The most successful business ventures to date are those that have a global perspective, yet implement on a local basis, to capitalize on the relationships and knowledge of the local talent. Global view/local implementation is a critical success factor.
The biggest opportunity for woman business owners is to extend their reach via the internet, with unprecedented ability to promote and sell products/services even in the emerging markets.
The biggest mistake any business owner can make is moving into markets without proper knowledge of local laws, cultures, behaviors and labor requirements.
Do your homework and seek out a local partner, employee or advisor. The majority of the world's population is born, lives their life and dies within a thirty mile radius. "Locals" trust and conduct business with locals, so even when multi-billion dollar corporations move into markets, most seek out local talent to provide their unique insight into the cultures, buying behaviors, dialects, and legal requirements.
Manpower has local teams throughout 75 countries in the world for the very purpose of placing local talent into jobs and to advise our clients on the changing world of work.
It is next to impossible for a US-based small business to keep up with the many changes in individual markets, and we provide advice on the whole spectrum of labor requirements.
About Barbara Beck:
Barbara J. Beck is President of Manpower Europe, Middle East and Africa, a position she has held since January 2006.
The EMEA region is the largest business unit within the Manpower corporation, generating approximately $7 Billion in revenues (39% of total corporate revenues) with 11,000 employees across 32 countries including the UK, Europe (excluding France) the former Eastern European nations, South Africa, Russia and the Ukraine. Since assuming responsibility for the business unit, revenues have grown 17% while profits have soared 144%.
Beck’s previous role as Executive Vice President of U.S. and Canada from 2002 through 2005, required her to oversee all aspects of Manpower’s $3 billion North American business unit, which included over 1,100 field offices that employ over half a million temporary employees each year within both the staffing and professional industry sectors. Under Beck’s tenure, profits grew over 140%.
Prior to joining Manpower in 2002, Beck was an area vice president and general manager of United States - West for Sprint, a $23 billion global communications company. Her 15-year tenure at Sprint included leadership of technical sales and applications engineering, business development, customer service, operations, technical support and programme management.
A strong advocate of women’s issues, Beck is a member of Harvard University’s Women’s Leadership Board, Kennedy School of Government, dedicated to advancing women globally through leadership, advocacy and dialogue on public policy. She is also a member of the World Economic Forum’s Women Leaders Programme, dedicated to establishing strategies which address women’s issues on a global basis, particularly in emerging markets. Beck has recently been named as a founding member of Catalyst Europe’s Board of Advisors. When based in the US, she was also appointed by the Lt. Gov of Wisconsin to the state-wide initiative dedicated to advancing the status of women in the public and private sectors.
Beck received her Bachelor of Science degree with honors from the University of Colorado, Boulder in 1982 and has completed executive leadership programs at INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France; the University of Chicago and the Yale School of Management. An expert on the impact of employment trends on global economies, Beck has been a featured speaker at numerous economic forums, including the 2007 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland and has made guest appearances on Bloomberg, CNBC, BBC and the Nightly Business Report.
