The retreat of the global company
The retreat of the global company (2017, January 28). The Economist, 422(9025), 18-22.
Assume that you’re the marketing manager of a consumer products company (e.g., for a soft drink or smartphone producer). After reading this article, you have started to question the real benefits of international business to your company. You have called the frontline executives to discuss the issues included in this article. Your task for this assignment is to present these executives with a strategic direction in terms of your company’s future interest in international business.
Which perspective will you take? Do you agree with the views expressed in the article or not? In your strategic report, support your views by addressing the following questions:
- Is the accepted idea of going global to seek new customers and make more profits still valid?
- Should large companies pack up and return home to focus on local markets?
- Do you see any connections between the declining performance of multinational companies and the increasingly protectionist policies of the largest countries in the world, including the EU and the United States?
- What are the harms of globalization?
- Some argue that the backlash against globalization has also been a backlash against big businesses in global markets. What alternatives do they have to be competitive?
