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Dawn
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Dashboard Spring Semester 2017 SP2017-LEAD-644-999 January 16 - January 22
Second week's discussion questions Globalization, cultural diversity and education

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January 9 - Globalization, cultural diversity and education
January 15 by Peterson, Dawn - Thursday, January 26, 2017, 11:16 AM
January 16 -
January 22
Second In her article on globalization, Osland defines it as a process leading to

week's greater economic interdependence and networks and the economic,

discussio political, social, cultural, and environmental results of that process

th
n (2011, p. 4). Globalization has been around since the 15 century but

questions with the new advances in technology, international transportation and

telecommunications weve seen an even greater rush to globalization (p.
3). Even small companies are able to take advantage of this with
Global
internet opening up new markets around the world. But there are two
izatio
sides to every story and the debate is strong in the area of globalization
n,
impacts. According to Osland, much of the academic literature lacks
cultur
empirical support and falls into primarily a pro or con classification
al
(p.4). This makes understanding the issues at hand inherently difficult,
divers
ity
 and but Osland summed up the impact on the five major areas; equality,
educa labor conditions, government, culture and community, and environmental
tion sustainability.
January 23 -
January 29
January 30 - For this paper I have decided to briefly look at three of the areas
February 5 impacted by globalization. The first one of concern to leaders is that of
labor conditions. There are positive and negative effects on each side.
February 6 -
On the positive side; some workers from lesser developed countries can
February 12
receive more education and training, increased job opportunities in
February 13
some countries, and increased labor productivity. While these sound
- February
great, the negative impacts are very concerning. These include; certain
19
industries and companies were forced out of business, job displacement,
February 20 diminished social contract between employer and employee, and
- February decreased labor standards (p. 9). Multinational companies that choose
26 to move their manufacturing to countries offering a free trade zone need
February 27 to be careful that labor rights are not lowered in the zones in
- March 5 comparison to other parts of the same country. Leaders of these
March 6 - companies also need to recognize that they are indeed responsible for
March 12 the well-being of their employees, thereby upholding their social
March 13 - contract same as in the home country. The other issue brought to light
March 19 is that with companies ability to globalize, the threat to local workers
job security is held over their heads. According to Longworth an
March 20 -
employer doesnt have to move jobs to Asia to persuade those left
March 26
behind to take pay cuts. The mere possibility that, in this global age, he
March 27 -
can do it is enough (as cited by Osland, p.9).
April 2
April 3 -
April 9
The second area impacted by globalization is environmental
April 10 - sustainability. Osland defines sustainability as meeting the needs of
April 16 present generations without compromising the ability of future
April 17 - generations to meet their own needs (p. 15). Why is this one important?
April 23 As Christians this was a directive given to Adam and Eve in the garden
April 24 - of Eden when they were told Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Earth! Take
April 30 charge! Be responsible for fish in the sea and birds in the air, for every
May 1 - May living thing that moves on the face of Earth Genesis 1:28 (The
7 Message). How does globalization impact environmental sustainability?
Some multinational companies choose to export their harmful activities
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that are not allowed in more developed countries, and while better
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technology may be available, companies do not find it cost effective to
incorporate those technologies. While other countries have benefitted
from globalization by making a narrower range of products more
$ efficiently (p. 15).
ADMINISTRATION
 The last area of impacted by globalization Id like to discuss is
Forum
cultural and community. One of the concerns is how globalization has
administration
affected communities and their way of life. Transnational agribusiness
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has replaced the family farms. While this may bring more choices with
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agriculture, it has affected the traditional way of life for many families
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and communities (p. 14). Critics are also concerned with globalization
from this forum
creating what is referred to as a monoculture. We see companies
Unsubscribe spreading their culture to other countries. Companies like Wal-Mart
from this force other smaller establishments out of business (both nationally and
discussion abroad) because they cannot compete with the price advantage. MTV is
spreading a specific culture around the world that many times offends
Course
the more conservative communities (p. 13). While visiting Berlin, we
administration
found it hard to find authentic German dining establishments. After
walking for what felt like hours, we ate at a Burger King. Our American
choices were many, but we wanted to engross ourselves in the culture
COURSE and were disappointed. Osland cites anthropologist Clifford Geerts as
SEARCH saying the world is growing both more global and more divided, more
thoroughly interconnected and more intricately portioned at the same
time (p. 14). Are we losing the beautiful distinctiveness of other
cultures? Our ethnic diversity?
Go .

What can we as leaders learn from globalization? Osland lists

three lessons we can learn. First is to include the trade-offs such as
economic development and jobs at the cost of environmental
degradation and weakened labor protection in the debate and adding
that to the total cost of global business (p.17). The second lesson is to
listen to the critics and recognize that some of their concerns may be
valid. Lastly, business people and academics should take a systems
approach that would cause global business to allow social accounting to
play a role in decisions regarding globalizing. Business schools need to
include the whole picture in regards to globalization rather than just the
cost accounting benefits (p. 18).

For companies that have chosen to globalize, what can be done

to minimize a monoculture? What can be done to help our companies
embrace and even encourage cross cultural learning? According to
Narden and Steers (2011) as the business environment has shifted to a
more intercultural one, managers are faced with finding ways to adapt
(p. 26). Managers are encouraged to develop skills that will help them
to succeed in understanding the cultural knowledge differences between
cultures and thereby allowing one to compensate for the challenges of
interacting with other cultures (p. 34-35).
 How does a manager develop these skills? One way is by
learning to identify our own cultural patterns, to acknowledge the
patterns of others, and eventually, to adapt to other cultures(Bennett,
2011, p. 36). She also suggests the need for deep cultural humility and
recognizing that our way is not the only way to approach a problem.
Another important skill is to learn to foster attitudes that will motivate
us to learn about those around us (p.40). To be curious, ask questions,
sincerely take the time to learn other cultures and the beauty they
bring. Curiosity, suspension of judgement, cognitive flexibility, cultural
humility and tolerance of ambiguity are critical core components of
intercultural competence (p. 40).

Dr. Brand asked the question whether current trends

[globalization] represent a new normal or merely a temporary fad? I
believe that we cannot put the genie back into the bottle as they say.
With technologies developing so rapidly, with the changes in business
structures requiring change to keep up, we can only look to the future
and see how best to keep up with the changes. Learning to collaborate
and manage global work teams while recognizing the differences
inherent in divergent cultures, following best methods for training, and
having a method for learning from errors are all parts of what leaders of
the future will need to know (Kirkman & Hartog, 2011) .

What does this mean for the future and how does it affect not
only the businesses in the future, but also learning institutions and
churches? According to Nadler and Tushman (2011), we are experiences
a new era in the business environment where change is happening at
frightening speeds. This affects everything from design innovation to
organizational platforms. Companies are finding the need to compete
and innovate simultaneouslyand find creative ways to design and
implement new organizational architectures in half the time (p. 643).
Companies are finding it necessary to streamline and focus their efforts
or products in order to keep up with the speed of change. While this is
evident in the business world, it can also be seen in the educational
framework also. Educational institutions find themselves competing
with each other develop increasingly more diverse options for students.
The schooling alternatives are massive to todays student. Our Adventist
schools are finding themselves in a new position of finding ways to sell
Christian education to our members. It is my belief that our schools
need to take a chapter from the business sector and find new alternative
ways to compete within a given competitive space, operating
simultaneously in mature, emerging, and future segments of the same
markets (p. 644) by looking for new ways to incorporate other options of
education into our school system. Andrews University (AU) is a good
example of how to look at educational systems differently. By being
creative in the Leadership Department (creatively designing distance
online degrees that allow for individualization, while still maintaining a
classroom environment through uses of AUs learning hub), AU has
shown their ability to embrace the advances of technology and allow
students to attend globally.

Globalization has changed our business, educational and cultural

perspectives. As we continue to conduct business it has become
important that we educate ourselves about the risks (to environment,
labor conditions, equality, governments, and cultures and communities)
of doing business in a global economy. We must take care to look to the
future while learning from the past.

References

Bennett, J. M. (2011). Cultivating intercultural competence: The

intercultural positioning system. In J. S. Osland & M. E. Turner (Eds.), The
organization behavior reader (pp. 35-48). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Kirkman, B. L., & Hartog, D. N. D. (2011). Performance management in

global teams. In J. S. Osland & M. E. Turner (Eds.), The organizational
behavior reader (pp. 616-636). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Nadler, D. A., & Tushman, M. L. (2011). The organization of the future:

Strategic imperatives and core competencies for the 21st century. In J. S.
Osland & M. E. Turner (Eds.), The organizational behavior reader (pp. 640-
653). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Nardon, L., & Sears, R. M. (2011). The new global manager: Learning
cultures on the fly. In J. S. Osland & M. E. Turner (Eds.), The organizational
behavior reader (pp. 23-35). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Osland, J. S. (2011). Broadening the debate: The pros and cons of

globalization. In J. S. Osland & M. E. Turner (Eds.), The organizational
behavior reader (Ninth ed., pp. 3-23). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

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Re: Globalization, cultural diversity and education
by Brand, Jay - Thursday, January 26, 2017, 12:14 PM

Dawn,

You have set a very high bar for us this week! Your choice of which
chapters from our textbook to integrate within your posted answers to
our questions reflects thoughtful reflection and insight.

You also do an outstanding job answering the three questions,

exploring both the 'pros' and 'cons' of globalization and supporting
any claims with evidence and relevant, logical analysis.

I agree with you that even business leaders, but certainly educational
and church leaders, should have sufficient ethical reasons to consider
carefully the labor conditions, environmental impact(s), and regional
influence(s) (including those in their home country) resulting from
global and international expansion of their enterprise(s). In this
regard, there may indeed be 'higher standards' that should be reached
beyond the mandates specified by international or national laws.

One point where I might quibble a bit with you would involve the
level of similarity between business and education. For the most part,
corporate enterprises are interested in globalization primarily for cost
savings (e.g., lower labor costs through off-shoring) and/or to open
new markets for theirs goods and services. Thus, they might prioritize
cultural awareness in various countries in order to position marketing
and promotion initiatives more effectively. For example, a friend of
mine is leading Amway's global innovation group, and I did some brief
consulting with them about expansion into France. They needed to
learn the local culture among the French people in order to adapt
their marketing strategies from North America to the new, French
culture.

In this regard, an emphasis on customer service (applying a well-

understood competency from business) within higher education might
be an excellent way to expand globally, but higher education may
have broader goals in mind than simply opening new markets for their
degree programs. However, in general, I would agree that higher
education could mostly benefit from applying business acumen to
their processes and services.

An excellent, well-reasoned, well-written post! Nicely done!

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