Impact of International Business Education on Ethnocentricity

Abstract

As evidenced by recent surveys of American managers, there is a serious shortage of qualified candidates on the US job market. This shortage is most evident in two specialization areas: high-technology knowledge workers and internationally competent managers. Indeed, American companies rate lack of qualified high-technology personnel as their number one reason for slower than desired business expansion. The other less glamorized, yet serious shortcoming of the American educational system is its inadequate training of cross-culturally competent workers for this truly global post-industrial era. In response to this human resources crisis, realizing that “the future economic welfare of the US will depend substantially on increasing international skills in the business community,” the United States Department of Education began an active campaign of promoting international education and research in several major American universities in the late 1980s. Since 1988, nearly 40 universities have been awarded tens of millions of dollars to engage in such activities as developing formal international business curricula, offering foreign language courses, promoting internationally-oriented research, provoking international education and research dialogues among the faculty, exchange programs between American and foreign universities for students and the faculty and similar activities. This research is a first attempt in evaluating the impact of one such program on the internationalization level of American students. It will be shown that the international education program at one major American university has successfully produced a cadre of more global and less ethnocentric workforce for American corporations.     

Business Ethics and the Idea of a Higher Education

The role of business ethics within higher education is often discussed in relation to its relevance to the business context. However, this paper is concerned with the link between business ethics and Ronald Barnett's conception of a higher education. It is argued that business ethics is the best placed subject within the business curriculum to facilitate 'critical interdisciplinarity'; to enable students to think critically about the business knowledge they already possess drawing on philosophical and sociological perspectives. The legitimacy of the business curriculum within higher education remains a contentious issue. Business ethics has a central role to play in reconciling the business curriculum with notions of a liberal higher education. It is crucial to retain the 'critical' or 'subversive' role of business ethics to counter-balance the dominant 'managerialist' perspective of the business curriculum and demonstrate that the study of business can help fulfil expectations that a higher education in business can be 'emancipatory'.     

International Business Education

'Ibis paper addresses the question of whether lasting benefits can be gained from IB training in LDCs using foreign IB instructors, paniEularly from the point of view of the client group. While there are clearlv ~ersonal benefits for IB facultv going abmad to teach, the pay-off f6;the recipients may not be so dek. C&estions are raised about the fit between the pedagogical methods and personal style of the foreign instructor in relation to the needs, goals and expectatim of the client group. The need for continuity is emphasized. This avoids contradictions in training content, gaps in howledge and skills, and loss of progress. Continuity is essential if any sustainable benefit is to be achieved. Finally, the role of IE3 training in promoting improved national trade performance in global markets is addressed.     

Useful Web Sites for International Business Communication Education

Abstract

The World Wide Web presents many opportunities for improving the instructional quality of international business communication related classes by providing access to a large variety of information sources. These sources can be used as supplements to traditional texts, as the basis for specific program assignments, or even as the main focus of a course. An especially useful aspect of these sites is that they can improve information recency and depth when compared with sole reliance on traditional texts. Unfortunately, the sheer quantity of available Web pages can make it difficult to find appropriate sites for a given international business communication topic. To assist educators in locating such relevant sites, we offer summaries and addresses for pages in some of the major areas of international business communication. These selections were chosen both for their relevance to international business communication training and evaluation by Cornell's suggested quality criteria. The article concludes with a discussion of potential applications, problems, and implications for web based international business communication instruction.     

论我国国际贸易的电子商务服务模式

本文提出我国国际贸易的电子商务服务模式,应建立国家级的统一数据交换出口,为进出口企业、银行、物流公司等服务商及政府监管机构建立统一的数据交换平台,使国内外与国际贸易活动相关的机构完成电子商务协同作业。本文分析了这种服务模式的建设构架、优势和政府应发挥的作用。     

Digital Technology in Teaching International Business

Abstract

As we enter the brave new world of interactive digital technology, teachers of International Business are being confronted with the problems and opportunities associated with integrating the new medium with a subject area that is inherently geographically dispersed. This analysis extends the traditional marketing tradeoffs between richness (depth of knowledge) and reach (geographic area coverage) to the emerging technology-mediated education industry, and then specifically evaluates their effect on the teaching of International Business. We believe that interactive learning, particularly as it applies to team building and problem solving in a multicultural environment, will prove valuable as the next generation of business leaders begins to emerge from academic institutions.     

The Domains of Undergraduate International Business and International Management Courses in Accredited Schools of Business

ABSTRACT

This study compared undergraduate international business and international management course syllabi from 190 management departments at accredited U.S. business schools. Comparisons revealed considerable overlap in topic areas in the two courses. The findings indicate the need for greater domain clarity and differentiation in objectives, topic areas covered, and textbooks used. Domain clarification could lead to more truthful representation of the two courses, better training and disciplinary grounding of course instructors, more appropriate hosting of the courses in business school departments, and enhanced skill-sets among students in these courses. Finally, clear domain definitions are necessary for reliability and validity in international business research.     

Investigating Graduate Business Students' Perceptions of the Educational Value Provided by an International Travel Course Experience

Abstract

Researchers agree that students' critical thinking and decision making skills are enhanced through exposure to new cultures and global markets. Thus, one way of bringing about improvement in these areas is through international travel courses. The purpose of this study is threefold. One, to describe the process involved in the creation of a required for-credit international travel course; two, present the findings of a research study designed to investigate graduate business students' perceptions of the educational value provided by an international travel course; and three, describe the ongoing process of closing the assessment loop as it relates to the internationalization of MBA and MACC curricula. The results of this study are encouraging. In general, students perceived that the international travel course added value to their educational experience and enhanced their relationships with other students. Items receiving weaker support were concerned with “thinking skills”, such as multi-disciplinary integration and improved decision-making. These results have important implications for future improvements to the international travel course.     

Transaction Cost Theory and International Business

I discuss the cross-fertilization between transaction cost theory (TCT) and international business (IB), showing how TCT provides a powerful lens to study the institutions that organize international interdependencies, and especially multinational enterprises (MNEs). I then discuss some of the insights that IB can provide for the further development of TCT. I argue that a full explanation of why MNEs exist must rely on information asymmetry as well as asset specificity, and that the study of modes of foreign market entry leads to alternative viewpoints on equity joint ventures and hybrids. I conclude by stressing the need for a simultaneous consideration of market transaction costs and internal organization costs when examining governance choices.     

The Development of International Business as an Academic Discipline

Abstract

This article reviews the emergence of international business (IB) as an academic discipline through an examination of IB research, curriculum, and location within the organisational structures of universities and business schools. A selective review of the literature on IB education is used to identify different approaches to the formulation of the IB curriculum and its constituent parts and principal features: internationalisation of business functions; integration of constituent subject areas; multidisciplinary and strategic orientation. This is used to derive a number of pedagogic implications for both teachers and students of IB: sequencing and ordering of the curriculum; revealing the ontology and epistemology of IB; breadth versus depth in the curriculum; emphasising a study of or for IB; locating and structuring IB within a modular programme; class room practice for delivering the IB curriculum.     

Trends in Executive Education in Business Marketing

ABSTRACT

Business marketers in the 21st century are grappling with the harsh, tough demands of a consolidated customer base, rapid product and service commoditization, complex channel structures, and hyper-competition in a rapidly evolving, information-intensive global economy. Across the globe, firms concerned with developing managerial talent to respond to these trends are demanding and expecting changes in the executive education programs offered by business schools. We consider in this paper a number of recent trends and changes in customer expectations, program format, content development and delivery, and program marketing that we have observed in executive education in the field of business marketing.     

Taking international business education programs and pedagogy to new heights: Fundamental questions for educators and students

As the dynamic global business environment continues to force organizations to be agile and adaptive, international business (IB) education pedagogy is transforming. Building on previous literature describing gaps in IB pedagogy, as well as unaddressed stakeholder needs, we first use our institution—the United States Air Force Academy—as an example of IB program development. In examining our program's evolution, we develop five questions that may provide insight regarding more generalizable IB pedagogy trends. To assess this possible generalizability, we explore questions related to the development of our program using self-reported, publically-available websites of the top full-time MBA programs throughout the United States. Our questions focus on the role of foreign languages, study abroad opportunities, integrative courses, capstone/thesis projects, and faculty development. Our exploration indicates that these five questions are important not only for educators developing future programs, but also for students examining potential IB programs. Additionally, our research examines a sixth question focused on the development of competitive positioning and program differentiation in IB programs. We hope to motivate future inquiry into IB pedagogy, which could inform more effective means of improving IB education.     

浅析国际分销中的进出口业务

国际分销中涉及到进出口业务,尽管进出口业务存在着一些差别,但进出口业务中有很多业务基本上是相同的。这就要求企业应熟悉进出口单证、货运和销售条件、收付货款、包装和标识等主要的进出口业务,以便对进出口业务进行有效的管理。     

国际银团贷款争议与国际商事仲裁的勃兴

国际银团贷款争议的解决长期倾向于跨国诉讼,近年来却倾向于国际商事仲裁,其原因有多种,值得注意。国际银团贷款争议诉诸国际商事仲裁的前提是仲裁协议的有效性,国际银团贷款争议的国际商事仲裁的程序适用普通的国际商事仲裁程序,但要注意一些电子文本的法律效力。国际银团贷款争议如在我国选择中国国际经济贸易仲裁委员会按其《金融争议仲裁规则》仲裁要认识到其特殊性。国际银团贷款争议的解决方式并不一概排斥诉讼,而且仰赖于司法监督。     

A Case Example: Integrating Ethics into the Academic Business Curriculum

This paper combines a review of existing literature in the field of business ethics education and a case study relating to the integration of ethics into an undergraduate degree. Prior to any discussion relating to the integration of ethics into the business curriculum, we need to be cognisant of, and prepared for, the arguments raised by sceptics in both the business and academic environments, in regard to the teaching of ethics. Having laid this foundation, the paper moves to practical questions such as who should teach ethics, and when and how can ethics be taught. The paper presents alternative models for the teaching of ethics in the curriculum of undergraduate and postgraduate business programmes. An integrative model is elaborated on in more detail with a case example describing the six-stage process undertaken in the move from a single entry course to an integrated approach. The case study details not only the planning and initial implementation of ethical education in the context of an undergraduate business degree programme, but also the means by which a change in the way that ethics is taught was achieved in a business faculty in a tertiary institution.     

A Global MBA for Tomorrow's Global Business Leaders

Abstract

Traditional IB programs have received mixed reviews from the corporate world. With this in mind, the Suffolk GMBA was benchmarked against the leading international business programs. The Suffolk GMBA was designed to be different and to ascertain the global environment in which business operates. A unique feature of the GMBA curriculum detailed in this article is the combination of Boston's international business locational advantage with functional integration of the many disciplines that make international business unique. Borrowing components from the fields of economics, government and politics, finance, marketing, ethics, and law, a curriculum matrix was developed identifying and sequencing the key topics to be taught. The authors also explain potential pitfalls and outline a model which can be successfully implemented in other graduate international business programs. This program is shaping the thoughts and actions of tomorrow's global business leaders through its integrative decision-making framework of global perspectives and competencies.     

Integrating Business and Ethical Values Through Practitioner Dialogue

In practice, the relationship between business and ethics is not well-settled. In the past, organisations have developed an interest in setting value charts but this has been approached from a purely managerial perspective following the momentum and interest aroused by research on organisational cultures. Although interest in managing organisational cultures has slowly died down, for both theoretical and practical reasons we argue that there are feasible ways to explore values as part of an organisational culture. Indeed it is our claim that it is feasible and productive to discuss values within organisations. However, rather than developing sophisticated theoretical frameworks, more efforts should be put into thinking about the conditions under which participants can enter into productive dialogue. It is our claim that if processes are carefully examined people within organisations can make better sense of their work and discover their own perspective to account for what they actually do and to project themselves into what they think they should be doing. Thus, values identified within the organisation can eventually reach a point where they become an expression of a shared commitment. The experience we describe aims to illustrate only one example of a concrete application of this approach.     

新媒体时代商科高校社会主义核心价值观教育路径探讨

当前,新媒体的虚拟性、开放性和隐蔽性,非真实性和模糊性,冲击着大学生的世界观,有碍核心价值观的确立以及对诚信的忽视和不在意。这使商科高校大学生社会主义核心价值观教育面临着严峻挑战。结合新媒体传播特点和大学生的成长实际,商科高校应在更新思想政治教育观念、优化社会主义核心价值观教育内容、完善教育机制和创新教育手段等方面下功夫,探求新媒体时代商科大学社会主义核心价值观教育的实践路径。