Managing Up in the Multi‐national Firm

When multinationals bring together individuals within the organisation who are from different cultural bases, interpersonal behaviour is an issue of major importance, particularly in superior/subordinate relationships. The best and probably most productive interpersonal relationships occur when two styles become complementary, the strengths of one compensating for the weaknesses of the other. The role of social style as a technique to manage up in the multinational is analysed, incorporating the concept of social style, its major behavioural dimensions, social types and strengths and weaknesses of each style. Primary back‐up social styles are also analysed along with the importance of style flex.