Written by: Liu Liu, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Many companies and organizations are faced with great challenges due to the current financial situation at home and globally. This compelled the management team to undertake restructuring in pursuit of heightened efficiencies and cost mitigation.
For any company or organization with a global outreach and multi-country workforce, effectively orchestrating a successful restructuring across borders demands a harmonization akin to a ballet performance. This endeavor is intricate, as it involves the interplay of diverse cultural dynamics alongside management processes. Some of these cultural dynamics are more obvious and easy to handle than others.
I recently spoke to Felicia Shakiba on her podcast CPO PLAYBOOK on the subject. Here are some highlights of the conversation. To listen to the full conversation, please click here.
What are the differences between international and domestic restructuring?
Location, location, location! It's like the catchphrase in any property program on television, But if you transfer that into this restructuring of the team – international team, particularly, this means you're carrying out these exercises in multiple locations, meaning different countries or regions, and having to deal with employees of different cultural backgrounds. So in a way, you might think it is the same company, how difficult could it be, but the people are not the same, even though they might be wearing the same uniform or speaking the same company jargon words, but inside them, the national cultures, they way they grew up with will manifest in such critical moments, if not amplified. If the management team is not fully aware of the cultural dynamics, the process can become harder for all parties involved.
How do you align international strategies within an international workforce?
There are two factors. One is that you need to have a strategy that's quite obvious. The second is how you communicate this strategy to your global force. Most companies have a strategy, that is the easy part. But the difficult part is how the head office communicates this strategy to the workforce. For teams based in task-oriented countries, broadly speaking I think in the US, Canada, Northern Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and most of the countries populated by European people, people want to understand the logic behind the strategy. If we don't understand the logical sense behind it, they won't buy it.
On the other hand, for the teams based in relationship-based countries, like Asia, Africa, and South America, people want to see how an individual connects and relates to this so-called strategy. And then if they don't feel they can't feel part of it, you will have a very difficult time persuading them to interest them, they will just get on doing their job as if nothing is happening
When a leader communicates their strategy, they should be communicating in a way where they're covering both the logic and the belonging to the solution piece to all of their employees.
How did you navigate the multiple layers of engagement effectively?
The challenge is about over-engagement versus under-engagement. Task-orientated, or logic-based cultures, when this change proposal is released, people automatically question why. Why do you want to do that? And ask loads of questions left, right, and center, and then give their opinions on all the logical flaws they can think of and all the gaps they see in the proposal. And there's no holding back. Some of the feedback and discussions can be heated and even aggressive.
On the other side, in countries with more relationship-based cultures, they are worried, but they just say, “Oh, well, if this is a change proposal, I suppose all the bosses have decided what to do”. So in their perception, there's not much space for discussion. And they feel that, if they question the reason, it may affect their relationship with their managers and bosses, or be viewed as “black sheep”. This explains why there's quite a lower level of engagement with the restructuring proposal in these countries.
How do you foresee the dynamics of international restructuring in the future?
Many companies, ever since COVID, have been hiring people from around the globe more than they used to because the employees didn't have to come to a physical location together to work together. Well, this might be a very exciting, very good opportunity to tap into the global talents. While, it also poses a problem, which is often hidden, is the cultural differences. So, particularly, when people come work in remotely they appear on the screen, but a lot of things don't appear on the screen. So, I think the team or the company has a far higher increased challenge of coordination among teams from different cultural backgrounds than they admit or are aware of.
As companies expand their operations globally. The clashes between the uniformed company culture and the diversified national cultures and the added identities of their employees – are a source of stress for the staff and for the managers to have to deal with.
Communicate, be present, and reward the contributions
Clear communication, is key, again, communication, based on the needs of different types of employees from different types of cultures, is very important. As always, I would also add to personal connections, I think, particularly for those teams, from relationship-based countries, they want to feel personally connected during the process.
So it's vitally important for the managers, for the directors, for the executive team members to show their faces, wherever you are either virtually or in person, so that the employees feel connected, so people don't feel abandoned. So that's very important.
In the meantime, while people are going through this uncertainty, we should carry on to recognize that people's contribution, carries on with rewarding those who are still doing well, and celebrate the success. Because particularly important during the change process, people end up in this mode of wait and see, productivity can go low. So it's, therefore, it is important to use the reward to boost morale and keep productivity as high as possible.
Every international restructuring scenario is unique, and it's crucial to approach it with flexibility, sensitivity, and a commitment to compliance with local laws and cultural norms. Engage with legal, HR, and cultural experts to navigate the challenges effectively.
To listen to the full conversation, please click here.
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Liu Liu, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Liu Liu is a coach and manager with decades of experience, as a Cross-Cultural Intelligence Coach who specializes in helping international organizations and businesses to improve communications and cooperation among staff for better individual and team performance. He coaches managers and leaders working in a cross-cultural context to build trust, communicate effectively, and deliver results. He also coaches people on management, leadership, and career development. He is someone who helps you to imagine a greater possibility for yourself and supports you in achieving it.
As a senior manager in an international relief and development organization, he has worked with people in over 30 countries over his two-decades-long career. He uses a coaching approach to manage cross-country teams and complex programs to deliver results and impacts.
He is also an experienced trainer and facilitator who has delivered training on management-related and other subjects in over 30 countries.
With a cross-country marriage, developing a career in a second country, and working in an organization that has a reach of 50 countries, Liu Liu understands the importance and pitfalls of working cross-culturally and developing a career in an unfamiliar environment.
Liu Liu is an Associated Certified Coach(ACC), a member of the International Coaching Federation (ICF), and an Executive Contributor to Brainz Magazine.
He holds a BA(Hon) in International Studies and an MSc in Development Management.
