CHAPTER 11 – INTERNATIONAL STRATEGY AND ORGANIZATION

1. "The elements that affect strategy formulation are the same whether a
company is domestic or international." Do you agree or disagree with this
statement? Why? Support your argument with examples.

We disagree because the business environments can affect managers’ strategy

and structure decisions, including the ability to change the normalization and
adaptation of products, where to locate facilities and what type of decision
making to implement.

For example:

a. National differences in language, religious beliefs, customs, traditions,

and climate complicate strategy formulation.
b. Manufacturing processes must sometimes be adapted to the supply of
local workers, local customs, traditions, and practices.
c. Differences in political and legal systems complicate international
strategies.
d. Different national economic systems complicate strategy formulation.

2. "Cultures around the world are becoming increasingly similar, so companies

should standardize both their products and global marketing efforts." Do you
agree or disagree with this reasoning? Are there certain industries for which
it might be more or less true?

The standardization of products is an efficient method of reducing costs,

meeting customer needs and as a stimulus to investment, which can be applied
to a number of countries.

However, the company must strategically analyze what are the elements that
should standardize, for example McDonald decided to adapt to consumer and
traditional customs and open completely vegetarian establishments in India.
The famous Big Mac combo was replaced by the combo McVeggie.

3. Continuous advancements in technology are deeply affecting the way

international businesses are managed. Do you think technology (the internet,
for example) should radically alter the fundamental strategies and
organizational structures of international companies? Or do you think
companies can simply graft new strategies and structures onto existing ones?
Explain your answers
The information technologies have caused companies to adapt quickly to consumer
needs and deliver greater customer value product.

Through the global competition we can see today the transformation of many
business models; companies are shifting from a model focused on the product /
manufacturing-oriented service delivery and experience for the consumer product
model. Thus, the object is to create a pleasant experience for guided and directed
to bring more value to the consumer through different resources.