Context for Cultural Leadership
Globalisation, technological change and organisational development are shaping also leadership. However, the term globalisation has been used in a multiplicity of senses, in its most general sense, globalisation refers to the growing interdependency and interpenetration of economic processes on a worldwide scale (Schienstock, 2001). The most important aspects of economic globalisation are:
- the breaking down of national economic barriers,
- the international spread of trade, technology, financial and production activities, services and
- the growing power of transnational corporations and international financial institutions in these processes (Khor, 2001).
It should be noted that although many see it as a primarily economic phenomenon, sociologists have called the attention to the cultural, reflexive and aesthetic aspects of globalization as well (Guillen, 2001).
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Sociologist Manuel Castells defines the global economy as "an economy with the capacity to work as a unit in real time on a planetary scale" (Castells, 1996, p.92) and adds that although globalisation is multidimensional, it can be better understood starting with its economic dimension (Castells, 1998). Mauro Guillen has given a good overview about multiple issues relating to globalisation (Guillen, 2001). In the past two to three decades, globalisation has accelerated because of various factors and technological change particularly is playing a vital role in the globalisation process. Through their effects on production methods, consumption patterns and the structure of economies, information and communication technologies (ICTs) are a key factor in the transition to the knowledge-based economy (OECD/ Statistics Canada, 2000). Source for photo: http://www.manuelcastells.info/en/ |
Sirje Virkus, Tallinn University, 2009