International business

The organizational structures of many multinational corporations are inadequate to the task of capitalizing on opportunities in emerging markets. Locating...

Progress has been both glacial and uneven.

That is, if businesses embrace a circular economy.

It’s disaster in the desert. Late last week, Dubai World quasi-defaulted — and took the Emirate’s credibility with it. Will Dubai meet its obligations? It’s the question the beancounters of the universe are nervously asking. As usual, it’s the wrong question. Dubai was a mini-America: finance and real estate made up the lion’s share of […]

The widely held notion of “Japan, Inc.” is exaggerated; there is no monolithic business-government link. Even so, the cooperation (without incorporation) between the large corporate combines and the government bureaucracy is impressive in its strength and focus on the common economic good—especially in view of its achievements worldwide. As the economic power of the United […]

Innovation deserves protection.

Narendra Modi could kick-start India's economy - and position it to compete with China.

In business, one must always look at possible upsides. Even with all the dire predictions about what could happen in North Korea after the sudden death of its “Dear Leader” Kim Jong Il, this event could possibly pave the way for South Korean and foreign companies to make new inroads into the reclusive country. The […]

Technology and trust networks make it possible for small enterprises to have a global footprint.

I can travel anywhere in the eurozone without having to pay money to change currency. I don’t have to work out in my head how much stuff is worth. You can make your shoes in Portugal and sell them in Germany without your profit margin bouncing all over the place. Sure, the currency has a […]

"There is no excuse. Creativity has to be at the forefront."

In the 20th century, Japanese multinationals established themselves as powerhouse exporters in developed markets. Names like Sony, Toyota, and Honda became...

Should governments accept the dictates of markets? It’s the question raging across the econoverse in the wake of demands for austerity from bondholders. But it’s the wrong question. The right question is: are organizations and markets making decisions that help make people, communities, and society better off in the long run, by allocating their scarce […]

Global companies face a crucial question when they enter emerging markets: how far should they go to localize their offerings? Typically they try to sell...

Since the early 1970s, host governments have intervened more and more in the affairs of multinational corporations. Today they regularly establish rather demanding conditions for MNCs wanting to do business in their countries. What kinds of conditions are these? What type of threat, if any, do they pose to the normal operation of corporate decision […]

A less hierarchical environment isn’t easy for everyone to navigate.

Maybe, though not in the way we typically think it is.

In the last few months, the number of entrepreneurship workshops and trainings in Africa has increased. Entrepreneurship has become the next big thing in the continent and many young graduates are opting to take risks and run startups rather than seek traditional employment. New to Africa is that these new class of entrepreneurs are well-accepted […]

The U.S. isn’t as high as you might think.

A country’s competitiveness, like a company’s, is not primarily a matter of sales: it is a matter of incomes, and incomes earned, not borrowed. To be competitive means to raise incomes as rapidly as competitors do and to make the investments necessary to keep up competitively in the future. From this perspective, U.S. competitiveness is […]