Loake Shoemakers' Cross-Cultural Strategy for Global Expansion

This report analyzes Loake Shoemakers' plan to expand its shoe business into China, Vietnam, and Ethiopia, focusing on the challenges and opportunities presented by cross-cultural differences. The report begins with an overview of Loake Shoemakers and then delves into various cross-cultural dimensions, particularly the Hofstede model, to compare the cultural landscapes of the UK, China, Vietnam, and Ethiopia. It explores dimensions such as individualism versus collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity versus femininity, power distance index, and long-term versus short-term orientation. The report identifies potential issues and challenges, including difficulties in managing a diverse workforce and communication barriers. The conclusion emphasizes the importance of understanding and adapting to cultural differences to ensure successful international business ventures. The report references several academic sources to support its analysis.

Developing Cross-
Cultural Capability
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INTRODUCTION
A collaboration of organisational environment, framework as well as dynamics of teams are
having a great shift from last several years due to the impact of globalisation within industry
which comprises of high proximity in respect to sharing of knowledge across globe. Now a days
many domestic companies are trying to into an international business to have competitive
advantage within a market and hence are targeting a wide range of customers that will help them
in increasing their business along with an achievement of growth. The another reason for
business expansion is diversification of risk through a portfolio that brings income from more
than one source and attain valuable insights in respect to the culture of foreign countries. The
present report comprises of a shoe manufacturing company that is Loake Shoemakers which is
having a plan to expand its shoe business in China, Vietnam and Ethiopia. Loake shoemakers is
having it’s headquarter in UK being established in year 1880 wishing to have expansion into
such countries where the company faces entirely new or different culture. A company can have
to face certain challenges related to cultural diversity along with a scope of great opportunity. In
order to cope up with the challenges and meeting demands in new culture the company has a
plan to hire some employees from the local environment who will be held responsible in
managing company’s operations there. The report comprises upon a discussion on some
considerations that are related to human resource and cross culture which can be emerged during
the shift of production.
TASK
Overview of the company:
Loake Shoemakers is a private company based in UK being established in year 1880 by
John, Thomas and William Loake in a form of production firm that manufactures shoes in the
areas of Northamptonshire. The company is having its specialisation in manufacturing of men’s
shoes which are traditionally handmade. With the happening of declining in British production
along with a negative market condition the company has expanded its business to India in a form
of joint venture so to have diversification of its risk and maintaining its sales.
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Different cross Cultural dimensions:
The importance of managing cross culture effectively was being coined by Hall in which he
took a support of various anthropological theories in order to give rise to some ideas. After him
Hofstede was the one who has raised a concrete development of certain ideas related to
management of cross culture comprising five different dimensions of culture which differentiates
two or more countries apart. Whereas, the seven different dimensions that are similar in culture
was being raised by Trompenaars. In respect to a human resource head there is a plan to expand
shoe manufacturing business internationally without carrying any knowledge or experience of
such different cultural market. As of now in a company the employees are only belonging to UK
market or culture and are not aware for the international culture. In respect to expansion in
China, Vietnam and Ethiopia the difference in dimensions of culture carries serious challenges
along with present opportunities up-to the extent of managing cross culture. It is being analysed
that major of the European business firms are facing problem in understanding of collectivism
aspect that is being implied by the employees of China. Hence, making a comparison between
cultural dimensions of UK with China, Vietnam and Ethiopia is a deprecatory factor, which
enables the firms to bring a concrete understanding about the differences along with some
similarities that lies between such dimensions of culture.
Hofstede model of cultural dimension:
Hofstede model of cultural dimension comprises of six different dimensions for culture that
brings differentiation of more than one country culture which every firm faces when going for
international business. The six different dimensions are being discussed below:
 Individualism versus Collectivism: Individualism involves thinking of safeguarding
person interest instead of others in a surrounding. In case of collectivism it talks about
thinking of near surrounding or family instead of looking into personal interest. In UK
the companies are having a culture of following the concept of individualism whereas
China, Vietnam and Ethiopia follows a culture of collectivism where the society people
lives within a safe environment having strong group of people who are highly loyal to
their companies with which they are associated and carries an expectation of having
social security for their job as well as life.
 Uncertainty Avoidance: This involves a possibility of culture that avoids an unstructured
issues or a situation of uncomforted which possess the characteristics of uncertainity
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avoidance of culture nations from such dimension of culture where people are refraining
from acquiring the latest product in easy manner. Such people like to continue with their
past used products or presently used so to have valuable and effective knowledge
regarding to such products or services in order to have informed conclusion or decision.
China and Ethiopia possess low level of uncertainty avoidance whereas Vietnam has a
high intensity for uncertainty avoidance.
 Masculinity versus femininity: Masculine society is still treated as a dominated society
where males possess dominating powers over females. In this form of society public is
always striving for the attainment of success or victory along with a recognition of in a
form of result for such achievement, even if involves any form of sacrifice. When it
comes to UK culture majority of people experiences masculine trait over femininity.
Society having feminism culture is related with possessing quality in life through care,
love and affection where they show sympathy to others with their personal thoughts
rather thinking for their personal success. The culture of China and Ethiopia are having a
feature of masculine personality.
 Power Distance Index: This comprises of a limitation up-to which the authority for
decision making is being distributed between the people who are concerned with an area
of decision making. There are some countries which are having higher level of difference
within a power where common man is being dominated by such persons who are having
an authority of making certain decisions. In relation to UK culture the country is having
democratic nature where the lower level of employees within an hierarchy are being
provided an option of making certain decision which they feel they can have for the
growth and success of an organisation. In relation to China, Vietnam and Ethiopia the
nations are having the culture of high level of power distance index, in which the
employees from lower level of management in an organisation are not allowed to have
business decisions that can bring growth or success along with an effective decision for
making high quality outputs.
 Long term versus Short term orientation: The countries such as China and Vietnam are
being associated with orientation for long term where the employees prefers to have
patience until the outcomes for the hard work done along with a kind concentration in
respect to establishment of some business relationships with organisations stakeholders in
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order to attain long term benefits within industry. On the other hands nations such as UK
is having a culture of short term nature orientation where the employees are not keeping
patience for the outcomes in respect to their hard work and keeps an expectation to have
immediate results with effect.
Issues or Challenges:
Having a thought for expansion of business into international business where the nations are
having a complete different culture can have some challenges for a company who is planning for
such international entry. The various challenges or issues that an organisation can face are
mentioned below:
Difficulty or hurdle in managing company’s workforce who belongs to distinct culture there:
It is analysed that the managers of an organisation faces difficulty in understanding the
differences within culture that takes place inside an organisation along with getting failure in
identifying irregularity in employees expectations who belongs from various culture. Form this
experience the managers of a company try to implement the same form of technique for
managing cultural difference in employees and faces negative or unfavourable attitude from their
lower level of employees. On the other hand the trust level of company’s employees for the
capability of leadership in their managers tends to get reduced which brings a great challenge for
them to apply an effective technique of leadership so to have proper and positive management of
employees who are from different dimensions of culture. This also tries to satisfy the employee’s
expectations in order to build strong trust and healthy relationship among them.
Implementing proper style for communication that is employed to develop universal form of
interaction.
CONCLUSION
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