Read the full script of Module 3, Episode 4 of the Global Growth Master Class below. Want to get certified on global expansion? Simply click here to access the complete course today.

It's not uncommon for traditional business leaders to feel threatened by Interpreneurs as they tend to introduce new ways of thinking and challenge established company practices. In contrast, Global Class Companies not only accept this mindset but actively seek it out and make an effort to foster it. These companies place a higher value on cultural curiosity, global-mindedness, and cultural sensitivity over traditional educational and professional credentials. Global Class Companies see the power in diversity and nurture diversity of opinion and background in their organizations - this helps not only localization efforts, but also helps the company build for, and maintain operational excellence, at a global scale.

Taking into account this entrepreneurial mindset affects how Global Class Companies approach hiring (they prioritize diversity in background and experience), product development, as well as shaping their core values and company culture.

A method for identifying whether a potential candidate possesses the appropriate global mindset is to look for evidence of international exposure. People with a significant amount of business travel experience (what former VP of International of Apple, John Brandon called. “Fat Passport People) and who have lived in other countries tend to be more interpreneurial

As part of their recruitment process, Global Class Companies deliberately screen for the interpreneurial attributes outlined in this module. For example, Zendesk actively seeks out candidates from underrepresented communities, not only to provide opportunities to these highly qualified individuals (many of whom have developed a natural resilience through overcoming challenges that those from privileged backgrounds may not have faced) but also to ensure their solutions are inclusive and not just tailored to the elite. 

Companies can, in fact, be INTENTIONAL about fostering these experiences

ThoughtWorks, a software consulting firm, facilitates Interpreneurship through both COMPANY CULTURE and FORMAL PROCESSES that help employees get exposure to international teams AND markets. Teams in each local market are a mix of local staff and international team members, that way the local team has a strong mix of local knowledge and company knowledge, something we will discuss in more detail in a later module.

A multinational team brings diverse perspectives. Moreover, it is common at ThoughtWorks for employees to move between offices, as to not get too tied to a specific local market. This not only helps the company build solutions for global customers but brings an added dimension to the company culture as core values are universalized and two-way innovation flourishes where best practices in one local market can be implemented across a global footprint.

Building teams made up of Interpreneurs and individuals from diverse backgrounds helps integrate empathy into the product development and operating model. As discussed in this module AND throughout the course, Interpreneurs play a VITAL role in driving global growth.

Global Class Companies have the expertise to IDENTIFY, RECRUIT, and ENGAGE these candidates to expand their business worldwide

When onboarding team members for your expansion efforts, it’s IMPORTANT to follow the advice of experienced former Uber launcher, Sam Gellman, who recommends hiring people who are comfortable with ANY level of responsibility. The team members should be able to handle ANY tasks without requiring guidance or approval from HQ at every step, which aligns with the interpreneurial skill set.

To do this EFFECTIVELY, companies must create THEIR OWN archetypes to better find suitable candidates. Here are a few examples:

Zoom and DocuSign have specific hiring strategies to find interpreneurial candidates. Zoom focuses on hiring individuals who have worked in Silicon Valley or for a Silicon Valley company and then returned to their home country to build a career. This type of experience is becoming more common with the rise of distributed teams and virtual work. 

On the other hand, DocuSign looks for candidates who have already led expansion efforts, particularly those who have represented an American company in their market and can act as a bridge to HQ. Rather than hiring someone who needs to grow into the role, DocuSign seeks out candidates whose experience makes them a good fit for the position from the start.

Certain companies prefer to follow a specific archetype for their local market lead, similar to the approach of targeting specific customers. Gonzalo Begazo, for instance, sought young professionals who desired to improve their resumes and apply for top business schools in order to launch new markets for Chazki. 

Uber, on the other hand, preferred former Bain consultants in their late twenties who graduated from top US business schools and had strong analytical skills. Uber intentionally focused on hiring from Bain because they found that these employees were "grittier" (agile mindset) than their McKinsey counterparts and better suited to their company culture, possessing the ability to receive direct feedback without becoming upset.

When it comes to building teams, it is important to avoid certain practices. In Japan, for example, there is a culture of tenure-based promotion, which can hinder companies from succeeding internationally. Rather than focusing on skills and expertise, rewards and promotions are often given to those who have been with the company the longest and have the right connections within the company.

This approach is not aligned with the qualities of effective international leaders that have been outlined above. In addition, Japan's approach of creating generalists by rotating employees through different roles every three years can also be problematic. While being a generalist can have its benefits, it can also lead to a lack of functional expertise and a lack of merit-based career progression. This approach can result in placing the wrong leaders in key roles, especially if local knowledge is not prioritized for international teams.

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In contrast, Global Class Companies value an interpreneurial mindset over seniority, recognizing that the most suitable candidate may not have the longest tenure or the highest rank in the organization. For example, a Zoom account manager took the initiative to build a customer base in Latin America early in the company's international expansion efforts. He compiled a lead list of top prospects in the region and obtained leadership approval to establish the foundation of Zoom's enterprise customer base in the region. Senior employees may not be the best fit for the local market lead role as they are accustomed to having ample resources at HQ, which may hinder their ability to adapt to the local market's needs. In contrast, local market leads must thrive with fewer resources and operate outside their comfort zones, highlighting the importance of having an agile mindset.

Callout to Interpreneurial mindset: this Zoom employee demonstrated an entrepreneurial spirit by taking the initiative and lead to explore growing the business in LATAM, he demonstrated the ability to influence the organization to get resources and buy-in the lead those efforts and finally a cultural curiosity in understanding/learning about the new market. Interpreneurs are not people with 30+ years experiences, they come from all levels of the organization

When putting together a team, it’s CRUCIAL to take a holistic approach and identify individuals who are best suited to play KEY ROLES at each STAGE of growth. You can compare this process to building a soccer team, where you don't necessarily want a player who can do everything. Instead, you want to select the best GOALKEEPER, DEFENDER, MIDFIELDER, and ATTACKER for their respective positions. Therefore, it's important to IDENTIFY the specific skills and strengths needed for EACH ROLE and find the right person to fill it.

There are two key ways Global Class Companies nurture this interpreneurial talent. First, is fostering cross-cultural collaboration, where team members from different markets have the chance to interact with, and learn from, each other. Part of this is fostering an interpreneurial culture, and part of it is creating opportunities for people with different backgrounds to work together (or at least interact with each other). This feeds into the second key way, which is by creating specific structures and processes to foster this cross-cultural collaboration. Supporting (or even requiring) micro-moves where employees go work in a different country for a 1-6 month period of time, for example, leads people to interact with other team members from different backgrounds, and gives them exposure to new markets to remove any initial market bias or local culture biases.

Seeking and nurturing Interpreneurial talent shouldn’t just be occurring at the individual level, but should also be injected into the culture of the entire organization.

Here is how to better foster Interpreneurialism across entire organizations

• Promote a culturally diverse organization and have core values universalized 

• Foster collaboration amongst teams in different geographies 

• Offer opportunities for employees to do short stints in different geographies and encourage them to work with local teams (some refer to these as “micro moves” that require less commitment than moving to a new market for an undetermined amount of time)

• Promote cultural events that spark curiosity within the organization

NOTE: Don't miss out on the next episode! If you want to continue learning about global expansion strategies and dive deeper into the course material, simply click here to access Module 3, Episode 5 of the Global Growth Master Class.