Multinational Corporations

The future of management will be influenced greatly by the continued growth of transnational, transideological, or multinational corporations. For some time, managers in international organizations have been faced with the problems of learning to work with people in foreign countries. These problems include training, motivation, communication, and leadership as they relate to workers and managers from different cultures. Studies of management in various countries also show that changes in an organization's external environment have a direct influence on the way managers carry out the functions of management. It is obvious, therefore, that managers in one country will always have to manage somewhat differently from those in another.

Regardless of the countries where multinational corporations will be operating in the future, two factors will continue to affect the success of their managers. One will be the ability to adjust rapidly to the new problems and challenges produced by different cultures. An important requirement here will be that of developing the human resources of host countries, especially the development of qualified managers at the local level.

A second factor concerns the ability of managers to recognize the most important environmental constraints existing in different cultures. By knowing these constraints, managers will be better prepared to identify those practices which seem to have the greatest chance of success. An understanding of a given culture, for example, can assist managers in recognizing leadership styles that best fit the needs of employees within that culture. As a result, these managers are less likely to be resented as "outsiders" who are trying to force their own cultural values on others.