Saturday, January 25, 2020

Developing MNEs Global Strategy

Developing MNEs Global Strategy How can leaders in today’s MNE formulate and implement  effective global strategy? Mengdi LIU Introduction Multinational enterprises (MNE) are organizations that provide or control goods or services inside and outside the home country. For example, â€Å"when a company has operations in more than one country or is registered in more than one country, it may be assigned as MNE†[1]. Usually, a multinational enterprise is a great corporation which produces or sells goods and services in various countries. Usually, companies are faced with different types of very important strategic decision, when they engage in international marketing operation. First of all, leaders need to make decisions in principle to submit the corporate to a certain extent of internationalization. More and more companies will realize that if they have a strong global logic requires, they must purse the global marketing for several competitive reasons. Once committed, the enterprise will have to determine where to go, and whether it is specific countries or geographic regions. Global strategy defined in business terms is the plans designed and developed by a corporation or an organization to target its sales’ growth on a worldwide scale. In other words, it is the long-term strategy of multinational entreprises that aims to obtain development and its long-term survival in today’s changing international business environment. Academic research on global strategy appeared in the age of 1980s, the work of Michael Porter and Christopher Bartlett Sumantra Ghoshal are most significant. The forces that are perceived to bring the globalization of competition were convergences in technological change and economic systems, particularly in information technology. All of these factors have facilitated and demanded the coordination of an international firms strategy worldwide. In this article, firstly, I will briefly introduce the goals of MNEs’ global strategy. Then why is global strategy important. Finally, I will apply the knowledge we learned in class to analyze how to formulate and implement an effective global strategy. The goal of MNEs’ global strategy The trend of world economy’s globalization has encouraged many organizations, especially these MNEs with abundant resources, to rethink the way they are competing in this ongoing expanding market. Products, markets, and interdependent financial work are growing at different paces towards a globalized system. The objective of the global strategy is to take the allocation of corporate resources into consideration in the increasingly complex global environment, to improve competitiveness, to enhance their competitive position and to maximize the overall benefits. Multinational enterprise will arrange its facilities in the most favorable countries, and will coordinate and link their activities in different countries. Global strategies help the MNEs to timely transfer achievements in technology development to management innovations, in order to enhance the companys core competitiveness. Why global strategy is important for MNEs From a company perspective, international expansion can provide potential opportunities for new sales and profits. For example, because of low profitability in the Chinese domestic market, TCL the Chinese consumer electronics company, decided on a strategy of going global. Lately, it implemented new offices abroad, new plants and acquisitions to expand its market position in United States and the European Union the two main consumer electronics markets. In addition to new sales opportunities, there are other reasons for expansion outside the home market. For instance, some companies going global in order to take advantage of low labor costs in some countries, which is called efficiency seeking. While sometimes the acquisition of foreign companies can be used to enhance the company’s market position versus competitors, which is called strategic asset seeking. From a customer perspective, international trade should lead to lower prices for services and goods due to the economies of scale and scope, which can derive from a greater global base. In addition, some customers like to own products and services that represent a global image. For example, ‘Manchester United’ branded soccer shirts or Disney cartoon characters. How MNEs formulate and implement the global strategy First of all, multinational enterprises have to figure out what its role is in international arena, what their core competencies are, whether international talents are available, and where the target market is, so that it could avoid the detours in the process of formulating and implementing the global strategy. Enterprises must have a clear strategy plan, and then combine their own characteristics to international environment to choose the right way. As a beginning point, it’s better to some basic international data to analyze different countries. Before entering a new market, it’s necessary to collect adequate data about this market, and then choose the best path based on strategic priorities and their own ability. New York Fries is a good example. â€Å"New York Fries Company was founded in 1983. And now in 2011, there were more than 190 NYF stores in six countries, with sales in excess of $64 million. Fifteen of the NYF stores were owned by the Company, the rest by franchisees. The biggest advantage of NYF is their product. NYF fries were made from real, not reconstituted, potatoes. They were hand-cut and fried in non-hydrogenated, trans fat-free, sunflower oil.†[2] Obviously, China could be a huge market for an American fast food restaurant, but NYF hesitate to expand into mainland China. So the company’s president, Jay Gould, chose Hong Kong to open their franchisees. At the time of the requests, Gould had never been to Hong Kong; his first visit was to select the new Hong Kong partners and scout locations for the franchise. Within five years, the pace of expansion in Hong Kong and Macau was slower than expected. Gould recognized that opening a location in China would probably take a great deal of time and effort from his head office staff. If NYF expand directly into mainland instead of locating in Hong Kong at first, maybe they would experience the failure as they did in South Korea. The next step is then to discover and identify the company’s resources and advantages for international expansion. For example, the company may have unique brand or some special patents that can be made use of in international expansion. A company could set its international and global objectives after this. Some people may feel surprising of this point of view, while they believe a company should begin by setting out what it really needs to achieve internationally. Why we leave the objective-setting until now? The reason is that our objectives need to be set in the realistic environment of what resources the company has for its international expansion and what opportunities exist in the market place. A simple example: in the year of 2009, the time of US economy recession, the US car market was under heavy pressure, so there would be little point for a car company in setting a target for major expansion. Equally, a small computer services company may not have enough resources for a global product launch. It is better to set its objectives more realistically. How to build an international talents team is a big problem. In a survey conducted by McKinsey, the three-quarters of respondents believe that the talent shortage is the biggest obstacle to its global expansion plans. To respond to this problem, at first, MNEs should make the enterprise localization, and develop a clear strategy to attract international talent with the multiple resources. And leaders should have an awareness of the cross-cultural issue and enhance communication with international talents. Huawei, for instance, has more than 10,000 overseas employees, and is still in a rapid growth. Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd, is a Chinese telecommunications equipment and multinational networking and services company, whose headquarter is located in Shenzhen, Guangdong. Huawei is the largest telecommunications equipment maker all over the world. It has overtaken Ericsson in 2012. Huawei uses a localized business strategy on a global scale. In order to be more closely adapted to the customer’s needs, listening to customer’s needs and respond quickly; Huawei has established 20 regional overseas departments, more than 100 branches. Huawei set up 12 RD centers in the US, India, Sweden, Russia and other places. Each R D centers not only focus on different research direction, but also gathers the advanced technologies, experience and talent to carry out product research. So when Huaweis products enter into the market, its technology is up to date. Huawei also set up 28 overse as regional training centers for local technical personnel. Another example is Trend Micro Inc., a global security software company, was founded in 1988 in Los Angeles. Headquarters were moved to Taipei by its founders, shortly after establishing the company, Now Trend Micro is already the worlds leading anti-virus software company, with 30 branch offices all over the world. It adopts a multi-mode operation headquarters financial centers in Japan, marketing centers in the US, R D camp in Taiwan, global customer service centers in the Philippines and the administrative center in Ireland. It has an excellent international management team. The core management team is made up of only 13 people, from China, Japan, India, the United States, Germany, and Argentina. There exist simultaneously diversity and a strong cohesion in its corporate culture. All branches around the world share the same corporate culture and values. There is another important aspect we shouldn’t ignore innovation and learning. In the era of globalization, enterprise innovation cycles are getting shorter. Essentially, globalization is a new form of competing. The one who consistently stand at the forefront of innovators in this game is the ultimate winner. So in my opinion, MNEs ought to build an environment which is conducive to innovation, knowledge creation and sharing. For example, by changing the design of office space, make the office a place for the staff to exchange information and knowledge, a place where different ideas stir. Meanwhile, let employees and customers become an important source of product ideas. A typical case is 3M Company. The 3M Company is an American multinational conglomerate corporation, being known as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company at the first stage. 3M headquarters are in the St. Paul suburb of Maplewood, Minnesota. This company is known for providing innovative environment. It regards the innovation as a way of business growth and the products as its enterprise life. 3M Company develop more than 200 kinds of new products a year. The goal is to obtain 30% of annual sales from the new products which were developed in the past four years. One of the secrets of 3M innovation management is to create an enabling innovative internal environment. For example, â€Å"technical forums provided opportunities to share technology, best practices and procedures; the European Management Action Team (EMATs) Forum regularly brought together relevant personnel from the United States and European subsidiaries to share information and make decisions. Lecture and proble m-solving discussions were also held during the forum. These meetings enabled subsidiaries to present their thoughts and facilitated cooperation and accelerated pace in markets in which there were significant growth opportunities.†[3] The company allows all employees put up to 15% of the time on their professional interest, and failures are accepted. Its slogan is: you only kissed a lot of frogs before they can find a prince. In the era of globalization, cooperating with competitors is an important strategy of multinational companies. A delicate relationship that competitions and cooperation are often maintained between enterprises. Business leaders need to think about not only competition and profitability, but also how to embrace a more open business environment. For example, the consumer product giant PG has launched a program called Connect Developed, spending nearly $ 2 billion to look for its scientists, so that the company can get new technologies from outside suppliers. If RD can be solved through collaboration and outsourcing, what areas cannot? Another example, Japanese multinational enterprise Sony formed several strategic alliances with smaller firms who have complementary competences, which would help it to penetrate new markets. So leaders should increase the openness of the enterprise, in order to attract more dynamic ideas and human resource outside the enterprise. Using strategic cooperative manner to deal with the non-core business allows enterprises to quickly grasp the opportunities during the process of globalization. Haier Group is a Chinese multinational home appliances and consumer electronics company, whose headquarter is located in Qingdao, China. It designs, develops, produces and sells home appliance, such as air conditioners, mobile phones, refrigerators, computers, washing machines, and televisions. In 2002, Haier cooperated with the largest appliance manufacturer in Taiwan Taiwans Sampo Group. Their cooperation covers selling each other’s home appliances, and expanding parts procurement and technology sharing. Alliance with Sampo paves the way for Haier to enter the Taiwan market. This strategy, based on trust between partners, requires leaders of MNEs to focus on the long-term benefits, rather than short-term gains. Conclusion In this paper, we discuss how can leaders in today’s MNE formulate and implement effective global strategy. Before entering a new market, it’s necessary to collect adequate data about this market, so that leaders can choose the best path for their companies. The next step is to identify the company’s resources and advantages for international expansion. During this process, an essential element is the use of talents. In addition, both innovation and cooperation are often used by leaders in today’s MNEs. Today’s MNEs use a great diversity of global strategies. In order to acquire the competitive position on today’s global market over a long term, companies have to continually adapt to market conditions, to identify the resources and advantages, and then thus use them efficiently. Therefore they have to come up with the best strategy and redirect it depending on the economic backdrop at the time. A successful strategy is based on the way it makes a difference, on the added value it brings, on the attractiveness of the industry and on the market maturity stage, so that it helps the enterprise achieve a competitive and profitable position. Reference [1] Chya-Yi Liaw, 3M Taiwan: product innovation in the subsidiary. (2012) [2] Ruth Mortimer, â€Å"Customer Innovation: Inspirational Customers,† Brand Strategy, London, July 12, 2005, p.24. [3] Palich, L. E., Gomez-Mejia, L. R. (1999). A theory of global strategy and firm efficiencies: Considering the effects of cultural diversity. Journal of management, 25(4), 587-606. [4] Sharda Prashad, Developing an international growth strategy at New York Fries. (2011 ) [5] Corina Dumitrescu, Francesco Scalera. Strategies of Multinational Enterprises. International Journal of Business and Commerce, Mar 2012(12-26) [6] Sassen, S. (1998). Globalization and its discontents. New York: New Press. [7] How do you build a global strategy? http://www.global-strategy.net/how-do-you-build-a-global-strategy/ [8] Wikipedia 3M http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3M [9] History of the Cellular (Cell/Mobile) Phone Companies Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. http://www.historyofthecellphone.com/companies/huawei-technologies.php [10] Wikipedia Trend Micro http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trend_Micro_Incorporated [12] Wikipedia Haier http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haier [13] Wikipedia Multination Corporation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multinational_corporation [14] Wikipedia Global Strategy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_strategy [15] What is global strategy? And why is it important? http://www.global-strategy.net/what-is-global-strategy/ [16] Beck, U. (2000). What is globalization?. [17] à ¤Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃƒ ¦Ã‚ Ã‚ ¾Ãƒ ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã…’à ¦Ã‚ µÃ¢â‚¬ ¦Ãƒ ¦Ã… ¾Ã‚ Ãƒ ¦Ã‚ µÃ‚ ·Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ °Ã¢â‚¬ Ãƒ ©Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃ¢â‚¬  Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃ‚ ¢Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃ‚ ½Ãƒ ©Ã¢â€ž ¢Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ãƒ ¥Ã…’-à ¦Ã‹â€ Ã‹Å"à §Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚ ¥Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ Ã…  Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã‚ ¶Ãƒ ¦Ã‚ ·Ã‚ ±Ãƒ ¥Ã…’-. à ¥Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ °Ãƒ ¦Ã… ¾-à §Ã…“ Ãƒ §Ã‚ »Ã‚ Ãƒ ¦Ã‚ µÃ… ½Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ¹Ã‚ ²Ãƒ ©Ã†â€™Ã‚ ¨Ãƒ §Ã‚ ®Ã‚ ¡Ãƒ §Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬  Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ©Ã¢â€ž ¢Ã‚ ¢Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¦Ã…  Ã‚ ¥. April,2002, p.66-68 [18] à ©Ã‚ ¡Ã‚ ¹Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬  Ã‚ °Ãƒ ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã…’à ¥Ã‚ Ã… ½Ãƒ ¤Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ºÃƒ §Ã… ¡Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã‚ ¨Ãƒ §Ã‚ Ã†â€™Ãƒ ¥Ã…’-à ¦Ã‹â€ Ã‹Å"à §Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚ ¥. à ©Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚ ¿Ãƒ ¦Ã‚ ±Ã… ¸Online. http://cn.ckgsb.com/Article/Detail.aspx?ColumnId=404ArticleId=5853 1 [1] From Wikipedia Multinational Corporation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multinational_corporation [2] Sharda Prashad, Developing an international growth strategy at New York Fries. (2011 ) [3] Chya-Yi Liaw, 3M Taiwan: product innovation in the subsidiary. (2012)

Friday, January 17, 2020

George Orwell’s Politics and the English Language vs. Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal: Essay

George Orwell’s â€Å"Politics and the English Language† and Jonathan Swift’s â€Å"A Modest Proposal† are essays from two different times; the former written in 1946, and the latter in the 18th century. Both essays aim to spark people’s attention and address important national issues of their countries. â€Å"Politics and the English Language† basically presents Orwell’s opinion about the then-current state of the English Language—that it was decaying, just like what was happening to civilization at that time. He attributed the decay of the English Language to politics and economics, arguing that it is not just the fault of the writer that his words lack precision and has stale imagery, but it is rooted from political and economic causes, saying â€Å"†¦an effect can become a cause, reinforcing the original cause and producing the same effect in an intensified form.† On the other hand, â€Å"A Modest Proposal For Preventing The Children of Poor People in Ireland From Being Aburden to Their Parents or Country, and For Making Them Beneficial to The Public† presents Swift’s satirical critique of the English and Irish government, wherein he sarcastically suggested that in order for the Irish government to solve the national issues of poverty and overpopulation, they must sell the children of the poor, specifically one-year old babies, as food for the wealthy Irish and English people. He presented staggering calculations and economic strategies on how to achieve necessary solutions to end their national problems. He argued that the use of poor children as food for the wealthy will reduce the country’s population and improve the condition and living state of the poor Irish people because of the increased income they will get from selling their children. The points in which these two essays try to impose on their readers are much influenced by what was going on in their respective countries at the time the famous literary pieces were written. In Swift’s time, which was the early 18th century, several astounding issues were present in Ireland that struck Swift and led him to write his famous essay. One of these is the oppressive treatment of the Catholic peasants of Ireland by the English, which resulted in the peasants of Ireland to be experience extreme poverty. Swift published his essay as a pamphlet. On the other hand, Orwell’s essay was written in 1946, a time when Britain was in a hazy after-war state. Therefore political speeches were prevalent at that time; writers and speakers, as observed by Orwell, lack precision in their words and has a stale imagery in their messages. The way the two authors attacked their respective adversaries (in Swift’s case, the Irish government, and in Orwell’s, political writers and all writers in English in general) are completely different in a variety of ways. There is significant amount of   diversity of their style of writing even though they have the same goal in general, which is, in a shallow point of view, to spark, take hold—grope people’s attention through their essays to get them to read intently what the message of their essays bring. In terms of the persona of the essay, Orwell attacked writers as a linguist, analyzing what was faulty behind the use of language of writers in his time. The essay even has a persona of an English language instructor, as Orwell pointed out rules that he proposed everyone must use when writing: â€Å"(i) Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.   (ii) Never us a long word where a short one will do.(iii) If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out. (iv) Never use the passive where you can use the active. (v) Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent. (vi) Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.† Meanwhile, Swift attacked the Irish government in the persona of an economist, calculating how much percentage of the population will be decreased in case his proposal is applied, and other economic statistics in his time. A part of his essay presents then-current statistics of the kingdom of Ireland: â€Å"†¦ The number of souls in this kingdom being usually reckoned one million and a half, of these I calculate there may be about two hundred thousand couple whose wives are breeders; from which number I subtract thirty thousand couples who are able to maintain their own children, although I apprehend there cannot be so many, under the present distresses of the kingdom; but this being granted, there will remain an hundred and seventy thousand breeders. I again subtract fifty thousand for those women who miscarry, or whose children die by accident or disease within the year. There only remains one hundred and twenty thousand children of poor parents annually born†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The essays also differed in the type of language their authors used. Orwell’s â€Å"Politics and the English Language† used literal language. He said his points straight and direct, with no figurative speech whatsoever. Neither did he used euphemisms in criticizing the words and sentences and essays of the writers who, according to him, are faulty in their use of the English language: â€Å"These five passages have not been picked out because they are especially bad — I could have quoted far worse if I had chosen — but because they illustrate various of the mental vices from which we now suffer. They are a little below the average, but are fairly representative examples. I number them so that i can refer back to them when necessary: 1. I am not, indeed, sure whether it is not true to say that the Milton who once seemed not unlike a seventeenth-century Shelley had not become, out of an experience ever more bitter in each year, more alien [sic] to the founder of that Jesuit sect which nothing could induce him to tolerate. Professor Harold Laski (Essay in Freedom of Expression)†¦Ã¢â‚¬  On the other hand, the language of Swift’s essay, â€Å"A Modest Proposal†, is entirely figurative. The essay is classified as a political satire, incorporated with much sarcasm and irony. His irrational argument, which is to use the babies of poor families in Ireland as food for the wealthy English and Irish people, intensified by exaggeration, is actually a metaphor to attack the policies of the Irish government at that time. â€Å"†¦and therefore whoever could find out a fair, cheap, and easy method of making these children sound, useful members of the commonwealth would deserve so well of the public as to have his statue set up for a preserver of the nation†¦ †¦a young healthy child well nursed is at a year old a most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricassee or a ragout.†

Thursday, January 9, 2020

Frankenstein and 1984 Cautionary Tales - 2070 Words

1984 and Frankenstein: Cautionary Tales George Orwell and Mary Shelley use their works as precautions to potential disasters in society. As Orwell is warning humanity of the hazards of totalitarian rule, Shelley is forewarning the danger of science becoming too powerful for mankind’s own good. In 1984, Winston fully changes as a character from despising the Party to loving Big Brother. If it was not for the strong pressure to conform inflicted upon him by the Party, Winston would never have gained the love for Big Brother. In Frankenstein, Victor shifts from a child dreaming of recognition and fame for discovering the secret of life to a twisted man with an obsession with getting revenge on his own creation. His act of creation results in†¦show more content†¦The effort the two lovers must put in to see each other is unthinkable, as they must avoid telescreens and microphones almost everywhere they turn. When Mr. Charrington allows them to use his room without a telescreen, they take full advantage of it. Seeing as Winston is still married to his wife and sexual acts are illegal, Julia and Winston defy the Party in more ways than one. Winston has changed from full obedience to the Party to defying it due to his outsized amount of hatred for Big Brother. Julia and Winston engage in negative talk about the Party, which puts them subject to arrest. Believing that O’Brien is a member of the Brotherhood and he too is opposed to the Party, Julia and Winston pay him a visit at his apartment. O’Brien tells the two that they must be willing to lose their own lives in order to take down Big Brother; however, when he asks if they would be willing to betray one another, they refuse. Winston’s hatred for Big Brother has accumulated so much that he is now willing to die solely for the sake of taking down the Party. At the start of the novel, Winston could not stand the thought of his own death. The thought haunted him, and he was not prepared for that to happen. As the story progresses and Winston is being oppressed in more and more ways, he despises the Party more than ever, and eventually isShow MoreRelated Frankenstein: The Impact of God-like Sciences Stemming from Modern Technology1317 Words   |  6 Pages Frankenstein: The Impact of God-like Sciences Stemming from Modern Technology In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein’s life story is the heart of the tale. As a young Swiss boy, he grew up in Geneva reading the works of the ancient and outdated alchemists, a background that serves him ill when he attends university at Ingolstadt. There he learns about modern science and, within a few years, masters all that his professors have to teach him. He becomes fascinated with the â€Å"secret

Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Shakespeaerian Tragedies The Link to Aristotles Ideas Essay

Shakespeaerian Tragedies: The Link to Aristotles Ideas The central concern of tragedy has always been to explore the nature of evil in the world; both its existence and the nature of particular types of evil and their effect. If we are to find the meaning of Shakespeares tragedies, we must examine how men looked at the problem of evil in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Much of the philosophy which under-pinned the English Renaissance can be traced to the ideas of Aristotle. It can be argued that the central concern of King Lear is the†¦show more content†¦Anyone who shows, in speech or action, a tendency to slight rather than praise these qualities upon which we base our self-esteem, will be the recipient of our anger. However, we will be more angry with friends than with others, with those who have previously treated us deferentially and now change, and with those who do not adequately appreciate or return kindness. He also suggests that the feeble are more given to anger than the strong, and old men rather than the young. Other thinkers, contemporary with Shakespeare, such as Newton, emphasised also the pride that precedes anger and the shame that succeeds it. Newton also explained that while anger harms those against whom it is directed, it harms even more the person in whose heart the passion rises. He suggests that the mind must be reined by reason and curbed by temperance. There was, then, in Shakespeares day an old and firmly founded philosophy of anger, based upon ancient philosophy and medieval reworkings of those ideas. According to this philosophy, pride or self-esteem is the condition in which anger takes its rise, vengeance becomes its immediate object, and some slight, real or imagined, is its cause. Anger is folly; shame its consequence. The sequence of passions is pride, anger, revenge, and, unless madness clouds the reason altogether, shame. Anger hurts him who feels it even more than it