Discussion Board Scenario: You work as an analyst in the planning unit of a firm with international operations. From time to time, you might be called to a meeting to discuss certain aspects of international business.
As you state your responses to the Discussion Board questions, assume that you are in a formal, management discussion. Your manager has asked that you state your sources when citing facts or important concepts, for good order.
In the Discussion Board Threads for this Module, assume you are participating on behalf of your unit in a set of meetings to discuss whether it is important that in making a foreign investment, that the firm makes sure that the country being considered was "democratic," the argument being that democracy was good for growth.
Question 1: Watch Tankman Video and discuss the political economy of China as illustrated in the Tankman video and other sources you might have available.
Based on how the text defines politics, economy, etc., how would you characterize China's? What contributed to its development? What are the realities of doing business in this country, i.e. what should they be on the lookout for?
Discussion Board Scenario: You work as an analyst in the planning unit of a firm with international operations. From time to time, you might be called to a meeting to discuss certain aspects of international business.
As you state your responses to the Discussion Board questions, assume that you are in a formal, management discussion. Your manager has asked that you state your sources when citing facts or important concepts, for good order.
Question 2: Assume a manager of a subsidiary of your firm in a developing country has asked for advice. As the manager of the subsidiary, a financial company, he has been working at keeping their delinquencies at manageable levels. Recently his collection lawyer requested that he decide on how to proceed against an account with a substantial delinquency, about 20% of the subsidiary's equity.
He has reported that the subsidiary's lawyer (from a law office managing the legal issues related to collections for the subsidiary) has informed him, that if they file a routine request along with the filing fee with the Sheriff's Office for a writ of seizure (they have done all the preliminary collection procedures, e.g. collection letters, and seizing or foreclosing on the equipment mortgaged by the borrower was the only remaining option), it may take weeks and months before action is taken.
Or nothing may come of it. The lawyer added, that If he allows them to give the same request to a Sheriff (in the same Sheriff's Office) that they know, along with the fee in cash, the seizure could be done in a few days.
(The lawyer stated that the Sheriff could very well pocket the cash.) Since the subsidiary was a U.S. company, the lawyer wanted to know how the manager of the subsidiary would allow him to proceed. What would you recommend and why?