Groomed or Doomed? by Tracy June Dy

In fashion, trend is something that people will always have to look forward to. A trend is something that they themselves would want to be part of because if they do, they will be part of the “in” crowd. More so in the business world, trend is not a foreign word. And right now the trend is to be globally competitive. So how can one be globally competitive when for some they are not even locally competitive?

The question posted above has been my constant challenge to my students. And with the ASEAN integration in 2015, it would only be fitting to really prepare ourselves or say groom ourselves to be ASEAN-ly competitive. By the time comes, it is not only local experts that we will have to compete with but as well as the experts coming from the different countries. If we will not prepare ourselves even to the slightest detail such as the proper courtesy greetings then everything will have to fall apart in front of our eyes. Our future then will be doomed.

It is already a common understanding that because we are coming from different countries; we are also set apart by our different cultures and values. What could be acceptable to one country would be considered rude or an insult to the others. Hence, there is really a need to study at least the different management approaches and values of different countries. It may be an added task to study them or at least allow ourselves to be familiar with their customs, but it could bring us places and close us a lot of deals in the future. The saying now that says, “what we didn’t know, won’t hurt us” is no longer acceptable. In the present time, one false move and everything will be put to waste. For an instance, giving a clock as a gift to a Chinese business partner is a very big mistake. A clock may just be an ordinary item but in the Chinese culture, clock as a gift is unlucky. Doing so, may lose you the business contract. And to avoid such loss is to at least submit ourselves to a little research about the culture of our soon – to – be business partners.

One of my students once asked me; what is the importance of studying the management approaches of the different countries assigned to the class. He could not quite connect the importance yet to our subject matter which is Human Behavior in Organization. I did not answer him with a concrete answer yet but rather throw the question back to him. It made him think and said maybe at the end of the course he’ll understand. To further enrich the lesson and for them to really understand better the importance of the subject, I invited someone, a friend who worked at Proctor and Gamble to share her experiences. It was only then did he understand the connection. The student again approached me and told me his realization. According to him because he didn’t really consider working for multinational companies in the future nor work abroad, there’s no need for the subject to be added to our course subject. It was only then that he realized that even if one will only have to work here in the Philippines, it is important that at least we have a little know how of the culture and customs of the people that we will have to deal with in the future. Individually we already have differences that we have to accept, adjust with and deal with every single day. And as we continue to seek for personal success whether it will be entrepreneurial or being employed by organizations, one has to learn the different protocols and etiquette in business. Being ignorant is considered a crime and it takes a lot of effort to rebuild a broken bridge.

Dr. Mehmet Derindag is a living testimony that indeed there is a need for us to be accustomed to the management approaches and values by the different countries. Inherent to his job as a United Nation Peace Keeping Agent, it is expected of him to know all of these for him to deliver his job effectively. Having him as a speaker that day; is some sort of a reminder for those who already are aware of these and a wake – up call for those who are still in doubt and unaware. A wake – up call for everyone that it is still not too late to learn and be groomed to be a person sophisticated enough to handle business meetings and banquets. Whatever is our position in our own organization, be it rank and file or supervisory, it is still a good investment to be globally competitive. A soldier untrained and misinformed sent in to a battle is expected to fail as compared to a soldier equipped with the necessary tactics and strategy. The latter may fall during the battle but what is important is that he fought it with the best that he could.

Now, a personal challenge has been thrown to us. The question is, are we willing to accept that challenge. In our pursuit for a personal and organizational success, how far are we willing to sacrifice? Understanding individual differences and local culture have been a struggle for some already. With the added burden in going global, are we up for the challenge or are we contented already with the status quo. One may have their own personal take on this matter, but one must remember that no one has been successful by just simply sitting around. With success comes being determined and resilient to changes. And if the current trend is being globally competitive, one is expected to claim the spotlight and refrain from just sitting on the side lines. There is nothing greater than being able to keep pace with the different norms and being able to project harmony in business than being ignorant and proud enough not to at least try.