discussion

Topic of this Week's discussion is...

· The Organization and Strategy of International Business

The opening case describes the emergence of the sharing economy and how four companies, Uber, Airbnb, Turo, and Lyft have successfully taken their concepts to foreign markets. These companies have shattered traditional notions of business and indeed products themselves creating value for customers by solving daily problems.   Your Discussion can focus on any of the following questions:  

QUESTION 1: How are companies in the sharing economy like Uber, Lyft, and Airbnb changing the traditional norms of both business and products? Are there lessons that more traditional companies can learn from those in the sharing economy?

QUESTION 2: Many companies in the sharing economy have successfully taken their business to foreign markets as well. What challenges do you see for these companies as they expand into foreign markets?

QUESTION 3: Discuss the notion of the sharing industry. Why did it start? Does it fill a need that previously went unfilled? Do you see opportunities for new companies?  

The discussions can include comments on the  questions or reflections on videos which I will post to Canvas. You may also use current news information to connect with the above questions.  The comments you make should be interesting and informative. Just briefly agreeing or disagreeing without any commentary is insufficient. 

post an original comments and also respond to one comment for an approximate total of less than 250 words for each post/comment

Peer post: Question #1: Companies in the sharing economy like Uber, Lyft, and Turo are changing the traditional norms of both business and products. Traditional companies can definitely take notes from the more innovative companies like Uber. The ride-share companies have changed their strategies from traditional taxi companies; they came up with a more innovative approach by incorporating technology into their service, the companies have made it much easier for customers to schedule rides without leaving their home, and made it very flexible of where they want to get picked up. From the drivers' perspective, it's also very flexible of where they want to work and when they want to work. With the option of using their own cars, many people started doing it as an extra source of income. On the other hand, traditional taxi companies are more locally focused without the flexibility of location and time for both drivers and riders.