Hello! I am Alfredo from Kuraken.
During this quarantine, among other things, I have been reading blogs
and articles about how to make a construction company grow and how to succeed
in an overseas expansion. It has been an interesting exercise to get a brief
idea from others’ experiences. It has been, as well, an opportunity to revise
my own ideas and beliefs. I would like to post here some of the points that I
found relevant to the process Kuraken is trying to undertake, focusing on the
obstacles that the company will face and how can some risks be mitigated.
First,
as I wrote in my last post, dealing with and overcoming cultural andlanguage barriers is the cornerstone of any successful company abroad. This
is specially important in the construction industry because in it is embedded the
particular essence of the working culture of any region and country. Clearly, to
enter a new market without these essential cultural traits and knowledge may be
a disadvantage in many situations (even for new local companies!). Nonetheless,
there might be particular situations in which “bringing a new culture” can be
turned into a relative strength. In what kind of situations this “new-comer”
status could become an advantage? (1) One is when the costumer is familiar with
the working culture of the company, or even better, when the client has worked directly
with the company or has a reference of the company. In our case, this means
approaching to Japanese costumers abroad and to companies that have been our
costumers before, or that can get a reference of Kuraken from a third person. (2)
Another one is to come into a specialized field where the company has
experience, can deliver quality, and where there is relatively small competence.
About this point, in the company we have had talks about exploring the potential
markets on high tech industries, like data centers, manufacturing industries
and so on. I think this could be a good entrance to certain foreign markets and
should be further explored.
A
second obstacle to tackle is the human factor (inside the company). It is
important for the company to start preparing human resources to work on
different (foreign) environments. Communication and management skills are essential
in any construction project, and we need to prepare to manage and to
communicate in a completely different environment. Another important aspect is to
have the support and understanding of all members. If someone doesn’t understand
the possible benefits that an overseas venture could bring to the company, it
is likely for that person to feel uncomfortable with the harshes and the risks
the whole company has to deal with. Therefore, appropriate communication and
understanding among the company members about the possible benefits and difficulties
is a good way to begin to prepare our human resources.
There
are many other obstacles and risks to think about, but it is also good to go
step by step, so I leave this here. I will continue thinking about these
matters, so any feedback will be appreciated.
Alfredo
コメント
コメントを投稿