MN7406 International Business Assignment Sample
Module code and Title: MN7406 International Business Assignment Sample
Question 1: Discuss how do cultural differences effect cross country trade.
Introduction
Since the middle of the twentieth century, organisations have been compelled to expand their operations and management to include a worldwide component as a result of globalisation. Many fundamental changes occurred since then, leading to the present state of affairs.
The following are some of these advancements. Globalisation of trade has resulted in the rise of foreign and multinational corporations, which have gained prominence in a wide variety of local markets as a result of the increased openness of national economies and the liberalisation of international commerce (Gygli,2019).
Considering that organisations are increasingly working on a global scale, it is essential to recognise that cultural differences may have a significant impact on transactional performance in a number of ways. The ability of counterparties or employees from various cultural backgrounds to build good working relationships inside the same organisation is also impacted by cultural differences, although this is less common (Wang, 2020)
Cultural differences will very certainly provide a substantial obstacle to effective corporate communication, and this will need careful consideration and planning to overcome (see Nowakowski 2005; Hofstede 2000). In order to effectively overcome this cultural barrier and achieve success, this study must be carried out by firm executives, lower-level employees, and representatives of smaller businesses that do business with other countries.
Successful multicultural employees are frequently cited as examples in academic studies of successful multicultural workers. Persons who work in multicultural workplaces and interact with people from a variety of cultural backgrounds are frequently mentioned as examples of effective multicultural employees in academic studies of successful multicultural workers (Chopdar,2018)
Discussion
In order to be successful in today’s global economy, organisations must have a strong sense of cultural awareness and competence in order to be competitive. The capacity to communicate effectively is also essential for maintaining a competitive advantage in a global market.
Throughout the subject of international business, the impact of culture on commercial contacts and negotiations has been extensively studied and recorded. There is a significant impact of cultural variations on marketing communication methods, brand selection techniques, and customer behaviour when it comes to all of these
A particular purpose of this research is the identification and classification of cultural groupings, with the eventual goal of assigning individuals from various countries to cultures that most closely fit their characteristics being one of the ultimate goals. Murdock, Ford, and Hudson worked together to construct the early phases of the culture, with Barry putting the finishing touches on the final product when they were completed.
o Among the factors that distinguish individuals in the workplace are household circumstances and technology, the economy, the local community and government, social services, religious beliefs, scientific knowledge, sex and the life cycle, as well as general characteristics such as food and clothing. Individuals can be distinguished from one another in the workplace based on the following factors: household circumstances and technology, the economy, the local community and government, and social services, as well as general characteristics such as food and clothing
A culture, according to the definition provided by the Oxford English Dictionary, may be defined as “all of the accomplishments of a single civilization that are passed down from one generation to the next. (Nam, 2018)” In this collection of concepts, you will find the rules, ideas, and terminology that are used to categorise certain activities, as well as other concepts that are linked to them.
A number of cultural idea features have been found by Matsumoto and Juang (2007, p. 26-27), with the following being the most prominent among them: The term “culture” refers to a set of laws and behaviours that are shared by all members of a culture, as well as the values and attitudes held by all members of that culture.
When we discuss a set of laws and behaviours that are shared by all members of a culture, we refer to that culture as being discussed as “culture.” Cultural concepts include both individuals and groups; they are intended to preserve the existence of the group; they are accepted to varying degrees (rather than uniformly); and they are passed down from generation to generation, making them relatively long-lived when compared to other modes of communication.
In the opinion of Hofstede, the scientist who discovered these characteristics, the cultural variations that exist are created by a variety of elements that interact with one another. On an onion diagram, you can see symbols (language, gestures, and signals that have social significance), heroes (people who should be emulated in a specific culture), rituals (showing respect to others, greetings, religious rites), and values (the ability to distinguish between what is right and wrong) (Liu,2020).
According to the conclusions of Hampden-Turner and Trompenaars, culture may be conceived of as having a multi-layered structure, which the experts believe is supported by empirical evidence. As a consequence of their investigation, they were able to distinguish three separate layers. The outer layer, also known as the visible layer, is composed of factors such as the language spoken by a certain group of people, architectural traits, cuisine and historical locations, fashion and creative expression styles, and even the manner in which individuals express themselves (Uzunca,2018).
The standards and values of an individual’s group constitute the second tier of the hierarchy of values and standards, which is the second layer of the hierarchy of values and standards. As the phrase “core of the pyramid” indicates, it is the underlying existential assumptions that are present at the very foundations of the pyramid’s construction that are referred to as such (Trompenaars, Hampden-Turner 2002: 21).
Additionally, Hofstede states that children and adolescents learn about a culture’s goals and acceptable behaviours throughout their first 10 to 20 years of life, which is a time that lasts between 10 and 20 years. Whenever someone is confronted with a tough circumstance, the advice of family and friends may be quite beneficial, as can the aid of teachers and mentors, as well as the support of their social network.
The perceived insurmountability of cultural differences has always been considered an insurmountable obstacle when it comes to conducting international negotiations and implementing agreements on a global scale. During talks in which participants come from a varied range of cultural backgrounds, misinterpretations of language, body language, and gestures occur far too often, and this is especially true when participants come from a diverse range of cultural backgrounds in a single conversation.
For this reason, in order to prepare for a meeting with an international counterpart, it is critical to learn as much as possible about the culture of your international counterpart’s country, as well as cultural orientations classification models and classification models which are based on cultural orientations.
Asia’s negotiating style is distinguished from other styles of negotiation by its tolerance for cultural and religious diversity, as well as for traditional beliefs and practises, which distinguishes it from others. When it comes to being successful in one’s endeavours, one’s capacity to cultivate the virtue of patience is crucial. In order for the negotiating process to be successful, it is critical that the whole group of participants participate actively at each level of the negotiation process (collectivism).
The fact that it is relationship-oriented, polychronic, and formal in nature are only a few features of this culture, which has a smaller reach than other cultures. It is critical to be able to maintain one’s dignity while engaging with individuals from different Asian cultural backgrounds.
The power and position of the negotiator should be acknowledged rather than criticised, and the negotiator’s position should not be attempted to undermine. The participants’ contacts with one another as well as their interpersonal relationships are important aspects to consider throughout the decision-making process.
Asians are known for being more reserved in their emotional displays, and they are also less likely than individuals from other cultures to keep eye contact with them during a discussion than people from other cultures. One must behave oneself in a courteous and formal way, while keeping a sense of decorum and appropriateness throughout the process, if one wishes to be taken seriously (Beugelsdijk,2020).
Conclusion
Maintaining harmony is very important to the Chinese, who recognise the importance of everything having a purpose and that nothing should be twisted or brought into conflict with anything else in the country . Several hundred protocol interactions around the nation have produced gestures that are acceptable to people of all ages, genders, social backgrounds, and life circumstances (to name a few features), among them (Contractor, 2020)
Following a set of standards, we have established a standard way of greeting one another . On both sides, there are just two permitted responses: a delicate bow and a modest nod of thanks on the part of the giver and receiver. Most organisations have a tradition that when new members are welcomed into a group, the oldest or most valued members are the ones that greet them first, as is the case in most situations when new members are welcomed.
It is critical for them to wait for their Chinese colleague to commence the handshake before continuing with their chat in the other direction. The renown and reputation of a person or corporation who holds a well-known position will increase the worth of that person or firm while negotiating with a potential business partner. It’s critical to have business cards ready at the welcome ceremony; you’ll need a lot of them since they’ll be distributed to everyone in attendance, so prepare ahead of time.
Question 2: Discuss whether the modern financial system is too connected.
Introduction
At the top of the list of the world’s 50 most valuable financial institutions are ten companies with assets in excess of $2 trillion, making them the world’s most valuable financial institutions. The United States dwarfs all but six of the world’s wealthiest nations combined, with the exception of China.
Until the beginning of the financial crisis, daily transactions in the foreign currency markets had exceeded $4 trillion, marking a 20 percent increase in volume over the preceding year before the crisis. Even while these figures seem insurmountable at first glance, the crisis that triggered the recession, as well as the job losses, foreclosures, and decreases in retirement savings, highlighted the sombre truth that lies behind them all.
After the financial crisis, it became clear that banking and financial markets may have an influence on the actual economy on their own, rather than only functioning as middlemen between economic entities such as enterprises and investors, as had previously been supposed. Finding more effective ways of using financial resources in order to produce jobs and raise wages while simultaneously acting as a conduit for the worldwide spread of innovation, knowledge, and financial resources are among the challenges facing policymakers.
Discussion
The financial crisis also brought to light some of the faults in the economic instruments that economists use to analyse and explain modern circumstances, which were previously overlooked. Prior to the financial crisis, it was regarded as a completely understandable and changeless machine that ran at its optimal speed and produced outputs in an almost completely predictable manner under the close control of its (policy) operators, which was the dominant school of economic thought during that period.
For his customers’ benefit, a typical agent behaved logically and based on the information that was accessible to him in order to maximise profit. What you just saw doesn’t seem like something you’d encounter in the real world, does it?
Better financial policies, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), are part of “better policies for better lives.” Despite the fact that many individuals feel financial systems are inaccessible owing to their complexity, many others believe that this is unjustified. Most of this book is written in simple English and explains the information that we all need to know in order to participate in discussions about the financial system and whether or not we can avoid another financial catastrophe in the future.
Each portion of the book is broken into three subsections, which are as follows: Introduction; The first is concerned with the theoretical underpinnings and mathematical modelling of the financial system. Second, we’ll take a look at the financial system as a whole, including its relationships with other sectors of the economy as well as its internal operations.
As a final point, we’ll take a look at changes to financial sector laws that have occurred in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis and determine what has been accomplished and what still needs to be accomplished. Thank you to everyone who took the time to contribute, and especially to the NAEC Unit for putting together such an intriguing and well-balanced piece of work.
With the exception of the United Kingdom, every nation had major variations in credit activity throughout the 1990s, and each of these crises occurred when credit began to deteriorate even worse.
It is also possible to find these kinds of connections in financial asset markets, such as those for mortgage-backed securities (MBS). Contrary to traditional financial theory, the degree of leverage a financial asset hold does not impact the price of the asset at which it is traded. The availability of mortgage finance is the single most important factor influencing fluctuations in the value of residential property.
According to econometric testing of data from the United States, variations in mortgage credit induce changes in property values, not the other way around. According to the World Bank, correlations between total household credit and changes in property prices have averaged 0.47 since 1970 in Japan, the United Kingdom, and Spain, among other countries.
Despite the fact that the financial crisis occurred more than a decade ago, traditional economists have failed to conduct research into data like this. These economists have worked tirelessly to develop a sophisticated and, at first glance, all-encompassing theory, which they claim not only explains but also provides recommendations on how to improve the economy’s complicated reality. They claim that their theory not only explains but also provides recommendations on how to improve the economy’s complicated reality.
Conventional macroeconomic theory holds that the banking sector may be completely ignored when it comes to establishing the general state of the economy, however this is not the case. The United States has never before seen a financial crisis of this magnitude, and that was before the Great Depression. As a result of this purposeful ignorance, financial crises occur not because there is no possible warning, but rather because people turn a blind eye to the very clear causes of financial crises. Because of this wilful ignorance, when a new calamity occurs, the rest of the world will be entirely unprepared for it.
Instead of causing a worldwide financial disaster, this confluence of events is now playing out in the many nations that managed to avoid the 2008 financial crisis by continuing to amass privately held debt after the crisis ended. It is estimated that the four most populous countries with such economies are China, Canada, South Korea, and Australia, which together have a total population of 1.3 billion people.
There are just a few important rivals remaining on the list of contenders: Singapore, Sweden, Norway, and Belgium. The actions made by the governments of each of these nations contributed to ensuring that the private sector did not suffer from the financial problems that rocked the United States and the United Kingdom so hard in 2008.
They did, however, have a higher level of personal debt in 2008 than either the United States or the United Kingdom combined, according to the World Bank. When their credit bubbles collapse, these nations will face a version of the 2008 financial crisis that is separate from the rest of the globe, according to the World Economic Forum. When a financial crisis comes, private debt will seize control of almost all of the world’s major economies, locking them in a vicious cycle of debt for the foreseeable future.
Germany, for example, will be among the few nations in the world that will be able to decrease their private sector debt over the next two decades by capitalising on their enormous trade surpluses. The Darwinian concept of survival of the fittest, which Simon thought to be true, led Simon to hypothesis that “decomposable” networks were more durable and hence more likely to reproduce as a consequence of the notion.
It was determined that decomposable network was described as a network that could be broken down into smaller sections such that the system as a whole was not dependant on any one component. Despite the fact that this may be an adequate description for certain real-world complex systems over the long run, it is not the most suitable description for socio-economic systems.
A large number of today’s networks rely on hyper-connectivity as a basis for efficiency when it comes to data transmission. Economically speaking, the returns to size and breadth in a network business increase as the size and breadth of the network company grows (Stallkamp,2018).
To illustrate, consider the advantages of global supply chains and interbank networks in terms of trade and risk sharing, to mention a few of instances. Institutions in the social and economic spheres that are not decomposable have a major secular incentive to continue to exist.
When faced with systemic obstacles, on the other hand, these hyper-connected networks are often capable of reacting in ways that prevent them from collapsing. Policies aimed at preventing systemic collapse in the case of social, economic, or financial instability are often changed and modified to ensure they remain effective.
Conclusion
The ramifications of seeing the world through the lens of a complex system of systems for public policy are not well understood.
As a first step, it emphasises the need of precise data and timely mapping of the system’s multiple layers, in addition to the necessity of cooperation. These layers function at a considerably higher level of complexity than the previous tiers.
Fine-grained information is required for interactions inside and across these complex subsystems, as well as for interactions across subsystems.
References
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