ASSIGNMENT

ASB 3122 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS COMPETENCY (2020-21)

THE DEVELOPMENT OF PERSONAL GLOBAL COMPETENCE

Introduction

The concept of global competence is all about various skills, information, knowledge, and other
capabilities used to determine, promote, comprehend, and use national, international, and local
factors to steer the world effectively. Global competence is an individual's ability to use hard and
soft skills within the context of a globalized society in order to navigate it successfully. This
means appreciating cultural differences, seeking out diversity, and standing up for the rights of
the oppressed. It is about becoming a global citizen, in a manner of speaking, as well. There are
numerous reasons why someone should develop global competence (Parkinson, 2009).

Section A

Comparing Technical and Behavioral Competencies

Technical Competencies – Technical competencies are related to job-specific knowledge and

expertise; these skills then help in performing job-related tasks effectively through various
particular techniques (Wingreen & Blanton, 2007).

Behavioral Competencies – Behavioral competencies depend on individual behavior including

work ethics, values, and norms. These skills enable me to work well as an individual as well as
in a group. These competencies are having a strong relationship with good human skills (Svetlik
et. al., 2007).

Critique of Technical and Behavioral Competencies

Balancing both behavioral and technical competencies in terms of their importance, according to
the situation, and nature of the task to be assigned in the organization is the need of the hour.
Therefore, there is a need for equal division of both competencies based on their requirement
according to the job. There is a huge difference in acquiring both competencies because
behavioral competencies are acquired through experience and hugely dependent on a particular
person’s will and ethics. In contrast, the technical competencies are learned through training and
capacity building. Behavioral competencies of an individual play a very vital role in the
alignment of organizational success with various patterns of behavior of an individual. The
performance evaluation is also different for both competencies (Albino, 2018).

But at the same time, the behavioral competencies are general in nature which is also required in
our daily life to meet the values, norms, customs, and traditions of personal growth. On contrary,
the technical skills help to ensure that your organization has the right people in the right roles for
performing different tasks according to the situation and required specialized skills (Rauner et al,
2013).

Section-B

Application of Technical and Behavioral Competence

History of Marks & Spenser

Marks & Spenser launched its business with a small stall run by one man back in 1884 at Leeds
and within a short span of time, it became UK’s most popular business street retailer. They
started with clothing and then expanded their product line with the addition of housewares,
furniture, and trading in food items. With its rapid expansion, M&S created a huge impact on the
daily life of UK People by bringing advancement and creativity in food and fashion. As the
company increased its size, there was no comparison of M&S with other retailers in the Market.
Peter Drucker one of the experts in the field of Management in the 1980s described that “M&S is
probably more entrepreneurial and innovative than any other company in Western Europe over
the past 50 years. It may have had a greater impact on the British Economy, and even British
society, than any other change agent in Britain” (Jin et. al., 2018).

International Expansion

M&S adopted an aggressive strategy for expansion of business overseas through a smart strategy
of various mergers and acquisitions in the markets of Europe and North America in late 1973.
The company successfully acquired the top 3 clothing brands and retailers of Canada which are:
D’Aliards, people’s, and Walker’s (later branded under M&S), which resulted in huge expansion
by opening 275 outlets by 1990s in Canada. M&S also launched its 2 stores in Europe in 1975
and more stores were opened in Paris and Brussels as well.
M&S Enters China

M&S faced financial depression domestically which affected their sales and compelled them to
reorganized various business strategies and decisions. After getting financial stability in 2008
under the leadership of new CEO Stuart Rose, the company decided to expand the business again
in the international market by entering china and India. M&S launched a company-owned store
in the most expensive and the busiest street Shanghai West Nanjing Road. The company entered
in the China Market without any local partner, which was a clear indication of gaining complete
control of operations rather than sharing the process of decision making, the strategy deferred
from many restaurant retail competitors. The management was optimistic when they launched
their first store in china in 2008. The objective is to grow in the emerging markets of the world.
China was the place for fulfilling the requirements of the company because their middle class
was growing quickly in terms of their income and preferences for the brands related to the west
(Jin et. al., 2018).

M&S Enters India

M&S kept on growing and expanding when it decided to increase its global presence by entering
India. After doing an in-depth analysis of Indian markets, they found that these markets are
potential for Marks and Spenser because Indian markets were growing, and entering such
markets would enable M&S to further expand globally. The main potential and impact were
India’s huge population which was around 2 billion at that time. This game-changing factor was
a great attraction for M&S to increase the clients as well as maximize their profits. The financial
gain in that market was huge as estimated to £200 billion a year and maybe doubled by 2015
because of India’s vast industry in retail. The main factor was the timing of entry into the Market
which was very productive in nature. The constant increase in the growth of the middle class in
India was the best opportunity to avail for business expansion. The main target market of the
M&S was to attract the wealthy people of the country residing in Mumbai and Delhi. M&S was a
very popular brand in the world and the market of India was well known to that brand.

Marks & Spenser Competence

In the contemporary and competitive era, there is a need for experienced and globally trained
staff. Global competence has become the compulsory requirement for any workforce and
employment in the organizations. The survival of the business depends on its employees who are
hired, promoted, and transferred internationally by having the required potential skills,
knowledge, and attitudes to gain success in the growing global economy. The businesses in the
modern era have become global directly or indirectly, therefore the staff has to be competent,
talented, culturally diverse, multi-lingual, and interdependent in the competitive business
environment. In my point of view Marks and Spenser demonstrated its competence in the
following areas:

Segmenting Markets:

Segmentation has become the specialized aspect in the current business in which markets are
divided into various specialized areas according to the geographic areas and target population
according to the needs, wants, and purchasing power of that particular section. The markets were
divided by M&S according to the psychographic, demographic, and behavioral segments (Krafft
et al, 2007).

Utilizing CSR as Part of Marketing Strategy

Marks & Spencer’s marketing strategy has been playing a significant role in promoting the best
outcomes. In 2006, the firm established a new campaign that focused on the sustainability of its
marketing strategy (Jones et. al., 2008).

Section C

Relating the Dimension of Global competence in designing Global Value chain

The concept of the global value chain is about the various activities involved in creating products
and services through this specialized business model. The manufacturing companies follow the
process from manufacturing to distribution of the product and along with activities such as
procurement of raw material, functions related to manufacturing, and all the marketing &
advertisement activities. Different companies organize the analysis for the value-chain process in
order to know the complete procedures and actions related to the business. The core objective of
the analysis involved in the value chain activities to enhance efficiency when it comes to
production. Consequently, the core objective leads the company towards attaining maximum
value through minimum cost (Harley, 2002).
Training for the value chain varies from person to person according to their roles. The main
challenge is to identify the training needs according to the requirement of the job so that capacity
may be built to improve the general competencies. Identification of training according to the
roles enables an organization to establish a workforce in the competent domain.

Therefore, the technical and behavioral competencies both are equally important when playing
their role in enhancing the value chain process, because business management has produced this
perspective of the value chain. The managers involved in the value chain always look for
different opportunities to provide value addition to the current business. They try different ways
for meeting needs in times of shortages, planning for product preparation, and then coordinating
work with others to increase the value to the end-user. The value chain process is followed by
various supporting activities including human resource development, infrastructure development,
technological advancement, and procurement. Hence, Management functions like Planning,
organizing, leading, and controlling comply with the technical and behavioral competencies
which may allow companies to have competitive advantages.

Section D

Personal Global competence

In the contemporary era, it has become necessary to use hard and soft skills within the context of
a globalized society in order to navigate it successfully. This means appreciating cultural
differences, seeking out diversity, and standing up for the rights of the oppressed. It is about
becoming a global citizen, in a manner of speaking, as well (Parkinson, 2009).

Considering my own global competence which has been transformed after attending this module
in the following ways:

 It enabled me to communicate effectively and professionally and demonstrate the ability

to create coherent written and oral statements with a diverse audience across the cultures
replicating skills to analyze and synthesize information.
 It helped me in demonstrating the ability to identify and evaluate relevant information for
decision-making and make usage of diagnostic thinking skills and analytical techniques
to assess the information and solve problems in an environment like ours characterized
by uncertainty.
  I understood the importance of teamwork and group dynamics in achieving
organizational goals and demonstrate the ability to work effectively in teams.
 I came across leadership styles and demonstrate proven ability in exercising these styles
according to the requirement of the situation.
 Learned to develop an understanding of the worldwide developments and foundations for
international business and the cultural context for managing in an overseas environment.
 Examines the strategies and structures that firms adopt in order to compete effectively in
the international business environment.
 The module empowered me to examine the strategies and structures that firms adopt in
order to compete effectively in the international business environment.

Conclusion

It is quite evident in the modern era that still students are reluctant to go to study abroad, it is not
due to the cost, comfort, or academic schedule to avail exposure to the world at the
undergraduate level. It completely depends on the priorities of the people. According to my point
of view, it is the attitude of an individual which matters a lot and at the same time seeing things
from the perspectives of others is also very important. The experience comes from working in a
diverse culture which helps in acquiring different skills required in the competitive world.
Therefore, it is pertinent to develop competencies according to the market needs and
requirements. It has become compulsory to acquire hard skills in the competitive global job
market. Cultivating their ability to communicate across cultures in respectful ways is critical. It is
also pertinent to acquire an awareness of global diverse perspectives and understand the theory,
operations, and challenges of global business. Ultimately it will Demonstrate effectively
practicing overall functional business knowledge and ability to identify and interpret essential
business concepts, principles, and skills.
References

Albino, G. (2018). Technical and behavioral competencies on performance evaluation: Petrek

leaders’ perspectives. Sage Open, 8(2), 2158244018780972

Rauner, F., Heinemann, L., Maurer, A. and Haasler, B., 2012. Competence Development and
Assessment in TVET (COMET): Theoretical framework and empirical results (Vol. 16).
Springer Science & Business Media.

Rossiter, A.P., 2008. Professional Excellence: Beyond Technical Competence. John Wiley &
Sons.

Krafft, M., Hesse, J., Höfling, J., Peters, K. and Rinas, D., 2007. International direct marketing.
Springer.

Parkinson, A., 2009. The rationale for developing global competence. Online Journal for Global
Engineering Education, 4(2), p.2-13.

Harlé, N., Pich, M. and Van der Heyden, L., 2002. Marks and Spencer and Zara: Process
competition in the textile apparel industry. Insead.

Jin, H., Miao, Y., & Park, S. T. (2018). A Case Study of Marks and Spencer lost China. Journal
of Industrial Convergence, 16(2), 15-23.

Jones, P., Clarke‐Hill, C., Comfort, D., & Hillier, D. (2008). Marketing and
sustainability. Marketing Intelligence & Planning.

Svetlik, I., Stavrou‐Costea, E., Vakola, M., Soderquist, K. E., & Prastacos, G. P. (2007).
Competency management in support of organisational change. International journal of
manpower.

Wingreen, S. C., & Blanton, J. E. (2007). A social cognitive interpretation of person‐

organization fitting: The maintenance and development of professional technical
competency. Human Resource Management: Published in Cooperation with the School
of Business Administration, The University of Michigan and in alliance with the Society
of Human Resources Management, 46(4), 631-650.