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How to Develop Transnational Management Skills

Looking to boost your international career prospects? Consider an MBA in International Management. Let’s take a closer look at the skills you need—and how to develop them.

Jan 19, 2018
  • Student Tips
How to Develop Transnational Management Skills

Increasingly, business school graduates seek international careers—and need to establish a skill set that they can use to effectively manage across multiple countries and cultures.

Here’s how to develop those transnational management skills and to advance successfully in your career:

1. Boost your creativity and problem-solving skills

Why focus on these? These are the skills that help you face unexpected situations as they arise and allow you to solve problems in a unique and innovative way.

Successful people in business are creative people—they face challenges by applying what they know to ideas and solutions that haven’t been tried.

So how do you boost these skills? You practice them—ideally in real-world scenarios.

2. Surround yourself with people from diverse backgrounds

Transnational business requires an understanding and willingness to embrace what is different from you. The best way to prepare for this? Diversity amongst your colleagues.

Working with people from different backgrounds, educational experiences, socioeconomic classes, cultures, geographic locations, ages, and anything else that is different from who you are will strengthen your ability to solve problems and innovate.

If you’re constantly surrounded by the same types of people with similar backgrounds, interests, and skills, you will not develop a broad understanding of problems and successes.

By diversifying, you not only empower yourself with more knowledge and insight but you empower others, too.

How can you meet people from diverse backgrounds? See #3.

3. Attend an international business school.

ESCP Europe boasts six urban campuses spread throughout Europe, a network of 120 partner universities, a strong international alumni network, and triple-crown accreditation from EQUIS, AMBA, and AACSB.

Over 4,600 students, and 5,000 executives from over 100 countries each year offer a variety of MBA programs, including a one-year full-time MBA in International Management.

ESCP Europe graduates state that their international experiences at the school helped them leverage success in the transnational management world.

Caroline Lamaud, a 2011 graduate didn’t plan to start her own business after finishing her program.

She said, “Before ESCP Europe, I had technical expertise in finance but I lacked business knowledge. I wasn’t a good seller. I had no experience whatsoever in the corporate world.”

She added, “At ESCP Europe, I actually learned about entrepreneurship—something that wasn’t even mentioned in my previous studies…ESCP Europe really triggered something in me. It made me believe that it was possible to launch a company at a very young age, and be successful.”

Caroline founded a fintech startup called Anaxago—a crowdfunding platform that connects early-stage start-ups with investors. Since 2012, Anaxago has attracted over 60,000 members and raised over $80 million in funding for 100 young businesses in France. And last year, Caroline was profiled as one of the Ladies of Fintech, an initiative aimed at promoting women in the industry.

Victor Wacrenier, an edtech entrepreneur and ESCP Europe 2013 graduate, agrees with Lamaud that this programme prepared him well for his transnational business career.

He created AppScho, a Google-sponsored app that helps schools and universities create amazing mobile campus experiences. Currently, over 40,000 students use the app in Western Europe.

Victor said, “I could not be more satisfied with my experience at ESCP Europe. It brought me the skills I was looking for to give me the desired boost in my career.”

He added, “I used ESCP Europe’s network to find my first associate and employees, and launch my startup.”

Thibault Mortier couldn’t agree more with his fellow graduates of ESCP Europe.

Before studying at ESCP Europe, Mortier said that he wanted to work abroad for an international company. He had been working as a mechanical engineering intern at Airbus, but wanted to learn management skills as well.

He said, “Without ESCP Europe, I wouldn’t have been able to change fields so easily.”

He added, “Working on so many different projects with teams of international people gave me a lot of confidence. I met most of my best friends at ESCP Europe and we see each other as often as we can everywhere around the globe.

Thibault now works for a Google partner tech startup in Silicon Valley. He helps companies manage their Google Drive files professionally, and has clients such as Whirlpool and the New York Times.

Graduates of ESCP concur: if it weren’t for the international focus of ESCP Europe’s programmes, their transnational management careers would not be where they are today.