UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN FINLAND Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies Department of Business
ELEMENTS OF LEADING CULTURAL DIVERSITY – A QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY
Master’s Thesis Maarit Utunen (#277385)
Service Management 11.06.2021
UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN FINLAND Faculty
Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies
Department Business School Author
Maarit Utunen
Supervisor Helen Reijonen Title
ELEMENTS OF LEADING CULTURAL DIVERSITY – A QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY
Main Subject
Service Management Level
Master’s Thesis Date
11.06.2021 Number of pages 75+21
Abstract
This study was conducted to discover deeper understanding towards the leadership of culturally diverse employees. The focus of this study was the leader, and the elements a multicultural leader should pos- sess in overseeing culturally diverse subordinates.
Since globalization continues to be an ever-growing trend, it is necessary to investigate the effects of this phenomenon in the workplace in order to guarantee the optimal work environment for people from all countries and cultures. The theory of this study consists of a detailed definition of culture, multicul- turalism, and multicultural organizations to form a basis and general understanding of cultural diversity in countries and, more specifically, organizations. Then, multicultural leadership is discussed by form- ing an understanding of the type of leader most suitable for leading diversity. Following the profile of a multicultural leader, the theme of multicultural leadership is taken into further scrutiny by analyzing different leadership styles.
The empirical study for this thesis was a qualitative semi-structured interview, more specifically a the- matic interview. Four interviews were conducted to a leader and subordinates working in a students’
union in the United Kingdom. The interviews were analyzed by using qualitative content analysis.
The elements which arose from the empirical study were the characteristics and role of the leader in addition to the leadership style, themes which were readily presented in the theoretical framework. This thesis will provide organizations with an in-depth analysis of what cultural diversity entails and how it should be considered and lead. There is greater attention drawn to the internal effects of multicultural- ism and not the effects of cultural diversity in the competitive global economy.
Key Words
Leadership, multicultural leadership, cultural diversity
1 INTRODUCTION ... 1
1.1Aims for the research and research questions ... 2
1.2 Key concepts ... 3
1.3 Positioning and structure of the study ... 4
2 MULTICULTURALISM IN ORGANIZATIONS ... 5
2.1 Culture ... 5
2.1.2 Geert Hofstede’s Six Cultural Dimensions ... 6
2.2 The Past and Present of Multiculturalism ... 7
2.3 Multicultural Organizations ... 9
2.3.1 The Benefits of Multicultural Organizations ... 10
2.3.2 The Drawbacks of Multiculturalism and Requirements for Improvement ... 12
3 MULTICULTURAL LEADERSHIP ... 17
3.1 The Leader of a Multicultural Workforce ... 17
3.1.1 Four Types of Multicultural Leaders ... 17
3.1.2 Characteristics of the Multicultural Leader ... 18
3.1.3 The Role of the Multicultural Leader ... 22
3.2 Leadership Defined ... 24
3.3 Characteristics of Leading Diversity ... 26
3.4 Leadership Styles ... 27
3.4.1 Charismatic / Value-based Leadership ... 28
3.4.2 Team Oriented Leadership ... 29
3.4.3 Participative Leadership ... 30
3.4.4 Humane Oriented Leadership ... 30
3.4.5 Autonomous Leadership ... 31
3.4.6 Self-Protective Leadership Style ... 31
3.5 The Challenges of Multicultural Leadership ... 32
3.6 Concluding the Theoretical Framework ... 33
4 EMPIRICAL RESEARCH ... 35
4.1 Research method ... 35
4.2 Research structure and conducting the interviews ... 36
4.3 Analysis ... 37
4.4 Interviewees ... 38
4.5 Information about the organization ... 39
5.1.1 Characteristics of cultural diversity ... 44
5.1.2 Discussing cultural diversity ... 46
5.1.3 Concluded benefits and drawbacks of multiculturalism ... 48
5.2 The leader’s profile ... 50
5.2.1 Environmental Factors and the CEO ... 51
5.2.2 Stable Individual traits of the CEO ... 53
5.3 The role of the CEO ... 66
5.4 The CEO’s Leadership style ... 67
6 CONCLUSION AND DISCUSSION ... 69
6.1Conclusion ... 69
6.2 Discussion ... 71
6.2.1 Reliability and validity of the research ... 73
6.2.2 The ethics of the research ... 74
6.2.3 Limitations and future research ... 75
REFERENCES: ... 76
FIGURES AND TABLES Figure 1. Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions……….6
Figure 2. Four leaders based on Dziatzko et al. 2017………18
Figure 3. Significant Aspects of a Multicultural Leader based on Amigo and Reinhold’s Guide (2017)……….19
Figure 4. Structure of the organization……….40
Figure 5. The three A’s of embracing diversity in a workplace according to the CEO………..53
Figure 6. A visual representation of the CEO’s main characteristics……….65
Figure 7. Entities of the CEO’s transformational leadership style……….68
Figure 8. The key elements in leading a multicultural workforce………....70
APPENDICES Appendix 1. Interview invitation (Intranet)……….85 Appendix 2. Information email to the interviewees (Leader)………..87 Appendix 3. Information email to the interviewees (Employee)……….88 Appendix 4. Leader’s interview structure………89
Appendix 5. Employee’s interview structure...91
1 INTRODUCTION
The world has become increasingly multicultural especially due to the phenomenon of global- ization. For an extensive period of time the general population has had the opportunity to dis- cover new countries and be employed abroad. Additionally, countries would go into business together with trades and mergers (Bordas 2012; Schneider, Barsoux & Stahl 2014). Due to this phenomenon, the population of various countries would begin to display cultural diversity. In the United Kingdom, for example, the number of foreign-born individuals of the population has almost doubled in fifteen years from 2004 to 2019 (Migration Observatory 2019). This occur- rence has understandably increased the cultural diversity in organizations which makes leading cultural diversity a priority.
In running a successful business, it is crucial to understand the importance of leadership. There has been a significant amount of research concerning multicultural leadership, leadership in a multicultural environment and the challenges multicultural leadership could raise (Alvey, Dar- ling & Webb 2014; Amigo & Reinhold 2017; Pauliene, Diskiene & Matuzeviciute 2019). Re- search concerning cultural diversity in educational institutions can be easily discovered. How- ever, research about the leadership of culturally diverse individuals in a charity organization such as a students’ union is difficult to come across. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate a larger area of business in order to discover similarities and differences based on various organ- ization types.
In comparison to leading a workforce of a culturally homogenous group, multicultural teams require a higher level of cultural sensitivity, openness, and a certain type of flexibility to fully understand different cultures and how to bring them together (e.g., Amigo & Reinhold 2017;
Sohn 2015).
Based on the literature of the literacy review in this study, multicultural leadership can be di- vided into two sections or steps. These steps represent the progress of understanding multicul- tural diversity to the fullest in order to implement the correct practices for optimal success. The first step is to understand what multicultural diversity entails. One must begin by understanding the role that culture plays in a person’s life further reflecting to the behavior they implement at the workplace. It is vital to also recognize what multiculturalism means in the work environ- ment, what benefits it has, and what possible drawbacks a team of culturally diverse individuals could cause. The second step is the implementation of the correct leadership practice of choice
after understanding the most effective ways to lead a melting pot of cultures. This step addi- tionally concerns the leader of a multicultural workforce. There must be recognition concerning the leader: where they stand on the cultural diversity spectrum (Dziatzko 2016), and what char- acteristics they have (Bartone, Eid, Johnsen, Laberg & Snook 2009; Bass 1990; Ericsson, Pri- etula & Cokely 2007). Additionally, the role of leadership (Salas, Burke, Wilson-Donnelly &
Fowlkes 2004) must be recognized. The theories applied for researching various leadership styles are those of the GLOBE research program. GLOBE is an acronym for Global Leadership and Organizational Behaviour Effectiveness research program. This research program is essen- tially a guide for leaders to learn about new strategies in leading, improve their business model, or become cross-culturally effective in their leadership style (House, Hanges, Javidan, Dorfman
& Gupta 2004).
The research method applied for this thesis is a qualitative study. More specifically, a semi- structured interview was conducted to the chief executive officer of a students’ union in the United Kingdom. Three additional interviews were held to the staff of that union to gain a more comprehensive view of the leader. The requirement for the case organization was that the work- force is multicultural, meaning that there is to be a minimum of three different cultures among the employees of the organization: a definition similar to earlier research (E.g., Vorbach 2018).
1.1 Aims for the research and research questions
The main purpose of this study is to investigate if the theory of multicultural leadership is ap- plied in the organization researched but more specifically attempting to discover what elements a leader must entail in order to be competent concerning the leading of culturally diverse sub- ordinates. The questions in the interviews revolve around the multicultural leader, multicultur- alism at the workplace, and multicultural leadership. This will also be the case in the literacy review of this thesis.
The main research question in this study is as follows:
• What are the key elements of the leader affecting multicultural leadership in organiza- tions?
Additional research questions supporting the main question are the following:
• How is multiculturalism taken into account in the organization?
• What requirements for improvement are there for optimal multicultural leadership?
1.2 Key concepts
Leadership has multiple definitions but can traditionally be described as an interpersonal rela- tionship. This relationship type distributes power and influence unevenly where one person is in control and in charge of others’ behaviour (Fiedler 1967). Leadership thus represents an ef- fort to influence and have the power to be above the subordinates (Wren 1995). A more modern definition was since presented (Northouse 2009) where it is stated that leadership is a power relationship existing between the leader and their followers. This definition diminishes the idea of hierarchical leadership style to a more horizontal one. The different leadership styles will be defined in this study based on the GLOBE research program definitions (House et al. 2004).
The style of leadership is largely based on the type of leader which will be one of the main topics of this study. This includes the cultural background and experience of the leader, the characteristics, and lastly the general role of the leader in an organization or leading a team.
Multicultural leadership is, in essence, leading a multicultural workforce. For a workforce to be multicultural, there must be individuals from at least three different cultures (Vorbach 2018).
A multicultural workforce can be beneficial in terms of creativity (Schneider et al. 2014), for instance, but can also create challenges even due to a language barrier (Pauliene et al. 2019).
Therefore, a multicultural team requires the correct leader to create a welcoming environment for all team members further encouraging successful progress (Sohn 2015).
Cultural diversity is the array of different cultures in, for example, an organization. Each or- ganization has a variation of cultural diversity: it is either moderate or superdiverse (Boroş, van Gorp & Boiger 2019). The diversity of cultures is educational simply due to different habits, norms and beliefs of each culture leading to greater innovation, creativity, decision making, skillsets, engagement, and trust of employees (Amigo & Reinhold 2017; Bonsu & Twum- Danso 2018; Gibson, Huang, Kirkman & Shapiro 2014; Hassan 2019; Stahl, Maznevski, Voigt
& Jonsen 2010). Drawbacks of cultural diversity revolve around cultural differences such as language and ways of operating for example (Hassan 2019). Additional attention is to be drawn to the different terms used to describe a culturally diverse workforce. Terms such as cultural diversity and multiculturalism will have minor nuance differences, but essentially have the same definition as is proposed in previous research.
1.3 Positioning and structure of the study
The viewpoint of this study will be that of the leader. The reason for this positioning is firstly to form a defining structure for the study, and secondly to deeper understand how a leader operates in leading diversity and what elements are included in the leadership of culturally di- verse subordinates. This positioning is similar to, for example, Pauliene, Diskiene and Matuzeviciute‘s study (2019) where the six leaders of Forbes Candies Inc. were interviewed about their views on leadership.
The first chapter introduces the reader to what is being researched alongside the reason for the study as well as the objectives. The second and third chapter present the theoretical framework for this study. This framework is divided into the two chapters where the second chapter pre- sents multiculturalism and all it entails while the third chapter focuses on the leader of a multi- cultural workforce in addition to leading cultural diversity. The fourth chapter introduces the research method of choice used in the study in addition to explaining the design and structure of the research. The fifth chapter consists of the results and analysis of the study. Finally, the sixth chapter combines both the theory and the research together forming a conclusion and discussion for this study. Additionally, there will be limitations and future research suggestions, for example, presented in this chapter.
2 MULTICULTURALISM IN ORGANIZATIONS
2.1 Culture
There were many small regions each representing a different culture through customs, civiliza- tions, dialects, and identities already in Ancient Greece. Also, in the Ottoman Empire there would be a representation of more than just one religious group, for example. To this day, so- cieties still vary from one culture to the next. Most countries are a melting pot of different races, languages, and religion to name a few. (Doğan 2017.)
A Dutch cultural anthropologist Geert Hofstede described culture as the software of the mind (Hofstede & Hofstede 2004). Culture is something that is constantly in one’s subconscious but is only visible when comparing it to people from different cultures (Hassan 2019). An abstract definition of culture was presented in one of the studies where it was stated that culture does not happen only here and now but is rather a flowing concept. It happens gradually and differs depending on the when and where of existence (Amigo & Reinhold 2017). Culture can also be described as the personality or character of a group (Schein 2004). A more theoretical analysis of the term was fashioned by Chris Jenks in his book Culture (1993, 10):
“… [culture] can be employed to summon up holistic appraisals of the ways of life of a people, their beliefs, rituals and customs”.
By mentioning customs and beliefs, it is apparent that everything someone does, or what they value, is determined by their culture (Amigo & Reinhold 2017). It is clear to see that any person from a different continent, country, town, or even neighborhood may have a different way of operating or dealing with daily issues. In addition, the age and gender of a person determines their personal culture (Bordas 2012, Paulienė 2012). It goes without saying, then, that there is an abundance of cultures worldwide (Pauliene et al. 2019).
2.1.2 Geert Hofstede’s Six Cultural Dimensions
Geert Hofstede, among others (Hampden-Turner & Trompenaars 2000, Schwartz 2008), has come up with different dimensions of culture (Amigo & Reinhold 2017). Dimensions are de- scribed as aspects of a culture that can be measured in relation to other cultures (Hofstede, Hofstede & Minkov 2010). The dimensions by Hofstede are represented in Figure 1.
Figure 1. Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions.
Equality versus inequality in countries is measured by a power distance index i.e., to what de- gree is there equality or inequality in certain cultures. If there is a high power distance score, this means that there is inequality of power and wealth in that country (Firdaus, Lubis, Susanto
& Soetarto 2018). A higher power distance can often highlight professionalism and expertise (Alvey et al. 2014). Individualism in contrast to collectivism is the dimension of how much a country supports individual or collective achievements. If the score of individualism is high, for example, this means that the rights of the individual are dominant in that country (Firdaus et al. 2018). Collectivism often has a result of easier initiation of projects, and an increased amount of risk taking though the implementation of projects may be more difficult (Alvey et al. 2014). If a country is highly masculine, this means that the gender of a person is more im- portant in role allocation. Low masculinity depicts that people are more focused on maintaining
EQUALITY INDIVIDUALISM
FEMININITY UNCERTAINTY
LONG-TERM ORIENTATION
INDULGENCE
INEQUALITY COLLECTIVISM MASCULINITY
CERTAINTY
SHORT-TERM ORIENTATION
RESTRAINT
strong relationships, helping others, and more quality-based elements. The uncertainty versus certainty dimension concentrates on how much people tolerate uncertainty in their home coun- try. When the ranking of uncertainty avoidance is high, people prefer to have regulative insti- tutions to reduce ambiguity (Firdaus et al. 2018). This could mean having senior leaders dele- gating roles to implement to lower-level employees (Alvey et al. 2014). Long-term orientation addresses the dimension of the time taken for decision making of one person (Firdaus et al.
2018). For example, a high long-term orientation ranking means that people are willing to form tight bonds with others in order to maintain a strong relationship with them long-term. (Khlif 2016). The sixth dimension is indulgence versus restraint. This illustrates the level of which members of a certain community attempt to control their impulses and desires. Indulgence is characteristic to a society that values self-fulfilment and a relatively ‘free’ life of enjoyment.
To live a restrained life is to regulate one’s life and necessities by using strict social norms (Firdaus et al. 2018).
2.2 The Past and Present of Multiculturalism
The cohabitation of different cultures in the same geographical space is labelled as multicultur- alism (Doğan 2017). Multiculturalism is for diverse, meaning different (Connerley & Pedersen 2005), cultures to co-exist and interact with each other (Hassan 2019). These types of diverse cultures include racial or religious groups. The diversity of the culture is established by what the people of a certain culture are accustomed to, what their assumptions and values are, how they communicate, and in what pattern they think (Hassan 2019).
Multiculturalism can be achieved as a result of globalization. Globalization depicts that the world is considered a village with everything closer together and ties between countries (Bordas 2012). Countries would form alliances and joint ventures, as well as cross-border mergers and acquisitions with each other (Schneider et al. 2014). This type of multicultural collaboration is seen as the fundament of globalization (Snow, Snell, Davidson & Hambrick 1996). The first multicultural corporation was formed already in 1600 B.C.E. This corporation was the British East India Company combining wealth and strategies to initiate business transactions in differ- ent parts of Asia, requiring the locals to cooperate (Hassan 2019). Early ventures to discover new lands mainly meant enslaving the natives and teaching them away from their savage way
of life (Bordas 2012). In other words, globalization has not always been as forward-thinking as it is now. It goes without saying that people hundreds of years ago were in no sense open to learn about new cultures, but to deprive the natives of them.
Fast-forwarding to today, multiculturalism is an ever-increasing part of business. It is dependent upon teamwork, and is often discussed in relation to legal requirements, affirmative action, and equal employment opportunities (EEO) (Cross, Rebele & Grant 2016, Connerley & Pedersen 2005). In her book Salsa, Soul, and Spirit (2012, ix), Juana Bordas describes the situation of globalization in the following way:
“…the growing interdependence of our world community [is] making the ability to lead and build [a] community with people from very distinct cultures, nation- alities, and ethnic groups fundamental to effective leadership.”
She also discusses the constant flow and exchange of trades, employees and information in addition to other elements of globalization. The opening of the European borders, for example, has made it possible for people qualified for certain jobs to move to countries which are in need of said positions (Withol de Wenden 2013; ref. Dziatzko, Struve & Stehr 2017). On a more serious note, the uneasy situation in some countries due to wars and disputes have forced people to move away from their homeland involuntarily. These people seek refuge in foreign countries and may begin working there. These refugees also bring with them a new cultural aspect to the workplace with different patterns of behaviour and sets of values and attitudes (Amigo & Rein- hold 2017).
People moving to a foreign country increase the cultural diversity in addition to the population size of the country (Bove & Elia 2017, Bordas 2012). Understanding diversity in this global economy (Atiku 2019) is vital due to people from all over the world coming together to work and bringing with them a representation of their own set of values and beliefs (Sherbin & Rashid 2017; Alvey et al. 2014). Though open-mindedness has not always been, nor is it still, the case all over the world (Bordas 2012, Amigo & Reinhold 2017), it is a crucial part of the process of globalization and building a welcoming environment for multiculturalism. It also motivates people to learn about equality, citizenship, and belonging (Hartmann 2015). Working together with a high tolerance limit and acceptance for others are key to success in multinational com- panies (Amigo & Reinhold 2017).
2.3 Multicultural Organizations
Multiculturalism is currently a phenomenon playing a significant role in varying environments (Amigo & Reinhold 2017). One of these environments is organizations. An organization is de- scribed as “a social unit of people that is organized and managed to meet a specific need or to chase collective goals.” (Hassan 2019, 29). The global economy of the contemporary world with the increase of diversity has also increased the amount of multiculturalism in organizations and work groups (Aritz & Walker 2014, Vorbach 2018). For an organization to be multicultural, it requires the existence of at least three different cultural backgrounds (Vorbach 2018). These people come together to achieve their own goals in the business world but also understand what is beneficial to the organization.
The impression people have of workplace diversity varies from one company to the next with differences in operating, guidelines, and plans designated to that specific company. Addition- ally, each organization varies in cultural diversity: it is either moderate or superdiverse (Boroş et al. 2019) depending on the amount of diversity within the workforce. A company which is mainly hiring a diverse workforce has a plan to improve efficiency and revenue (Hassan 2019).
Today, according to the Refinitiv Index (2020), the most diverse and inclusive companies are BlackRock, Inc. in the investment banking & services industry, Natura & Co. Holding SA in the personal, and household products and services industry, and Accenture Plc which is in the industry of software and IT services.
In most multicultural organizations there are several smaller factions maintaining the role of multiculturalism. These multicultural teams, or MCTs, are formed by groups of employees with different backgrounds. These team members interact directly with each other and share com- mon norms and strategies to reach an agreed target (Dziatzko 2016). Teams are used as a sup- port system or sometimes even a solution within organizations to react to the constantly chang- ing surroundings of business (Schneider et al. 2014). There is a four-step process to incorporate employees into smaller groups. This process includes the basic process of group formation, with a more organization-oriented twist. The first step is forming the group and creating role testing, seeing who takes what role in the group. Secondly, there is the period of storming, which is the possible disagreement of what goal the group should have. After this, the group moves on to group cohesion or norming. Finally, the group will begin to perform and work on team objectives (Tuckman 1965).
The cultural differences in MCTs can be the difference between collectivistic and individualis- tic cultures. This cultural division was presented in Hofstede’s six cultural dimensions figure (Figure 1) in the beginning of this chapter. In a collectivistic society it is appreciated that a member of the team helps the team to achieve whatever goal they are trying to reach in that moment. In comparison, a good team player in an individualistic society only focuses on what their own task is, and if someone is having a problem with their own area of work, a colleague would make sure to let them know how their problems affect others’ work (Hassan 2019).
In addition to the individualistic-collectivistic characteristics, there are also other aspects to consider when leading multicultural teams. These characteristics include communication style, for example. There is existing research stating that there are different interaction patterns be- tween group members from different cultural backgrounds (Aritz & Walker 2014). For exam- ple, in some countries it is custom to be more direct in expressing what needs to be done, and in other countries it is considered respectful to speak in a more non-direct manner (Pauliene et al. 2019). People can also learn different habits and mannerisms from diverse others whether it is greeting someone by shaking hands or taking a bow (Hassan 2019).
The following sections will discuss in further detail what effect cultural diversity has on the work environment and effectiveness. It is vital to approach multiculturalism objectively hence both the benefits and drawbacks of a multicultural work force are discussed.
2.3.1 The Benefits of Multicultural Organizations
The benefits of diversity in organizations are numerous and bring significant gain to any com- pany as Zubair Hassan (2019) states. These benefits include the improvement in decision mak- ing, greater creativity, ideas, and innovations, more diverse cultural perspectives, and a broader range of skills in addition to lower staff turnover, and better engagement and trust of employees (Amigo & Reinhold 2017; Bonsu & Twum-Danso 2018; Gibson et al. 2014; Hassan 2019;
Pauliene et al. 2019; Stahl et al. 2010). Additionally, the employment of culturally diverse workers could bring awareness to the customer-base and inspire the organization to alter pro- duction due to new preferences among customers (Bonsu & Twum-Danso 2018). Multicultur- ally smart individuals will learn to work interdependently and adapt to any situation (Salas et al. 2004).
In some cases, multiculturalism promotes healthy competition among staff (Hassan 2019).
Pauliene, Diskiene, and Matuzeviciute discovered in their study (2019) that people from another culture had a different work mentality than that of the workers native to the country. This men- tality was to prove that they are worthy by working harder. The benefits of competition can often cause business to progress and flourish, and for operations to reach countries across the globe (Gibson et al. 2014, Hassan 2019).
When working in a culturally homogenous team, creativity can be hindered (Hassan 2019).
This is because there is no new input on views, habits, or norms to incentivize the thought process. Various cultural perspectives can provide a more precise and deeper understanding to the issue at hand (Dike 2013).
The improvement in decision making can be seen when multicultural teams work together in order to find a solution. As opposed to culturally homogenous teams, diverse teams have a variety of different viewpoints from which to look at situations (Hassan 2019). Coming up with a solution for a certain problem may require more time. However, the longer it takes for a team to make a decision, the more time there is for brainstorming and making sure that the final decision will be clear of mistakes (Gyebi 2018, Hassan 2019).
A diverse environment in organizations provides people from different multicultural back- grounds with the ability to live and be their original self without having to hide their culture.
People can work peacefully knowing that they do not need to seek others’ approval for the way they think or how they do their job (Doğan 2017).
Communicating and working together with people from different cultures broadens the way of thinking, makes it easier to adapt to new situations and contexts, increases trust, decreases ste- reotyping and discrimination, and improves the performance of the individual and in groups (Boroş et al. 2019; Komives, Wagner & NCLP 2009). It helps if the workforce is able to find a lingua franca (Marlina & Xu 2018) by speaking a common language, such as English, since it may help with the processes in the organization and avoid language barriers. Additionally, mul- tilingual people often have a distinctly different way of thinking than someone only speaking one language (Dike 2013). Therefore, it could be said that multilinguals are more open and unbiased in the way they think hence more open to cultural diversity.
To conclude the benefits of cultural diversity at the workplace, it can be stated that not only does it improve the performance of the group as a whole, but it also improves the image of the
organization. When multiculturalism is appreciated, the diverse employees are more satisfied.
There is greater commitment of the staff as well as the customers. However, not all organiza- tions have been able to provide employees with this sense of belonging nor have the workers been able to benefit from their culture to the fullest. This will be discussed next.
2.3.2 The Drawbacks of Multiculturalism and Requirements for Improvement
Some issues regarding multiculturalism in organizations were found to form a polar opposite to the benefits of the same phenomenon. For example, decision making and general communi- cation with co-workers can also cause challenges in a multicultural environment. More serious phenomena such as culture shock, stereotyping, or even racism should not go unnoticed when examining the negative effects of multiculturalism. (Gyebi 2018; Hassan 2019; Amigo & Rein- hold 2017).
Brainstorming and decision making can be more difficult in multicultural groups since not all people from diverse cultural backgrounds see eye to eye in everything. Additionally, in some cases, the competition between co-workers could bring a more negative than positive impact to the environment. With the sense of competition, employees could also become envious of their competitors. (Gyebi 2018).
Also, it is difficult for some to get their point across if they feel they are not understood correctly (Hassan 2019). Communication differs a great deal according to which country is in question.
For example, in some countries people use a more direct way of getting their point across, and in others they have more non-direct approach to conversations (Amigo & Reinhold 2017). This could cause issues if someone is not accustomed to, for example, a direct communication style.
Communication problems may also arise due to a language barrier between workers. According to Hassan’s (2019) study, communication issues create distance between individuals at the workplace. The challenges faced could cause irritation when trying to communicate with some- one who does not understand fully what is being said. Communication gaps also create misun- derstandings between employees.
In addition to language, the atmosphere of the company could, in some cases, be problematic due to disagreements. This may be solved if a common language was spoken (Hassan 2019).
Generally, employees do not feel that a language barrier would mean that the foreign-born em- ployee had any less competence or education (Pauliene et al. 2019), though it has also been
discussed as a possibility (Brett, Behfar & Kern 2006). Sometimes the problem goes far beyond the spoken word. In some groups, multiculturalism is naturally appreciated. However, some groups find it so that they are not being treated equally like other foreign-born employees (Amigo & Reinhold 2017, Gyebi 2018). Occasionally a specific race would be treated in a different way and ignored in the sense of equality and un-biasness. For instance, not all cultural events of an employees’ home country would be taken into consideration and celebrated (Has- san 2019).
Employees would also feel discomfort when working with people from different backgrounds.
This is where stereotyping, or even racism may become visible. Stereotyping means to catego- rize people based on what conception is obtained about a certain group and their culture, and it usually results in overestimation and over-exaggerations as was stated in Hassan’s study (2019). It is commonly forgotten that each person is an individual and should not be automatically associated with their respecting culture in a negative way though it does happen. This occurs especially when discussing religion. Religious and political views are subjects that can also raise conflicts at the workplace among culturally diverse individuals. Racism and stereotyping towards a culturally diverse individual could appear when that employee is hired to a higher- paying job than the people of that country with lower-paying jobs. (Hassan 2019).
When a person moves to a new country and begins working somewhere with a completely new culture, there are a couple of possibilities that could happen instead of everything going to plan.
First, the employee feels as if the change in scenery has created nothing but benefits, and it almost feels exhilarating to be among new people and a new culture. This joy may wear off at some stage and fundamental differences in values, attitudes and beliefs will become visible.
Culture shock (Chew 2004; Jokinen 2005; Marx 2001) is often what follows. Culture shock, as stated by Gyebi (2018) depicts an individual’s hesitancy and confusion which is caused by encountering a new and different culture. This individual may not be accustomed to the way of behaving in this culture. They may fear losing face and their self-confidence or may become emotionally disappointed. Culture shock is one of the biggest reasons for the failure of global or international assignments of expatriates (Chew 2004; Jokinen 2005; Marx 2001). Unfortu- nately for some, moving to another country may instantly result in this. During the initial ad- justment process to a new environment, one must find a way to manage these uneasy emotions (Marx 2001; Pedersen 1995).
To avoid culture shock in a completely new work environment, one may try to find ways to fit in to the culture. In attempt to do this, a person would try to learn the language of the dominant
culture, the characteristics, and the ways in which one thinks. Additionally, someone might try to dress in the way the dominant culture does. This is called assimilation and it causes a cultural gap between oneself and their own original culture (Bordas 2012). This term is defined as “the process of receiving new facts or of responding to new situations in conformity with what is already available to consciousness” in the Merriam-Webster online dictionary. Assimilation is something of an issue when it comes to preserving one’s own cultural characteristics. For ex- ample, a person from a collectivistic culture may have to learn to be more individualistic in order for the organization to function as a whole (Bordas 2012). Assimilation causes cultural insensitivity where smaller cultures do not get representation. In some cultures, especially those of colour, pushing the citizens to assimilate with a dominant white culture is called whitewash- ing (Bordas 2012). The internationalization of businesses increases the demand to have em- ployees able to adapt to new cultural and social situations. The need for management in order to facilitate said conditions for culturally diverse employees is thus crucial (Cambal 2015; ref.
Vorbach 2018).
When an employee is trying to find ways to fit in, seeking social support can benefit both par- ties. The one who seeks support learns how to regulate their emotions of distress and anxiety, but it also helps in understanding how other people understood a certain experience (Boroş et al. 2019). However, there is a way to learn to fit into a new culture while still holding on tight to one’s original culture. This is called acculturation which means to add on to and expand one’s own culture, and it requires being able to listen to new information and to be open to learning (Bordas 2012).
If the expatriate does not feel that they fit into the new culture even upon trying to, they might fall into oppression. This means that they begin to consider themselves as the stereotype society places on them for not being part of the dominant culture (Bordas 2012). Also, employees working in a foreign culture may suppress their willingness to adapt and begin searching for culturally similar others and confiding in them for support (Rimé 2009). This, however, can create the issue of not being able to adapt. Emotion suppression means the controlling and neu- tralizing emotional behaviour both mentally and physically (Gross & John 2003, Gross &
Thompson 2007; Matsumoto, Yoo & Nakagawa 2008). This may also be a positive aspect con- sidering that one may wish to hide their anxiety before an important presentation or control their anger when talking to a colleague who doesn’t see eye to eye (Boroş et al. 2019). In addi- tion, in some countries, emotion suppression is seen as a way to adjust to the group whereas
some countries see it as depression or lower levels of life satisfaction (Soto, Perez, Kim, Lee &
Minnick 2011).
Though diversity and tolerance towards another culture has become better throughout time, some employees still see themselves as superior based on what culture they represent. In other words, some thought of themselves as better simply due to their background in comparison to someone else’s. This cultural superiority complex is also called ethnocentrism (Hassan 2019).
People can be set apart due to their culture being collectivistic or individualistic, and because of this they may stereotype the other. For example, collectivists may see individualists as cold, too ambitious in regard to their relationships, and they may even be seen as rude among other arguments. Individualists consider collectivists to not be ambitious enough, lacking their own opinions, and even as unreliable to name a few (Clausen 2010). A few interviewees in, for example Hassan’s (2019) study stated that they would rather work in a culturally homogenous environment. These employees stated that it would bring more comfort and ease if all employ- ees had the same cultural background. It is natural for people to resort to comfort and familiar- ity. This can diminish stress levels and increase trust especially when they share the same lan- guage. Distrust is common in work teams with diversity (Hassan 2019).
Though somewhat impartial about multiculturalism in organizations, governments of some countries do appreciate diversity in the organizational structure. Some governments oblige or- ganizations to be tolerant and un-biased towards diversity. A fair workplace is to include people from all races and every creed (Hassan 2019). In the United Kingdom, in addition to a list of other countries worldwide, there is legislation to protect the characteristics of an individual (Equality Act 2010). The protected characteristics in the United Kingdom according to the Equality Act of 2010 are the age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partner- ship, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation of an indi- vidual. There are legal repercussions if an individual is discriminated against due to these char- acteristics in, for example, a working environment. In the United States, it is stated in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that employers are not to discriminate on the bases of sex, race, ethnicity, religion or the colour of someone’s skin. More recently there has been a focus on disabilities, age, and sexual orientation (Connerley & Pedersen 2005). Variety in the workforce boosts di- versity but can sometimes be a challenge for management to accomplish. A government may put forward pressure groups to companies in order to promote the interests of minorities in organizations. These pressure groups follow how diverse work groups are and if there is lack of diversity in some organizations (Hassan 2019).
One of the most important ways to achieve a sense of community is by communicating (Amigo
& Reinhold 2017). In order to overcome language barriers, companies should have an official language or organize language workshops (Hassan 2019). There was also discussion of an “Ad- aptation Strategy” in one study by Pauliene et al. (2019). This adaptation strategy states that language barriers are to be learnt but also embraced by current staff. By doing this, there is a great potential for the company to thrive with a multicultural work force. In their study, Pauliene et al. (2019) also discovered, that the interviewees were willing to assist non-native English speakers with difficult words or phrases, for example. They also helped with learning the cor- rect pronunciation for words. Language barriers and, in general, the cultural differences of em- ployees can be managed by community interpreting (Doğan 2017) which helps social structures that need to find a common ground with other cultures. Additionally, it helps with distinguish- ing a person’s cultural background and further promote what they already know. One must keep in mind what the employee is willing to contribute (Dziatzko et al. 2017) for there to be no sense of pressure to become part of the organization’s culture.
Cultural diversity is often referred to as something that leads to misunderstandings and ineffi- ciencies (Münch 2016: ref. Vorbach 2018). The issues resulting from multiculturalism at the workplace can raise the possibility for a higher turnover in staff (Hassan 2019). In his study, Hassan (2019) states that some employees may even require a training program of some sort to promote diversity at the workplace. Individuals from different cultural and geographical back- grounds essentially appreciate diversity and focus on working together. This can be achieved by, for example, a team learning orientation which attempts to overcome the liability of cultural diversity, create a more positive environment within the team, and enable collective global leadership (Paunova & Lee 2016). By doing this, the openness towards other cultures can cause better collaboration in a multicultural team (Pauliene et al. 2019).
There truly is a visible flipside to the coin of diversity at the workplace, and it does require a great deal of work in order to make everyone feel comfortable and maintain a sense of belong- ing. With the world becoming figuratively smaller concerning all the connections countries have with each other, it helps to be thoughtful and sensitive towards others who may not share the same culture in order to succeed in the global economy (Hassan 2019). To create a multi- cultural future, everyone’s voices and perspectives must be taken into account (Bordas 2012).
3 MULTICULTURAL LEADERSHIP
3.1 The Leader of a Multicultural Workforce
3.1.1 Four Types of Multicultural Leaders
There are essentially four types of leaders: local, expat, glocal and global leader (Dziatzko et al. 2017). These leader types are determined by the cross-culturality of the leader and that of the team. Firstly, the local leader is one with no intercultural profile. This means that the leader has not lived or worked abroad and leads a team of individuals with the same cultural back- ground as the leader. (Dziatzko et al. 2017).
Next there is the expat leader. This leader does have an intercultural profile since they have moved to a different country to work. This leader has a workforce of solely subordinates of that country. These leaders may often seek support from other expatriates, ask for guidance and seek for professional help and above all, maintain a positive stance (Marx 2001). Expat leaders can be perceived as interculturally effective people (IEP) (Fortier & Tejpar 2016). This means that they have major competencies pointing to the knowledge, skills, and attitudes enabling a person to live contently and work successfully in a foreign culture. This can also be defined as cultural intelligence, and it means for the leader to have the ability to integrate into multinational teams (Zander, Mockaitis & Butler 2012). A culturally intelligent person is able to adapt to different cultural environments (Schneider et al. 2014) and interpret unfamiliar and ambiguous gestures and behaviours in the same way that locals would (Earley & Mosakowski 2004, Schneider et al. 2014).
The third leader type is the glocal leader. This leader has no intercultural profile but is a leader of a multicultural team. Leading a multicultural team provides a glocal leader with the ability to get initial exposure to a foreign culture without having to live abroad. (Dziatzko et al. 2017).
Lastly there is the global leader. This type of leader has an intercultural profile since they live and work abroad, and the team of employees is a multicultural one consisting of locals as well as foreign-born ones. (Dziatzko et al. 2017).
The four types of leaders are presented in the figure below (Figure 2) to provide the reader with visual representation of the levels of which a leader can be considered multiculturally experi- enced.
Figure 2. Four Leaders based on Dziatzko et al. (2017).
3.1.2 Characteristics of the Multicultural Leader
It is of great importance that the characteristics of a leader managing multicultural teams are recognized and understood in order to identify which ones are essential for multicultural lead- ership (Lisak & Erez 2015; Lisak, Erez, Sui & Lee 2016). Optimism, for instance, is one of the greatest motivators for a leader to possess since it provides subordinates with hope of an ad- vantageous outcome in addition to success (Goleman 1995). It is highly important for a leader to have experience in the field of working with cultural diversity and a social identity supporting it in the organizational context (Trimble & Chin 2019). By gaining experience and adapting to new situations, leaders are most often able to discover new ideas, approaches and innovations with the assistance of others’ viewpoints (Alvey et al. 2014).
Becoming a good leader, however, requires more than just lived experiences. It also requires a leader’s ability to display empathy, diplomacy and cultural sensitivity (Comfort & Franklin 2011). In this sense, multicultural leadership could be seen as twofold. According to research, leadership is determined by two main factors, environmental factors, and more specific stable individual traits (Bartone et al. 2009; Bass 1990; Ericsson et al. 2007). The environmental fac- tors consist of education, training, experiences and workplace conditions whereas the stable individual traits are formed on the basis of an individual’s personality.
GLOBAL LEADER
LOCAL LEADER GLOCAL LEADER EXPAT LEADER
The team’s cross-culturality
The leaders’ cross-culturality
There are numerous studies presenting their own attributes for a leader to possess in order to achieve intercultural competence. For example, people leading a culturally diverse workforce should possess the following characteristics: good character, emotional stability, inquisitive- ness, motivation, and lastly, tolerance (Zenger, Folkman & Evans 2014). Jonathan Gosling and Henry Mintzberg present “The Five Minds of a Manager” in the Harvard Business Review (2003), and in the GLOBE Research Program there are as much as thirty-five personal attributes affecting the leadership of individuals such as sensitive, provocateur, and cunning (Grove 2007). This study represented not only positive attributes but also negative ones. It is clear now that there is not one standard set of characteristics a leader should possess in order to lead cul- turally diverse individuals. There were some characteristics, however, that were repeated in multiple studies to form a general understanding of what the most vital traits are.
In Alina Reinhold and Marta Amigo’s study The Stage of Multicultural Leadership (2017) they presented a guide for leaders to utilize in the multicultural context of leadership. This guide includes an array of characteristics for the leader to incorporate into their leadership if they do not yet possess them. The characteristics of a multicultural leader all display elements of open- mindedness and communication. The following figure is based on Amigo and Reinhold’s guide (2017). These characteristics are ones that were also visible in other studies (E.g., Bonsu &
Twum-Danso 2018; Bordas 2012; Dziatzko et al. 2017) which is why they represent a com- monality for a leader’s character.
Figure 3. Significant Aspects of a Multicultural Leader based on Amigo and Reinhold’s Guide (2017).
FLEXIBILITY
HUMILITY
TRANS- PARENCY
PATIENCE PERSONAL
PROFILES INTER-
CULTURAL COMPETENCE
ROLE MODEL
In the multicultural setting of organizations representing a melting pot for a great deal of dif- ferent cultures, a leader must endorse diversity. This requires cultural flexibility and adaptability (Amigo & Reinhold 2017; Bonsu & Twum-Danso 2018; Bordas 2012). Flexibility displays social competence in the leader (Dziatzko et al. 2017). It also exhibits a sort of practical intel- ligence which represents the capacity to adapt to an environment in order to survive and fulfil one’s needs (Sternberg & Wagner 1986). Furthermore, it is important for the leader to be able to adapt to new situations and an array of diverse cultures (Dziatzko et al. 2017) once again depicting a flexible characteristic. A leader represents openness to diverse leadership by being empathetic, inclusive, and sensitive to differences (Dziatzko et al. 2017, Trimble & Chin 2019).
This in turn will increase an employee’s motivation at the workplace (Lesaulnier 2013; ref.
Dziatzko et a. 2017). In other words, these flexible, adaptable, and empathetic leaders are con- sidered emotionally intelligent (Goleman 1998; 2004). Emotionally intelligent people are able to, for example, communicate effectively, have empathy towards others, overcome challenges and defuse conflict situations. By being flexible and adapting to new situations, people from culturally diverse backgrounds can feel inspired and guided in their work (Alvey et al. 2014;
Bordas 2012). Thus, it is highly important for the leader to have tolerance and respect for others, even if they do not represent the same cultural background (Bordas 2012).
Next, the aspect of humility. A leader must not expect to know everything, nor do they have to (Amigo & Reinhold 2017). In order to learn, a leader should be willing to ask questions and take in new and diverse viewpoints of other cultures and processes (Amigo & Reinhold 2017;
Chin, Trimble & Garcia 2017). This also means that a leader should not stick to primary as- sumptions about other cultures, for example, but be open-minded about new information (Amigo & Reinhold 2017). A leader should question their own values and principles to create open-mindedness for new input in a self-reflective manner. The leader cannot only stick to something already learned but build on that and form connections between cultures instead of gaps. When a leader asks for assistance from their subordinates, it displays a sense of better self-perception among followers since their opinion is appreciated. Additionally, more opinions mean a better-quality decision (Amigo & Reinhold 2017).
Transparency is of great importance for a multicultural leader to display. The leader must be open about the direction of the strategy (Dziatzko et al. 2017). Communication is key, and it should be made sure that everyone is willing to go the same way (Amigo & Reinhold 2017).
However skilled a manager is in communicating with others and adapting their interpersonal behaviour into a new culture determines how well these managers succeed in new markets
(Paulienė 2012). Communication skills, meaning those of listening and speaking about what the organization is undergoing, display method competence in the leader (Dziatzko et al. 2017).
In some cultures, a leader does not even make a decision before they have heard everyone’s opinion about the topic at hand (Bordas 2012).
Next is the aspect of patience. Observing, and assisting individuals to understand each other is an important task of a leader. A leader is to provide the same process for all subordinates in order for them to reach the same level of understanding. However, different cultures take a different amount of time and effort in different situations (Amigo & Reinhold 2017). It is the leader’s task to patiently create an atmosphere for everyone to develop and increase their knowledge of cultural diversity (Dziatzko et al. 2017).
For a multicultural leader, it is important to observe the subordinates’ personal profiles. A leader should observe what attitudes the individuals display. These attitudes could differ on the basis of age, for instance. The younger generation is often seen as more relaxed about diversity in comparison to older generations. Thus, it requires more dedication to accommodate a mem- ber of the older generation to the ever-expanding concept of cultural diversity. It is important for a leader to create these personal profiles in order to work with them to see what each person could be capable of achieving. (Amigo & Reinhold 2017).
Lastly, intercultural competence is something that every leader of a multicultural group should possess (Amigo & Reinhold 2017). In order to be intercultural competent, a leader needs to develop the previously mentioned method competence (Dziatzko et al. 2017), which means to develop listening, observational and communication skills (Dziatzko et al. 2017, Paulienė 2012). By doing this, personal values, norms and behavioural preferences will be comparable to other managers of culturally diverse organizations (Paulienė 2012). It is additionally im- portant for the leader to alter the way they communicate with another person since diverse cultures represent an equally diverse set of values, beliefs and preferences to, for example, lead- ership behaviour (Paulienė 2012). This means that in some cultures it is acceptable to speak in a more direct way as opposed to other cultures (Amigo & Reinhold 2017), as was discussed in chapter 2.3.2. Intercultural competence thus depicts contextual intelligence (Khanna 2014), since a leader recognizes that not all situations can be handled in the same way.
Another characteristic displayed in Amigo and Reinhold’s guide (2017) was for the leader to act as a role model. However, the previously defined characteristics, also displayed in figure 3, somewhat form a profile of a role model. This is why the role model characteristic can be seen
as more of a result than a factor. A multicultural leader should operate as an example for others, in other words a role model. People look up to the leader, so the leader should be someone to speak carefully and never judge the diversity of cultures (Amigo & Reinhold 2017). A leader should recognize that they do not only operate for themselves but for a group of subordinates.
Due to this, a leader should set an example and abide by the set rules (Bordas 2012). If the leader wishes for the subordinates to ask questions and be curious, they should begin by being the curious one to inspire the workers to do the same (Amigo & Reinhold 2017).
3.1.3 The Role of the Multicultural Leader
The role of a leader is imperative especially in multicultural teams. This is due to the issues that cultural diversity can cause in groups if not managed properly (Schneider et al. 2014; Soğancilar
& Ors 2018). A leader is to notice the cultural differences in the team and manage them cor- rectly since a leader is responsible for their subordinates (Alvey et al. 2014, Amigo & Reinhold 2017, Bordas 2012). The increasing shift of multiculturalism requires leaders to create and sus- tain a diverse and inclusive work environment (Schneider et al. 2014). As stated earlier, it is important for a leader to obtain certain characteristics for leading multicultural teams. However, it is also of great importance that the leader recognizes the process of team dynamics specifi- cally in a multicultural setting (Tuckman 1965).
The leader’s role in leading a multicultural team should entail trust and support in the subordi- nates, but also the ability to intervene if necessary. A leader should recognize what strengths each team member possesses and utilize those strengths in the company’s processes. Addition- ally, the leader should communicate and be as transparent as possible. The team should have a common vision for what needs to be done, and this should be elaborated by the leader. The needs of the team members should be recognized and dealt with empathetically. Most im- portantly, the leader should defend the team’s ideas when it comes to presenting them to higher management. (Dziatzko et al. 2017).
In some cases, a leader may not even realize that managing a team is part of their role as a leader. These leaders would only consider the recruiting and making of schedules for the em- ployees (Pauliene et al. 2019). In leading teams, a leader’s role can be divided into two subcat- egories: task role and developmental role (Salas et al. 2004).
A leader’s task role means that they serve as someone who goes across boundaries to communi- cate, receive information, and make sure that the team has all the necessary resources to perform tasks. This role can also be defined as that of sense making (Salas et al. 2004). These leaders are responsive to change (Trimble & Chin 2019) and work dynamically regarding structuring and regulating team processes. This is done in order to meet the constantly changing internal and external events (Salas et al. 2004). A task role is essentially being the interpreter, spokes- person, and bridge builder between the company and the “outside world” (Bordas 2012). It is of high importance that the leader has global knowledge in order to interpret cross-border ac- tivities, for example (Schneider et al. 2014).
Once the leader has encoded information from outside the group or organization, they then communicate the meaning to team members by coaching, feedback, process assistance or clear direction. Thus, the developmental role can also be described as sense giving (Salas et al. 2004).
The leader with a developmental role motivates, inspires, and makes sure that the team develops and maintains all the required shared knowledge, influences, and behavior that facilitate inter- dependent, coordinative, and adaptive performance (Bordas 2012, Salas et al. 2004). This means that a leader ensures that everyone works as a team towards a collective goal. Trust, team building, and communication are seen as highly important in the role of a multicultural team leader (Vorbach 2018).
The roles of sense making and sense giving require the leader to once again recognize what communication style is suitable for each culture representative, since in some cultures it is more appropriate to have a conversation face-to-face (Hashimoto 2010) whereas some do not mind communicating via electronic means of communication (Kupritz & Cowell 2011). The com- munication between the leader and the subordinate is also important in the sense of finding out the strengths and weaknesses of the employee (Bonsu & Twum-Danso 2018).
It is suggested that in some cases a leader sees their subordinates almost as family. In this sense, the leader is responsible for their subordinates. They also have a more familial connection to the subordinates, since they are almost seen as brothers and sisters or sons and daughters. This can be seen especially in collectivistic cultures, where there is an increased sense of community.
In these collectivistic cultures, a leader additionally has public responsibility and accountability focusing on what benefits everyone. (Bordas 2012).
To conclude the role of a leader, a multicultural leader should create a common ground or basis on which people from different cultures can continue to work in collaboration. This is achieved
by interpreting the effects of the external forces and applying learned facts to the processes within the organization. This facilitates people to feel equal, and represents an environment of open communication, with the leader willing to give and receive feedback (Amigo & Reinhold 2017).
3.2 Leadership Defined
Leadership has a vast array of definitions. It represents the power relationship between the leader and subordinates (Northouse 2009). It is also defined in a more interpersonal manner as something that improves others, optimizes the skills of employees by, for example, assigning the correct task to the employee who is most capable of executing it (Dziatzko 2016, Welch 2005). Assigning the right people to the right task maximizes that employee’s potential, reduces the costs of training, and improves innovation and efficiency of the work within organizations (Bonsu & Twum-Danso 2018). Leadership encourages followers to work towards a collective or joint objective symbolizing the values and ambitions of the employers and employees (Burns 2003; Hunter, Bedell-Avers & Mumford 2007; Krishnan 2003). Most often the employees know what could motivate them to work more effectively and successfully. As a result of this, leadership has become something of an organization as a whole and not only that of the few people in charge (Beeson 1998, Bennis 1999, Conger 1993; 1999, McCall 1998, O’Toole 2001).
In this sense, the concern for what employees require is the core value of leadership (Paulienė 2012).
The main focus of leadership is to influence the processes that are utilized in the organizations, and further empower employees to readily contribute to reach the goals of the organization (Hackman & Johnson 2004). It is also important to match the most appropriate leadership style based on how willing the employees are to contribute to the task at hand. This can also be called situational leadership (Hersey & Blanchard 1977), and it changes according to the circum- stances. The importance of leadership has only grown since the world of business is increas- ingly competitive, trend-oriented, and dynamic. In addition, leadership is defined as multina- tional, more specifically multicultural, and is continuously changing (Block & Manning 2007;
Bennis, Goleman & O’Toole 2008). The theories of leadership include approaches focusing on individual differences, situational characteristics and anything in between (Paulienė 2012).
When leading a group of culturally diverse individuals, the leader must take into account that
not only are there multiple cultures represented in that group, but there are also differences among the individuals themselves. The individual differences (Abe & Abe 2019) of people include those of intelligence, personality, interests and the IQ of a person. Additionally, there are physiological characteristics setting people apart including body, sex, and age (Maltby, Day
& Macaskill 2007).
3.2.1 Differences in Leadership Around the World
Leadership differs greatly around the globe. Countries with their own set of values, behaviours and norms also affect the leadership of the respective countries. There are additionally certain prototypical leaders in different cultures establishing effective leadership (Bass 1997, Sarros &
Santora 2001).
In Latino communities, according to the National Community for Latino Leadership (NCLL), the most valued quality in a leader is holding on to what is being promised (Bordas 2012).
Furthermore, Chinese leaders appreciated values such as altruism, harmony with others, and self-restraint (Aritz & Walker 2014). Self-restraint can also be seen in Hofstede’s six cultural dimensions (Chapter 2.1.2) more specifically the indulgence versus restraint dimension. Addi- tionally, independent thinking in China was not one of the main values of leadership, which could be considered self-evident in other cultures (Aritz & Walker 2014).
There are also differences in, for example, decision making. In the U.S. a decisive leader is someone who makes quick and approximate decisions whereas in Western European countries decisiveness means a more deliberate and precise decision-making process. In Japan or Finland, however, decision-making is achieved by group consensus (Alvey et al. 2014).
It is clear to see that leadership in individualistic and collectivistic cultures is very different. In individualistic societies leadership is considered a prize which awards the person with privilege, status, position, appeal, and financial rewards. However, these types of leaders may not be re- membered for their actions for benefitting a community as a leader from a collectivistic culture would. Leaders in collectivistic societies would be elected through the petition of the followers, and leading would be something that was done for the community, and not to get ahead of others (Bordas 2012). It is important for a leader to not renounce their own culture in order to appreciate other cultures in the multicultural team. Moreover, the leader should build on their
