GLOBAL MINDSET,

GLOBAL LEADERS
AND VIRTUAL TEAMS
 THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX
• There has not always been a convergence of views about the ideas of
‘Thinking Global, Acting Local’, and the practice of HRM is no
exception. Indeed, the International HRM literature does suggest on one
hand that the nature of HRM tends to be context-specific (“local”), as
such resulting in considerable diversity in the way local cultural factors
impact on and determine how people are to be managed in different
countries.
WHAT IS GLOBAL MINDSET?
• Global mindset is a concept that encompasses holistic competencies
and is frequently associated with the mindset needed for global
leadership (Cohen, 2010) in a global business context (Begley and
Boyd, 2003) to make strategic business decisions. At the individual
level, Levy et al. (2007), concluded that the global mindset is a
multi-dimensional concept and described it as “a highly complex
cognitive structure characterized by an openness to and articulation of
multiple cultural and strategic realities on both the global and local
levels, and the cognitive ability to mediate and integrate across this
multiplicity” (p. 244).
WHY IS GLOBAL MINDSET
IMPORTANT?
• Connectedness
• Technology
• Expanding markets
• Demographics
• Economics
• Sustainability
CSEH, DAVIS AND KHILJI (2013)
The authors identify the following three critical components of a global mindset essential
for global leadership:
• intellectual capital;
• psychological capital; and
• social capital.

Intellectual capital refers to the knowledge and understanding of global business, cognitive
complexity and cultural acumen. Psychological capital is composed of a positive
psychological profile (i.e. self-efficacy, self-confidence, optimism and hope and resilience),
cosmopolitanism (e.g. respect for other cultures, openness and sensitivity, flexibility) and a
passion for cross-cultural encounters. The three types of social capital (structural,
relational and cognitive) reflect participation in social networks, the nature of relationships
in those networks, and the shared meanings derived from them. Global mindset mirrors
self-confidence balanced by humility and generosity, and like cultural competence and
intelligence encompasses skills such as flexibility and adaptability, collaboration and listening
(Werhane et al., 2006; Thorn, 2007).
THE GLOBAL LEADERSHIP MANAGEMENT MODEL
THE GLM MODEL
The GLM model has the following three dimensions integrated
by the learning process:

(1) orientation
(2) knowledge
(3) behavior
 ORIENTATION
– which is a way of being that includes elements of openness,
collaboration, awareness, mindfulness, appreciation, flexibility and
cosmopolitanism related to cross-cultural issues
- openness, collaboration, awareness, mindfulness, appreciation, flexibility
and cosmopolitanism (Adleret al., 2001; Javidan et al., 2006; Levy et al.,
2007).
- Transcendence, plasticity of the mind (flexibility; thinking differently;
rebalancing; openness; having multiple frames of reference),
mindfulness, curiosity, and humility.
- Integrity, passion, and fortitude.
KNOWLEDGE

- defined as a cognitive structure consisting of sense-making, systems

thinking, integration, selection, analysis, imagination, reasoning,
intuition, perception and judgment
- the global environment and the self were essential requirements for
global leadership.
- related to cross-cultural issues, the global environment and the self
were essential requirements for global leadership.
BEHAVIOUR

- an enactment of orientation and knowledge, which includes a

propensity to engage, be curious, have the ability to build emotional
connections, demonstrate global business savvy, exhibit cultural
awareness and appreciation, balance tensions, evidence visioning, and
cope with the speed of changing events and technologies.
GLOBAL LEADERS WITH
GLOBAL MINDSET
• Read the article ‘Global Managers with Global Mindset” and answer
the question;

How does Global Mindset create global managers?

VIRTUAL TEAMS

• Virtual teams possess characteristics that distinguish them from

conventional, face-to-face teams (Bell and Kozlowski, 2002). Members
of virtual teams are not physically proximal. However, the tasks,
goals, or missions they are designed to accomplish are not necessarily
different from those of conventional teams. It is the way they go
about accomplishing those tasks, and the unique constraints they face,
that are different. There are two main distinguishing characteristics
between virtual teams and conventional teams, namely: spatial
distance; and information, data, and personal communication
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
CONVENTIONAL TEAMS AND
VIRTUAL TEAMS
BENEFITS OF WORKING IN VIRTUAL TEAMS

• Time: flexibility and autonomy applied to time management leaves everybody in

charge of their own time, and lets them choose their work schedules.
• Space: With no need of a visa or transportation to a physical location, people can
access their virtual office from anywhere in the world, giving them the freedom to
choose their physical work space.
• Money: By not having a physical location, the company and the team alike save
money on facilities and on transport to and from the workplace.
• Comfort: The privilege of working from home or wherever a person chooses
affords them greater comfort, from small aspects like the manner of dress, all the
way up to the person's selection of a preferred workspace and schedule.
• Flexibility: Albeit many tasks require doing while other non-virtual business is
open, and thus with a fixed, set work schedule, there are others that grant
flexibility. Virtual work offers people the flexibility they need to strike a good
balance between their work lives and personal lives.
• Environment:
- Transportation: no need for public or private transportation to work. The
worker chooses the most comfortable and appropriate place to work.
- Paper: There are no documents to print. All communications take place via
computer.
 CHALLENGES OF WORKING IN VIRTUAL TEAMS
• Physical distance: As there is no face to face contact, cool relations are a risk for the
work environment, so it is advisable to pay attention to the team and implement
strategies that help to humanize the virtual media.
• Changing world: The virtual world is subject to rapid unforeseen changes, and can
cause feelings of instability. So adaption and change management skills must be
strengthened in the team.
• Routine: As in all work, one of the main enemies of motivation is routine, and this is a
major risk in the virtual medium. Putting in long hours in front of a computer can lead to
exhaustion, stress and routine. The team needs to have a source of positive motivation
to keep this aspect from affecting its work.
• Personal life and work life imbalance: As it involves work being done in the same
physical space as where most people typically go about their personal lives, it is feasible
that work will be invasive in the personal life or viceversa. This means that maintaining
harmony between work life and personal life is important.
• Diverse multicultural teams: Virtual teams for the most part are made up of diverse
cultures, each of which have their own customs, beliefs and work habits. This becomes a
challenge as each person follows their own way of working, and the use of one common
language in the team creates a need for certain skills that can unify these differences
based on a series of agreements.