“When you cross immigration, please remember to switch to a new mindset,” said my boss. I wasn’t amused. I had just been promoted to an overseas role because the higher-ups felt I was competent.

But now she was telling me my approach needed change. She felt I was a little too outspoken in my communication and my colleagues felt unduly pressurised. Well, given that it was a turnaround situation, I didn’t know how I could tone myself down. Something in me was also telling me that this was who I was. I can’t change.

Another one of my global bosses once asked me whether there was anything he needed to learn before working with Indian managers. Plenty, I quipped. We are well read, we thrive on knowledge and we are very competitive and can handle pressure like no one else. Recognition from bosses is something we live for. I am not sure if all of us are great team players. We tend to be on the aggressive side when we make promises. Deadlines are not our friends. Our bosses need to be good at follow-ups. We grew up in hierarchical atmospheres and our appreciation for rules and systems is a touch less. Some of these were my own traits and many were my impressions of others. At a time when the Made-in-India manager is making waves globally and a recent book even attempts to find out what sets an Indian manager apart, I thought it would be interesting to reflect on some of my experiences working with global managers of different nationalities. After all, there is something unique about every manager which is influenced by the culture of the country they belong to.

The quiet manager

I always wondered why it was difficult to make a decision on the spot with my Japanese manager. He would always go back and ensure there is a consensus before the final decision is made. Disputes were managed through support staff. Before he arrived as my boss, we used to travel business class on long-haul international flights. However, he preferred economy and expected us to follow suit. When I refused to comply, instead of asking me to follow the rule, he got his secretary to try and persuade my Executive Assistant about it. Any confrontations were kept aside, which meant we never knew why certain decisions were taken. Over a period of time when he kept quiet, we learnt it meant “no”.

The autocratic boss

My German boss was a stickler for process and discipline. There was no space for improvisation. He would say it on your face and sometimes you had to swallow embarrassments in public.

Once, at a global conference, he locked out two GMs from a session when they failed to return in time, post a lunch break.

On the other hand, my Russian boss had scant respect for organisational processes or systems as leadership supremacy ruled. He was autocratic and used an atmosphere of fear to gain control. The tendency to admire charisma and leader worship culture prevailed. Trust was elusive. The leader always preferred to demonstrate who the boss was and reportees’ views were constantly undermined.

Debates, dissents were frowned upon. When one of the Directors disagreed with the strategy, she was asked if she wasn’t serious about her career in an open forum. ‘My way or highway’ was written on the wall.

The participative leader

I couldn’t decipher whether John’s participative leadership skills were influenced because he came from the freest country in the world or whether it was just his style. He was a proud American but an even better global statesman. As a global manager, his respect for every culture was genuine and expressive. I saw him bring out the best in me as he always brought a huge vote of trust. Not just with me, but anyone. This confidence-building approach even before starting a new relationship resulted in magic in people’s performance.

As for my British bosses, what distinguished them was their sense of humour though I took some time to warm up to it. For a long time, I couldn’t differentiate between sarcasm and a genuine feedback. I also admired their diplomatic ways but couldn’t imbibe enough of it. Yes, drinking daily after work and still be able to start at 8.00 am without fail calls for some unique upbringing and genes.

The efficient planner

My Chinese and Korean managers showed how efficiency can be institutionalised. They were hardworking but still had time for family and personal interests too. They used to sweat over planning as execution came naturally to them. I found them organised and proactive. They were very uncomfortable over the last minute mantra I used to practise.

I found them to be very directive in nature and it always worked in their setting as it was clear who was in charge and you just had to follow. Systems and processes ruled over individual flashes of brilliance.

Imbibing some of the great qualities of the other nationalities would make us all perfect global managers. However, we are heavily influenced by our conditioning. I believe, during crunch situations, our natural style takes over. This is very difficult to control or manoeuvre. I don’t know if there is a prescription or description for a Global Indian Manager.

In my view circumstances rule the style but it’s difficult to deny the influence of the country of origin on the making of any global manager.

Kamal Karanth is co-founder of Xpheno, a specialist staffing firm

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