Cultural intelligence and mindfulness: teaching MBAs in Iran

Abstract

Purpose A dynamic global economy has increased the need for cross-cultural flexibility and cultural intelligence (CQ). While a large literature has examined various means to increase CQ in student and expatriate populations, its importance for teachers in cross-cultural settings has been largely unexamined. This paper aims to use the experiences of a group of professors in an MBA programme in Iran to investigate the effect of their activity on their cross-cultural skills. Design/methodology/approach Using structured interviews and content analysis, the authors draw on the experiences of business faculty from a Canadian business school who helped deliver an MBA programme in Iran to investigate how their experiences in a country new to them were reflected in the components of CQ. Findings Using an established model of CQ, the authors find contributions to all three facets, knowledge, mindfulness and behaviour, indicating that such exchanges can be regarded as important for students and teachers alike in an international educational context. Originality/value With more and more teaching extending across cultural boundaries in both domestic and international settings, the capacity of instructors to read, interpret and react to the attitudes, beliefs and behaviours of their students is an important factor in the success of these programs. To this point, at least within the business education literature, the influence of such encounters on the instructors involved has been neglected.

Influence Mechanism of Organizational Flexibility on Enterprise Competitiveness: The Mediating Role of Organizational Innovation

“…For PBEs in the construction industry, organizational structure, resource, leadership, and technological flexibility can be intuitively considered as necessary elements. Furthermore, corporate culture is a strategic asset [59], and ideal organizational culture builds a learning organization that encourages and fosters organizational growth [44]. Study results show cultural change relates closely to incremental and radical innovation [61].…”

“…It can be interpreted as "operational", "tactical", or "strategic" flexibility. Other studies involved product development flexibility [52], supply chain flexibility [53], human resource flexibility [54], process flexibility [47,55], leadership flexibility [56,57], team flexibility [58], cross-cultural flexibility [59], and contractual flexibility [60].…”

“…In addition, previous research explored multiple types of flexibility from different perspectives and their importance. Key elements include product development [52], supply chain [53], process [47,55], operational [115,116], strategic [117], leadership [56,57], project team [58], financial, structural, technological [35], cross-cultural [59], contractual [60], and human resource flexibilities [54]. However, existing literature exploring construction industry PBEs OF is scarce.…”

What does expatriate success mean? Developing a comprehensive definition through a systematic literature review

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“…Similarly, various individual antecedents shaped CCA and satisfaction and impacted expatriates' performance. For instance, in addition to Big Five personality characteristics, CQ (Huff, 2013), EQ (Cray et al, 2018), motivation to migrate (van den Bergh and Du Plessis, 2012), willingness to go on IAs (e.g. Wan, 2019), language proficiency (e.g.…”