give managers experience overseas the cost of sending people abroad typically costs two and a half times that for a local manager, so firms look for alternatives, such as short-term secondments and exchanges and having multi-cultural project teams.