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Blog 4 Angela Merkel, a Global Leader

October 11, 2021 by kmb7437 3 Comments

Gideon Rachman wrote in the Financial Times that “since 1945, Europe has become increasingly prosperous, peaceful and comfortable – and irrelevant” and closed the article with “Europe has become a giant Switzerland” (Mahbubani 2020). After all the criticism that Europe has received regarding its ability to lead globally, in walks Angela Merkel. Merkel who is a trained quantum chemist from East Germany, has quickly propelled herself to be a global leader.

Merkel is succeeding as a woman, in a male oriented party, as Germany’s first female political leader (Connolly 2015). Many world leaders have tried to overpower or humiliate her during her tenure, but she had endured. Vladimir Putin brought his dog into a meeting with her, knowing she is afraid of dogs, Donald Trump told her she was stupid and Silvio Berlusconi left her waiting for 15 minutes while he chatted away on a phone call (Kottasova 2021). Even her own party referred to her as “Miss Germany” or das Madchen (the girl in German).

Why is Merkel so successful as a global leader? She has become the world’s crisis manager, having seen Germany through the global financial crisis that took down many a nation. While some people might call her boring, she is calm, pragmatic and diplomatic and people would never think of her as being a corrupt politician (Kottasoca 2021). Her scientific approach to leadership has helped her image as a wonderful mediator. She famously helped created a deal between Eurozone and Greece and convinced Russia and Ukraine’s top officials to speak with each other. She also convinced G8 leaders to cut greenhouse gas emotions and got George Bush to admit there was a climate problem (Kottasoca 2021).

She has never been afraid of being the minority voice in the group by bringing compassion and insistence in the political decisions. Many German’s are concerned about the direction the country will go after her retirement. With deadly floods that happened in Germany and the refusal of some of Germany’s state governments to refuse her desire for further lockdowns during the COVID pandemic crisis, many fear the departure of politics balancing with science (2021).

References

Connolly, K. (January 7, 2015) Ten Reasons Angela Merkel is the World’s Most Powerful Woman. Retrieved October 11, 2021 from: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/07/ten-reasons-angela-merkel-germany-chancellor-world-most-powerful-woman

Kottasova, I. Angela Merkel endured as others came and went. Now world’s crisis manager steps down. Retrieved October 11, 2021 from: https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/17/europe/angela-merkel-retirement-germany-analysis-grm-intl/index.html

Mahbubani, K. (June 26, 2020). Can the ER Assume the Mantle of Global Leadership? Retrieved October 11, 2021, from: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/06/eu-global-leadership/

Politics will be poorer without angela merkel’s scientific approach. (2021). Nature (London), 597(7876), 304-304. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-021-02479-6

Blog #3 Work in Colombia

October 7, 2021 by kmb7437 1 Comment

I had the unique opportunity to really get the sense of working in Latin America when speaking with my sister-in-law, who grew up in Colombia. In our conversations regarding working and leadership in Colombia verses the United States there is a vast difference of what is expected of employees. She expressed how Colombians are workaholics because they do not have the luxury of being bad employees like people do in other countries. If you are a bad employee in Colombia, the simple solution is that you are fired. Having been a small business owner here in the United States, she said it was very difficult to get rid of bad employees here. There are so many law and agencies that protect the individual that if you do not take great care to document and council an employee before terminating them it can be very costly to the business owner. In Colombia there are millions of overqualified people looking for work there and a grateful for the position they have a treasure it and go over the top with their work ethics.

Colombians are extremely friendly and very family oriented which is why your co-workers become a second family to you. There is a section of Human Resources in most companies that are dedicated to celebrating special events like birthdays, special occasions, Christmas, and Amigo secreto which she described as being similar to our secret Santa but is celebrated in September. They are dedicated to keeping workers healthy and have active breaks for stretching and walking around, which is necessary for the long hours the company demands of its employees.

Some major differences are pay in Colombia. There are not payments for hourly work, but you work on salary which is paid either bi-monthly or monthly depending on the company. People are hired on contracts that are either temporary or long term, which is where your salary is set. Long term contracts tend to get what is called Prima, which is a bonus paid in both June and December.

Getting hired is also a long and painful process and could take years. Occasionally there are lucky ones that the process only takes several months. Because companies spend so much money on-boarding their employees, they want to ensure that it is a good fit and there are tons of interviews, math, English and psychological tests. You usually start competing against hundreds of other applicants and each test whittles down until you just have a couple qualified candidates that are up to the company’s standards. It is only then that you will get an interview with the boss who will make the final decision.

On-boarding can take weeks or months as you go though mental health tests, doctor’s appointments, blood tests and even sometimes social workers visit your home and interview your household to see if you are a good fit for the company. They take pictures of your home and family to keep on file. It can be a very involved process depending on the company.

References

Abramson, N. R., & Moran, R. T. (2018). Negotiating Long Term for Mutual Benefit. In Managing cultural Differences: Global leadership for the 21st century. essay, Routledge.

Frick, A., Personal Communications, October 4, 2021.

Blog 2 Global Leaders Learning in Response to Change

September 30, 2021 by kmb7437 1 Comment

Global leaders learning in response to change has been the focus in the last eighteen months. With restrictions in movement, breakdowns in supply chains, shutdowns in countries, it has been nearly two years of learning and pivoting. Many companies have also had expanded opportunities that they did not have two years ago. When the entire world shift to an online experience, companies had to pivot as well and create an online presence, or they would be devastated by companies like Amazon that could deliver to a home in house. Nearly a quarter of companies saw their sales fall more than fifty percent since the pandemic began (Tracking an unprecedented year for businesses, everywhere 2021). The IBM Institute for Business Value noted that executives’ top priorities have shifted dramatically on customer retention, workforce safety and cost management (Covid-19 and the future of business 2020).

Due to the pandemic and panic buying havoc is being seen in the global supply chains. Factories are shut down due to COVID, parts and supplies are impossible to get, worker shortages are everywhere. Even when supplies are able to be shipped, they can’t make it into port. In September 56 cargo ships were stuck off the coast of California, unable to get into port while they deal with the 140 ships already there (Kay & Towey 2021). The California ports in Los Angeles not only account for one third of the US imports but also are the primary source of imports from China (Kay & Towey 2021).

The Head of the Adecco Group, which is a Swiss company is quoted as saying “As countries begin to emerge from the worst effects of the pandemic, a picture of those that have been successful in mitigating the labor market and economic impact is appearing. In broad terms, countries that responded more quickly with economic support and helped employees stay in the work process as much as possible are showing better prospects” (Clift & Court 2020).

It goes beyond keeping the doors open and customer retention/acquisition. Many of these Global Leaders have committed millions of dollars to combat the COVID crisis. Coca-Cola donated three million for front line workers in the Philippines, Chevron seven million to fight the disease globally and Amazon gave one hundred million for food banks (Seetharaman & Gallucci, 2020). These companies are doing something beyond what is expected for company survival. The global economy shrunk by 4.4% in 2020 which is the worst decline since the Great Depression what these business leaders are doing is much needed relief to these counties (Jones 2021).

While the focus of the past eighteen months has been how to we stay afloat, leaders now need to focus on where we go from here. This pandemic is not going away any time soon and has changed the world in many ways. Times of meeting face to face, shopping in stores are fading away and if businesses can’t account for that they will fade away as well.

References

Clift, K., & Court, A. (2020, March 23). Covid-19: How companies are responding. World Economic Forum. Retrieved September 30, 2021, from https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/how-are-companies-responding-to-the-coronavirus-crisis-d15bed6137/.

Covid-19 and the future of business. IBM. (2020). Retrieved September 30, 2021, from https://www.ibm.com/thought-leadership/institute-business-value/report/covid-19-future-business.

Jones, L. (2021, January 24). Coronavirus: How the pandemic has changed the World Economy. BBC News. Retrieved September 30, 2021, from https://www.bbc.com/news/business-51706225.

Kay, G., & Towey, H. (2021, September 14). An all-time high of 56 cargo ships are stuck waiting off the California coast, as shipping ports hit their 4th record backup in three weeks. Business Insider. Retrieved September 30, 2021, from https://www.businessinsider.com/shipping-delays-china-supply-chain-record-ships-stuck-california-ports-2021-8.

Seetharaman, M., & Gallucci, J. (2020, April 17). How global 500 companies are responding to COVID-19. Fortune. Retrieved September 30, 2021, from https://fortune.com/2020/04/13/global-500-companies-coronavirus-response-covid-19-pandemic/.

Tracking an unprecedented year for businesses, everywhere. World Bank. (2021, February 21). Retrieved September 30, 2021, from https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2021/02/17/tracking-an-unprecedented-year-for-businesses-everywhere.

Why is it harder for women to be promoted in their careers?

September 9, 2021 by kmb7437 Leave a Comment

Over the years there have been numerous articles written about why it is harder for women to be promoted. There is a gender pay gap, where in 2020, women earned 84% of what men earned (Barroso & Brown, 2021). This does not account for the fact that women are more likely to work lower paying jobs because it is more probably for a women to leave the workforce for a period of time to either raise children or take care of an aging relative (Goldin, 2014). Due to taking care of a family, women are more likely to require irregular work scheduling, which results in lower paying jobs (Golden, 2015).

What many people do not consider is that we, as women, celebrate minor victories allowing men to pat themselves on the back like they achieved something by allowing us these successes. This past summer there was an article written that celebrated that “The female CEOs on this year’s list of Fortune 500 just broke three all-time records” (Hinchliffe 2021). The article goes on to brag about the number of women running fortune 500 businesses was 41, two of those were black women and one woman was running the number 4 company and how these were milestone achievements. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 57.4 percent of women participate in the labor force compared to 69.2 percent of men, which is only a difference of 11.8 percent participation and yet we are celebrating women making up only 8.1% of the Fortune 500 (Hinchliffe 2021).

The MBA degree has reported a significant drop in attendance, but women still make up 39% of that enrollment. With these types of numbers why are women not making up a higher percentage of CEOs in these Fortune 500 companies? When women celebrate these minor accomplishments, it allows people to believe that we are ok with what we are handed. Why do we need to have more women in power when we are excited to have 41 out of 500? Can you imagine a man writing an article congratulating the male gender for having accomplished only 8.1%? Lorraine Hariton, the CEO of the global gender equality firm Catalyst, told CNBC that “we continue to see steady profess in the Fortune 500” (Connley 2021).

The problem is that women are still seen as intimidating, aggressive or bossy when they stand up for themselves and when women advocate for themselves, they are seen unfavorably (Gillett 2020). Men and women alike believe the gender bias and overestimate the ability of men and underestimate our own abilities. Until we, as women, unite and say enough is enough, we will continue to celebrate these mild accomplishments and congratulate each other on a job well done.

References

Abramson, N. R., & Moran, R. T. (2018). Managing cultural Differences: Global leadership for the 21st century (10th ed.). Routledge.

Barroso, A., & Brown, A. (2021, May 25). Gender pay gap in U.S. held steady in 2020. Pew Research Center. Retrieved September 9, 2021, from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/05/25/gender-pay-gap-facts/.

Connley, C. (2021, June 2). A record 41 women are Fortune 500 ceos-and for the first time two black women made the list. CNBC. Retrieved September 9, 2021, from https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/02/fortune-500-now-has-a-record-41-women-running-companies.html.

Gillett, R. (2020, April 17). Gender bias could make it harder for women to become ceo, according to a recent study. Business Insider. Retrieved September 9, 2021, from https://www.businessinsider.com/why-women-almost-never-become-ceo-2016-9.

Golden, L. (n.d.). Irregular work scheduling and its consequences. Economic Policy Institute. https://www.epi.org/publication/irregular-work-scheduling-and-its-consequences/.

Goldin, C. 2014. “A Grand Gender Convergence: Its Last Chapter.” American Economic Review, 104 (4): 1091-1119.

Hinchliffe, E. (2021, June 2). The female CEOs on this YEAR’S Fortune 500 just broke three ALL-TIME RECORDS. Fortune. Retrieved September 9, 2021, from https://fortune.com/2021/06/02/female-ceos-fortune-500-2021-women-ceo-list-roz-brewer-walgreens-karen-lynch-cvs-thasunda-brown-duckett-tiaa/.

Hou, C.-Y. (2020, February 6). More women are in mba programs, but work remains to be done. TheHill. Retrieved September 9, 2021, from https://thehill.com/changing-america/opinion/481715-more-women-are-in-mba-programs-but-work-remains-to-be-done.

Introduction

September 6, 2021 by kmb7437 1 Comment

My name is Knikky Balson. I plan to graduate this spring with my degree in Organizational Leadership. Currently I work at a local community college in Maryland. I have one college age daughter who will graduate at the same time I do and my son is a sophomore in high school. I went back to school shortly before my daughter started. I have been trying to tell my kids how important college is and realized without having finished myself, it was hard to argue for a college education so I went back. I have also served in the United States Navy.