School Case

1. Managing an international business differs from managing a domestic business for a numerous amount of reasons. An international business is a business whose activities are carried out across national borders. This is different from a domestic business because a domestic business is a business whose activities are carried out within the borders of the location. For example, a domestic business in the United States would only do business within the 50 states as opposed to an international business expanding its business nationwide. Managing an international business is different from a domestic business because a manager in an international business has to deal with businesses and governments in foreign countries and is subject to treaties, tariffs, currency rates of exchange, politics, cultural differences, taxes, fees, and penalties of each country it is doing business in. In an international business managers need to adjust to a countries culture and dress properly to their customs in order to not disrespect them and lose business. On the other hand, in a domestic company a manager’s job will be much easier because he or she will be familiar with the countries culture along with dealing with just one currency and knowing the laws that apply to businesses in that country. Also, a manager in a domestic company will be familiar with the customs, politics, and economy of the country because he or she will know how well the labor force is and all the aspects of resources with allocating them. These differences mean that the companies and the individual managers have significantly different jobs whether they are doing business internationally or domestically. International managers would have a more complex job having to adjust to international differences as opposed to domestic companies and managers that have the advantage of already knowing the criteria.

5. Strategic positioning is when an organization or company tries to achieve dominance or success in the market. According to Michael Porter, the major pressures facing multinational companies are the existing competitive rivalry between suppliers, threat of new market entries, bargaining power of buyers, power of suppliers, and the threat of substitute products. These pressures influence strategic positioning because if a company cant be more effective or efficient than its rivals, the only way to succeed economically is to gain a cost advantage or price premium by competing in a different way. These pressures keep companies on their toes hoping to stay one step ahead of the competition. Without a strategic direction, speed and flexibility lead nowhere. Unique competitive