Part II: Leading People and Teams
across Cultural Boundaries
CHAPTER 5
Effective
Leadership in
a Multicultural
Environment
Globalization of Leadership
•Challenges for Effective Leadership
➢Leaders increasingly must able to influence people
from different cultures.
Figure 5.1 Ratings of Leadership’s Importance across Global Regions
and Selected Countries
Figure 5.2 Leadership Attributes across Cultures: Examples of
the Good, the Bad … and the Different
Often viewed as “good” in most cultures
Decisive
Good communicator
Often viewed as “bad” in most cultures
Dictatorial
Egocentric
Attributes likely to be viewed differently across cultural boundaries
Ambitious
Enthusiastic
Individualistic
Effective Leadership in
an International Context
•What is effective leadership?
➢Guidance and accomplishment of goals
•What characteristics make positive contributions
Leader Behavior across Cultures and Time
•How Do Leaders Behave?
➢Task-oriented behaviors clarify performance
•Alternative Views of Leader Behavior
➢Nurturing leadership style (Japan) incorporates both
task- and relationship-oriented behaviors.
Leader Behavior across Cultures and Time
•Why Is Leadership So Difficult to Define?
➢The expression of behaviors that constitute effective
leadership varies greatly across and within cultures.
Leader Behavior across Cultures and Time
•Culture and the Impact of Leader Behavior
➢Cultural characteristics dictate behaviors by requiring
leaders adopt task- or relationship-oriented behaviors
to gain employee commitment and motivate
performance.
Likert’s System 4 Model
System 2
System 1
Exploitative
Authoritative
Table 5.1 Great Expectations: The Potential Gap
between American and Mexican Managers
Management Expectations and Attitudes
Leadership Issue American Managers Mexican Managers
Leadership style Loose/informal,
communicative, power
sharing possible
Close/formal, empathetic,
use of directives, little power
sharing
Work environment model Competitive team Cooperative family
Transformational Leadership:
Does It Work across Cultures?
•The most successful international managers are
considered to be transformational leaders.
•Caveats:
➢The impact of transformational leadership can vary
because it is driven by different aspects of