Abstract
Based on previous research, leadership appears to be enacted through communication in such a way that it contains a relational (affective) and task (content) component. Additionally, when leaders communicate effectively, their followers experience greater levels of satisfaction. Thus, the purpose of this chapter is on communication, specifically, the role of the Johari Window (JW) on effective leadership communication in multinational corporations (MNCs). In regards to the JW, many researchers did not question, and even more practitioners did not realize is that, the JW is created based on a domestic paradigm, and not necessarily applicable to a multinational environment where intercultural and multicultural communication are at play for multinational environment within MNCs. Nevertheless, the JW has continuously been applied to cross cultural studies, without a paradigm shift, utilizing a domestic paradigm (no international cultural factors at play) within a multinational environment (various international cultural factors at play), issue at hand persists.
TopMultinational Corporations (Mncs) And Communication
According to Tran (2016), due to globalization, MNCs, commonly defined as a corporation consisting of a parent organization (headquarters) and at least one subsidiary organization in a foreign country, have made communication ever inevitable. As such, effective cross cultural management within an MNC requires communication skills, especially communication skills in intercultural communication and multicultural communication. Such communication skills are derived from, historically, three different fields of studies: communication, business, and psychology. Communication is paramount, particularly within any country of immigrants, and it is critical for the country to promote cultural diversity and appreciate different cultural heritages (Dong, 1995). Ethnocentrism is viewed as lacking acceptance of cultural diversity and intolerance for outgroups (Berry & Kalin, 1995).
As the world becomes a global village and more and more people with diverse cultural backgrounds interact with each other constantly, it is imperative to investigate what factors could help overcome ethnocentrism, especially as multinational corporations (MNCs) are expanding overseas. One of the challenges facing those MNCs is the increased diversity of the workforce and similarly complex prospective customers with disparate cultural backgrounds. After all, language barriers, cultural nuances, and value divergence can easily cause unintended misunderstandings and how low efficiency in internal communication in a multinational environment. It leads to conflict among employees and profit loss in organizational productivity. Therefore, effective communication by people from different cultures stands out significantly to American MNCs who want to make inroads into international markets, take advantage of multiculturalism, and avoid possible side effects (Tran, 2016).