reflection report

Running head: REFLECTION REPORT 1

REFLECTION REPORT 3

Reflection Report

Over recent years, businesses have been going global because of various reasons. For example, some go global to reach to more market, others to spread risks while others consider cost advantages in global markets. There are five elements which we have on international business which have influenced and widened my scope on international business. First, the concept is the cultural environment in the global business. Culture deals with beliefs, values and norms of the people. Buying decisions of the people are influenced by the cultural factor. Therefore, whenever business is thinking about global, it will be necessary to establish whether goods and services are diversified to meet divergent cultural needs.

Second, the concept of world economies has been very fundamental. For entrepreneurs wishing to enter the global market, it is necessary to determine the level of economic development. This is important because influences level strategies adopted for entry. For example, the same entry strategies may not be used in developing and developed countries and if they are used, they are modified because of the differences in stages of the development. The third element is the management of global talents. This emphasizes the need to deploy human resources management policies and practices that excellently handles the cultural differences of the employees and also responding to the local needs of the employees. The fourth element is about global innovation which requires entities in the global markets to invest heavily in R& D and innovative initiatives to keep in pace with competitors. The last element that I found very important is global supply chain management. This requires effective and efficient management of the distribution systems to promote seamless movement of goods along the global supply chain.

This course has indeed changed my perception of international business in relationship with foreign exchange risks. I have been having a lot of fear that even if there are opportunities in the international business, foreign exchange risk can turn all gains losses. However, after covering this course, I have built may confidence against foreign exchange because I have been exposed to strategies that I can take protect my business adverse effects of exchange rate movement. For example, currency hedging is one strategy to protect expected cash flows. Finally, one thing that I would like to remember is on how to use swaps, options and futures effectively protect my business from suffering when currencies increases or decreases in an unexpected direction.