‘Globalization is a fact, because of technology, because of an integrated global supply chain, because of changes in transportation. And we’re not going to be able to build a wall around that.’
- Barack Obama

The World Bank Group states that globalization will create 600 million jobs by 2027, while the World Economic Forum states that education, skills, and jobs will be provided to at least 1 billion people by 2030. Looking into the benefits that globalization has on offer, I firmly believe that there is a need for globally relevant skills owing to the extent of globalization across the globe. However, before we talk about the skills, let us get familiarized with the concept of Globalization.

GLOBALIZATION:

What is Globalization?

In this fast-moving world, people from different countries are interacting with each other; various cultures are coming in contact; organizations are joining hands to fulfilling the needs of people; governments across the globe are connecting for the development and economic growth of their countries. In simple words, Globalization is the process by which people of the world interact and integrate. Owing to today’s world, Globalization is a fact.

‘It has been said that arguing against globalization is like arguing against the laws of gravity.’
- Kofi Annan

Broadly, there are three types of globalization:

1. Political Globalization
   Political Globalization means the development of all government and non-government organizations of the world. This type of globalization includes the democratization of the world, the creation of civil societies, and moving beyond national borders. One of the classic examples of this is the formation and existence of the United Nations Organization.
2. Economic Globalization
   Economic Globalization refers to the movement of goods, capital, services, technology, and information. Simply, it includes the import and export of products. One of the best examples is the presence of the World Trade Organization. In 2019, the number of tourist arrivals worldwide increased to 1.5 billion from 25 million in 1950.
3. Cultural Globalization
   Cultural Globalization means the sharing of values, languages, and traditions followed by different cultures around the world to strengthen social relations. This includes cultural films, music, cuisines, handicrafts, etc. One of the best examples of this is McDonald’s and Domino’s which are operating at more than 36,000 and 19,000 locations worldwide respectively. Stats show that Mandarin Chinese is the most spoken language in the world with 1.5 billion speakers followed by English and Hindi.

GLOBALLY RELEVANT SKILLS:

With the increase in Globalization, there is an increase in demands for ‘Globally Relevant skills’. Here are some skills we all need to master while Globalizing.

1. Cross-Cultural Communication Skills
   This skill includes understanding different cultures and knowing many languages. For example, in most countries listening well is the most important skill and while doing so, you need to have eye-to-eye contact with the speaker. However, in some countries like South Korea, having eye-to-eye contact is nearly an offense. You need to learn, understand such values, and accept and understand cultural differences to maintain a positive atmosphere in your workplace. Undoubtedly, this skill is one of the most important while promoting globalization.
2. Networking Capability/Digital Knowledge
   Reports claim that more than 80% of jobs are provided through networking. This skill is similar to communication with the difference that the latter is in person. The ability to use social media, navigate digital platforms, and analyse data is one of the requirements for any company while hiring employees. This skill is one of the keys to success in international business.
3. Collaboration:
   To thrive in international business, just networking is not sufficient. Big leaders know that collective brainpower helps in accelerating the company’s success. You need to have the ability to collaborate with other members from different cultures. Collaborating requires you to allow others to take the lead in a project and credit them for its success. With this skill, you build a healthy atmosphere at your workplace and boost everyone’s confidence while taking up a new project.
4. Adaptability/Adaptive Thinking
   Earlier being an important skill among military commanders, now this skill has become a tactical one. Adaptive Thinking means taking thoughtful decisions and knowing when old solutions are no longer required and accepting the ‘change’. Adaptability means adjusting and thriving in an ever-changing environment. For example, organizations like the UN require many of their employees to travel to different countries. This skill of adapting to new workplace conditions is definitely an important factor leading to globalization.
5. Interpersonal Influence
   This skill is all about your way of motivating others, whether it be securing funds from an investor, encouraging employees to adapt to new changes or just pitching up your project. Having this skill can help you a lot in gaining a person’s trust, especially when you are having a rough patch. Influencing others means being assertive and not aggressive. This skill can be considered as a combination or outcome of having good cross-communication, networking, and collaborative skills.
6. Emotional Intelligence
   In the international field, this is the most critical skill, often referred to as ‘EQ’. Mastering this skill is important as emotions play a huge role in business interactions. Having control of your emotions means that you can take good decisions in stressful situations. Instead of blaming someone or something for a failure, you look into possible solutions for the problem. Emotionally intelligent people are self-aware. This skill is the most critical one while globalizing.
7. Resilience
   This skill simply demands you to make a strong comeback after a failure. The best example of this is Elon Musk’s long list of failures and now where he is. After accumulating around 15 major failures since 1995, his net worth today is 174.48 USD, thanks to this skill called resilience that he had mastered over the years. Having all the skills except this one won’t really work for you while globalizing. In the end, the ability to put in one more effort is all that matters.

Besides these, there are several other skills I would like to list out:

1. Analytical Thinking
2. Active Learning [And the skill to unlearn to learn new things]
3. The skill of complex problem solving
4. The skill of making something creative and original
5. The skill to provide new ideas.

One question remains- Why are these skills required?

As of January 2023, more than 5.16 billion people use the internet, out of which 4.76 billion people are social media users. In a world that is increasingly interconnecting and being diversified; in a world where governments are collaborating for the welfare of their countries, Globalization is increasing more and more and these skills are required to achieve common humanity goals; these skills are required to transcend all sorts of barriers and work in one common direction. Especially after the Covid-19 era, all citizens of this world must come together to lift humanity to the new heights that we dream of. Globalization is one of the bridges to the future of this world. I would like to end with a quote,

‘Outsourcing and Globalization of manufacturing allows companies to reduce costs, benefits consumers with lower cost goods and services, causes economic expansion that reduces unemployment and increases productivity and job creation.’
- Larry Elder

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