Leadership Reflection: My Role as a Decision Leader in the Global Marketplace

Introduction

Global marketplaces are characterised by corporations who continually compete for a significant market share, thus seeking operational strategies that can enable them to oust their rivals. Staffing important positions with competent and skilled leaders is a crucial step towards the establishment of a business that has a competitive edge over its competitors. In a contemporary international market, successful organizations are focused on pursuing excellent standards, competency and knowledgeable leadership styles which is essential in directing a diverse and multi-cultural community from different parts of the world (Cavarkapa & Flynn, 2016). |According to decision theory of leadership, it can be asserted that a global business leader ought to embrace diversity, the assembling of a motivated and engaged workforce to push for the accomplishment of organizational goals.

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Decision Theory and Global Business

Decision making is a vital aspect of successful global business leaders. While executing my role as decision-leader in the worldwide marketplace, I learned that motivational and emotional influences have a critical bearing on the decision making process. A leader is likely to make inconsistent judgments with his long-term interests due to the temporary motivation after opting to pursue a particular tempting alternative (Bazerman & Moore, 2013). The organization's management and leadership activities are determined by the decisions made by the stakeholders. A leader is expected to steer ongoing creativity and significant new insights into the management of various organizational operations. This implies that quality and rational decision-making is a critical element of a company's leadership on international markets. This is an indication that leaders should always be aware of the decisions that they need to make as well as acknowledging the interests of all stakeholders involved.

Internal conflicts are some of the organizational issues that are likely to emanate from the nature of decision-making strategy applied. Being a leader in an international corporation gave me an opportunity to be exposed to various forms of conflicts that threatened to hamper the smooth functioning of my organization. However, I applied Schelling (1984) economist advice which asserts that resolving of internal disputes require the establishment of the controlling mechanisms that can trivialize destructive impulses of the short-term decision maker. A given corporate culture should facilitate the nurturing of managerial practices which avoid biases, where anticipated situations are likely to allow passion to deter the making of rational judgment (Mahmood, 2015). Furthermore, it is essential to acknowledge the complexity of global marketplace when it comes to solving internal differences in a given organization.

Through overseeing the resolution of various conflicts, my situational leadership skills have been enhanced significantly. I have embraced positive illusions which are primary in helping individuals to be persistent in overcoming challenging managerial issues as well as navigating aversive and uncontrollable circumstance. Applying the concept of positive illusion is also vital in enhancing and protecting the self-esteem of the company's workforce (Bazerman & Moore, 2013). While performing my duties as a decisive leader in the global marketplace, I emphasized on making my team members to perceive themselves positively, since it paved the way to the establishment of a highly motivated and engaged employees.

Attributes of a Global Leader

The current global economy is volatile and requires decisive business leaders whose competency and influence enable an organization to position itself as a successful venture in the international market. I have discovered that global marketplaces are rapidly changing, implying that an organizational leadership should be well-equipped in steering the business conditions which are uncertain and turbulent (Hewlett, 2016). Operating on the international scene has prompted my company to form global alliances as well as having senior executives and partners in various parts of the globe. From these contexts of the global marketplaces, it is imperative for a leader to be endowed with a particular set of skills to facilitate the management of a given firm in a multi-cultural environment or across different countries.

Having a strong sense of self is one key attribute of the global leaders. I have realized that operating in a worldwide market allows an individual or organization to deal with people from diverse backgrounds. As a decision-making leader, one's primary role is based on his abilities to nurture accountability and transparency in the company's workforce. This should include imparting an element of confidence and sense of belonging in the organization's decision-making process, which will, in turn, enable them to be dedicated and loyal regardless of the current challenges (Cavarkapa & Flynn, 2016). Self-awareness traits allow a person to be inclusive in making critical organizational decisions. This includes focusing on driving the company's value through the deployment of ideas, spurring collaboration and resolving of the existing managerial challenges. Under such scenarios, one is required to accommodate the views of various stakeholders to facilitate constructive arguments and implementation of reviews and feedback from employees.

Strategic perspective is another attribute associated with an effective global business leader. International market encompasses an environment which is dynamic and volatile. For an organization to withstand pressure related to the functionalities of the worldwide marketplace, it is imperative for the senior management to have an explicit view of the company's future. This can be achieved by seeking operational strategies which enhance the company's sustainability and stability for the foreseeable future (Bazerman & Moore, 2013). This implies that a global leader should boast of an in-depth knowledge of the industry and multicultural contexts to enhance their discernment and anticipation of the world's market and economic trends. Strategic perspective enables leaders to identify a particular trend and transform it into a company's competitive advantage over its rivals.

Restraining from cultural stereotypes is a crucial component as far as the success in the global marketplace is concerned. I discovered that an organization that operates throughout the globe need leaders who are accommodative when it comes to people's strengths and weaknesses. As a leader in a global marketplace, I was compelled to be cultural and personal sensitive with a holistic approach to my team members. This enabled me to lead people from different social and cultural backgrounds, which is considered to be a critical area in the operation of the international businesses (Hewlett, 2016). Employee empowering, visioning, team building and having a global mind frame are some of the leadership attributes that have boosted my efforts while undertaking my role as a decisive leader in international markets.

The Significance of Cross-Cultural Leadership in Global Marketplaces

Cross-cultural leadership is another element that plays a significant role towards an organization's success in the global marketplace. Adopting and nurturing a global mindset towards the understanding the differences and complexities in different cultures enabled me to record essential progress in the global markets. I realized that cultural differences remain to be the primary challenge of conducting businesses overseas (Hanges, Aiken, & Su, 2016). It is imperative for international corporations to cultivate and embrace cross-cultural leadership in its operations to help resolve issues associated with cultural differences in global marketplaces. For example, I learned that ethical dilemmas are typical challenges emanating from various cultural norms existing in international markets. This can be attributed to the different interpretation of ethical leadership in the global cross-cultural market. In some marketplaces (Eastern), ethical leadership attributes include modesty, openness and trustworthy to others' ideas and contributions and detachment from personal and material success: this is not necessarily in Western markets.

The company's top management should focus on incorporating the rightful mix of leadership traits to alleviate the challenges associated with cross-culture in the global marketplaces. My role as a decisive leader in the international market was aided by managerial traits such as having a curious mind, emotional intelligence and cultivation of the explorer's mentality. I always had a sincere will of discerning the motives behind the habits of my team members, traditions and sequences of interactions depicted in various contexts of international markets (Hanges, Aiken, & Su, 2016). Such practices are effective when enhanced through training of stakeholders (employees) since they cannot be captured during the process of recruitment and selection where the primary focus is on a person's technical and functional skills. An international corporation is expected to seek diversity by developing the workforce with a strong self-identity (Rockinson-Szapkiw, 2013). These models encourage individuals to embrace the significance of being open to the uncertainties in the global markets.

When embarking on undertaking the leadership roles of decision-making, it is expected that individuals focus on the needs of the subject (people around them) and the organization as opposed to their needs. The leadership styles adopted should seamlessly fit the current demands and conditions within an organization (Mahmood, 2015). Contextualization of the market roles should be the centre of the leadership practices in the global scene to enhance the company's decision-making hierarchy. Application of the cultural intelligence under such circumstance would be significant in avoiding incidences of cultural conflicts at the place of work. I discovered that an organization that operates throughout the globe need leaders who are accommodative when it comes to people's strengths and weaknesses (Hanges, Aiken, & Su, 2016). As a leader in a global marketplace, I was compelled to be cultural and personal sensitive with a holistic approach to my team members.

Due to growing diversity in the international marketplaces, the organizational leadership should embrace the concept of gender balancing or equality when it comes to staffing and employee promotion. Underrepresentation of a particular gender in an institution can be detrimental to the success of a business on the global marketplace due to negative publicity fuelled by human rights activists (Dunn, Gerlach, & Hyle, 2014). Such societal demands have prompted me to pursue practices which enhance the implementation of gender balancing during the process of decision-making in my organization.

Conclusion

Organizational leadership is a crucial component when it comes to seeking success in the global marketplace. Senior management has endowed the role of making critical decisions which impact directly on the operations of a given corporation in the international markets. As decision leaders in the global marketplace, individuals are required to pursue excellent standards, competency and knowledgeable leadership styles which is essential in managing diverse and multi-cultural contexts.

References

Cavarkapa, B., & Flynn, J. (2016). Leadership in Global Markets. Dialnets , 1-6.

Bazerman, M. H., & Moore, D. A. (2013). Judgment in managerial decision making (8th...