With the advent of e-commerce and the ready movement of capital and production, managers need to understand the cultural and relational factors that impact leaders and managers within global organizations. Students are introduced to the ways in which differing cultural norms in the community and workplace can create managerial challenges that call for flexibility in organization design, workforce development, technology, and the creation of alliances and partnerships.  They explore the complexities of forming relationships in regions with differing concepts of doing business and learn how to be a more effective manager in cross-cultural enterprises.   Emphasis is placed on identifying issues confronting managers working in global markets and considering approaches, such as the development of Cultural Intelligence, to address them.

Learning Objectives and Outcomes:

By the end of this course students will be able to:

1. Identify and distinguish professional cultural norms and their importance within an organization.
2. Examine the central importance of Cultural and Emotional Intelligences to today’s leaders.
3. Examine the impact of cultural norms on relationship building and explore the complexities of building cross-cultural teams.
4. Analyze issues and challenges facing leaders and managers in the global marketplace and determine strategies to effectively deal with them.
5. Employ strategic thinking, cultural intelligence and other competencies to build teams that can function in culturally diverse and complex environments.

Course Schedule and Topics

This course will cover the following topics in eight learning sessions, with one Unit per week.

Week 1: Unit 1 – Cultural Awareness

Week 2: Unit 2 – Cultural Strategic Thinking

Week 3: Unit 3 – Cultural Intelligence and Leadership

Week 4: Unit 4 – Self-Efficacy, Leadership, and Cultural Intelligence

Week 5: Unit 5 – Developing Cultural Competence

Week 6: Unit 6 – Dissonance, Behavior, and Communication

Week 7: Unit 7 – Cultural Adaptation and Authentic Leadership

Week 8: Unit 8 – The Culturally Conscious and Interdependent Leader

Learning Guide

The following is an outline of how this course will be conducted, with suggested best practices for students.

Unit 1: Cultural Awareness

• Read the Learning Guide and Reading Assignments
• Participate in the Discussion Assignment (post, comment, and rate in the Discussion Forum)
• Complete and submit the Written Assignment

Unit 2: Cultural Strategic Thinking

• Peer assess Unit 1 Written Assignment
• Read the Learning Guide and Reading Assignments
• Participate in the Discussion Assignment (post, comment, and rate in the Discussion Forum)
• Complete and submit the Written Assignment
• Respond to the Portfolio Activity

Unit 3: Cultural Intelligence and Leadership

• Peer assess Unit 2 Written Assignment
• Read the Learning Guide and Reading Assignments
• Participate in the Discussion Assignment (post, comment, and rate in the Discussion Forum)
• Complete and submit the Written Assignment

Unit 4: Self-Efficacy, Leadership, and Cultural Intelligence

• Peer assess Unit 3 Written Assignment
• Read the Learning Guide and Reading Assignments
• Participate in the Discussion Assignment (post, comment, and rate in the Discussion Forum)
• Complete and submit the Written Assignment
• Begin and participate in the Group Activity
• Respond to the Portfolio Activity

Unit 5: Developing Cultural Competence

• Peer assess Unit 4 Written Assignment
• Read the Learning Guide and Reading Assignments
• Participate in the Discussion Assignment (post, comment, and rate in the Discussion Forum)
• Complete and submit the Written Assignment
• Continue to participate in the Group Activity

Unit 6: Dissonance, Behavior, and Communication

• Peer assess Unit 5 Written Assignment
• Read the Learning Guide and Reading Assignments
• Participate in the Discussion Assignment (post, comment, and rate in the Discussion Forum)
• Complete and submit the Written Assignment
• Continue to participate in the Group Activity

Unit 7: Cultural Adaptation and Authentic Leadership

• Peer assess Unit 6 Written Assignment
• Read the Learning Guide and Reading Assignments
• Participate in the Discussion Assignment (post, comment, and rate in the Discussion Forum)
• Complete and submit the Written Assignment
• Begin the Portfolio Activity (Due in Unit 8)
• Finish and post finalized Group Activity

Unit 8: The Culturally Conscious and Interdependent Leader

• Peer assess Unit 7 Written Assignment
• Read the Learning Guide and Reading Assignments
• Participate in the Discussion Assignment (post, comment, and rate in the Discussion Forum)
• Respond to the Portfolio Activity
• Complete and submit the anonymous Course Evaluation