Leadership Challenges in an Unfamiliar Culture Publication date: Jan 1, 2020 Source: Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore Overview Anurag Bhatt (AB), Managing Director (MD) of Coats Indonesia, was on a flight from Bangalore to Singapore on his way to Jakarta after a vacation. He was reflecting on an issue that he had encountered just before the vacation but not yet addressed in the flight. It would definitely be one of the first issues he would have to handle on his return. An effort to fill a senior position, Head of Procurement, currently occupied by an expatriate, had not been received with enthusiasm by those who seemed to have the potential to take on the role. One-on-one conversations with the potential candidates had not helped as each one suggested another person’s name as more suitable for the role. He had faced similar difficulties in recruiting Indonesians to occupy other senior roles. Nothing in his past experience helped him understand how these people were unwilling to accept an opportunity for career growth. One of the goals that had been assigned to him as he accepted his current role was to reduce the number of expatriates in senior ranks in Coats Indonesia. This was not feasible unless local managers were willing to rise to the occasion. He needed a way to address the lack of enthusiasm among managers in Coats Indonesia to take on positions with greater responsibility. He had some ideas, based on the short experience in the country. Still, he was willing to get inputs from anyone who might have a better understanding of the drivers of behaviour of Indonesians in general and managers in particular.

Learning Objective
The purpose of the case is to provide an opportunity for participants in a class to appreciate the role of national/societal culture on executives’ behaviour in an organisation. It will help participants who aspire for global careers to examine the challenges of managing in a global context with cross-cultural issues having a significant impact on people management practices.

Relevant Readings
1. Meyer, E. Being the boss in Brussels, Boston and Beijing: If you want to succeed, you’ll need to adapt, Harvard Business Review, July–August 2017, 70-77.
2. Neeley, T. How to successfully work across countries, languages, and cultures, Harvard Business Review, August 29, 2017.
3. Irawanto, D. W. et al. Challenge of leading in Javanese culture, Asian Ethnicity, 2011, 12(2), 125–139.

Key Question: What should Anurag Bhatt do to get out of this impasse?
1. How is the national culture in Indonesia, where the operations are located, different from the national culture of the United Kingdom, where the company is headquartered, and from the national culture of India, to where Anurag Bhatt belongs and has developed his personal leadership behaviour?
2. How are the differences in national culture impacting the expectation of headquarters, behaviour of Anurag Bhatt as an expatriate, and the response of Indonesian managers, as locals in the context of their own societal context?
3. What is inhibiting the Indonesian managers from enthusiastically making a solid case for their candidacy for the position of Head of Procurement and encouraging them to suggest the suitability of the other candidates?

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Anurag Bhatt faces significant leadership challenges in navigating the cultural dynamics at Coats Indonesia particularly in filling senior positions w... View the full answer