Mike Szymanski, Ilan Alon and Komal Kalra
In this study, micro-foundations of strategy as the theoretical framework to study the effect of managers’ individual characteristics on multinational team performance are…
Abstract
Purpose
In this study, micro-foundations of strategy as the theoretical framework to study the effect of managers’ individual characteristics on multinational team performance are adopted. In particular, the purpose of this paper is to study managers’ multilingual communication abilities and multicultural background, and their role in, respectively, effectively reconfiguring team human assets and sensing cognitively distant opportunities and threats.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses national football teams competing in national and international competitions and their coaches’ characteristics as the data set to test the theory. Using random coefficient modeling and ordinary least square regression, this paper analyzes two samples of 222 and 79 teams and found that both these characteristics contribute to team performance; however, their effects differ depending on the team environment.
Findings
Multicultural managers contribute positively to team performance only when the team is operating in a highly diverse environment, their effect is not statistically significant in homogeneous environments. In less diverse environments, it is the multilingual manager who can improve team performance through more efficient communication and greater effects of leadership on the team.
Originality/value
Managers’ characteristics such as their multicultural background and multilingual capabilities affect team performance. In particular, these effects come into play in highly diverse and international settings. Micro-foundation literature is advised to focus on the internationalization and multicultural backgrounds of managers as a precursor for organizational international performance.
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Mike Szymanski, Ivan Valdovinos and Evodio Kaltenecker
This study aims to examine the relationship between cultural distances between countries and their scores in the Corruption Perception Index (CPI), which is the most commonly used…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the relationship between cultural distances between countries and their scores in the Corruption Perception Index (CPI), which is the most commonly used measure of corruption in international business (IB) research.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors applied fixed-effect (generalized least squares) statistical modeling technique to analyze 1,580 year-country observations.
Findings
The authors found that the CPI score is determined to a large extent by cultural distances between countries, specifically the distance to the USA and to Denmark.
Research limitations/implications
CPI is often used as a sole measure of state-level corruption in IB research. The results show that the measure is significantly influenced by cultural differences and hence it should be applied with great caution, preferably augmented with other measures.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to look at cultural distances as determinants of CPI score. The authors empirically test whether the CPI is culturally biased.
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Komal Kalra, Mike Szymanski and Anna Olszewska
In this essay, we seek to understand how international business schools contribute to the development of effective global leaders. To do so, we start by examining the practical…
Abstract
In this essay, we seek to understand how international business schools contribute to the development of effective global leaders. To do so, we start by examining the practical needs and challenges faced by multicultural teams operating in diverse global environments. Next, we compare and contrast three models of global leadership skills development used at three international institutions in Poland, Mexico, and Canada. We analyze each approach using Brake’s (1997) global leadership triad and Oddou and Mendenhall’s (2018) transformational axes model. We then discuss the future of global leadership education and the role business schools should play in the development of appropriate skills.
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Jordyn Hrenyk, Mike Szymanski, Anirban Kar and Stacey R. Fitzsimmons
Multicultural individuals are those who identify with two or more cultures, such as Chinese-Canadians, Turkish-Germans, or Arab-Americans. They are more likely to see multiple…
Abstract
Multicultural individuals are those who identify with two or more cultures, such as Chinese-Canadians, Turkish-Germans, or Arab-Americans. They are more likely to see multiple sides of an ethical dilemma than monocultural individuals, who identify with one culture. This tendency toward ethical relativism – where ethics are seen to be relative to the context – could help multicultural individuals excel as ethical global leaders. Global leaders must manage the ethical tensions inherent in their multinational operations by understanding multiple ethical perspectives. Multiculturals’ inclination toward relativism may be driven by the structure or content of their cultural identities. The identity structure argument is based on the patterns in which individuals mentally organize their cultural identities, while the identity content argument is based on the degree to which individuals endorse relativism as a result of having internalized cultural schemas with relativist norms. We offer an exploratory test of these dual hypotheses, and find evidence to support the identity structure, but not the identity content argument. Specifically, multicultural individuals who separate their cultures are more likely to exhibit relativism in decision-making than those who integrate them. This indicates that identity patterns can drive relativism. In contrast, individuals who identify with high relativism cultures are not more likely to endorse relativism than those who identify with low relativism cultures, indicating a lack of evidence for identity content driving relativism. These findings have implications for hiring or placement managers who seek global leaders who are likely to see more than one side of an ethical issue.
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Finlay Maclean, Renzo Cordina and Martin J. Gannon
The purpose of this study is to investigate the Union of European Football Associations’s Financial Fair Play (FFP) Regulations in the context of the European football industry…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the Union of European Football Associations’s Financial Fair Play (FFP) Regulations in the context of the European football industry. This study seeks to explore whether these regulations are perceived by member organisations as contributing to the creation of a “poverty trap”. To do so, this study turns towards what are traditionally perceived as smaller clubs operating in smaller member associations and, in doing so, explores whether the regulations limiting benefactor payments are suitable for smaller leagues.
Design/methodology/approach
In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with key individuals involved in the management of Scottish football clubs. The Scottish context was chosen because of the disparity in revenues amongst competing teams and the limited broadcasting revenues achieved in comparison to some other European member associations.
Findings
FFP Regulations are perceived to be an effective tool for monitoring clubs and ensuring financial stability. However, the findings suggest that participants believe that these regulations consolidate the financial position of larger teams who rely on broadcasting and extant brand power for revenue generation. Further, smaller leagues demonstrate a lesser reliance on benefactor payments, and therefore, the restriction on benefactor payments inherent within FFP Regulations is posited by participants as holding little consequence and/or relevance within the Scottish football context.
Originality/value
Most prior studies on FFP Regulations have focused on generating quantitative insight into the application of FFP Regulations in large, resource-rich European football leagues. Through a qualitative approach, this study provides nascent exploratory insight into FFP Regulations from the perspective of smaller leagues.