What is your dream job? You are studying for your master's degree or MBA and are now starting to look to the future. What step will you take next? What's in store, and are you prepared and marketable on a global scale? Your dreams are within your reach. You want to land a lucrative job in a multinational firm with a great title, salary and all the responsibility that goes with it. Before sending out applications and scheduling interviews, make sure you are ready and equipped with the tools needed to be successful in striving for the future of your dreams.
The pace of change in the world is accelerating. Business is globalized, and opportunities abound for the right candidates ready to fill roles that require a diverse set of skills and talents that transgress borders, embrace diversity, and foster a sense of creativity and ingenuity that set them apart from the crowd.
What skills do you need to lead a multinational company?
There are certain professional qualities that foster success and will propel you to the top of the corporate ladder, working on the international stage. Here is an evaluation of top talent for multinational roles in global business. What designates an effective manager who achieves results versus a leader?
1. Functional Skills and Technical Expertise
What competencies do you have to offer? Do you have a set of skills that no one else does? A good business manager will have a comprehensive understanding of all aspects of the business arena from finance to marketing. Don't underestimate the value of also knowing a little something about the information technologies industry. You will never be expected to write code, but having a frame of reference regards to SEO, development, and can understand the language will be an added bonus.
2. Adaptability
How do you adapt under pressure and in different environments? Do you have the capacity to be flexible and perform when it counts? Multinational companies want employees and managers to be able to perform in a wide variety of scenarios from emerging markets to established firms, looking at consolidated positions and potential opportunities. Having flexibility and maneuvering through fluid situations fraught with uncertainty, whether in your past or demonstrating it on the job, will quickly determine your potential to take on more responsibility.
3. Exhibit Leadership
Lead by example and create a positive vision. Do you take initiative, looking for new ways of doing things, adapting functions, and implementing new processes to make operations more productive and efficient? An effective leader not only leads teams, but manages the entire field of operations with competence and ease.
4. Ability to Manage People
Yes, leading people in the direction the organization deems fit is one aspect of people management, but do you have it within yourself to foster a hunger and determination to see results? Are you entrepreneurial, looking for solutions, driving change and encouraging the same attitude from your employees? Employees are not only happy when they have good benefits and feel appreciated, but it also serves the business well to nurture drive and vision, delegating important functions to key individuals, urging teams to take initiative, be more active and take pride in the work they perform.
5. Personal Branding
In today's digitally connected world, personal branding is extremely important.
For you to come up on the radar of a notable multinational firm, you must be socially connected with a large network and digital presence. According to Pramukh Jeyathila, Global Human Resources Leader at Amazon, he tells people to, "think about their personal brands first and the company second. You need to rise to the occasion and be more than the sum of your parts."
It is not only what you do, but how you do it. It is important to keep these points in mind as you prepare to launch a dynamic career in the global marketplace.
- Build Relationships
- Look Ahead
- Calculate Risk
- Become a Team Leader
- Balance the 'Head and the Hand'
- Handle Ambiguity
- Deal with Change
Globalization has changed the frame of reference for economic activity and has shifted the international business complex into overdrive. To change the way we do business around the globe, we must also bring change to the way universities teach business in order to meet the demand and stay at the edge of innovation. At GBSB Global Business School our business school in Barcelona, we have implemented this change by ensuring that our students understand that the international landscape has been transformed. Business is no longer just a matter for Wall Street or for Main Street U.S.A., but it is conducted on every highway and byway, in every community and region, large and small, around the world.
By 2025, nearly half of the world's largest companies are forecasted to be located in emerging markets, overwhelmingly shifting the dynamics of global competition. These emerging markets are changing the face of business, offering market growth for global corporations.
At GBSB, we teach state of the art theory, immerse students in a diverse, international community, and connect them to best practices in business. GBSB fashioned an innovative classroom environment that:
Nurtures intellectual flexibility;
Develops cultural literacy, building a solid knowledge of customs and history in established, emerging, and consolidated markets;
Fosters a strong foundation in ethics;
Teaches the skills to be thorough and effective communicators, often speaking multiple foreign languages;
Encourages optimism, creativity, a collaborative approach, and the willingness to become a great leader.
With these core practices at heart, the education provided by GBSB leads the way in preparing students to surmount the competition, effectively lead teams on a global scale, and ultimately achieve dreams.
Want to make your dream come true? Click here to get more information on how GBSB can help turn your aspirations into reality.
Written by Emily Dawn Szajda, GBSB Content Manager