Portfolio Project
Please address the following 14 questions:
Company:
Exxon Mobil Company
Countries:
Colombia, Italy, and India
1 Examine
the countries where your company does business according to where they rank on
the Hofstede cultural dimensions. Think
of some examples of how a U.S. manager would need to modify his or her behavior
when communicating with associates from one or more of these foreign countries.
2 Does
your company operate in any countries that are considered very politically or
economically risky?
3 Does
your company primarily operate in civil law or common law countries? What are
some of the implications of this?
4 Has
your company purchased any insurance from the U.S. Overseas Private Investment
Corporation (OPIC)?
5 What
are some key intellectual property protections, if any, that your company
possesses? When do these protections (e.g., patents) expire? How does your
company intend to recoup lost revenues due to any patent or other intellectual
property protection expirations?
6 Find
the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) score for two countries where your
selected company does business, one country with a relatively high score and
one country with a relatively low score. Search for news stories about
corporate financial scandals in these two countries. Prepare a short summary of
news stories about financial scandals in these countries. Briefly describe what
you perceive are the risks of corruption, such as paying bribes that your
selected company might face in these countries.
7 Determine
your company’s mode of entry into foreign markets. This should be based upon a
serious analysis of your company’s risk-return tradeoff. In your opinion, has
your company taken the right approach?
8 Does
your company have an exit strategy? Recall that exit strategies are to be
determined before entry into the foreign market, rather than after entry.
9 Critically
and objectively evaluate how ethical your company’s global operations are and
determine if they are good corporate citizens (i.e., do they have a well
thought-out corporate social responsibility program for the long term?).
10
What is the corporate mission statement of your
target company, assuming it has one? How well do the company’s actions adhere
to its stated mission?
11
With respect to its strategy formulation, would
you categorize your company as a shareholder model or a stakeholder
orientation? Why?
12
Is the company a stateless corporation? If not,
is the company on its way to becoming a stateless corporation?
13
What type of organizational structure is the
company currently using?
14
Do you think the company may benefit from a
hybrid or matrix structure? Why or why not?
NOTES:
• Answer
each question individually.
• In your
responses, make certain that you include references from search engines below
or from scholarly sources from the APUS Online Library.
• Turnitin
is required for Part 2.
• Book
References:
Gaspar,
J., Arreola-Risa, A., Bierman, L., Hise, R., &Kolari, J. (2014).
Introduction to global business:
Understanding the international environment & global business functions.
Mason, Ohio, South-Western CENGAGE Learning.
Gather
your data from sources such as company annual reports; agencies like Standard
& Poor’s, Moody’s, and Value Line; or any of the following websites:
www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/
www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/
www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/
www.xmarks.com/site/
www.stat-usa.gov/tradtest.nsf
www.globaledge.msu.edu/resourceDesk/
