44163 Smas

SYLLABUS

GLOBAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT – WRITING INTENSIVE

M&IS 44163

FALL 2014 / PROFESSOR JIM SMAS

HOURS:   MTWR: 10:00 AM – 11:00 am

OFFICE: BSA A415

PHONE: 330-672-1155

EMAIL: mjsmas@kent.edu

NOTE: The material in this syllabus should be considered nominal and is subject to change by the instructor at any given time due to various constraints on the class, such as weather, illness of the instructor, or other such issues. Final exam times are listed in the college catalogue and on my schedule. Thus, it is the student’s responsibility to know when these exams are scheduled. You will not be able to take a make-up on the final. Please do not come to me with plans for your vacation trip which compromises the final. I will not allow it.

COURSE DESCRIPTION

As a student in this course, you by now have or should have understood that the whole scope of business has drastically changed in the last ten to twenty years. No longer can corporations big and small be content to stay within their own borders and be competitive. Just go down to the nearest big box store and look at the names of the leading appliances sold there. Twenty years ago LG, Electrolux, Lenovo and the like brands were unheard of in the US. Now they are seriously competing with Whirlpool and GE for US market share in appliances. We can extend this rationale to other industries such as automotive, and IT. Even small business has to seriously contend with the global market place to stay alive in this hypercomptetive world.More and more firms aare across the globe are competing actively in international markets as well as using overseas locations to obtain low-cost, high-value goods and servics.

As firms seek new opportunities overseas, they inevitably encounter new risks and new costs form from doing business internationally. This course will deal with the challenges of managing the opportunities, risks, uncertainty and costs of the business activities of fims competing in international environments. How they deal with the complex and dynamic economic, political, technological, and cultural environments of a world of increasingly interdependent nations is the main focus of the course.
The major topics covered will be cross-cultural studies, culture and business mangement, small business opportunities, entrepreneurship, negotiation, business ethics, and the like.

OBJECTIVES OF THE COURSE

1. Understand and assess the drivers and consequences of globalization, its impact on specific regions, and the emerging concerns about its influences on countries around the world

2. Compare and contrast different political, legal, and economic systems and technological forces and their impact on international management

3. Understand and appreciate the need for ethics and social responsibility in international management, and the growing pressures on firms to act in an ethically and socially responsible manner in their global business operations

4. Describe and apply the concept of “national culture” and, using the typologies of Hofstede and Trompenaars, explain how the culture of one group of people can be distinguished from that of another, and the implications of these differences for international management

5. Explain and understand the challenges of managing across cultures

6. Understand the relationship between national culture and organizational culture, integrate those concepts within the context of international management decision-making, and appreciate the challenges of diversity in the modern work environment
7. Describe the challenges to and apply the most important elements of effective cross-cultural negotiation and communication

8. Integrate and apply the basic elements of international strategic management, including the pressures and cost/benefits of strategies that emphasize global integration versus local adaptation; describe the specialized strategies required for emerging economies and for international new ventures

9. Compare and contrast the modes of entry and the basic choices for organizing firms involved in international business and describe the conditions under which specific entry modes and organizational structure are most effective

10. Describe methods used to analyze and assess political risk and how MNCs apply those methods as they attempt to manage the level of political risk in developed and developing countries, appreciate the broader efforts firms make to manage their relations with host governments, and discuss the various options for managing alliances and joint ventures, especially those in which host governments are involved

11. Explain and apply the mechanisms for ensuring effective control and decision-making in international organizations

12. Understand the tools and techniques used to provide motivation and incentives for employees across cultures, including compensation, benefits, work teams, and other approaches

13. Understand the importance of leadership to international management, including the role of different leadership types and practices and the importance of entrepreneurial and ethical and socially responsible leadership

14. Understand and describe the practices for recruiting, selecting, training and deploying employees internationally, including the challenges of expatriate placement and repatriation

REQUIRED TEXTS:

Books for Global Business Management Fall, 2014

These books are not optional. You must have them to pass this class.

 GRADING FOR CLASS

GRADING:

I will use plus / minus grading this semester. Thus the grading for the course is as follows:

Based on Percentage Points Scored

92.5 – 100   % POINTS          A

89.1 – 92.4                              A –

86.0 – 89.0                              B+

82.5 – 85.9                              B

79.1 – 82.4                              B-

76.0 – 79.0                              C+

72.5 – 75.9                              C

69.1 – 72.4                              C-

<69.0                                       D

<59.0                                       F         

According to new University Guidelines the grades are converted to your grade point average by the following rules:

A         = 4.0

A-        = 3.7

B+       = 3.3

B          = 3.0

B-         = 2.7

C+       = 2.3

C          = 2.0

C-         = 1.7

D+        = 1.3

D          = 1.0.

F           = 0.0

GRADING PLAN / PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS

1.    Exams ( 2 @ 100 pt.)                                                          200 pt.

2.    Case Write Ups (3 @ 150 pt)                                            450 pt.

3.    Participation in group discussions ( 6 @ 30)              150 pt.

4.    Final project                                                                         200 pt.

Total points                                                                                     1000 pt.                    

THE APPROACH TO TEACHING/LEARNING

1.   Lectures by the instructor                                                .

2.  Exams

3.  Case and Readings  Analysis with Discussion Groups

4.  Integrative case write ups

5.  Examination of real operating companies on internationalizing a product, product line or service into a new foregn market.

Internationalization Proposal

The internationalization proposal is designed to provide a forum to apply frameworks and concepts discussed throughout the course to a real-world business. You will be responsible for writing a proposal for a firm’s internationalization. You will select an already existing company, product or service, as well as a new country to expand to for a global business venture. You will provide a typed one paragraph to one page introductory summary of this information to me on October 7, 2014.  Once approved, you will develop a proposal for this firm’s internationalization into a new market. To do this, you will conduct country, competitor, and internal analyses; explore cultural and ethical issues that could impact the firm; propose a firm strategy, structure, and entry mode for the venture; discuss human resource systems to be used in the new venture; and recommend levels of product/service adaptation as well as marketing methods. You should base your analysis on pertinent, reliable data about the country and the firm (e.g. annual reports, core competencies, information about products/services). Considering that this is a proposal, you should mention relevant alternatives (e.g., locations, entry modes) and persuasive rationale for your recommendations. Thus, key to this project is familiarity with the “facts,” use of frameworks discussed in class, identification of central issues and problems facing the firm in the proposed venture, critical analysis of the situation, and realistic recommendations for the firm.

Your final paper should be presentable to the firm as a viable proposal for international expansion. You will also prepare a short power-point presentation to the class on your proposal.  It may be helpful to consider yourselves outside consultants or members of that firm’s internationalization team when approaching this assignment. Your final report will be a typewritten proposal and a power point presentation to be made in class.

A possible outline for the sections is as follows:

1.    Introduction

a.    Description of organization

b.    Description of product/service

c.    Reasons for wanting to go abroad and to the selected country

2.    Country Analysis (i.e. opportunities and challenges of the external environment)

a.    Political analysis

b.    Economic analysis

c.    Legal analysis

d.    Cultural analysis (e.g. cultural dimensions, norms, ethical issues)

e.    Commercial analysis (e.g. market demand, industry analysis, major competitors, competitors’ strengths and weaknesses)

3.    Internal Analysis

a.    Strategic goals/objectives

b.    Company strengths and weaknesses (especially with regard to going international)

c.    Entry mode (alternatives and recommendations)

4.    Implementation Issues

a.    Timeline

b.    HR systems (e.g. staffing policy)

c.    Marketing/advertising approach

5.    Conclusion

The above outline shows the main areas that should be covered. While you do not need to follow the exact wording and structure of these sections and sub-sections, I expect your proposal to include information on these topics. If there is additional material that is especially relevant to your company, product/service or country, you should include it. We are more concerned with the cultural and country specific issues than we are with the specific marketing and product issues.

On Line Discussion Forums;

You will participate in six (6) discussion forums regarding readings or cases from the Merchant book. Each is worth 25 points. You will have one week to post your comments. Frequency of posts rather than length will determine the better grade. I want discussion not lecturing.

Integrative case Write-ups

We will be doing three cases, as assigned in the schedule of classes. You must use the case methodology as presented in class. There is also slide presentation on line regarding this methodology. All submission will be made on-line in Blackboard Learn.  These are time stamped and if submitted pasted the due date and time, deductions will be made for late submittals. A 3 point deduction for each day the paper is late will be levied. These papers are to be of exceptional quality. You may submit them in the submittal box or attached your word document to the submittal section as indicated.

Exams

There will be two (2) exams during this course. They will be multiple choice and short essay type exams. They will be closed book and done in class.

The Following Policies Apply to All Students in this Course

A.   Students attending the course who do not have the proper prerequisite risk being deregistered from the class.

B.   Students have responsibility to ensure they are properly enrolled in classes.  You are advised to review your official class schedule (using Student Tools on Flash-Line) during the first two weeks of the semester to ensure you are properly enrolled in this class and section.  Should you find an error in your class schedule, you have until Sunday, Sep 14, 2014 to correct the error.  If registration errors are not corrected by this date and you continue to attend and participate in classes for which you are not officially enrolled, you are advised now that you will not receive a grade at the conclusion of the semester for any class in which you are not properly registered.

C.    For Fall 2014, the course withdrawal deadline is Sunday, Nov 2, 2014..

D.   Academic honesty: Cheating means to misrepresent the source, nature, or other conditions of your academic work (e.g., tests, papers, projects, assignments) so as to get undeserved credit.   In addition, it is considered to cheating when one cooperates with someone else in any such misrepresentation.  The use of the intellectual property of others without giving them appropriate credit is a serious academic offense.  It is the University's policy that cheating or plagiarism result in receiving a failing grade for the work or course.  Repeat offenses result in dismissal from the University.

E.    Students with disabilities:  University policy 3342-3-01.3 requires that students with disabilities be provided reasonable accommodations to ensure their equal access to course content. If you have a documented disability and require accommodations, please contact the instructor at the beginning of the semester to make arrangements for necessary classroom adjustments. Please note, you must first verify your eligibility for these through Student Accessibility Services (contact 330-672-3391 or visit http://www.kent.edu/sas/index.cfm for more information on registration procedures).