Globalization can be characterized by four factors; the growing worldwide interconnections, rapid, discontinuous change, increased number and diversity of participants, as well as growing complexity. According to the Dictionary of Economics the term; globalization, is defined as the geographical shifts in domestic activity around the world and away from the nation states. It can also be referred to the interdependence of economies, through the increase in cross-border movement of goods, service, technology and capital. Examples of such integrations can be seen in the growing presence of many multinational companies as they expand into new regions (i.e. McDonalds) and the outsourcing of manufacturing and services. Drivers of Globalization The four main areas of drivers for globalization are market, government; cost and competition. These external drivers affect the main conditions for the potential of globalization across industries, which are mainly uncontrollable by individual firms. Market drivers include areas such as common customer needs Continue reading
International Business
International Business Management deals with the maintenance and development of a multinational operation across national borders, whose manager has the knowledge and the skills to manage and handle cross-cultural processes, stakeholders and business environments in a right way.
Foreign Direct Investment and the Business Environment
Direct investment abroad is a complex venture. As distinct from trade, licensing or investment, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) involves a long-term commitment to a business endeavor in a foreign country. It often involves the engagement of considerable assets and resources that need to be coordinated and managed across countries and to satisfy the principle of successful investment, such as sustainable profitability and acceptable risk/profitability ratios. Typically, there are many host country factors involved in deciding where an FDI project should be located and it is often difficult to pinpoint the most decisive factor. However, it is widely agreed that FDI takes place when three sets of determining factors exist simultaneously; the presence of ownership-specific competitive ages in a transnational corporation (TNC), the presence of locational advantages in a host country, and the presence of superior commercial benefits in an intra-firm as against an arm’s-length relationship between investor and recipient. The Continue reading
Why Does a Company Go Global?
There are a number of objectives of international business but the primary and the basic of them being; 1. Learning and Product Development: Today every organization is a learning organization. Also it has to continuously be in touch with the competition in the market. Hence it has to do the up gradation of the existing products eventually whenever required. When one enters international markets, one comes across other competitors from other countries. One is therefore exposed to competition from other countries. Domestic goods have to match international standards to remain in competition, not only with respect to product, cost and quality but services as well. Therefore, one gets an opportunity to learn and develop or improvise new products. 2. Brand building for other products In international markets, if the company is competent enough to beat the rivals in the field, it not only creates a goodwill and image of the Continue reading
Global Marketing Strategies
Marketing strategy is one of the most interesting, challenging and important elements in international business. Compared with art and science, marketing strategy is more about people finding ways to deliver exceptional value by fulfilling the needs and wants of customers, shareholders, business partners and society. It is inherently driven by people and is always changeable which explains why making marketing strategy is difficult and significant. Moreover, a perfect marketing strategy that is executed without any flaws can still fail. Additionally, sometimes businesses get success despite having a general strategy or execution because marketing is complicated and flexible and the nature or characteristics of marketing can make planning strategy very difficult and frustrating. Marketing strategy has been a great challenge for each enterprise. To some degree, the difficulty of making marketing strategy highlights the extraordinary success of those famous business, for instance, Coca-cola, Starbucks, Best buy, Apple, etc. A global marketing Continue reading
Push and Pull Factors in International Business
Companies decide to go global and enter international markets for a variety of reasons, and these different objectives at the time of entry should produce different strategies, performance goals, and even forms of market participation. However, companies often follow a standard market entry and development strategy. The most common is sometimes referred to as the “increasing commitment” method of market development, in which market entry is done via an independent local partner. As business and confidence grows, a switch to a directly controlled subsidiary is often enacted. This internationalization approach results from a desire to build a business in the country-market as quickly as possible and by an initial desire to minimize risk coupled with the need to learn about the country and market from a low base of knowledge. International markets evolve rapidly and very often companies struggle to keep up in terms of their strategy. It is therefore Continue reading
Three Approaches for Promoting Diversity in the Workplace
Though, diversity can have a wide range of meanings, some companies use the traditional Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) definition of diversity, which deals with differences in gender, racioethnicity, and age. Other companies tend to favor the broadest definitions of diversity, ones that encompass differences in gender, racioethnicity, age, physical abilities, qualities, and sexual orientation, as well as differences in attitudes, perspectives and background. Many individuals rely on a more detailed definition of diversity considering diverse people as being in the non-dominant social system who have been traditionally under research and under served. While there is no correct definition of diversity, the three diversity initiatives discussed in this article seem to target a definition that encompasses creating a diverse work environment that is inclusive to everyone, specifically focusing on the inclusion of minorities and non minorities. Three Main Approaches to Workplace Diversity 1. Colorblind Approach The colorblind approach is similar Continue reading