International Business Environment

Outline and critically discuss the criteria by which they judge whether or not a country is stable.

International businesses faces a number of risks when they decide to operate overseas. Their ability to make sound investment decisions and to address those risks is directly related to the stability of the country in question. Firms therefore need to develop mechanisms for measuring stability before making the decision to enter a market. There are a few different ways of understanding stability -- political stability, economic stability and exchange rate stability are perhaps the most important, although workforce stability and legal stability are also relevant for many organizations.

Political Stability

International businesses operate in countries with vast differences in political structures and systems. From Communist to totalitarian to capitalist nations, international business must make adjustments for operating based on the local government conditions. Doing this is complicated with the nation…

Works Cited:

AP. (2011). Canada's Suncor pulls out of Syria. CBC News. Retrieved December 12, 2011 from  http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2011/12/11/syria-suncor-sunday.html?cmp=rss 

CIA World Factbook: Oman. (2011). Retrieved December 12, 2011 from  https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/mu.html 

Harper, D. (2010). How companies use derivatives to hedge risk. Investopedia. Retrieved December 12, 2011 from  http://www.investopedia.com/articles/stocks/04/122204.asp#axzz1gHp0eTq0 

Jong, R. (2006). On the measurement of political instability and its impact on economic growth. University of Groningen. Retrieved December 12, 2011 from  http://congress.utu.fi/epcs2006/docs/D8_jong-a-pin.pdf

These can create significant management problems due to the impact of different cultures, taxation and pricing, the complexity of choosing the optimal structure for international business, high political risks and many other issues.

The specifics of financial planning is determined by the following problems, including volatility in exchange rates, particularly the national taxation, revaluation of currencies, possible difficulties with the export of funds from abroad, problems with in-house transfer pricing, and problems in terms of estimating performance of foreign subsidiaries. The best known areas of international business development are in wholly-owned subsidiaries, joint ventures, licensed concerns, franchise agreement opportunities, exports and imports and offshore production. In the competitive business market of today there is so much competition that most companies sell outside the country to increase the total sales volume (ibid 69-70).

The increasing internationalization of all types business is requiring that managers have a global business perspective and also…

References

Czinkota, M.R., & Ronkainen, I.A. (2010). Global business: Positioning ventures ahead. London,

UK: Routledge.

International Business of Starbucks

Starbucks Corporation established in 1971 has its headquarters based in Seattle, Washington. The company is the leading and largest coffeehouse company, with a wide coverage of the market across the globe (Simon, 2009). It is a global coffee company and chain of coffeehouse stores, operating in over 50 countries all over the world. At its founding, it was a mainstream coffee bean roaster and retailer. The company founders were a group of three partners, who were students in the University of San Francisco at the time of its establishment. Originally, Starbucks only roasted whole coffee beans, without brewing, but later came to incorporate aspects of brewing and other products. They used to get supplies from Peet's, but later bought Peet's and started dealing directly with the growers, hence began to expand (Simon, 2009). Eventually, the company expanded in the 1980's and 1990 is within the America's…

References

Simon, B. (2009). Everything but the Coffee: Learning about America from Starbucks. Berkeley:

Fitzgerald, M. (2013). How starbucks has gone digital. MIT Sloan Management Review, 54(4),

1-8. Retrieved from  http://search.proquest.com/docview/1399095649?accountid=458 

Gilbert, S. (2008). The story of Starbucks. Mankato, MN: Creative Education.

The localization strategy into Vietnam is also characterized by the fact that it ensures higher levels of business diversification for the company, which in fact serves the number one rule of investments -- portfolio diversification. This in essence means that, through the penetration of the Vietnamese market, the company would increase its sources of revenues and it would decrease its dependency on the more traditional manufacturing plants.

Finally, the localization strategy also allows Win-win to gain potential marketing advantages by creating customer awareness and generating demand for the company's products, even when the company only produces them in the Southeast Asian country (Quick MBA).

The need for the localization strategy is give by the fact that Win-win, as well as any other economic agent, cannot simply adopt a strategic model as it arises within the specialized literature. It as such has to customize it in order to meet its unique…

References:

Grant, R.M., 2008, International business: competing in the global marketplace, Oxford, U.K., Blackwell 9781405163095

Hill, C., Jones, G., 2009, Strategic management theory: an integrated approach, 9th edition, Cengage Learning

Ansoff's product / market matrix, Tutor2U,  http://tutor2u.net/business/strategy/ansoff_matrix.htm  last accessed on February 4, 2011

2010, Ansoff matrix, Quick MBA,  http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/matrix/ansoff  / last accessed on February 4, 2011

International Business

The Effect of National Culture on the Choice of Entry Mode

Foreign direct investment has increased dramatically over the last couple of decades and this trend has been studied. However, it is argued that the entry model form many of these investments has not been studied with the same rigor. It is commonly thought the composition of national cultures on Hofstede's scale and the distance between the two cultures influences the model of entry that is chosen. The study proposes that the cultural distance between two cultures as well as the uncertainty avoidance principles will guide the selection and compares data on 228 entries into the U.S. market through acquisition, wholly owned greenfield, and joint venture. The study finds several correlations in the data and concludes that the entry mode is influenced by cultural factors.

Position of the Author

The position of the author is that there is…

International Business

South Korea International Business

South Korea: Introduction and Business Potential

South Korea is the 12th largest economy in the world. It has made tremendous growth in all manufacturing, industrial, and services sectors to become economically and technologically strong. Due to rapid economic growth and positive governmental behavior, South Korea has become an attractive target country for foreign corporations for their international business expansion strategies (Central Intelligence Agency, 2013). However, these foreign corporations face huge differences in the cross-cultural values, marketing practices and ethical values when they enter into South Korean market (Ball, 2010).

Cross Cultural Differences

Language Barriers:

The most significant cross-cultural difference which the U.S. businesses face in South Korea is the language barriers. In the U.S., people speak louder and more aggressively; whereas in Asian countries like Korea, they are soft in voice tone and communication styles. Moreover, differences exist in the native language and English-accent…

References

Ball, D.A. (2010). International Business: the Challenge of Global Competition, 12th Edition. Boston: McGraw Hill.

Central Intelligence Agency, (2013). East & Southeast Asia: Korea, South. Retrieved on June 8th, 2013, from

Hill, C.W. (2013). International Business: Competing in the Global Marketplace, 9th Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Lee, Y. & Trim, P.R. (2008). Entering the South Korean market: a marketing-planning process model for marketers based in overseas companies, Business Strategy Series, 9 (5): 272-278.

International usiness

Over the last several decades, globalization has been having profound impact on the way businesses are operating. This has created shifts in the markets for a wide variety of corporations seeking to aggressively expand into these areas to increase their overall profits. A good example of this can be seen with a study that was conducted by the UN Conference on Trade and Development. They found that nearly 90% of domestically-based companies would like to aggressively expand into other markets. This is significant, because it is showing the tremendous opportunities that globalization has created for businesses to be able to increase their overall profit margins. ("Companies to oost Overseas Investment," 2011)

In the case of the Gulf Cart, this is providing an opportunity to begin aggressively expanding rapidly into the ahamas. However, to ensure that the company can be successful over the long-term requires creating strategy that will…

Bibliography

The Bahamas. (2011). The CIA World Fact Book. Retrieved from:  https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bf.html 

Companies to Boost Overseas Investment. (2011). CN Business News. Retrieved from: http://cnbusinessnews.com/companies-to-boost-overseas-investment/

The Marketing Mix. (2010). Quick MBA. Retrieved from:  http://www.quickmba.com/marketing/mix/

International usiness and the Regions

How far has the competitiveness of two East Asian firms been based on: (1) national networks and institutions, including localised clusters; (2) regional links and networking across the East Asian region; (3) transnational links beyond the East Asian region and; (4) support from the policies of one or more East Asian governments?

Over the last several decades, globalization has been having a tremendous impact on the way many corporations are interacting with customers. Part of the reason for this, is because of advancements in technology and a liberalizing of trade barriers have caused commerce to increase. As, corporations are seeking out those areas, where they can: introduce new products or services and be able to capture as much of the local market as possible. At the same time, they are looking for regions that can help to: reduce their labor costs and import the finished…

Bibliography

Acer, 2007, Data Monitor. Available from: [9 June 2011]

Acer's Manufacturing Base, 2011, The Asia Career Times. Available from: [9 June 2011].

Chinese Market is Hard, 2007, Softpedia. Available from: [9 June 2011].

Hyundai, 2011, Economic Times. Available from: [9 June 2011].

International Business 5 Pertinent Topics

The Cultural Effect on International Business

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Political Issues Affecting International Business

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Regional Economic Integration AND INTERNATIONAL Business

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Impact of Exchange Rates on International Business

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Corporate Strategy in International Business

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An Analysis of International Business Today

No one can dispute the fact that the world economy is increasingly globalizing as we move into the 21st century. As this internationalization of business grows, there is an increasing challenge being faced to deal with cultural differences. In one survey, cultural differences ranked first among all eight issues listed as potential barriers, including law, price competition, information, language, delivery, foreign currency, time differences, and cultural differences. Great opportunities have been created for global collaboration but these opportunities are accompanied by a unique set of problems and issues relating to effective management in the international environment. The social and cultural nuances that enter the picture…

Works Cited

Edwards, Cliff, Jim Kerstetter, Bruce Einhorn and Paul Magnusson. Why China is Making the Valley Fret. Business Week 29 Mar 2004: 50-51.

Fan, Pan and Zhang Zagang. Cross-cultural Challenges when Doing Business in China. Singapore Management Review 26.1 (2004): 81.

Greenlees, Donald, and Jan McCallum. Macquarie Makes Its Move On Asia. Far Eastern Economic Review 167.12 (2004): 38-4.

Pastor, Robert A. North America's Second Decade. Foreign Affairs 83.1 (2004): 124.

International usiness

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) or could also be referred to as small and medium-sized businesses (SMs) are firms with a limit as to the number of personnel who operate and run them. Small enterprises are usually more than large companies are. They also employ many more workers. SMEs have the capacity for enhancing innovation and competition in different economic sectors in a market (eck, 2000).

Many SMEs are involved in large-scale and global activities. It is only a small number of these firms that are involved in internationalization that goes far beyond the international market. Imports and exports are the commonest forms of internationalization. Some of the internationalization activities include technological co-operation with a foreign partner, acting as a subcontractor to a foreign partner and participate in active foreign direct investment. The level of internationalization and the company size are closely related. Companies will larger business operations…

Bibliography

Barber, J., & Alegre, J. 2010. Reshaping the boundaries of the firm in an era of global interdependence. Bingley, U.K.: Emerald

Beck, K. 2000, Extreme Programming Explained: Embrace Change. Amsterdam: Addison-

Wesley Longman.

Crick, D. & Chaudhry, S. 2013, An Exploratory Study of UK Based Asian Family-Owned

International usiness: Nike Corporation

International business

Nike Corporation

The purpose of this work is to research Nike Corporation in relation to international business through the conduction of a SWOT analysis of the company, as well as analyzing the industry. Further this paper will examine the top competitors of Nike Corporation as well as the international factors and elements which affect the corporation either positively or negatively.

Nike Corporation states on the Nike.com website that the Nike Foundation is "a reflection of the Nike Culture." The stated mission of the Nike Corporation is reflected in their statement of commitment to "assisting youth to achieve both their personal goals as well as to contribute to the overall betterment of society." The Nike Corporation's stated goals are to:

Assist young people in understanding their power of ignition of positive change and then to provide the youth with tools needed in this action.

Engaging…

Bibliography:

Nike Reports First Quarter Earnings Per Share up 23%; Worldwide futures orders increase 9.9% (2005) Jan Press Release for Immediate Release [Online] available at:: //www.nike.com/nikebiz/invest/pdf/q105.pdf

Catherine Colbert (2005) Nike Inc. Hoovers [Online] available at: http://www.hoovers.com/nike/--ID__14254 -- /free-co-factsheet.xhtml

Kasky V. Nike: Just the Facts (2004) Reclaim Democracy Website [Online]

available at:  http://reclaimdemocracy.org/nike/kasky  _nike_justfacts.html

International Business Model I

International Business Model: eBay

In order to understand the international market and what eBay has to offer in that market, it is important to discuss the company in light of the 4 Ps (product, place, promotion, and price). That can provide a better understanding of why eBay failed in some Asian markets and why it struggled for some time before seeing success in others. While eBay is a highly popular site in the U.S., the UK, and a few other countries, that did not mean it could automatically move right into Asian countries or others and do just as well. There were issues it had to address, and some unexpected difficulties that appeared even though the company did not feel it would have to worry about them and/or thought it had covered all the bases with the particular country into which it was moving.

EBay's product…

References

Cohen, A. (2002). The Perfect Store: Inside eBay. NY: Little, Brown & Company.

Jackson, E.M. (2004). The PayPal Wars: Battles with eBay, the Media, the Mafia, and the Rest of Planet Earth. NY: World Ahead Publishing.

Nissanoff, D. (2006). FutureShop: How the New Auction Culture Will Revolutionize the Way We Buy, Sell and Get the Things We Really Want. NY: The Penguin Press.

Walton, K. (2006). FAKE: Forgery, Lies, & eBay. NY: Simon Spotlight Entertainment.

International Business Management

AccuForm Corporate Corruption Case Analysis

Establishing a subsidiary in a foreign nation poses many challenges. Corporate leadership challenges can often be the most daunting to resolve. One a most challenging leadership challenges is that of ethical considerations and corporate corruption. Corporate cultures differ and these differences can create major difficulties for foreign subsidiaries. This case involves corporate espionage and the theft of proprietary product information, as well as the unauthorized use of a corporate trademark. In the midst of this scandal, AccuForm faced public humiliation for actions that they did not take. Kim now faced challenges about how to present these problems to the board can help to distance the company brand from these incidents. This analysis will explore the many facets of this case.

Social, Ethical and Legal Challenges

This case highlights the social, ethical, and legal challenges that a company can face when operating a…

References

Hofstede, G. (1997). Culture's Consequences, International Differences in Work-Related Values (Cross Cultural Research and Methodology). Sage Publications, Inc.

Hooker, J. (2009). A Cross-Cultural View of Corruption. Ethisphere. 2 November 2009.

Retrieved from  http://ethisphere.com/a-cross-cultural-view-of-corruption/ 

Lau, A. & Wong, R. (n.d.). AccuForm: Ethical Leadership and Its Challenges in the Era of Globalization. Asia Case Research Centre. University of Hong Kong.

This plan is focused on financial stability and profitability, through the reduction of operational costs. In this business strategy, outsourcing plays a crucial role.

eferences:

Dunai, M., 2012, Hungarian town suffers as Nokia announces big layoffs, euters, http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/08/us-hungary-nokia-idUSTE8171OU20120208 last accessed on March 21, 2012

Haikio, M., 2002, Nokia: the inside story, Pearson Education, ISBN 0273659839

Layard, ., Nickell, S., Eichorst, W., Zimmermann, K.F., 2011, Combating unemployment, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0199609780

Louis, P.J., Nokia restructuring and issues with outsourcing strategy, Venture Outsource, http://www.ventureoutsource.com/contract-manufacturing/product-market-segments/cell-phones-handsets/nokia-restructuring-and-issues-with-outsourcing-strategy last accessed on March 21, 2012

aby, M., 2012, Nokia announces more major layoffs, TG Daily, http://www.tgdaily.com/mobility-brief/61315-nokia-announces-more-major-layoffs last accessed on March 21, 2012

ugman, a.M., 2007, Multinational enterprises from engineering markets, Berlin oundtable

ugman, a.M., 2009, the Oxford handbook of international business, 2nd edition, Oxford Handbooks Online, ISBN 0199234256

2011, Foreign minister lobbying in Helsinki to keep Nokia in Hungary, Budapest Business Journal, http://www.bbj.hu/politics/foreign-minister-lobbying-in-helsinki-to-keep-nokia-in-hungary-nepszabadsag_61055 last accessed on…

References:

Dunai, M., 2012, Hungarian town suffers as Nokia announces big layoffs, Reuters,  http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/08/us-hungary-nokia-idUSTRE8171OU20120208  last accessed on March 21, 2012

Haikio, M., 2002, Nokia: the inside story, Pearson Education, ISBN 0273659839

Layard, R., Nickell, S., Eichorst, W., Zimmermann, K.F., 2011, Combating unemployment, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0199609780

Louis, P.J., Nokia restructuring and issues with outsourcing strategy, Venture Outsource,  http://www.ventureoutsource.com/contract-manufacturing/product-market-segments/cell-phones-handsets/nokia-restructuring-and-issues-with-outsourcing-strategy  last accessed on March 21, 2012

International usiness

Competitive strategy is the bedrock on which companies base business decisions to reach their targets and achieve profitability. Formulating and implementing strategies in international business is much more complicated and difficult task than doing so in home or familiar markets. Competitive strategy deals with the development of abilities by a firm to keep ahead of competitors in the fields in which it operates. Firms develop competitive edge in global markets by possessing certain assets, abilities or characteristics. The primary elements of competitive advantage are the critical offer, the significant operating factors and the firm's strategic resources. (ennett and lythe, 2002) Corporate strategies and international marketing strategies are linked closely and have a bearing on business performance. (rown, 1994)

While some companies focus on a single source of competitive advantage, it is common for many firms to opt for a combination of options to be flexible and attain the…

Bibliography

Ahlberg, J; Garemo, N; Naucler, T. (1999) 'The Euro: How to keep your Prices Up and your Competitors Down', The Mclliney Quarterly, Volume: 2

Bennett, R. (1996) 'Relationship formation and governance in consumer markets: Transactional analysis vs. The behaviorist approach', Journal of Marketing Management, Volume: 12; No: 6

Bennett, R. (1999) 'International Business Frameworks', Second Edition, London: Financial Times/Pitman

Bennett, R and Blythe, J. (2002) 'International Marketing: Strategic Planning, Market Entry and Implementation', London: Kogan Page

International Networking and the Outcomes of Global Networking

The purpose of the research proposed is to examine international business economics and specifically the impact that global networking has had upon organizations and corporations that are global providers of products and/or services. Research questions in this proposed study include those which ask as the questions of: (1) What is the impact of global networking on international business economics both in the U.S. And in developing countries throughout the world? And (2) Does affiliation drive business growth and profit for international organizations?

International Networking and the Outcomes of Global Networking

According to the work of Contractor and Lorange (2002) entitled "Cooperative Strategies in International usiness: Joint Ventures and Technology Partnerships etween Firms" there is increasingly acknowledgement that alternative forms of international business operations involving "negotiated arrangements between two or more firms." (Contractor and Lorange, 2002) This model involves the collaboration and cooperation…

Bibliography

Changes in Global Organization (nd) World Bank report. Retrieved from:  http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTGEP/Resources/335315-1257200391829/gep2003chap2.pdf 

Contractor, FJ and Lorange, P (2002) Cooperative Strategies in International business: Joint Ventures and Technology Partnerships between firms. International business and management series. Vol. 2 Cooperative Strategies and Alliances in International business. Rutgers University. Graduate School of Management, Wharton School. Emerald Group Publishing 2002. Retrieved from:  http://books.google.com/books?id=BwfRrH5jEKgC&dq=International+Business+Economics&lr=&source=gbs_navlinks_s 

Heinsz, WJ (nd) The Institutional Environment for International business. The Wharton school, University of Pennsylvania. Philadelphia, PA. Retrieved from:  http://www-management.wharton.upenn.edu/henisz/papers/wiib.pdf 

Mataloni, Raymond J., and Daniel R. Yorgason (2002) Operations of U.S. Multinational Companies: Preliminary Results from the 1999 Benchmark Survey." Survey of Current Business. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Commerce. March.

This method is a descendant of a Rand Corporation study methodology changed from war planning and now applied to changing university curricula. t will produce changing and dynamic profiles as the needs arise for a study.

t is a research technique with flexibility that has been used in a program at the University of Calgary to explore new concepts of the information systems body of knowledge in business. The Delphi method is a process to collect and distill the anonymous judgments of experts while using a set of data collection/analysis techniques that are interspersed with feedback. The method is suited as a research tool when there is incomplete data about a problem or phenomenon. This method works well when the goal is to improve the understanding of problems solutions, or to make forecasts. t is advantageous from a quantitative standpoint. t is very useful for helping to develop profiles of…

In Academy of Management, 8,633 incumbent managers from 52 managerial occupations were polled and the results showed that behavioral competencies are the very competencies that are least represented in the required MBA curricula. The findings further indicate that the institutional factors such as the media rankings and the mission orientation have almost no effect on the realignment of curricula with critical competencies. The advantage of this study is that shows how far most business schools have to go to reform their programs. Again, the downside are conservative faculty who drag their feet (Rubin & E.C., 2009, 208).

Waller, A.D. (2008). Perceptions of emotional intelligence preparation and industry expectations for utah state university mba graduates. (pp. 1-148). Salt Lake City Utah: Utah State University.

Finally, graduate business students themselves seem to feel they are being short changed, according to a dissertation by Arthur D. Waller of the Utah State University. According to the students in this study, a great skill lacking in graduate business school curricula, are training in the area of teamwork and leadership development. These students felt that the most important elements of a company are its people and that the technocratic nature of present programs overlook this. Unfortunately, this approach does ask companies what they want (Waller, 2008, iii-iv).

In the U.S., the concept of a dead line is standard; in societies of the Middle East this is not even a concept to recon with. Time is also a strategy that is used by different cultures to signify different conditions. In Latin America, waiting for an appointment with a senior is normal and not to be considered an insult. In the U.S., the amount of time spent waiting for an appointment is often correlated to the respect and the value that is given to the individual waiting. Conflict management also posses a significant challenge in the international arena. Individuals from countries like the U.S. might deal with many of the issues head on, while citizens of Japan might tend to avoid unpleasant situations, not because they do not like the challenge, but simply because it is not culturally acceptable to do so.

Space is also defined differently. New concepts…

Bibliography

Barboux, Jean-Luis, & Lawrence, Peter. (1991). The Making of a French Manager. Harvard Business Review, July-August,

Hall, Edward T. (1960). The Silent Language of Overseas Business. Harvard Business Review, May-June,

Wells_Jr, Louis T. (1977). Negotiations with Third World Governments. Harvard Business Review, Jan-Feb

International Business

Shenkar & Luo (n.d.) note that "international business strategy must aim to find the most effective balance between global integration and local responsiveness" when entering new markets. Thus, firms need to balance all of the different factors that go into the market entry decision in order to enjoy the best outcomes. Among the key issues are timing of entry and mode of entry.

There has been considerable research with respect to the different options that are available to the firm. Gielens and Dekimpe (2001) note in their study that firms that enter a market early -- first movers especially -- and greenfield will tend to have the best success. hich of these elements is most important, however, is subject to debate. hen Starbucks entered Japan and China, it met the criteria of having a novel concept and first-mover advantage, but the company used local partners rather than avoiding…

Works Cited:

Davis, P., Desai, A. & Francis, J. (2000). Mode of international entry: An isomorphism perspective. Journal of International Business Studies. Vol. 31 (2) 239-258.

Gielens, K. & Dekimpe, M. (2001). Do international entry decisions of retail chains matter in the long run? International Journal of Research in Marketing. Vol. 18 (3) 235-259.

Hill, C., Hwang, P. & Kim, W. (1990). An eclectic theory of the choice of international entry mode. Strategic Management Journal. Vol. 11 (1990) 117-128.

Shenkar & Luo. (no date). Chapters 10, 11.

Interest in home improvement has increased dramatically in recent decades, particularly with the rise of home improvement and do-it-yourself television, magazines, and other media. But on the con side, disposable income may be reserved for fuel, not for new home amenities. Please remember that Americans are not used to paying so much for gasoline, unlike Europeans!

Furniture such as tables and chairs can also be acquired used, and there has been a new boom of second-hand merchandise exchange through online venues such as Craig's List, in addition to thrift stores and personal sales. Shopping patterns that could also threaten the's Company in America is the predominance of Wal-Mart, Costco, and other major department stores, where consumers are diverting more and more of the purchasing power. If the's Company chooses to sell mainly through its own stores, consumers might be less apt to travel to such locations, if they feel that…

1) Cemex is an acquisition specialist. They perform best with FDI when they have control over the company and can make the changes they need to improve it. Cemex derives value from buying companies and improving them. This is the internalization theory. Cemex feels that the benefits from taking control are worth the expense. They do not wish to risk technology transfer; they wish to have strict control over manufacturing and marketing, and they believe that with an undifferentiated product their competitive advantage is in their managerial expertise, something they do not wish to transfer to any foreign company.

2) To the host economy, Cemex brings a more efficient cement firm. They improve the construction business and its capacity. This in turn lowers the cost of construction and helps create jobs. Potential drawbacks to Cemex's investment in an economy are that they teach competitors how to better perform. These competitors…

Brazilians score highly on uncertainty avoidance -- where Americans may be willing to accept a certain degree of ambivalence and leave details unfinished, Brazilians are less likely to do so (Hofstede, 2009).

These differences can have a significant impact on business activities. At the broader cultural level, the government is much more actively involved in the economy in Brazil than in the United States. here a firm can do business in the U.S. without running into anything more than routine government paperwork, in Brazil the government may take an active role in transactions of all sizes. The public interest and greater good are taken into consideration when making decisions, not just the firm-specific economic consequences of a deal. It might be difficult for American companies to adjust to this high level of government intervention in business activities, especially when this intervention occurs post-deal. Difficulties in dealing with the Brazilian government…

Works Cited:

Geert Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions: Brazil. (2009). Retrieved October 17, 2011 from  http://www.geert-hofstede.com/hofstede_brazil.shtml 

Michener, G. (2011). Brazil fights corruption at home as it signs Open Government Partnership with the U.S. Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved October 17, 2011 from  http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Americas/Latin-America-Monitor/2011/0920/Brazil-fights-corruption-at-home-as-it-signs-Open-Government-Partnership-with-the-U.S .

Sterling, B. (2010). Brazilian socialism distorts free markets to feed hungry poor and dying babies. Wired Magazine. Retrieved October 17, 2011 from  http://www.wired.com/beyond_the_beyond/2010/09/brazilian-socialism-distorts-free-markets-to-feed-hungry-poor-and-dying-babies/

As a society, we allow government to help companies from time to time with tax and trade policy, because those companies create jobs. Part of the social contract of Americans is that we shall help each other out in times of crisis. Yet, this nation is a democracy, and the laws of the land should therefore reflect the will of the people who elected the politicians who wrote those laws and appointed those judges. As such, the categorical imperative is equivalent to the laws, and there are no laws forbidding this outsourcing. Additionally, a case could be made that there exists no social contract to protect American jobs. Our society is a free one, where liberty is valued above all. Employees are hired "at-will" and they have freedom to sever the employer-employee relationship equivalent to the freedom held by corporations. There is no mutual obligation, in absence of a valid…

Works Cited:

Friedman, M. (1970). The social responsibility of business is to increase its profits. New York Times Magazine. Retrieved April 21, 2012 from  http://www.colorado.edu/studentgroups/libertarians/issues/friedman-soc-resp-business.html

Management possesses a broad range of international experience. Decisions may be made at head office or at the subsidiary level, but in either case management is familiar with both outlooks.

The rationale behind the ethnocentric approach is that the home office will deliver consistent decisions that are always in line with core values and objectives. The local managers are directly and specifically oriented towards corporate-wide objectives. The polycentric approach reflects the belief that the local managers will do what is best for the local subsidiary, which in turn will be what is best for the head office. The geocentric approach believes that the best management teams will be able to fuse local and global perspectives and that the other two approaches to do not achieve this.

4. Management development programs are systems for developing managers with specific skills and traits that are consistent with the corporation's strategic objectives. Managers are…

3. Describe some factors you would consider when selecting a strategic alliance partner. Explain what you would do to insure the success of such a partnership.

Starting with financial viability and moving into the specific areas of expertise in a given market, potential strategic alliance partners need to be evaluate on their ability to continually innovate as well (Jamali, Yianni, Abdallah, 383, 384). In addition, their role in the overall market of the region or nation of interest, reputation, customer service record, level of influence with the government, and potential to open entirely new markets also must be considered. Previous experiences with managing international relationships, roles of their senior management team earlier in their careers in managing global alliances, and track record with equity and non-equity forms of expansion all need to be considered

(Hipkin, Naude, 63, 64). The extent of success or failure specific alliance partners have had in…

Works Cited

Baloh, Peter, Sanjeev Jha, and Yukika Awazu. "Building Strategic Partnerships for Managing Innovation Outsourcing."Strategic Outsourcing: an International Journal 1.2 (2008): 100-21.

Hipkin, Ian, and Pete Naude. "Developing Effective Alliance Partnerships: Lessons from a Case Study." Long-range planning 39.1 (2006): 51-69.

Jamali, Dima, Mary Yianni, and Hanin Abdallah. "Strategic Partnerships, Social Capital and Innovation: Accounting for Social Alliance Innovation." Business Ethics 20.4 (2011): 375-91.

Kumazawa, R., and P. Gomis-Porqueras. "An Empirical Analysis of Patents Flows and R&D Flows Around the World."Applied Economics 44.36 (2012): 4755.

In fact many identify as European as opposed to Latin American. In addition, although Spanish is spoken in Argentina and it is the official language of the country, it is also a quite different type of Spanish than the Spanish spoken in other Latin American countries ("Argentina cultural guide").

In addition to the aforementioned differences, there are also differences associated with Business Etiquette. In Argentina the culture is driven by relationships and as such when people are conducting businesses they tend to be more comfortable conducting business with people that they know and they are already familiar with. However, in London it will often be the case that the person that business is conducted with is not someone that is familiar to the individual. Because this is the case it will be important to prepare the Argentineans who will work in London by educating them concerning the norms of business…

Reference List

Argentina cultural guide. Retrieved April 7, 2009 from;

 http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/argentina.html 

Business Etiquette. Retrieved April 7, 2009 from; http://www.london-

guides.co.uk/pages.php?id=b0701010

For instance, McDonald's has a solid partnership with Starbucks that came as a natural solution to the increased consumption of coffee in its restaurants. Starbucks happens to be the world's leading specialty coffee retailer with a worldwide presence that matches that of the fast food producer.

4.

Other factors affecting decision

Vietnam is an Asian country with strong oriental cooking habits, which might not be very compatible with McDonald's typical menu of cheeseburgers and fries with a Coke on the side. Furthermore, the local food seems to be relatively healthy, which again is not something that cam be said by McDonald's food.

In 1990s, the company tried to enter this market, but didn't due to the lack of suitable business partners. A few years later, KFC and Lotteria entered the market and consolidated their position. Therefore, at this point the restaurant chain would need a couple of strong breakthrough strategies…

Reference list:

IMF -- International Monetary Fund, accessed June 09, World Economic Outlook - Vietnam.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, accessed June 09, http://www.mofa.gov.vn/en/cs_doingoai/

Ministry of Planning and Investment:  http://fia.mpi.gov.vn/ 

Thuy, L.T. 2005. Technological Spillovers from Foreign Direct Investment: the Case of Vietnam. University of Tokyo, www.e.u-tokyo.ac.jp

International Business/Marketing Internship eport

In today's world, it is impossible to think of business on a local, or even national, scale. Today's business reality is a global economy, for businesses large and small. Thanks to globalization, national borders have been lowered. This means suppliers, customers, and competitors are not necessarily just down the street, but could be located anywhere in the world. As such, it is critical for organizational team members to have a firm understanding of the international dimensions of business. Without it, organizations cannot be truly competitive in today's global economy. I anticipate that my internship experience at Korona Tours and Travel in Cyprus will reiterate this fact to me.

Korona Travel is a young travel company that services the Cyprus Tourism Sector. They pride themselves on the high level of service they provide to their international customers. They operate tours out of eleven countries including: ussia, Belarus,…

Moreover, it is highly unlikely that such a clause would apply in the case of a tort dispute, because the likely plaintiffs in a tort lawsuit would be people who were injured by a misuse of the Technology, rather than any party involved in the contract negotiations. When there is no choice of law provision, the courts look at several different factors to determine which law to apply and whether a court has jurisdiction. In contract disputes, the courts look at the place of contracting, the place where the negotiating took place, where the contract will be performed, the location of the subject matter, and the citizenship and place of business of the parties. In tort cases, the courts look at where the injury occurred, where the conduct causing the injury occurred, citizenship and place of business of the parties, and the place where the relationship between the parties occurred.…

Counsel Journal 71 (Oct. 2004): 402.

Office of Domestic Fianance. "Overview." Terrorism Risk Insurance Program. 2008. Department of the Treasury. 18 Aug. 2008  http://www.ustreas.gov/offices/domestic-finance/financial-institution/terrorism-insurance/ .

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C.S. 2000e.

The stricter immigration laws that have recently been adopted have kept many willing immigrants with large reserves of intellectual capital out of the country. ather, America is still relying on the more fundamental mercantilist idea of dominance. The situations of China and ussia are also explained and related to the theme of elevator assets and the importance of intellectual capital before the author concludes.

Article # 4: WTO

Matthews' (2013) recent article about the World Trade Organization (WTO) previewed their General Council's selection to head its organization by reviewing nine of the most probable candidates to fill that role.

The article begins by noting the deceptive power that this organization still holds. The author used the example of the WTO's ruling that the United States had violated international trade law in 2002 in dealing with steel tariffs. The article then transitions into identifying Pascal Lamy, the current head of the…

References

Cohen, M. & Arkhipov, I. (2013). BRICS Nations Plan New Bank to Bypass World Bank, IMF. Bloomberg, 26 Mar 2013. Retrieved from  http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03 - 25/brics-nations-plan-new-bank-to-bypass-world-bank-imf.html

Goldberg, E. (2013). Elevator Assets and the Rules for the New Mercantilism-- Israel, Russia, China and the United States. Huffington Post, 7 April, 2013. Retrieved from  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/edward-goldberg/elevator-assets-the - rules_b_3034608.html

Heath, M. (2013). Last Hawk Stevens Faces Currency War Fallout in New Term. Bloomberg, 3 April 2013. Retrieved from  http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-04-03/-last-hawk - stevens-faces-currency-war-fallout-in-new-rba-term.html

Laker, F. (2012). Five Challenges for Tomorrow's Global Marketing Leaders: Study. Forbes, 21 Aug 2012. Retrieved from  http://www.forbes.com/sites/onmarketing/2012/08/21/five - challenges-for-tomorrows-global-marketing-leaders-study/

At the professional level, it is necessary to be prepared and equipped with the proper training on basic business practices and etiquette in Chinese business culture. Chinese society is generally a highly collective group, but respects a degree of power distance between each other. For them, individuals must know his or her place in the organization, and his/her actions must be based from this stature. Thus, they are used to working together as a group, but they maintain a degree of respect to individuals who are either senior or have more superior positions in the organization, or both. Thus, foreign staff members must learn to respect, and more often, adhere to this practice in the society. Since values are greatly respected in Chinese business culture, this is a mandatory practice that must not be forgotten especially when in the presence of Chinese affiliates with crucial roles in the success of…

References

Erbacher, D. (2006). "Expatriate success in China: impact of personal and situational factors." The Journal of American Academy of Business, Cambridge, Vol. 9.

Gleb, C. And D. Chen. (2004). "Going West: A progress report." The China Business Review.

Powers, P. (2005). "What a difference a decade makes." The China Business Review.

Varner, I. (2000). "The theoretical foundation for intercultural business communication: a conceptual model." The Journal Business of Communication.

"Opening up the financial system to foreign capital flows can lead, and has led, to disastrous financial crises, which have resulted in great pain, suffering and even violence" (Mishkin, 2006, p.9).

Directly linked to the previous disadvantage and the basic definition of globalization, is the fact that the interdependence of sectors and institutions increases in a global market. In this instance then, a financial crisis within one country or within one institution is likely to generate negative effects upon its partners. The most relevant example of chain reaction to a financial crisis is the current situation, in which the global community is threatened with economic collapse due to the financial difficulties of the United States. The situation is similar in terms of politics or the social environment.

Globalization has often been assimilated with Americanization, meaning by this the desire of the American corporations to transcend boundaries and get access to…

References

Ervin, J., Smith, Z.A., 2008, Globalization: A Reference Handbook, ABC-CLIO

Geddes, P., 2004, the Benefits of Globalization, Foundation for Research on Economics and the Environment, http://www.free-eco.org/articleDisplay.php?id=378last accessed on January 19, 2009

Holm, H.H., Globalization and What the Governments make of it, European Institute Firenze, Retrieved at  http://www.djh.dk/pdf/forskning/global.pdfon  January 20, 2009

Kolodko, G.W., 2003, Emerging Market Economies: Globalization and Development, Ashgate Publishing

(5).

This paper provides further illustration of trade barrier to provide greater understanding on the method barrier to trade hurts economy. Fig 1 reveals the effects of international trade without trade barrier. From the graph, DD refers to domestic demand and DS means domestic supply, and the price of good is found at P, and the world price is found at P. However, domestic consumer will consume at Qw because the home country could only produce Qd. Thus, the home country must import Qw-Qd worth of goods to enhance efficiency in the economy.

Figure 1. Price without Trade Barrier

However, Fig 2 reveals the economy with trade barrier. It is revealed that the economy will not achieve maximum allocation of scarce resources because trade barriers reduce efficiencies because it would allow companies that would not have existed in a more competitive market environment to exist.

Figure 2. Price with the…

Works Cited

Anderson, Kym. Subsidies and Trade Barriers. University of Adelaide. The Centre for International Economic Studies.2004.

Elwell, C.K (2006). Trade, Trade Barriers, and Trade Deficits: Implications for U.S. Economic Welfare. CRS Report for Congress.

Jeffery Frankel and David Romer, Does Trade Cause Growth?, NBER Working Paper No.

5476, June 1999.

" (Veeramani, 2004)

Stated as contributors to the export success of China are those as follows:

1) Favorable exchange rate;

2) Low wages;

3) Availability of labor;

4) Large domestic market;

5) Huge volume FDI inflows etc. (Veeramani, 2004)

India is not far behind except the gap existing in the FDI volume into China and India, which remains a large gap. The FDI for India has been of much less importance as compared to China except in view of information technology. Sinha (2007) states: "In short, while the multinationals mostly engage in the export activities with China, they target the domestic markets in India." (Sinha, 2007) the following chart shows that China is 'above average' in goods while India is 'above average' in services.

Source: India and China's Developmental Paths (2008)

The differentiations of multinational behavior likely include "the relatively high trade barriers in India (which encourages market seeking FDI)…

Bibliography

Wong, Lung-Fai (1987) Agricultural Productivity in China and India: A Comparative Analysis Presented at the Symposium on Feeding the People of China and India, American Association for the Advancement of Science Annual Meeting, Chicago, Illinois, February 15, 1987. Online available at  http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/bitstream/7510/1/edc87-03.pdf 

Das, Dilip K. (2006) the Chinese and Indian Economies: Comparing the Comparables Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies, Volume 4, Issue 1 February 2006, pages 77-89 Routledge Taylor & Francis Group Abstract Online available at  http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a743880372?back=%2e%2frelated%7edb%3dall%7econtent%3da713684741%7efirst%3d1%7evaa%3d0%3fbookmark%3d1&words=&hash= 

Emerging Markets outlook for 2007 - India, China, Russia, Eastern Europe and Brazil (2007) the Market Oracle. Online available at  http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article185.html 

Balasubramanyam, V.N., and Wei, Yingqi (2005) Textiles and clothing exports from India and china: a comparative analysis Taylor and Francis Journals in its journal

Additionally, its taxation advatantages may erode due to pressure from EU and implicitly its wages will increase as taxes increase. Competition from emerging countries, namely Eastern Europe will become stronger as Ireland allings its strong points to EU standards. Moreover, the country's inflationary problem persistance may strengthen EU pressure on the authorities to reduce it through its fiscal policy.

eference List

BBC news channel. 2004. Ireland is Named 'Best Country', published on Nov 17, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4020523.stm.

Barry, F. And Bradley, J. 1997. FDI and Trade: The Irish Host-Country Experience. The Economic Journal, vol. 107(445): pp. 1798-1811, http://www.res.org.uk/

Berry, . 2001. U.S. Foreign Direct Investment in Ireland: Making the Most of Other's People Money. Perspectives on Business and Economics, vol. 19.

Cassidy, Mark, 2002. The Irish Economy: ecent Experience and Prospects. in: Aronson, ., Munley, V., Thornton, . (Eds.). The Irish Economy in Transition: Successes, Problems and Prospects. Elsevier Science, Amsterdam: pp.…

Reference List

BBC news channel. 2004. Ireland is Named 'Best Country', published on Nov 17,  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4020523.stm .

Barry, F. And Bradley, J. 1997. FDI and Trade: The Irish Host-Country Experience. The Economic Journal, vol. 107(445): pp. 1798-1811,  http://www.res.org.uk/ 

Berry, R. 2001. U.S. Foreign Direct Investment in Ireland: Making the Most of Other's People Money. Perspectives on Business and Economics, vol. 19.

Cassidy, Mark, 2002. The Irish Economy: Recent Experience and Prospects. in: Aronson, R., Munley, V., Thornton, R. (Eds.). The Irish Economy in Transition: Successes, Problems and Prospects. Elsevier Science, Amsterdam: pp. 5-30.

That's proving a business opportunity for Krispy Kreme, McDonald's and other American fast-food chains. For Krispy Kreme, Japan is part of its overseas expansion -- a crucial element of its revival plan announced earlier this year. The chain, based in inston-Salem, N.C., saw its stock collapse two years ago under the weight of overexpansion in the U.S., an accounting investigation and the low-carb diet craze...[Now a] Japanese man carries boxes of Krispy Kreme doughnuts back to his office...two Japanese girls devour doughnuts last week at a Krispy Kreme shop in Tokyo. Long lines form outside the shops, sometimes leading to waits of an hour" (Kageyama 2007). But because of more health-conscious consumers in other regions of America where the Southern, Americana image of the company has less cache and novelty, this strategy has not been successful. Also, the idea of a 'trans-fat free doughnut' has not quelled fears about health…

Works Cited

About us. (2008). Carvel Ice Cream Website. Retrieved September, 21 2008 at  http://www.carvel.com/about_us/about_us.htm 

About us. (2008). Dunkin' Doughnuts Official Website. Retrieved September 21, 2008.

A  https://www.dunkindonuts.com/aboutus/company/ 

Cateora, P.R., & Graham, J.L. (2005). International Marketing. 12th ed. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

The auditors had questioned bills generated by Saudi subcontractor Tamimi Global Company, which last July billed for 42,042 meals daily at a U.S. base outside Kuwait City, while only serving up 14,053 meals a day (unknown, 2004)."

hile the military agreed to pay the invoices in April, a "Pentagon spokesman said officials with the Defense Contract Audit Agency would continue to evaluate the costs incurred and billed by KBR, which is providing logistical support for U.S. troops in Iraq (unknown, 2004)."

Overcharging for Oil

In October of 2003, Halliburton was "accused of overcharging U.S. taxpayers for gasoline it is importing into Iraq. There are reports that the company is overcharging the U.S. government between 65 and 75 cents for every gallon of gasoline it sells in Iraq (unknown, overcharging)." Halliburton, however, maintains it is innocent of these charges.

ar for Profit?

Many critics accuse President Bush of starting the war…

Works Cited

Comerford, Mike. "Risky business. Killings of contractors in Iraq worry companies, but many still interested in new market." Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL). (2004): 15 April.

Halliburton successes: Improving the Lives of Soldiers and Iraqis. (Accessed 10 December, 2004). www.halliburton.com).

Halliburton Wins Contract on Iraqi Oil Firefighting. Reuters (06 March, 2003). (Accessed 11 December, 2004).  http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/860023/posts ).

Health, Safety and the Environment. (Accessed 11 December, 2004).  http://www.halliburton.com/about/hse.jsp ).

Stakeholder management is also defined through a series of escalation processes to ensure that GE senior management at the subsidiary, regional and global levels stay consistent with each other from a policy standpoint as well. GE relies on cross-functional teams within their strategy planning process that also enables greater stakeholder communication as well (Thomas, Bollapragada, 2010).

GE also has extensive sustainability and "green" initiatives in place that also provide for a foundation of Corporate Social esponsibility (CS) programs. In many nations CS programs are required before Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) will be allowed. This is certainly the case in India where GE had to invest in the local school systems to ensure the quality of life increased based on their reliance on local labor and resources (Ocasio, Joseph, 2008). Nations are now holding corporations accountable for CS investments more than ever before.

Conclusion

G.E. is a very metric-driven and measurement-oriented…

References

Alwerfalli, D., & Schaaf, J.. (1 January 2010). Creating Value in Organizations Through the Use of Value Management. IIE Annual Conference. Proceedings,1-7.

Ferrari, B.. (2010). Competition and collaboration in General Electric's Global Research Group. The McKinsey Quarterly,(3), 105.

Galindo, L.. (2010). The POWER of ACCOUNTABILITY. Leader to Leader, 2010(56), 17.

Thomas, B., & Bollapragada, S.. (2010). General Electric Uses an Integrated Framework for Product Costing, Demand Forecasting, and Capacity Planning of New Photovoltaic Technology Products. Interfaces: Special Issue: The 2009 Daniel H. Wagner Prize for..., 40(5), 353-367,417-418.

But price discrimination does not necessary imply dumping and is a common legal practice to match the income demographics of certain countries.

Ch 16 (DQ#1) An ethnocentric approach can help host countries that lack qualified individuals fill senior management positions, instill a unified corporate culture and transfer parent-country nationals who have competency knowledge to foreign operations. The disadvantages are that it can lead to resentment, lower productivity, increase turnover for host-country nationals and lead to cultural myopia. A polycentric approach can reduce cultural myopia and be less expensive to implement, but it limits career mobility and isolates headquarters from foreign subsidiaries. A geocentric approach makes good use of human resources, creates a staff that can work in a number of cultures, reduces cultural myopia and increases local responsiveness. However, immigrations laws limit its use and it can be expensive to implement. An ethnocentric approach is suitable for an international strategy,…

Another reason why corporations choose to hold cash balances in a centralized repository is that the variety of accounts can be better managed as a mutual fund more complex investment structure than would be the case if the subsidiary alone managed the funds. A greater quality of information is available for example in the leading financial centers globally that would otherwise not be the case in more remote regions, making it possible to make more informed and correct decisions (Mitsos, 1997). The accuracy, efficiency and speed of decision-making based on more efficient use of information has led to more advanced forms of cash management than would have been the case on a per-subsidiary level (Fresard, Salva, 2010). Lastly, by having a centralized depository of cash for all subsidiaries, firms can hold less accumulated total cash, freeing up financial resources for other investments (Fresard, Salva, 2010). Companies become more efficient at…

References

Elliott, Graham, & Bewley, Ronald. (1994). The transmission of monetary policy: The relationship between centralized depositories and Monetary policy. Economic Record, 70(208), 19.

Fresard, L., & Salva, C.. (2010). The value of excess cash and corporate governance: Evidence from U.S. cross-listings. Journal of Financial Economics, 98(2), 359.

Hill, C.W.L. (2011). International business: Competing in the global marketplace (8th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

Nicholas Mitsos. (1997, November). Virtual Group Treasury. TMA Journal, 17(6), 24-30.

International Business in South Florida

Premise and Conclusion

The location of any business entity, but especially one engaged in international commerce, is a complex and critical pre-condition for serving customers, providing a nurturing and productive environment for employees, and achieving profitable operations. Of the many factors management must consider, the following are generally thought to be the most influential: access to capital, favorable tax advantages, excellent transportation and technological infrastructure, and a skilled multilingual and multicultural workforce. (web eFlorida 2010)

South Florida, comprising Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties, does not present a perfect record on any of the success factors, but a close examination of the efforts made and the resulting accomplishments leads to a favorable recommendation for the formation or expansion of international business functions in the region.

Access to Capital

Depending on the stage of company development, a business may need venture capital, commercial bank lenders, or…

References

Enterprise Florida, Inc., 2010, a public-private partnership serving as Florida's primary organization devoted to statewide economic development. www.eFlorida.com

Florida International Bankers Association, 2010, a non-profit trade association founded in 1979. http://www.fiba.net

Florida Development Finance Corporation. 2010 Created by special state statute as an issuer of tax-exempt revenue bonds. www.floridafinance.org

Fodor's South Florida, 2010. Word of mouth tips from fellow travelers. www.fodors.com/guidebooks/9781400004775/

Comparative advantage states that mutually beneficial exchange is possible whenever relative production costs differ prior to trade. Nations gain by producing goods at relatively low costs and exchanging their outputs for different goods produced by others at relatively low cost. Thus, consumers can gain enormously through appropriate specialization and exchange. A country has an absolute advantage in producing a good if production of the good absorbs fewer resources than are required in other countries or by other individuals or firms.

Specialization leads to economies of scale (Globalization) where more units of a good or a service can be produced on a larger scale, yet with (on average) less input costs. An increasingly competitive global economy drives companies to gain larger global market shares so that they can exploit the benefits of economies of scale (Daniels, Radebaugh, and Sullivan, 2007).

Of course, a harmonious political climate and international embracement of free…

Bibliography

Comparative advantage and absolute advantage. EconomicsInteractive.com. Retrieved from  http://www.unc.edu/depts/econ/byrns_web/Economicae/Essays/ABS_Comp_Adv.htm 

Daniels, J.D., Radebaugh, L.H., & Sullivan, D.P. (2007) International business: Environments and operations. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall. ISBN: 0131869426

Fergusson, I.F. (2007, May 9). The World Trade Organization: Background and issues. http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org/assets/crs/98-928.pdf

Globalization. http://bovination.com/cbs/globalization.jsp

The main advantage of this association is that you will get to control the production process and both collaborators will have the right to question and manage everything. It will require high negotiation skills, primary high investments, but the market is full of potential. By joint venture we will have the possibility to interfere in the recruitment process, deciding who the best people for the jobs are. For India, there will also be an important gain. Not only do we stimulate intern, national production but we also give new job opportunities to citizens. Moreover, due to the fact that India has highly trained people in the technological domain, we might improve our product's characteristics or even come up with new ways of reducing the costs. Moreover, the assembling parts will be less expensive as their transportation costs will be lower.

ecommendations

When choosing a country for expansion, one has to…

References

Alibaba.com, 2007, Who is the leader in software.. china or India?, [Online] Available at  http://resources.alibaba.com/topic/23730/Who_is_the_leader_in_software_china_Or_India_.htm 

BBC News, 2007, Country Profile: India, [Online] Available at  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/country_profiles/1154019.stm 

Directory of Official Websites of the Government of India, 2007, [Online] Available at  http://goidirectory.nic.in/ 

Farlex, 2007, the Free Dictionary, [Online] Available at  http://www.thefreedictionary.com

al.); (Rahman, 136- 138) (Dasgupta)

From the segmentation analysis and mobile content revenues forecast, the need for launching the low-cost and ultra-low cost mobile cellular phone business in India based on value-added services that can be incrementally added to consumers' accounts is preferable to concentrating only on price alone. Creating the unique value proposition for the service based on mobile content also is attractive to potential partners who are necessary for the nationwide success of the company across India's broad geographic regions. This concentration on value-added services is also critical when the competitors to the proposed company are also taken into account. The following section provides insights into the competitive landscape in India for cellular and telecommunications.

Competitive Landscape and Analysis

The following is an analysis of the competitive landscape of providers that the proposed company will need to partner with in some cases, and compete with in others. Clearly…

Bibliography

AMR Research Study. Research Alert on Cellular Phone Costing and Forecast Alert. August 2005. Boston, MA. ABI/INFORM Trade & Industry. ProQuest.

Mike Clendenin. "Tale of two cell phone markets: INDIA and CHINA. " Electronic Engineering Times 4 Jun 2007: 33-34. ABI/INFORM Trade & Industry. ProQuest.

Nibedita Das. "Technology, efficiency and sustainability of competition in the Indian telecommunications sector. " Information Economics and Policy 12.2 (2000): 133-154. ABI/INFORM Global. ProQuest. 6 May. 2008

Anjan Dasgupta. Competition Policy in Telecommunications - a Case Study of India. 2005. ABI/INFORM Global. ProQuest. 8 May. 2008

Over the course of time, assertive laws are evolving which are supposed to deal with any issues quickly. This means that all financial firms will face higher costs and greater amounts of time in complying with these new guidelines. ("Dodd Frank")

Conclusion

Clearly, the Bernard Madoff scandal reshaped investor confidence and the regulatory environment. This is because many of his clients suffered tremendously from the firm's activities. In some cases, individuals were forced to sell their homes. While at other times, many nonprofits were forced into bankruptcy from being overly exposed. This resulted in the trustee utilizing aggressive tactics in recovering assets.

These actions set the stage for regulators, actuaries and fiduciaries to begin taking a more assertive stance when protecting the interests of the public. As a result, much stricter guidelines are being imposed. These areas are impacting the operating procedures of firms and how they are accounting for…

References

"$2.48 Billion." Daily Mail, 2012. Web. 4 Dec. 2012

"Dodd Frank." SEC, 2012. Web. 4 Dec. 2012

"The Securities and Exchange Commission." SEC, 2012. Web. 4 Dec. 2012

Kirtzman, Andrew. Betrayal. New York: Harper, 2010. Print.

Other than humans and the impact on their social and economic life, the oil companies also have a profound negative influence on the environment. The oil drilling and exploration process affect the environment at every stage. The first step is the identification of oil reserves in the region and assessing whether it can produce oil to cover the cost of drilling and exploration. The oil wells can be found inland or offshore. If the oil well is found inland, then it has to be dug out to assess its usability while for offshore drilling, the first step is to send seismic waves to understand its depth and exploration possibilities. This affects the organisms that depend on it especially the seismic waves can confuse the marine animals and disrupt their breeding grounds.

The next step is the exploration and this can lead to large scale displacement of people and misuse of…

References

Longwell, Harry. 2002. The Future of the Oil and Gas Industry: Past Approaches, New Challenges. World Energy. Vol 5(3). pp100-104

Inkpen, Andrew. 2010. The Global and Oil Gas Industry -- 2010. Thunderbird School of Global Management.

If a person wishes to become a lawyer, rather than a farmer like his father, or if a person wants to move far away from his hometown and to start anew in a new city -- these dreams are only possible in societies with high degrees of social mobility. Social mobility allows for individual choice and creative thinking.

Free trade occurs when a government does not attempt to influence through quotas or duties what its citizens can buy from another country or what they can produce and sell to another country. Present and describe a current example.

An excellent example of unfettered free trade may be found in the current example of the European Community, where goods and services may pass unrestricted through borders. Free trade has been greatly beneficial to consumers and producers within the EU. The EU has become one of the most powerful economic entities in the…

The combination of the factors is showing how the Ukraine is the ideal environment for GE to construct this kind of plant. ("Ukraine's Solar Energy Industry")

Evidence of this can be seen with Activ Solar. This Australian-based firm; is the owner of one of the largest solar power plants in all of Europe. At the same time, they have tremendous operations producing components for the facility. This is allowing the firm to reduce their costs and become one of the largest players (for alternative energy). In the case of GE, this is an ideal location that will help the company to establish itself inside the sector. ("Ukraine's Solar Energy Industry")

The Ukraine vs. The Philippines Political Situation

In contrast to the Philippines, the government has been slow to respond in dealing with challenges such as improving infrastructure. At the same time, they are ineffective in collecting tax revenues and using…

References

"Philippines." CIA, 2012. Web. 30 Sept. 2012

"Ukraine." CIA, 2012. Web. 30 Sept. 2012

"Ukraine's Solar Energy Industry." Renewable Energy Eilat, 2011. Web. 30 Sept. 2012

MLA Format  https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/08/

n the case of Hodge v. Garrett 101 daho 397, 614.2d 420 (1980), the buyer wished to purchase land located next to the sellers' drive-in movie theater. One seller signed the contract. The testimony was conflicting as to whether the buyer was told that the remaining members of the sellers' partnership would have to agree to the sale. The buyer brought suit when the sellers refused to sell. The trial court found that the one seller, as an agent, bound the sellers' partnership.

Voeller testified that he had told Hodge prior to signing that Hodge would have to present him with a plat plan which would have to be approved by the partners before the property could be sold. Hodge denied that a plat plan had ever been mentioned to him, and he testified that Voeller did not tell him that the approval of the other partners was needed until…

In the case of Konic International v. Spokane Computer Services 109 / Idaho 627-708 P.2d 932 (1985), one of the buyer's representatives spoke to the seller about purchasing a surge protector. The representative had priced units, getting prices from $50 to $200. The seller offered to sell a unit for $5,620, which the representative misinterpreted as $56.20. The representative worked up a purchase order for $56.20, and placed an order with the seller. The unit was installed while the buyer's president was on vacation. When the president returned from vacation, he immediately ordered that power to the equipment be turned off because the surge protector was obviously worth more than $56.20. The president contacted the seller to have them pick up the protector, but the seller refused and brought suit for the purchase price.

Plaintiff seller sought review of the decision of the District Court of the First Judicial District (Idaho), which affirmed the magistrate's decision granting judgment for defendant buyer in the seller's breach of contract lawsuit for the alleged sale of goods. The court affirmed the trial court's decision granting judgment for the buyer. The court held that there was no sales contract because the parties had a material mutual misunderstanding and any agreement that they thought they had reached was merely an illusion.

The court found that there is no expression of mutual assent to an exchange if the parties attach materially different meanings to their ideas and neither knows or has reason to know the meaning that is attached by the other. Even though the parties had apparent mutual assent to the same words of the agreement, there may be no contract because of a material difference of understanding as to the terms of the exchange. When there is a phrase in a contract that is reasonably able to be interpreted differently there is no contract.

The Advantages, Disadvantages and disappointments

The advantages of ubbermaid being ISO certified are quiet many, as per the global market trend, customers demand quality products and to keep up with the stiff competition it makes ubbermaid products marketable and competitive beyond the borders and be generally acceptable in any market as the consumers are assured of quality which translates into having a bigger market margin against competitors who are not ISO certified.

The system assures the company of consistency in its day-to-day operations hence less time is spent in correcting defects which can be massive and costly when not detected in good time it is therefore accost cutting tool in the long run.

The certification brings superiority even in the markets where it is not emphasized and in itself is a marketing tool for the company and can help in market penetration and an easy tool for gaining access and…

References

Cythia J. Martincic, (1997). Costs, Benefits and Other Issues. Retrieved April 19, 2012 from  http://www.sis.pitt.edu/~mbsclass/standards/martincic/discussn.htm 

eNotes, (2012). ISO 9000. Retrieved April 19, 2012 from  http://www.enotes.com/iso-9000 -

reference/iso-9000-178569

Perry Johnson, (2012). Benefits of ISO 9000. Retrieved April 19, 2012 from  http://www.pjr.com/standards/iso-90012008/benefits-of-iso-9000/#iso9000_and-your-company

International Business and the egions

In the era of globalization, the primary scope of agencies, institutions and players across the world seems the creation of a free international market place. The efforts so far made have however been insufficient to create such a market place, but impressive successes were observed in terms of the creation of regional market places. In other words, the modern day economic society has managed to support and concretize its efforts in the direction of regional economic development.

egional economic integration

egional economic development is virtually understood as a context in which countries in the same global region direct their endeavors in the sense of creating an economically integrated region. They virtually focus on free trade and migration of goods, people, commodities, technologies and capitals and they strive to reduce the barriers between the respective economies. Jacques Pelkmans (2006) defines economic integration as "the elimination of…

References:

Buckley, P.J., Clegg, J., Forsans, N., Reilly, Increasing the size of the 'country': regional economic integration and foreign direct investment in a globalized world economy,  http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb3265/is_3_41/ai_n28873065  / last accessed on May 27, 2011

Czinkota, M.C., Ronkainen, I.A., 2007, International marketing, 8th edition, Cengage Learning, ISBN 0324317026

Day, B., The NAFTA Nightmare, Multinational Monitor,  http://multinationalmonitor.org/hyper/issues/1992/10/mm1092_10.html  last accessed on May 27, 2011

Dodge, D.., 2003, Economic integration in North America, Bank of Canada  http://www.bankofcanada.ca/2003/08/speeches/economic-integration-north-america-2  / last accessed on May 27, 2011

The UAE has one of the most open economies in the world. And its vigorous economic partnership with the United States reflects the UAE's function as a regional leader in terms of economic restructuring, openness to international trade and investment, and political stability (UAE-U.S. Economic elationship, 2011)

The volume of U.S. exports and foreign direct investment into the UAE in recent years has grown considerably and is likely to continue to grow in the future. This growth reflects the progressively more diversified UAE economy as well as the country's leading role as a modernizing power in the Arab world.

The country is the biggest export market for the United States in the Middle East and, in 2010, was the 21st largest export market for the United States internationally.

The UAE buys goods from every state in the United States, as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto ico, and the…

References

Doing business in the UAE. (2009). Retrieved from  http://www.pkf.com/media/131854/doing%20business%20in%20the%20uae.pdf 

Hill, Charles W.L. (2007) International Business: Competing in the Global Marketplace

(6/E), Irwin publishers, London.

Overseas Business Risk -- United Arab Emirates. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.ukti.gov.uk/export/countries/asiapacific/middleeast/unitedarabemirates/ov erseasbusinessrisk.html

d.).

Socio-Cultural Environment

Home to the world's tenth largest economy and second largest population, India defies swift generalization. It includes a vast range of developmental situations, cultures, languages, and climates. The country remains largely rural, with just 26% of its people living in cities. Yet in 1995 it had over 30 cities of one million or more residents, including three of the world's 20 largest cities -- Bombay, Calcutta, and Delhi -- according to United Nations estimates (The Anguish of India, 1997).

Currently Indian labor laws, regulations, and workforce standards are very outdated. India is plagued with corruption. India has been ranked 9th in a list of 75 countries where dishonest practices are common, which is indeed an uncertain distinction. The corruptions, delays, bureaucratic red tape, and archaic labor laws are ingrained in India's business culture. These pitfalls have deterred foreign investors from investing in India (Stokes, 2003).

From the…

References

"Background Note: India," 2010, viewed 23 August 2010,

Chennai, Matrade, 2005, "Product Market Study: Consumer Behavior in India," viewed 23 August 2010,

Das Gupta, Aruna, 2007, "Social responsibility in India towards global compact approach." International Journal of Social Economic, 34(9), 637-663.

"Doing Business in India.," n.d., viewed 24 August 2010,

Each time cards were exchanged, the Saudis turned over the American's business card expecting Arabic on the back instead of a blank card. While this would have been excusable by itself, under the circumstances, it only further highlighted to the prospective business partners that the foreigner was simply not well prepared to conduct business in Saudi Arabia.

The American waited patiently (at least from his point-of-view) until the multiple-course meal was over and then began spreading out his materials for a business presentation. Since then, he has learned that this also is a violation of Saudi business etiquette. Generally, Saudi business people do not necessarily discuss business at all during the first business meeting. Instead, they tend to use the first (and often the second) meeting just to establish a rapport. Again, the Saudi business men did not refuse to entertain the business proposal, but in retrospect, that was also…

International Business

Mindsets of Successful Expats

Companies compete in a global environment; the increasing participation in the global environment has seen a rise in the need for international managers who can work in overseas operations in an effective manner. Firms have been selecting expatriate for many years, often using well established processes, which focus on skills and knowledge of the job, but not the issues associated with cultural adaptability (Deresky, 2011). esearch undertaken by Mansour Javidan focuses on the mindset characteristics that are likely to indicate success as an expatriate worker; these are divided into three sets of attributes; intellectual capital, psychological capital and social capital (Dereksky, 2011).

Intellectual capital refers to knowledge, skills and cognitive attributes, allowing them to deal with the changes in culture by understanding how and why attitudes and practices maybe different. Those individuals how are likely to be successful as expatriate workers have a greater…

References

Deresky, H. (2011). International management: Managing across borders and cultures (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall

Javidan M; Teagarden M; Basbrinde, F; Walch, K; Lynton, N; Pearson, K; Bowen, D; Cabbera, A, (2005), Global Mindsets Defined, Expat Success Strategy, [online] accessed  http://www.worldwideerc.org/foundation/documents/global_mindset.pdf  28th July 2013

DQ3. (a). The pros of manufacturing in-house lie in the firm's greater control over the design and manufacturing of the component part, the firm's ability to protect the uniqueness of this new technology, and the ability to guarantee the timeliness of the production of this critical part, without worrying about shipping difficulties, carelessness on the part of the outsourced firm, or strikes. (b) Outsourcing allows for selecting a low-cost location and finding a favorable currency exchange, greater flexibility to discontinue the component's use if it becomes obsolete in light of improvements in technology, avoiding a non-recoverable investment, and creating a potentially beneficial relationship with another nation.

DQ4. Efficient logistics functions like just- in- time (JIT) inventory systems have been key to the success of Japanese firms. These "economize on inventory holding costs by having materials arrive at a manufacturing plant just in time to enter the production process and not…

In the same way, working away from home normally involves a lot of challenges relating to the aspects of orientation and education. Expatriates have to adapt and learn different languages in order to effectively cope. In this regard, education and orientation allowances are normally included in their pay so as to enable them to address some of these challenges. Human resource managers are therefore normally in a fix regarding the strategies to use in paying the expatriates and those for domestic nationals. In any case, an improper policy might greatly affect the motivation and performance of the local employees which might eventually be detrimental to the organization.

In the same way, most organizations pay their expatriate employees other additional allowances which might include overseas premiums, leave reimbursement and payments for termination of contracts. These bonuses are normally a consequence of the need to create no difference between working in foreign…

S. And Canada (Macduff, 2006). This translates into entirely different approach to managing and motivating workers as a result. Third, as a result of these first two factors and the broader aspects of how employees perceive and react to leadership from other cultures, transnational strategies are often the most time-consuming to operate.

Chapter 12 (DQ #1): Review the Management Focus at ING. ING chose to entire the U.S. financial services market via acquisitions rather than greenfield ventures. What do you think are the advantages to ING of doing this? What might the drawbacks be? Does this strategy make sense? Why?

Entering the U.S. market through acquisitions provided ING with the ability to get their highly differentiated strategies up and running much faster than would have been the case otherwise. This also alleviated significant risk that are inherent in greenfield strategies as well, and also allowed ING to capture customers from…

Canada, too, sees this benefit, with lower cost goods coming not only from Mexico but parts of the U.S. Mexico sees a greater influx of goods available as a result of easier trade, such that middle-class Mexicans now have a standard of living that approaches those of middle-class Americans and Canadians.

Ch. 8 DQ#4. It is correct for European authorities to review mergers of foreign firms that do business in Europe, but only from the context of protecting European consumers against monopoly abuses. Europe still has its own firms but over time, as it opens its markets, foreign firms may become dominant if they have a comparative or competitive advantage over European firms. If the European market is dominated by foreign firms, then the EU has the right to guard against monopoly. However, if the EU is not in a situation where monopoly could occur as a result of the…

The unions keep up membership, which is the key driver of revenue. The union members benefit directly from the wages and benefits they receive. They would, in theory, benefit from the competition in the form of lower prices, but this benefit would not outweigh the direct wage benefit they receive from limiting competition. The country as a whole does not benefit, as the nation would receive more goods for less if the trade is allowed.

Ch 5 Q. 3. The ideal trading policy that firms should push for government would be those that allowed them to and their suppliers to have unfettered trade, while eliminating foreign competition. What is best for the individual firm is not necessarily what is best for the nation as a whole. Companies want to see open trade in their industry with respect to their ability to import components and export finished products. However, they benefit…