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Decision Making in a Semi Flat World

About This Seminar

Despite the ease with which we embrace such concepts as a flat world, in reality successful sophisticated transcultural decision-making entails a much more complex set of challenges.

In this seminar you will be provided with the tools needed to think strategically and critically about the forces that shape international decision-making. You will be taught to question rather then assume cultural difference in global strategy. You will learn to be aware of how home office cultural assumptions could adversely affect global decision-making. Emphasis is given to an in-depth critical analysis of the interaction between global businesses, politics and culture.

Who Should Attend

This seminar is targeted to mid and upper-level executives who need to be able to think strategically and broadly in order to deliver success in the global environment. In particular the seminar is geared toward companies and organizations with multinational customers, suppliers, colleagues, and competitors. It is particularly effective for domestic managers and companies that are looking to create success outside of their national or regional borders.

Learning Objectives

At the end of this seminar you will be able to:

  • Ensure realistic execution of global strategies in an ambiguous and cross-cultured world.
  • Develop realistic strategies for targeting new, and more rewarding markets.
  • Appreciate the conflicting pressures of culture, history and politics on global business strategies.
  • Gain a deeper perspective of the realities of cross border integration.
  • Understand the critical need to see beyond the balance sheet in international decision-making.
  • Recognized whether successful home strategies can be readily applied abroad.
  • Strongly question rather than assume cultural differences in an international risk taking analysis.

Outline

Day 1
Morning: A Semi Flat World
  • Macro - Economic / Geographic-political overview
  • Seeing beneath the patina of globalization
Morning continue:
  • Cultural and Historic Variables
  • Dimensions of Cultural differences
  • Family Capitalism/Corporate capitalism
  • Case Analysis: One Language, Divergent Meanings: A study of Indian and Australian Managers
Afternoon: The Changing Global Consumer
  • Consumption culture: Convergence? Divergence? Consumer Identity in the age of globalization
  • Case Analysis: The Post Global Brand -Think globally act globally
Day 2
Morning:
  • Werner Heisenberg - Viewing an international investment through the lens of the home office
  • Emic and Ethic analysis
Morning continued:
  • James Lee and Self-Reference Criteria
  • Case Analysis - How Assumption of Consensus Undermines Decision Making
Afternoon
  • Bringing it together
  • The cost of Cultural and Historic Ignorance
  • Case Study: Barriers to U.S. Style Lean Retailing--The Case of Wal-Mart's Failure in Germany

Program Faculty

Edward Goldberg

Edward Goldberg has spent his whole life moving between the worlds of U.S-Russian business, international trade / trade finance and academia. He has a unique appreciation of the interplay between business, culture and politics in implementing cross border business strategies. He lectures at the Zicklin Graduate School of Business, Baruch College of the City University of New York where he developed and teaches the course Markets, Cultures and Regimes. He also teaches international Marketing Management at Zicklin. Mr. Goldberg represented the United States Department of State at the International conference International Relations and Problems of Globalization where he delivered the opening address. He has lectured at CEDEP/Insead, the Lubin Graduate School of Business, and at the Weissman Center for International Business. He has also lectured at the Kennan Institute as well as the Harriman Institute of Columbia University and at the New School. He is a member of Senator Obama's Foreign Policy Network Team for the 2008 Presidential election and was a member of Senator Kerry's Russia and CIS Policy Team. Mr. Goldberg has written numerous articles on U.S. Economics, European-American relations, and the U.S. / Russian relationship for the Baltimore Sun, The Washington Times and the Chicago Tribune, The Globalist and American Foreign Policy Interest. His essay on the relationship between destructive technologies and the energy industry was quoted extensively by Thomas L. Friedman in "Hot, Flat and Crowded." He has been quoted in the New York Times and has been featured in Foreign Affairs Academic Update. He has been interviewed by: CNBC Television, Public Radio, and CBS radio, the Associated Press Radio, as well as, Russian State Television. Mr. Goldberg is also President of Annisa Group a consulting firm specializing in issues of international trade and trade finance.