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Belgium
It is important that issues are discussed and aired and that decisions are arrived at through a slow process of working towards an accommodation
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As has already been stated, the Belgian approach is characterised by a desire for compromise and the need to reach a workable, acceptable solution. This approach is necessary in a country so beset with factionalism and regionalism - if people were to be dogmatic and pedantic, nothing would ever get done. Of course, one of the sometimes frustrating by-products of this somewhat laboured approach is that decisions take time and that change can be a painful process.
These ‘gradualist’ sentiments are mirrored in the Belgian approach to management. It is important that issues are discussed and aired and that decisions are arrived at through a slow process of working towards an accommodation. Going in to Belgium and assuming that changes can be imposed overnight and without consultation would be folly and lead to future difficulties. As one senior Belgian manager said when being regaled with the merits of the latest management theory by an American colleague,That’s all very interesting and new, but you have to remember that some Belgian companies are older than the United States itself. Change does not happen quickly in Belgium!
Thus, managers need to be seen to be inclusive, yet at the same time they must appear knowledgeable about their functional areas and also have clear views on direction and goals. The style is a complex mix of inclusiveness and management by direction. How does it work — it’s a Belgian compromise.
These ‘gradualist’ sentiments are mirrored in the Belgian approach to management. It is important that issues are discussed and aired and that decisions are arrived at through a slow process of working towards an accommodation. Going in to Belgium and assuming that changes can be imposed overnight and without consultation would be folly and lead to future difficulties. As one senior Belgian manager said when being regaled with the merits of the latest management theory by an American colleague,That’s all very interesting and new, but you have to remember that some Belgian companies are older than the United States itself. Change does not happen quickly in Belgium!
Thus, managers need to be seen to be inclusive, yet at the same time they must appear knowledgeable about their functional areas and also have clear views on direction and goals. The style is a complex mix of inclusiveness and management by direction. How does it work — it’s a Belgian compromise.