Titular Professors
Professors
The objectives of the course are the following:
1. To introduce students to the contemporary issues in international business that illustrates the unique challenges faced by manages in the international business
environment.
2. To cover a broad range of international business issues from an interdisciplinary
viewpoint and emphasizing the key concerns of the multinational and global
corporation.
3. To assist students to develop a truly global perspective rather than just a local viewpoint.
4. To assist students to integrate into their thinking the important societal dimensions
of diversity, environmental concerns, ethics, and technological change.
5. To develop knowledge and skills to analyze cross cultural variables and their
impact on international business.
AGENDA FOR THE SESSIONS: Below you can find a tentative schedule, subject to change if needed.
Week Content
1 Topic: Introduction to doing business in a global market
2 Topic: Country differences
3 Topic: Country differences
Case: India on the move
4 Topic: International negotiations
Case: Journey to Sakhalin
5 Topic: International Trade
6 Topic: Political economy of international Trade
Case: China and WTO
7 Topic: Regional Integration
8 Topic: Midterm week
9 Topic: International strategies
Case: CEMEX: Internationalization project
10 Topic: International strategies
Case: P&G Japan: The SK-II Globalization project
11 Topic: Entering foreign markets and entry modes
12 Topic: International management of subsidiaries
13 Presentations and final paper due
14 Presentations and final paper due
15 Final exam
The course is oriented towards individual and group learning. We will use:
- Case Discussion. The case method is being used in business schools to enhance the learning process in managerial training. The cases have been chosen for its relationship to the core issues on the International business course. The students are expected to prepare deeply and participate actively in class discussions. However, read and prepare is not enough, students are required to contribute with interventions in group and plenary sessions. Finally, as a reminder, the learning process under the case method requires active participation and deep discussion.
- Conceptual class discussions. The objective is to present and discuss collectively the conceptual frameworks and tools that build the core of the course. I will facilitate the process of discussion and will remark the key concepts and lessons. However, each student is responsible for formulating his/her own synthesis building upon the conceptual readings, class attendance, class participation and class discussion. For a proper follow up of the course the students must read and prepare the assigned readings before classes. The content of the course is structured in sequence, being each session a base for the next one. Accordingly, it is very important that students prepare each session and attend classes.
EVALUATION
Your final grade consists of four parts:
- Attendance to class sessions: 10%. If you miss 10 classes, you will automatically fail the course.
- Your active participation in the learning process through consistent contribution: This will have a positive influence in your final grade, from a 0,25 point to 1 point
- 1 Individual assignment: 20%
- The group project: 30%
- Final Exam: 40%
Individiual assignment
- Imagine that you have 1 million euros, which you can invest as a portfolio in the currency market for a four-week period. You will have to buy minimum of 5 currencies. Using the Worksheet in e study, identify your specific investment in writing, giving exchange rates at that time, and submit the completed worksheet in estudy on October 10th. Explain your rationale for selecting the currencies you bought one by one, and show that you have done your research.
- On November 9th, you will change your foreign currency holdings back into euros and calculate the value as well as how much you have made or lost. Use the worksheet provided for your calculations.
- On November 14th, submit the second part of the assignment on estudy, briefly explaining the reasons why the currencies either gained or lost value and your reflections on your investments.
Group project
- Students are required to participate in a Group Project. The class will be divided into groups of 4 students. Students may form their own group, however, students that have not been selected into a group, will be assigned to a group by the professor.
Each group will choose a country and the group will be required to make a report on that country for consideration by an enterprise that is contemplating doing business in that country
- The report should contain descriptive information such as political structure and stability, population data, religious and ethnic data, linguistic and educational data currency information, and other information that is relevant to entering the host country market. The report should identify current key problems and how they might impact on someone contemplating doing business with that country.
- During the last day, each group will be required to make a 15-20 minute presentation to the class of their report, and the class will assume the role of an executive committee of an enterprise and participate in the presentations by asking pertinent questions to test the data and recommendations of the report.
The report should not be longer than 15 pages. Reports are due by last week of the course (e-mail to kgurses@salle.url.edu or bguclu@salleurl.edu). For the final presentation of your projects, each team will be assigned date/time (to be announced).
Retake Policy
The failed students will need to take a retake exam. The retake exam will constitute 100% of the final grade. However, the final grade after the retake exam cannot be more than 6.
Course textbook
Czinkota, M.R, Ronkainen, I.A., Moffett, M. H. International Business. 2003.
Readings
In addition to the cases we will be discussing in class, I will provide you with a number of readings from time to time. Additional readings or assignments will be handed out in class. You may also be requested to search for particular readings in the library databases.