Who We Serve

“This training — Cross-Cultural Orientation to Vietnam — was a first class job. I identified areas where my management style might need some modification to be completely effective. The trainer exceeded expectations. It was well worth the time and effort.” J. H.,
Planning and Evaluation Mgr.
Unocal

EGL serves executives and managers with global responsibilities who grapple with the leadership challenges of distance, time zones, cultural differences, and adapting leadership style to be effective across borders. We serve leaders who must improve their operations and team performance to maintain global competitive advantage. They must do so with people around the world who don't necessarily share their language, values, or business practices.

Our clients range from seasoned executives making key decisions about global operations, to mid-level managers who are faced with integrating new business practices amidst constant change, to emerging leaders who will soon be responsible for building productive global teams. We also coach global teams to remove the roadblocks so they can communicate, trust and do great work together.

We help our clients solve costly problems in leadership performance, retention of valued employees, and communication breakdowns – for example:

Your company is losing money on failed international assignments. At least 20% of your executives and technical experts sent overseas don't successfully complete their international assignment. Their technical competence isn't matched by “people skills”. Or, they leave your company within one year of returning from their overseas assignment, they’re so frustrated by lack of relevant opportunities. This costs your company upwards of $600,000 per expatriate.
You have managers in global roles, but they lack the competencies of a global leader. They assume good leadership is the same everywhere. For example, Chinese and Korean members of their team expect their manager to be benevolent, show some humility, and build consensus, while the N. American and Australian team members expect the manager to be assertive and decisive, and to delegate.
High performers in other countries get frustrated and leave when they can't influence decision makers from headquarters who lack the global mindset to understand other perspectives. Example: You just lost an operations director in Tokyo who frequently had to demonstrate to corporate headquarters in Toronto that it was impossible to follow their sales initiatives, because they made no allowance for differences in the Japanese market.
Communication breakdowns and misunderstandings are causing your department unnecessary delays and costs. Example: your people work across sixteen time zones in five countries and don't really know each other very well. Their lack of cross-cultural awareness reinforces stereotypes and limits cooperation. Now you’ve got delays, missed deadlines, and demotivated team leaders.

If any of these business dilemmas is true for you, please read on. You're in the right place for help.

Client Profile

Our clients typically share many of the following characteristics. If these traits fit you and your organization well, chances are we can help you to be more effective in the global business arena.

Decision makers are willing to invest in culturally competent leadership. They recognize that global business is not just business as usual. They are open to new ways of thinking, challenging their own assumptions about leading in the multicultural work environment and seeking understanding of what's holding them back in ways that haven't yet occurred to them.

They want to foster a great place to work, where innovative thinking, productive relationships, tolerance, trust, collaboration, and inclusion are priorities. They are not looking for a ‘quick fix’ nor ‘business as usual’ solutions.

They are committed to making a contribution and social responsibility. Both profits and people matter to our clients. They are concerned about making a healthy profit while developing sustainable, ethical practices that serve their employees, their financial stakeholders, their local community, and the world.

They demonstrate integrity and high standards of excellence. They genuinely pursue excellence, setting the bar higher as they succeed. This applies to their management philosophy, emphasis on quality of products & services, investing in their people, and creative use of technology.

Clients served: We've helped clients with these and other organizational and leadership issues, through our action–learning solutions. Please read some of the case studies of our clients.

Now that you know the kind of clients we work with and the issues we help them resolve, Learn more about our company and how we work. See our client list. Read our client testimonials.