No / Businesses today need employees who can operate on a global stage, whether as international managers, technical specialists, expatriates or 'parachutists' who make occasional troubleshooting trips abroad. Yet cultural misunderstandings in the workplace can complicate even the simplest tasks. Something that sounds like a 'Yes' to a foreigner may actually be a polite way of saying 'No'. Fully updated and expanded for this second edition, Management Worldwide is essential for managers, students of management and organizations who want to know how managers operate and business is conducted in different societies. It is essential reading in a global economy where cultural differences can still mean make or break.

The background of this examination is that we live in a dynamic and complex global business environment which requires entrepreneurial thinking and action in organisations (intrapreneurship) if they are to secure viability. Companies in dynamic environments have to deal efficiently with operational tasks in existing businesses and at the same time achieve innovation in existing and new business with a medium to long term focus. This requires flexibility and adaptability to be able to use the opportunities and threats arising from changes in the business environment. The research work in this thesis clarifies the role of intrapreneurship and develops the design concept for holistic intrapreneurship. In the research process a frame of reference with five central findings on the role of intrapreneurship in a dynamic business environment is firstly introduced. In this process, the idea is that holistic and economic thinking together with management oriented theoretical concepts form a fruitful basis for the examination of intrapreneurship. Subsequently in the literature study there follows a synoptic illustration of the individual theoretical concepts on the role of intrapreneurship, the business environment and systems theory concepts. In a further literature analysis, the tasks identified for holistic intrapreneurship are examined and conveyed as a design concept in the synthesis. Three empirical studies reflect the theoretical findings in practical situations. Taking into account the results of the survey, the design concept is extended by elements for the development of a vital, entrepreneurial learning organisation. Entrepreneurial organisations have equally to understand the role of intrapreneurship as a concept for shaping the future as the external environments and the interaction between the organisation and its environment. This complex of themes is worked on in chapter 3 and nine design elements for the specification of the role of intrapreneurship are derived. On the basis of this, entrepreneurial information gathering, shaping of the future and organisation design are derived as central tasks of the entrepreneurial organisation and are analysed in chapter 4. A design concept for holistic intrapreneurship with a role model for the organisation, a conceptual framework for the understanding and analysis of the global business environment as well as a qualitative systems model for the interaction of the entrepreneurial organisation with the business environment is introduced in chapter 5 to aid with implementation of the entrepreneurial tasks. The role of intrapreneurship and the implementation of the role model in practice are examined in chapter 6. In this process, implementation of the role model based on the division of labour is recorded and condensed across all firms. In chapter 6.4, learning areas for the development of an entrepreneurial orientation and for a context-related strengthening of the five entrepreneurial roles in a vital entrepreneurial learning organisation are outlined. The novel contribution of the thesis is to present an integrated concept of holistic intrapreneurship derived from theory-based exploration which thus focuses on the entrepreneurial action of the organisation as a whole and the achievement of viability in a global and dynamic environment. This concept contains learning by the entrepreneurial actors, the entrepreneurial teams and the whole entrepreneurial organisation and defines the building blocks of a vital, entrepreneurial learning organisation. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Graduate School of Technology Management (GSTM) / unrestricted

Submitted by Maicon Juliano Schmidt (maicons) on 2015-06-30T19:19:44Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Sergio Satt Junior.pdf: 2776264 bytes, checksum: de08438865c711b12dacc3721b268331 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-06-30T19:19:44Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Sergio Satt Junior.pdf: 2776264 bytes, checksum: de08438865c711b12dacc3721b268331 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-07-06 / Nenhuma / O ambiente empresarial atual apresenta determinados eventos de alta incerteza e de difícil previsibilidade, é necessário que as empresas e seus gestores estejam preparados para atuar em novos e diferentes ambientes de negócios. A mudança no ambiente do refino de petróleo no Brasil iniciou com a abertura do mercado de combustíveis em 1997, Lei 9.478/97. Essa lei propiciou a participação de outros agentes, além da Petrobras, no exercício das atividades de importação e exportação de derivados de petróleo. O segmento de refino no Brasil tem apresentado ciclos de baixa e alta, pois os preços dos derivados nas refinarias não têm sido reajustados na mesma velocidade dos movimentos de preços dos derivados no mercado internacional. Com isso, as refinarias não integradas, é o caso estudado neste trabalho - a Refinaria de Petróleo Riograndense, têm apresentado menor rentabilidade se comparadas com refinarias integradas. Portanto, é necessário identificar eventuais vantagens competitivas que permitam sustentar o negócio deste tipo de refinaria a partir de uma perspectiva de longo prazo. Para tal, foi aplicado o método de construção de cenário Global Business Network (GBN), a fim de criar cenários futuros que apontem alternativas de atuação para uma refinaria de petróleo de baixa escala e não integrada. Além disso, verificar quais as contribuições que o método de construção de cenários GBN trouxe para a empresa e seus gestores. A pesquisa foi caracterizada como qualitativa, exploratória, utilizando o método pesquisa-ação para descrever melhor a construção dos cenários na empresa pesquisada. O resultado da pesquisa foi a geração de dois cenários futuros para a Refinaria Riograndense, onde se apresentam caminhos distintos de atuação no segmento de refino, considerando o ambiente futuro dos negócios e as características da empresa, ou seja, refinaria de petróleo de baixa escala e não integrada. As conclusões do trabalho indicam que o método de construção de cenário GBN contribui para melhorar a percepção da empresa e dos seus gestores sobre o ambiente do futuro do negócio, reduzindo erros no processo de tomada de decisão. Com isso, foi possível apontar caminhos futuros de sobrevivência para a empresa em um ambiente de forte competitividade e restrições ambientais. Também, o método GBN mostrou-se ser flexível às características da empresa, permitindo valorizar os conhecimentos e experiências dos gestores, bem como incentivar o envolvimento dos gestores no processo de construção de cenários. / In the current business environment, there are certain events with high uncertainty that make predictability difficult; thus, companies and their managers must be prepared to act in new and different business environments. Changes in the environment of oil refining in Brazil began with the opening of the fuel market in 1997, since Law 9,478/97 enabled other agents, in addition to Petrobras, to participate in activities related to the import and export of oil products. The refining segment in Brazil has experienced cycles with low and high prices because they have not been adjusted at the same speed as the ones of oil products in the international market. From this perspective, non-integrated refineries were analyzed in this study, mainly the Riograndense Oil Refinery, which has shown lower profitability than integrated ones. Therefore, potential competitive advantages that enable the business to support this type of refinery in the long term were identified. The method of building Global Business Network (GBN) scenarios was applied in order to create future scenarios which can suggest alternatives to a small-scale and non-integrated oil refinery. Besides, the contributions that the method of building GBN scenarios brought to the company and its managers were verified. This qualitative and exploratory research used action research to better describe scenario building in the company. Results generated two scenarios (Maverick and Revolution) for the future of the Riograndense Refinery; they showed distinct paths to be followed in the refining segment, taking into consideration the future of the business environment and the characteristics of the company, i. e., a small-scale and non-integrated oil refinery. The study concludes that the method of constructing GBN scenario helps to improve the perception of the company and its managers about the future of the business environment, reducing errors in the process of decision making. In addition, future directions for the company to survive in an environment with strong competition and environmental constraints could be identified. Furthermore, the GBN method proved to be flexible concerning the characteristics of the company since it valued managers’ knowledge and experience and encouraged them to get involved in the process of scenario building.

Among the top Fortune 100 U.S. companies, 97% claim to be global business citizens, primarily based on self-evaluated qualitative criteria. The purpose of this quantitative cross-sectional survey design study was to develop a self-administered survey and apply it to calculate a composite index rating that assesses the maturity level a company has attained toward becoming a global business citizen. The theoretical framework underpinning the research was based on the theory of global business citizenship (GBC) and accompanying four-step implementation process. The GBC theory was utilized to develop the research survey consisting of 1 qualifying question and 22 Likert-type questions. The survey was administered to a qualified random sample of business executives in the United States with 172 usable responses received. These survey questions were then rationalized via exploratory factor analysis (EFA). EFA identified ten key questions with strong eigenvalues and grouped the interrelated items into three factors. Subsequently, the EFA-computed eigenvalues were used to develop a composite index formula. The key findings revealed that only three factors explained 70% of the variance and were named VALUE, IMPLEMENT, and LEARN, as proposed in the GBC theory itself. Questions related to the ANALY step of the GBC theory were not significant. Social change benefits include providing business leaders with a quantitative tool to help communicate to their stakeholders the steps they have achieved toward becoming a global business citizen.

In 2016's global business landscape, the increase in workers moving across borders to find employment accentuates the language and cultural challenges for both employees and organizations. Employees working in a multinational environment need to have an understanding of language and culture to handle the complex nature of professional work in a multinational corporation (MNC). The purpose of this study was to explore what communication competencies employees in a small MNC needed to communicate across multicultural environments in the workplace. A dialectic approach of intercultural communication was used to explore these needs in one small MNC located in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia using English as the corporate language. Data were collected from 9 employees of one data security firm using semistructured interviewing, the data was then coded into NVivo. Using interpretative phenomenology analysis, the themes of understanding, cultural sensitivity, pace, and fitting in emerged. Results of the study indicated a disconnect in the cultural mentality of Americanness versus Arabness in the business environment where societal factors and national identity reflected in how the employees think and act in the workplace. Lack of cultural knowledge in an MNC can impact the financial health of an organization in lost opportunities, reduced productivity, and long-term relationship damage with clients and partners. The results of this study could contribute to positive social change by providing small MNCs with the insight to enhance intercultural communication and intercultural awareness among employees in building a global workforce.

This thesis addresses the paradigm shift required for an MBA qualification in a world order of inclusive globalisation (WOIG) – where humankind‟s security is assured, and where global poverty has been eradicated. A new research methodology, termed critical metasynthesis, which is the enrichment of critical management research with metasynthesis and Socrates‟ dialectic method of systematic inquiry has been used. The critical metasynthesis derives its outcome from the insights of global leaders from the developed and developing world, refuted by Nobel Laureates from the past decade. From the Socratic dialogue an end-purpose Statement of Visions for a new world order, society, business, business leadership, and the postmodern MBA emerged, namely: to deliver a WOIG; requiring a society that finds its greatness in protecting both its humanity and its economy as a whole; requiring world-class businesses – financially robust across business cycles, with global stewardship as the dominant business logic; requiring global business leaders with an ability to envision the WOIG, and then to lead thereto in an entrepreneurial and path-breaking manner exerting leadership qualities associated with the golden Rule of Humanity; requiring an MBA that educates and inspires the business leader to lead (and, to co-lead with societal and political leaders) the planetary turn-around to a WOIG. For this, a fundamental change of paradigm for the MBA emerged as a prerequisite. The first prerequisite is a Social Contract with Business as a trichotomy of global business responsibility towards society, politics and the Earth. This, becomes the raison d‟être of the postmodern MBA. The second prerequisite is an educational context aligned with the values and aspirations of a WOIG society. The outcome of the postmodern MBA is a fundamental personal re-orientation as thé kairos moment - through holistic critical reasoning excellence and achieving a WOIG mindset. Flowing from this to craft, build and to manage enterprises for the turn-around from today‟s world order of destructive globalisation to a WOIG. The thesis contributes a new educational context, vocabulary, and guidelines for a new canon of MBA knowledge. The thesis concludes by describing new vistas of follow-up research in four interlocking priorities for the professoriate, namely: discovering, integrating, applying and teaching a postmodern MBA in a WOIG – to deliver MBA graduates who can lead any business in any industry sector in any country towards positive sustained results for all stakeholders. / Business Leadership / D.B.L.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2005. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Metropolitan Holdings Limited is a life insurance and investment company with a well-recognised brand, operating in a competitive environment. The Metropolitan Doyle model that the company developed in the 1980s was the first of its kind and is used to predict the course and impact of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Metropolitan has since been actively engaged in developing insurance products, designed to take HIV/AIDS into account. It has, moreover been active in advocating action on a wide range of issue relating to the disease, not least through its RedRibbon website, the publication of the respected journal, AIDS Analysis Africa, and through various community initiatives, particularly involving HIV/AIDS education. The company’s external work on the issue of HIV/AIDS is therefore well recognised. Although it has had an internal programme for several years, it has only seriously addressed the HIV/AIDS in the workplace since 2003 and in so doing, has not found the necessity of using any existing models of best practice. This case study examines the guidelines of a comprehensive HIV/AIDS programme, as set out by the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, with a view to finding out whether and to what extent a company such as Metropolitan might have implemented its recommendations and what impact it might have in the fight against HIV/AIDS in the workplace. The case study further examines the likely impact of the King II recommendations relating to the disclosure requirements on HIV/AIDS (in conjunction with the Global Reporting Initiative Guidelines) with a view to assessing whether these can enable a company such as Metropolitan, to have regard to the impact of the disease on the sustainability of their business and the steps that might be taken to mitigate the impact. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Metropolitan Holdings Beperk is ‘n lewensversekerings – en beleggingsmaatskappy, met ‘n alombekende handelsmerk, wat in ‘n kompeterende omgewing funksioneer. Die Metropolitan-Doyle model wat deur die maatskappy in die 1980’s ontwikkel is, was die eerste in sy soort, en word gebruik om die verloop en impak van die MIV/VIGS pandemie te voorspel. Metropolitan is sedertdien aktief betrokke in die ontwikkeling van versekeringsprodukte, was spesifiek ook MIV/VIGS as oogmerk het. Die maatskappy is boonop besig om betrokkenheid oor ‘n wye spektrum van uitkomste verwant aan die siekte te propageer, veral deur die RedRibbonwebtuiste, die publikasie van die hoogaangeskrewe joernaal, AIDS Analysis Africa, en deur verskeie gemeenskapsinisiatiewe wat spesifiek die opvoeding aangaande MIV/VIGS insluit. Die maatskappy se eksterne werk op die aangeleentheid van MIV/VIGS word dus wyd erken. Alhoewel dit ook al verskeie jare oor ‘n interne program beskik, is dit eers sedert 2003 dat MIV/VIGS in die werkplek ernstig aangespreek word. Deur dit so te doen, is daar nie die nodigheid gesien om enige bestaande modelle wat die beste werk, te gebruik nie. Hierdie gevallestudie ondersoek die riglyne van ‘n omvattende MIV/VIGS program, soos uiteengesit deur die Global Business Coalition oor MIV/VIGS, met die oogmerk om uit te vind tot watter mate ‘n maatskappy soos Metropolitan sy aanbevelings mag implementeer en watter impak dit mag hê op die bestryding van MIV/VIGS in die werkplek. Die gevallestudie ondersoek verder die waarskynlike impak van die King IIaanbevelings rakende die openbaarmakende vereistes oor MIV/VIGS (in samehang met die Global Reporting Initiative Riglyne) met die oogmerk om te bepaal of bogenoemde ‘n maatskappy soos Metropolitan in staat kan stel om geleentheid te hê tot die impak van die siekte op die volhoubaarheid van hul besigheid en die stappe wat geneem mag word om die impak te beheer.

Recent surveys of international business professionals indicate that foreign language abilities and cultural sensitivity are important competitive advantages in today's globalized economy. The current study interviewed 71 practicing global professionals currently working in cross border transactions in diverse fields. Biographic, demographic and second language data were collected, including information on experiences and opinions on the use and importance of foreign language and cultural awareness abilities in the professional world. Research questions include: (1) Who are the global professionals applying L2 abilities at work? (2) How do they apply these abilities? (3) What are the profiles of advanced and non-advanced proficiency users? (4) How important are linguistic abilities and how much of a competitive advantage do they represent? (5) What language strategies and communication strategies are used? (6) What are the most common beliefs on the role of foreign languages and culture awareness in business? (7) How well do intercultural communication models explain the culture views and experiences reported by working professionals? Results indicate that learners with self-reported advanced proficiency regularly apply the four language abilities (listening, reading, speaking and writing) at work, albeit in varying degrees, depending on the level of complexity of the task (phone, email, face-to-face meeting, etc.). For the majority of informants, foreign language and culture abilities are considered important for professional effectiveness. For those who reported advanced foreign language abilities, they also exhibited a greater appreciation for increased exposure to foreign language learning, had received more foreign language instruction, and had more experience working and living abroad. Those advanced in foreign language abilities were also more likely to be non-native speakers of English, have earned a university degree while using an L2, had family or community connections to the target language, have emigrated, or have a spouse with a different L1. The study also ranks and identifies the informants' strategies used to deal with language and culture issues. Participants' anecdotes were analyzed in light of current cultural analysis models applied in International Business Communications. Suggestions are presented for curricula changes to improve foreign language proficiency in professional settings. / text

This thesis addresses the paradigm shift required for an MBA qualification in a world order of inclusive globalisation (WOIG) – where humankind‟s security is assured, and where global poverty has been eradicated. A new research methodology, termed critical metasynthesis, which is the enrichment of critical management research with metasynthesis and Socrates‟ dialectic method of systematic inquiry has been used. The critical metasynthesis derives its outcome from the insights of global leaders from the developed and developing world, refuted by Nobel Laureates from the past decade. From the Socratic dialogue an end-purpose Statement of Visions for a new world order, society, business, business leadership, and the postmodern MBA emerged, namely: to deliver a WOIG; requiring a society that finds its greatness in protecting both its humanity and its economy as a whole; requiring world-class businesses – financially robust across business cycles, with global stewardship as the dominant business logic; requiring global business leaders with an ability to envision the WOIG, and then to lead thereto in an entrepreneurial and path-breaking manner exerting leadership qualities associated with the golden Rule of Humanity; requiring an MBA that educates and inspires the business leader to lead (and, to co-lead with societal and political leaders) the planetary turn-around to a WOIG. For this, a fundamental change of paradigm for the MBA emerged as a prerequisite. The first prerequisite is a Social Contract with Business as a trichotomy of global business responsibility towards society, politics and the Earth. This, becomes the raison d‟être of the postmodern MBA. The second prerequisite is an educational context aligned with the values and aspirations of a WOIG society. The outcome of the postmodern MBA is a fundamental personal re-orientation as thé kairos moment - through holistic critical reasoning excellence and achieving a WOIG mindset. Flowing from this to craft, build and to manage enterprises for the turn-around from today‟s world order of destructive globalisation to a WOIG. The thesis contributes a new educational context, vocabulary, and guidelines for a new canon of MBA knowledge. The thesis concludes by describing new vistas of follow-up research in four interlocking priorities for the professoriate, namely: discovering, integrating, applying and teaching a postmodern MBA in a WOIG – to deliver MBA graduates who can lead any business in any industry sector in any country towards positive sustained results for all stakeholders. / Business Leadership / D.B.L.