IMPACT OF CULTURAL DEXTERITY ON BUSINESS PERFORMANCE: STUDY OF INDIAN COMPANIES IN GLOBAL MARKETS

Cultural dexterity—defined as an organization’s ability to understand, adapt to, and localize across diverse national cultures—has emerged from sidelines to critical determinant of international business success. Such a premise of direct co-relation of Cultural Dexterity competence to Business performance has to be tested by a primary research, along with a proposed Cross cultural difference measuring scale using Culture Dexterity model proposed in this journal. While global literature documents the relationship between cultural adaptation and performance for Western multinational corporations (MNCs), empirical evidence from Indian MNCs remains limited. This study addresses this gap by examining the impact of cultural dexterity on business performance among Indian companies operating in foreign markets, with specific reference to India (domestic market) and Saudi Arabia (foreign market). Using primary data collected 417 respondents across India & Saudi Arabia, through the Culture Wizard (CW) Model dashboard and secondary performance data sourced from AC Nielsen reports (2018–2023), the study measures consumer cultural differences, employee cultural differences, and corresponding cultural adaptation scores. The findings reveal statistically significant cultural differences between domestic and foreign markets and a strong positive correlation between cultural adaptation and business performance. The results empirically establish that Indian MNCs demonstrating higher levels of consumer and employee cultural adaptation achieve superior financial outcomes in foreign markets. The study contributes a structured cultural localization theoritical framework that can serve as a strategic template for Indian MNCs and globalizing startups.