115.

759

Current Issues in Business

Assessment 2: Personal Positioning Plan

Lecturer’s Name: Jens Mueller

Semester One, 2021

Haoxian Liang
Table of Contents

1. Why Globalisation important?................................................................................1

2. Two Leaders Discussion.........................................................................................2

3. My Skills Gap.........................................................................................................3

4. Improve Action Items.............................................................................................4

1. Why Globalisation important?
Globalisation successfully developed an interactive platform that enterprises must
accept the diverse cultural, preference or behaviour differences among different
nations; whiles employees ought to respect multinational corporation value and
regulation.

Remote communication technologies such as Internet have accelerated the

globalisation process, allowing employees in different companies to interact and
acquire information without concerning location and time issues. Managers who work
in the same company but in different countries or boards can quickly launch remote
meetings to understand the situation among different countries.

Yingli Green Energy company successfully built the reputation of international brands
by sponsoring the World Cup and improved the brand image. Yingli adopts a trust
and decentralisation management style which suit local society. The branch company
maintains a relatively independent and self-made management model, allowing Yingli
to develop rapidly in the international market.

Haier emphasises the “glocal” strategy and committees to hire high-quality talents
worldwide that contribute to diversified corporate culture. This company adopts
R&D, manufacturing, and marketing to mobilise superior local resources to
manufacture products that fulfil local consumers' preferences.

On the other hand, globalisation is also seen as a double-blade sword that creates
benefit and triggers competitions and challenges. For example, without considering
problems and self-adjust under the global perspective, one company will absolutely
fetch serious management challenges, in turn, overtaken by the competitors and leads
to business failure. Cultural differences will constantly question companies: how to
enter the new market, how to market their goods or services appropriately, how to
comply with labour laws, and how to build a loyal local customer base. The
diversified management of employees requires companies to abide by the local
religions, respect different values of employees, and establish ethical criteria to
maintain justice.

Through the acquisition of cooperatives in New Zealand, Yili has integrated the high-
quality resource supply chain to provide consumers with better products. Yili respects
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Maori culture and invited four Maori tribe elders to bless at the ground-breaking
ceremony. Also, Yili cooperates with local universities to establish an Oceania R&D
centre and hires many local people to ensure management efficiency.

The globalisation strategy of Tsingtao Brewery is promoting brand image. Tsingtao

Brewery adheres to the principles of high quality, high price and high visibility,
reflecting its differentiation from other Chinese export products.

2. Two Leaders Discussion

Mike is an employee of NEC China. NEC launched a digital telecom switch that sold
well in Japan with technologically advanced, but its initial sales in China were less
than the company expected. Mike based his local market background, experience and
local contacts to diagnose problems quickly. The product lacks many functions that
Chinese customers desire. On the one hand, its software does not integrate the
necessary protocol conversions and cannot be distributed among the many Chinese
companies that might handle a long-distance phone call. Switches can also handle the
added functions, such as call waiting and call forwarding, which are very important in
the highly competitive Chinese market.

Moreover, the product did not use all Chinese in the system settings. Mike's task is to
persuade the Japanese boss to re-adjust the product system and explain to them the
importance of expanding the Chinese market. After he submitted a market report to
convince the headquarters of the problem, he asked headquarters to allow him to
participate in the system adjustment. As a developer, Mike uses mutual trust and local
understanding as a basis to optimise the system. In the end, their product was a big
success. His contribution to NEC business shows that a good global employee is like
a sensor that needs to link local intelligence with global strategy effectively.

Simon is one of the managers who work for Unilever China. Unilever owns a
production base and sales centre in China as a giant in the fast-moving goods
industry. Simon believes that his job duty is strategist and architect plus coordinator.
According to his description, Unilever requires hiring highly specialised and closely
connected global business managers and teams. Multinational companies need to
integrate assets, resources, and diversified personnel into operating departments
worldwide and maintain flexibility to adjust product attributes to adapt to differences

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in different places. He participated in a working group composed of product
department employees and foreign managers to review the strategy. Although the
working group confirmed the marketing manager's concept of growing segmentation,
his broader vision allowed him to observe the convergence of segments in the national
market. Their analysis has also improved the management’s understanding of local
market demands and concluded that Chinese consumers believe that "locality" is
mainly based on product design, function rather than sales or promotional methods
(distribution through local channels, local media promotion, etc.) Simon strictly
requires the company's products to meet the highest standards and abide by local
labour regulations to minimise unethical situations. This is also related to the “clean
supply chain” strategy and corporate culture. Based on this analysis, Unilever
formulated the China marketing strategy.

3. My Skills Gap
Managers with a globalisation perspective need to recognise, understand, and respect
the differences and methods of different cultures, to require patient listening and
exchanging ideas frequently liked those leaders done. Both two leaders pay attention
to the diverse cultural communication, especially Simon often dinner with foreign
leaders. He said through this approach it would enhance the trust and maintain similar
values to them. Although I have an overseas studying background that practices a
confident globalisation attitude, it is still not enough to be an employee with a
globalisation perspective. When studying overseas, I prefer to communicate with
Chinese people more than people from other regions, limiting my opportunities to
recognise and understand other cultures and reduce the chances of practising multiple
languages. Sometimes I feel nervous or shy when chatting with other countries
people.

Those leaders have a globalisation vision. They often participate in business

conferences, browse the business news, and exchange information with suppliers,
foreign customers, local government, and union. As globalisation managers, they have
to understand the rapid market changes, the policy changing, and the competitor’s
activities, while those were not skills since being an intern. Simon said, “the
globalisation managers must improve the company's global scale efficiency and
competitiveness, which requires not only an awareness of opportunities and risks

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across national and functional boundaries but also the skills to coordinate activities
and the ability to overcome these barriers.” I believe global business managers'
overall goal is to obtain all the benefits of globally integrated operations. Furthermore,
I should improve my ability to minimising the error caused by information
asymmetry.

Those leaders participate in the daily company management, but they also associate
with the market analysis, product development and optimises. As a connection with
the local market, employees with globalisation perspective are no longer just the
follow and implement the plans and policies formulated by the headquarters; instead,
it participates in the organisation's process of making important strategic and
operational decisions and uses its professional knowledge and resources to contribute
to a certain degree of influence. In today's multinational companies, managers and
their principal local subordinates often participate in product development
committees, product marketing working groups and global strategy meetings. At
NEC, Mike admitted that he spent about 60% of his time in customer relations and
market research and about 30% in coordination with headquarters. This working
model allows them to understand and explain the situation in the Chinese market and
the differences with the company's strategy and products. As a result, he successfully
transforms his department role that is the implementer of the headquarters’ strategy,
to the active contributor of strategy design. My local knowledge gap is still lower than
those leaders who have a clear understanding of the local market and have a
comprehensive local network.

4. Improve Action Items

Time Current Ability & Improve Action Outcome
Limitation
Now  Lack of globalisation  Try to exercise  Certain
vision and solving multiple language improvement of
information skills through online language skills.
asymmetry issues. courses or daily  Understand
 Lack of other communication, or multiculturalism
participate in and
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 languages ability. language courses, multicultural
 Lack of participation especially to management
in the decision- improve the level in methods with
making process and speaking. After globalisation
contribution of improving mine approach.
personal knowledge, English level, I can  Have certain
just as an learn Japanese, degree of
implementer. Spanish or Korean understanding
(depending on changes and
business needs) information in
 Actively participate the local
in local exchange market.
meetings, business  Certain local
summits and other human
activities. resources
Understand market network.
conditions, local
policy changes, and
expand contacts.
 If possible, follow
the supervisors or
managers to
participate in the
company's product
development or
market survey work
group. Learn their
ability to
communicate with
employees of
different cultures
and how to
coordinate with

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 headquarters.
2  Certain improvement  Participant in the  Global vision is
Years of language skills. company products tempered and
Later  Understand R&D process. Use improved.
multiculturalism and my own local  Enhance
multicultural resources to make coordination
management methods certain suggestions with the
with globalisation and feedback within company and
approach. their process. contribute to the
 Have certain degree of Cooperate with or company's
understanding changes join various working decision-
and information in the groups to understand making.
local market. the multicultural  Improve
 Certain local human differences and professional
resources network. work patterns knowledge
different. ability and
 Participate in expand human
company training resources
courses or accept network.
assignments. Join
the remote working
missions in different
countries branch to
enhance my cross-
market capabilities
and take advantage
of learning on a
global scale.
 Exercise my
understanding and
analysis of the local
market. Focus on the
responsiveness and

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 flexibility.
 Understand the
various opinions put
forward by different
employees based on
cultural differences.
5  Global vision is  Integrate the  Be a manager
Years tempered and decision-making with
Later improved. team with skills, globalisation
 Enhance coordination knowledge and vision and
with the company and sophisticated understanding.
contribute to the technology.  Respect the
company's decision-  Improve company diverse culture
making. efficiency by and
 Improve professional tracking cross- management.
knowledge ability and border products and  Strong
expand human market trends. And contribute to the
resources network. actively contact the company
branch staff to performance.
solicit opinions and
feedback.
 Upgrade and
customise existing
facilities and retain
valuable expertise.
 Establish a
comprehensive
process from
centralised control
to abnormal
management
identified through
formal strategies to

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indirect management
through informal
communication.

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