INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR (Essay Sample)

International Organizational Behavior ((Author's name) (Institution Affiliation) (Course) (Instructor) (Due Date) Question one In-depth assessment of Indian culture India is one of the most populous countries with close to a billion people with diverse cultural backgrounds. Despite its extensive demographic and geographic diversity, it has certain shared cultural values, beliefs, and attitudes (Satpathy, 2015; Levenburg & Schwarz, 2008). Some of these shared cultural values promote entrepreneurship and are widely responsible for India’s success, particularly in business. Nonetheless, the subcontinent is still plagued by inefficiencies that hinder its growth and prosperity. As Satpathy (2015) points out, India has a very rich heritage and culture that is close to over 5000 years old. The Indian culture is renowned for its promotion of values such as generosity, helpfulness, relation building, frugality, and bootstrapping. These values form part of the Globe Framework known as the human orientation. The Indian culture rewards people for their kindness and altruistic acts. Due to their humane orientation, Indians are also more inclined to provide both social and financial support to those close to them (Satpathy, 2015). Such support is crucial for entrepreneurship development since those that are not well off may feel adequately secure and can start a business. In addition, due to such cultural values, Indians that are well-off are more inclined to view failure as normal and still provide additional support for those experiencing difficulties managing their businesses. Indian youths are prone to failure and with such support from families and close friend, they may not feel ostracized. As Levenburg & Schwarz (2008) alludes, the fear of failure is among the many reasons that impend entrepreneurship. Since failure is not detested in the Indian culture, entrepreneurial activities are widespread. India has a collectivist culture that promotes harmony and interdependence (Gupta & Kirwan, 2013). Most Indian families maintain strong family ties and this has contributed to their entrepreneurial success (Levenburg & Schwarz, 2008). As Gupta & Kirwan (2013) points out, family businesses in India are ranked at the top worldwide. Family businesses are very common in India and some have grown extensively to an extent of dominating the global market. The Adani Group and Reliance Group are good examples of successful family businesses. The family dynamics of most Indian families are partly responsible for the success of such conglomerates. Conversely, the issue of succession which is prevalent in most family businesses adversely affects the longevity of some Indian businesses. The Bajaj and the Hinduja Group are excellent examples of Indian Conglomerates that have been hit by family feuds (Deb & Murthy, 2012). Such feuds can threaten the continuity of even century-old empires. Although the companies are still operational, the feuds are likely to culminate into messy splits between some of the family members that hold substantial shares in the companies (Satpathy, 2015). Close family connection among Indians can be beneficial in entrepreneurial development and also detrimental, particularly in matters relating to succession. Question two As an executive of an international company seeking to adapt to the Indian culture and business environment, I would first try to understand the Indian diverse culture. India is a high-context culture and this means that they are collectivist and place a lot of emphasis on interpersonal relationships. Indians are also influenced by shared cultural values and religion even while conducting business. Trust and relationships are crucial aspects that I would strive to build especially when trying to create a lasting business relationship with local businesses and customers (Satpathy, 2015). Indians also respect hierarchy and hold the elderly in high esteem. For my international firm to succeed, I will recognize how important such cultural norms are to Indians and respect the values that underpin their business practices. Although younger Indians are less conservative unlike the older generation, they still uphold many of their traditional values particularly when around their elders. The next step I would take would be to familiarize myself with the Indian business, legal and finance environment. India's business environment is characterized by inefficiencies, bureaucratic barriers, slow legal processes, poor infrastructure, and stiff competition. The more an international business familiarizes itself with such factors, the better prepared the business will be in dealing with some of these inadequacies (Satpathy, 2015). In India, bribes are considered a normal part of conducting business. Government officials at various checkpoints routinely collect bribes. The only effective way to overcome such challenges is to ensure that the business is fully compliant with all the government requirements and is conversant with the Indian legal framework. This will allow the business to be in control of situations that may arise when dealing with corrupt government officials. To take advantage of the Indian expertise in frugal innovation, I would first adopt a frugal business model. Doing so will allow my business to tap into the Indian human resource. I will also be keen on adopting a decentralized organizational structure that fosters collaboration with the local talent (Radziszewska, 2014). A centralized system is quite inflexible and may limit innovativeness and inclusivity in decision-making. I would also create a work environment that encourages customer engagement to better understand the needs and preferences of Indian consumers. The Hofstede conceptual framework and the Globe framework are appropriate models for understanding the cultural attitudes of Indians and how these attitude impact business (Hofstede, 2011). The power distance dimension encapsulates the attitudes of specific cultures toward inequalities. India ranks high on this dimension particularly due to the strong emphasis the Indian people place on hierarchy. In India, most businesses have a top-down structure in which an organization leader makes all the decisions and determine the direction of the business (Satpathy, 2015). The employees take directives from their supervisors and the employees’ feedback is usually not highly regarded. India ranks low on individualism since it is a mostly collectivistic culture where large social networks are given prominence (Gupta & Kirwan, 2013). Additionally, most Indians maintain strong ties with their families and are largely dependent on them. As earlier noted, family businesses are very common in India, and thus hiring decisions are mainly based on relationships. On uncertainty avoidance, India ranks low since Indians are more inclined to accepts imperfection and failure. Indians are also very tolerant, and thus failure is not usually frowned upon as it is viewed as part of one’s journey (Hofstede, 2011). As indicated earlier, this aspect is partly responsible for their entrepreneurial spirit since in such cultures the fear of failure does not prevent people from venturing into business or trying out new experiences. On the flip side, Indians are less inclined to take initiative to improve their situation and tend to often settle for less. It is such attitudes that ...