Are you ready to lead in the Asian century?

In Australia, successful leaders need to have a lot of technical competency. “You need to understand how to read a spreadsheet, and to have a high-level understanding of the industry and your company,” Beasley says

“In Asia, people skills are far more important. You have to develop trusted relationships with key stakeholders and players in the region.

“One of the key differences is a very different approach to business outcomes. It’s a much more networked environment and very complex politically. You have to be really careful who you go into business with.

“In Australia, there’s a legal safety net which protects your rights. Over there, it’s less formal. You need to know a lot about your partners, about their history and reputation.”

Australian leaders going into Asia need to ask themselves what their tolerance for ambiguity is.

“Many Australian executives find that very challenging. When you’re doing business in Asia, not everything will be clear. But you need to continue regardless.”

The best way to get your head around this way of thinking is simple, Beasley says: go and work in Asia.

“People often say things like ‘I went to Thailand on my holiday’. But doing business in Asia isn’t curries and massage. It’s about learning simple things like how a meeting is run, how conflicts are resolved, and the role of hierarchy.

“I would say take any opportunity to go on a workplace rotation.

“If you’re going to Asia and working with a western company, it’s better than not going at all, but if you can get work with locals, it’ll be a really eye-opening experience.”

This view is shared by many executives, including ANZ’s international and institutional chief Alex Thursby. In an interview with The Australian Financial Review, published today, he credits a four-and-a-half year stint in Indonesia with international bank Standard Chartered as having taught him much of what he knows about doing business internationally. “I learnt more in Indonesia in four and a half years than I could would have ever learnt if I was in the UK or Australia,” he told the newspaper.

Do you need to know the language?

Beasley says language is important. She’s enrolled her children in private Mandarin classes, and they also learn Vietnamese. “I think it’s critical for them,” she says.

But for those further along in their executive career, learning an Asian language may not be realistic.

“I often get senior executives saying to me they’re going to learn Mandarin.”

“Obviously speaking the local language makes life a lot easier. But for those on boards and senior executives, I always think, ‘You’re struggling with time already! How are you going to find the time to learn?’

“I’ve studied Thai for five years full-time, and I still find it difficult to do business in Thai.”

A few key phrases will take you a long way, and take up far less of your time to learn.