Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) – Concept, Benefits and Weakness

For a sustainable growth and economic development of a country, innovation and creativity is a very important dimension. Industries and the global markets of the 21st century rest on the intellectual property protection as it is one of the central public policy. By the mid-1990s, a minimum global standard for IPR had been preserved in the WTO Charter through the incorporation of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). The transfer in international economic policy and the lowering of tariff and non-tariff trade barriers to the embrace of strong IPR is genuinely an issue of controversy. Intellectual property rights (IPR) are legal claims settled by governments within their relevant sovereignties that grant trademark, patents and owners of copyright the exclusive right to exploit their intellectual property for a certain period. The fundamental right for IPR protection is to provide an incentive for innovation by granting IP owners Continue reading

Factors Affecting Organizational Structure in Multinational Companies

The organization structure is an approach that helps and guides in organizing the employees of the organization into a structured and organized pattern for better coordination and communication. The structure in a multinational company defines the architecture of the business competence, functional relationship and management function. It helps in reducing confusion in the business environment and also supports in carrying out the business function smoothly and efficiently. The organization structure is affected by various internal and external factors which are also known as the organizational environment since organization works around these factors and the environment. The organizational environment consists of all those factors that influences the organizational working and thus can also influence the organizational structure since in each country and geographical areas the organizational environment would change. The external organizational environment that would influence the organizational structure is the economic, political and legal, socio-economic, technological and natural factors. All Continue reading

Technology Transfer in International Business

Technology is a new variable in the equation of economic relations. Traditional  theories of international business assumes that all nations have equal access to technology and, therefore,  that there is no need to transfer technology from one county to another. Recent  research findings have invalidated this assumption. In addition, they point to  technology differences as primary cause of international inequalities in  economic achievements. To reduce the inequalities, technology capabilities of  the backward nations must be strengthened. The quickest way to do so is to  transfer technology from the developed to the developing nations. Technology is any device or process used for productive purposes. In its  broadest sense, it is the sum of the ways in which a given group provides itself  with good and services, the group being a nation, an industry, or a single firm.  There is a fundamental characteristic of technology that demands clear  recognition. Q unites unlike Continue reading

Importance of International HRM

Various threats generated by the liberalization of an economy can be met only through bringing corresponding changes in management practices including practices related to International HRM. In the newer management practices, more emphasis has been given to International HRM because of the following factors: 1. Emphasis on Core Competency. Post-liberalization, many organizations have started focusing on their core competence and businesses are being organized around that. Core competence is a unique strength of an organization that may not be shared by others. This may be in the form of unique financial resources (finance available at a much lower cost), manpower resources, marketing capability, or technological capability. If the business is organized on the basis of core competency, it is likely to generate competitive advantages. Because of this reason, many organizations have restructured their businesses-divesting those businesses which do not match core competence such as Tata Group divesting many businesses and Continue reading

Country Similarity Theory of International Trade

Country similarity theory was developed by a Swedish economist named Steffan Linder. Country similarity refers to what? Is it similarity of location or culture or political/ economic interests or technological capability (that is acquired advantage) or natural advantage or lack of it? Traditional trade theories speak of difference in demand or supply conditions or both as a necessary condition for trade between countries. That is, the traditional trade theories are built upon differences. But the country similarity theory is built of identical features of nations in trade. 8 out of top 10 trading partners of the USA are developed economies. Globally 11 out of 12 largest players in world trade are developed nations. Developed countries trade more with developed countries: Products of a developed country match demand and user conditions of another developed country only. Hence the similarity in development pace decides trade between countries. The reasoning is that a Continue reading

Transnational Strategy in International Business

Over the years, several companies have decided to carry out their business activities in overseas markets and hence, have expanded as international or global businesses in efforts to be known as multinational enterprises (MNEs) and enjoy the perks of being a global business. In order to come up with strategies for entering and sustaining in international markets, companies invest a lot of time, effort, and money, and yet many do not succeed in their international business planning and/or execution. We can come across several big names that have been unable to prove themselves successful in the international market such as Walmart, Starbuck’s initial launch in Australia, and Amazon in China. These examples depict that managing international operations is a challenging task for any business and therefore, not every business has the capability or the resources for it and some just do not have enough knowledge. Companies can benefit from global Continue reading