With the development of an integrated global economy, marked by free trade and free flow of capital, now is the time to pursue a cutting-edge international business career.
Around the World
In case you hadn't noticed, U.S. firms are expanding abroad. This requires organizations to form effective strategies for entering the international business market. They need to be aware of legal matters pertaining to specific countries, and they need to be concerned with organizational and administrative issues, especially if they are involved in a partnership with a foreign firm. As international business markets become more competitive, U.S. firms are learning to use resources more efficiently by reducing costs, streamlining operations, and developing marketing strategies.
That's why today's professionals need comprehensive knowledge of international business as well as foreign cultures and languages. Globalization has increased the need for international business workers with these specialized skills to manage multicultural and multinational workforces effectively.
"Distance" Learning
An international business degree will provide you with the training you need to manage an international business and to succeed in our global economy. With an international business degree, you'll be equipped with a global focus across different functional areas of business. You'll learn theories of international protocol and how they continually change. You'll learn to recognize global differences and apply sensitivity to cultural diversity issues in communications, management, marketing, and the legal aspects of global business operations in your international business career. You'll explore the differences among various economic development levels, as well as the new economic groups forming in Europe and Asia.
International degree program coursework may include international marketing, export/import practices, globalization, international trade, financial management, business planning, economic development, international law, international business policy, international culture, foreign languages, overseas business practices, foreign market analysis, foreign operations, sourcing, communications and negotiations, critical thinking processes, ethical codes of conduct for global business leaders, marketing strategies, and management practices and processes.
The Real World
With an international business degree, you can work as a business strategy consultant, managing consultant, account manager, project manager, business developer, distribution manager, director of international affairs, finance advisor, foreign market analyst, or management analyst, to name a few.
Management analysts, for example, held about 605,000 jobs in 2004, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employment of these international business career professionals is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through 2014. And, median annual earnings of management analysts were $63,450 in May 2004, with the highest 10 percent earning more than $120,220.
Be part of the international business explosion by earning your international business degree today.
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Robyn Tellefsen is a frequent contributor to The CollegeBound Network. Learn more about finding a school or career that's right for you!
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Robyn_Tellefsen
Minggu, 26 April 2009
Go Global With International Business
Rabu, 15 April 2009
How To Fund International Trade And Overseas Businesses
International trade is one of the best ways to better your company’s bottom line, but breaking into an international market requires time as well as resources. You need to do a thorough research into the feasibility of selling to a particular local market, as well as scout for funds. This article discusses some ways to finance overseas business.
International Trade Loans:
The Small Business Administration in the US has many funding programs for businesses that want to break into the international market. You can borrow loans for investing in real estate or equipments from the SBA.
Export Working Capital Program:
Export capital working program help you translate your export ideas into reality. The program finances labor and supplies, and finances the receivables generated from the retailing of these materials.
Confirming Houses:
Confirming houses are lending institutions that finance small businesses by lending money in addition to what banks may lend. The services of confirming houses are generally related to cash loans and letter of credits to those who wish to open an office overseas. Confirming houses are also useful in helping in transportation, and provide transportation costs on a per project basis.
Confirming houses should not be your primary source of funding, but they can help in smaller matters like rentals, moving goods to another location etc. Apart from interest on the loan provided, confirming houses also require some sort of fee.
Invoice Discounting:
Through the invoice discounting facility, financiers can buy and discount trade debts of corporations. The credit is lent based on receivables, not assets of the corporation. Invoice discounting is an ideal way of getting short-term loans. The loan is sanctioned almost immediately, making it a great source of funds when you need funds immediately. The amount you can borrow under invoice discount depends on sales volume.
Factoring:
Another source of funds for overseas business is factoring. Factoring refers to purchase of company’s receivable by the purchaser as soon as possible. This creates a continuous cash flow. The major advantage of factoring is that while the purchaser is responsible for the credits to the company, he or she does not interfere in the management of the company. Unlike other kinds of financing, factoring does not involve loans, but direct purchasing of receivables to provide funds to the company.
These are just some ways to finance international trade ventures; you can also look into the possibility of grants, venture capital and joint ventures with local companies. If you need more information on how to fund international trade and overseas business, you can consult a small business advisor.
Alexander Gordon is a writer for http://www.smallbusinessconsulting.com - The Small Business Consulting Community. Sign-up for the free success steps newsletter and get our booklet valued at $24.95 for free as a special bonus. The newsletter provides daily strategies on starting and significantly growing a business.
Business Owners all across the country are joining "The Community of Small Business Owners” to receive and provide strategies, insight, tips, support and more on starting, managing, growing, and selling their businesses. As a member, you will have access to true Millionaire Business Owners who will provide strategies and tips from their real-life experiences.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Alexander_Gordon
One Size Fits All
The Sleepwear Syndrome - “One-Size-Fits-All”Often times a T-shirt or sleepwear is advised to be “one size-fits-all” and serves its purpose. Training isn’t sleepwear and apparently won’t be able that way.
Attending at it this way: admitting all the teen-age kids ability abrasion one admeasurement of sweatshirt to school, would bodies abrasion the aforementioned admeasurement clothing or brim to work? If they did, would they attending as acceptable or accomplish well? In added words, one-size-fits-all apparel aren’t all that able for altered situations.
Bright Bulletin
Give bodies a bright bulletin afore accommodating in training what the expectations of them will be back they return. Plan some time with the actor both afore and afterwards the training session. Let them apperceive afore they attend, that an activity plan is accepted as a aftereffect of the training session. (Then be absorbed in the outcome.) Ask them how you can advice them ability their new achievement goals.
All of these accomplishments will accomplish accountability clear. Give an absolute assignment accumulation training in new advice and abilities at the aforementioned time. (Whenever accessible and appropriate.) Use absolute assignment in the training back possible.
New January
The January Third Application AssignmentWell advised training with motivated learners will aftereffect in bodies abrogation training with some bright account about how they plan to administer what they’ve abstruse aback on the job. But able-bodied intentioned as those affairs ability be, they may be no added able than best New Year’s Resolutions.
Old habits are adamantine to break! Habits are abnormally adamantine to breach aback there is no abutment for the new abilities and behaviors aback in the workplace.
Jumat, 10 April 2009
Aggregate Accessible
Do aggregate accessible to accomplish abiding all of administration is on-board with the training and its purpose. Make a charge to get a acknowledgment on that training investment.
Resolve to accord the training time and abutment to work. Determine bright achievement outcomes for the accomplishment up front. Set up a plan to handle the assignment while the actor is learning. This activity speaks volumes about the accent of the training. It will additionally advance their ability to focus on the affair.
Training Job Now
People may resent having to be in the training because they don’t understand why they’re there, and they know they’ll have to work harder when they get back to the job to catch up.
In this situation the participants may leave more cynical than when they arrived, with few if any new skills to counteract that possible effect.
Assignment Paradigm
The Axle on the Assignment ParadigmMany times managers and leaders see training as an big-ticket decay of time. When they appear classes, they always anticipate about all the assignment that is axle up “back in the office”. Their advisers see this attitude through their leader’s actions.
This cerebration grows because leaders don’t explain the affidavit for the advance and don’t advice bodies accord with the workload while they are gone. Since you can’t accomplish bodies learn, these situations can be adverse in the training affair itself.
Minggu, 05 April 2009
Myths About Women and International Business
Researcher, Nancy Adler conducted a monumental study in the mid 1980’s to address myths about women and international business. Her study investigated if commonly held myths about women in international business were true including: women are not interested in International business, women were not willing to travel overseas for a variety of reasons namely family responsibilities and women would not be viewed as credible in overseas business due to the local perception of women. Her study results revealed that many of these false perceptions were indeed myths often held by male managers and HR personnel, and that women were interested and willing to conduct business overseas.
Today many of these same myths still exist despite the dramatic increase of women in business and women owned businesses and women traveling overseas.
Here are some facts published by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) (www.dol.gov), The National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) (www.nawbo.org), and the Small Business Administration (SBA) (www.sba.gov), on women in the work force:
• Women account for over 46% of the work force in America and this is expected to increase to 48% by the year 2005.
• Women comprised 43% of employees in American executive, administrative, and managerial occupations in 1995 and this number is growing.
• Businesses owned by women number 8 million in the U.S., and they employ one out of every four workers. They are growing at double the rate of all businesses.
• 33% of women business owners report that they exported in their first or second year of operation and the majority reported that they were successful on their first transaction.
• In 1998 over 23 million Americans traveled overseas and the primary areas of travel were Europe, Asia, Japan and Latin America.
It is no longer just a rumor that women have become major players in the U.S. workforce and in the global business environment. More and more women are traveling overseas to conduct business for their corporations or for their own business ventures.
Despite these significant advances of women in International business we still find commercial guidebooks that suggest that women should not be in International business. Most books in this genre were written by men and either do not address women’s particular issues in international business or, worse, they suggest that women should not even be sent on foreign business assignments due to role differences which these men perceive to be unconquerable obstacles. In contrast, my own research (1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998) indicates that women can and are successful in international business, despite the variety of viewpoints they encounter around the world. Specifically, my research has demonstrated that establishing credibility during the initial stages of business is one area that businesswomen find critical to their success.
Establishing Your Credibility
For men, credibility is often derived from their gender and their status in the company. For women, credibility is more often derived from their individual skills. Women report that they often have to work extra hard to establish credibility because of their gender.
Some women explain:
When I conduct business in most countries I am consciously aware that my male colleagues have more credibility than I do, just because of gender differences. In most countries women are not expected to have significant positions of authority, so I am frequently viewed in the same way. I am first assumed to be an administrator, not the decision-maker in the group, whereas my male colleague is first viewed as the manager or decision-maker. I feel I have to work doubly hard to establish my credibility before I can effectively conduct business and I’m aware that I need to do this immediately so that the business can start. (Chicago)
When I travel outside the U.S. for the corporate office, I am viewed as foreign first, and female second. However, I feel I am still met with some degree of skepticism as to what my role is and how much authority I have for the corporate office. Due to this, I take extra steps to make sure that the proper introductions are made in advance to limit concerns that men might have about my credibility. (Los Angeles)
As a woman business owner I realize that I am not the norm in many countries. Therefore I have to develop methods by which to establish my self and my company as credible for my foreign business associates. This requires preparation and advance communication about my firm, our success and our viability -- perhaps more than is required for men who run their own firms. (New York)
Here are some pointers for establishing credibility:
• Be visible. Attend and host meetings between your company and your international counterparts whenever possible. International travel is often associated with decision-makers in a firm, so being present adds to your credibility.
• Introductions are important, particularly for women. If you are doing business with a firm for the first time, have yourself introduced by a higher-ranking person in your company who already knows the people with whom you will be dealing.
• If you cannot have someone introduce you, ask a higher-ranking person in your company to send a fax or written correspondence in advance, outlining your title, responsibilities and background.
• Make sure your business card indicates a distinctive title such as “Manager” or “Director” so that your position can be clearly understood. If there is any doubt about your title, it may be automatically assumed that you have a lesser role than other members on your team.
• Some women wear a school ring or a graduate school pendant to subtly advertise their background. Others wear corporate pins designating tenure, thus demonstrating their level of experience.
• In general, foreigners will often look and respond more to the men on your team than the women. This is because there are fewer women in executive positions outside of the U.S. Prepare for this by advising your colleagues of tactics that will help you and the other female members, including making seating arrangements that will place you in a position of authority.
• If someone appears confused about your name and rank, offer him another business card, even if you have already given him one. This is a subtle way of reinforcing your title and ensuring acknowledgment of your participation as an active member at the meeting.
• Women should lead business discussions where possible. If there is only one woman and everyone is of equal rank, let the woman take the lead to help establish her credibility.
• A female team leader may experience a problem establishing her credibility unless team members defer to her as the authority figure on the team. American men need to be aware that their tendency to jump in and answer questions, especially when a woman is speaking, undermines her authority and the team’s effectiveness. Women should advise team members not to answer questions directed to her and to otherwise defer to her whenever appropriate. A good response when asked a question that should be directed to a female colleague is: “Jane is the best person to answer that question.”
• Be professional. Present yourself in a sincere, confident, professional manner, both in appearance and speech, to create a good first impression. Be yourself. Do not come on too strong, but don’t defer when it is appropriate for you to respond. Deferring to age and position is, however, always acceptable for both sexes.
• Be aware of women’s roles in other countries. If you understand where women are in their own corporate environment it will give you insight into how the culture may perceive you.
The Role of the Manager
Managers can be very effective in international business by helping to enhance their team’s credibility. The manager can introduce the staff members by title and outline their areas of expertise, act as moderator to refer questions to the appropriate team member, and highlight the staff’s achievements.
In particular, managers can help in the following ways:
• It is important that all team members, including management, understand their roles at the meeting and, more importantly, that they do not act out of role. If one of your colleagues is acting out of role, call for a break to explain how the group loses effectiveness when it is not cohesive.
• As a woman, you should advise management that your personal credibility may be jeopardized if your role is undermined, and that this could hinder the success of the team at any follow-up meetings.
• Managers can help enhance the credibility of female teammates by reinforcing their authority during the meeting. For example, if a woman is not receiving the appropriate respect, the manager may once again bring attention to her role and authority.
Despite commonly held myths about women in International businesswomen are traveling and conducting business internationally in increased numbers and they are successful in their business dealings. Establishing credibility in advance is one of the key areas where women can do to ensure her business success.
Tracey Wilen is Author at http://www.globalwomen.biz/
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tracey_Wilen
Make Training Decisions
Make training decisions based on cardinal administration and absolute achievement gaps. Once those training priorities accept been set, stick to them. Make a charge to get a acknowledgment on that training investment.
Resolve to accord the training time and abutment to work. Determine bright achievement outcomes for the accomplishment up front. When a new “hot topic” training advance is proposed, ask, “How does this fit with what we’ve been doing? Is this aloof our abutting diet?” Use absolute assignment in the training back possible.
Believe of Leadership
The new training topic, approach, abstraction or chic is approved and alone afore after-effects can occur. There’s usually annihilation amiss with the training introduced, but usually it isn’t accurate in the alignment - or accustomed the time to work.
In these instances, the aggregation is crumbling time and money and ambagious the majority of the employees. Maybe best cher about is the accident of adopting acrimony and abbreviation the believability of leadership.
The Cafeteria Cause
The Cafeteria Cause - “Course du Jour”Often training has no connection to the strategic objectives of the organization. Whether true or not, the prevalent perception in the organization is that there is no rhyme or reason to the latest training course. This cause is called “Course du Jour” because often organizations offer new training just like some people try new diets.
New business books (and accompanying “hot” new training topics) are published with the frequency of new diet plans - and the similarities continue! With the fad popular diets, people hear about the new approach, buy the book, get excited, try the diet, and soon leave it - usually before they received any real benefit. The same thing happens in an organization.
Rabu, 01 April 2009
Participants Knowing
Give people a clear message before participating in training what the expectations of them will be when they return. Plan some time with the participant both before and after the training session.
Let participants know before they attend that an action plan is expected as a result of the training session. (Then be interested in the outcome.)• Ask participants how you can help them reach their new performance goals.
Who Accountable
The “Who’s Accountable?” GamePeople rarely are held accountable for using what they learned in a course or workshop when they get back to the workplace. So some people recognize going to training as a game.
That’s why training is seldom seen (by anyone in the organization) as what it could and should be - a strategic part of the business, with responsibility for performance enhancement. Regardless of how training is viewed, if people aren’t held accountable, how likely is it that real performance change will occur? All of the actions below will make accountability clear.
The Desired Results
Seven Reasons Why Training Doesn’t Produce the Desired Results and What You Can Do To Improve Your Results
OverviewAbraham Maslow said, “If the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail.” As managers, leaders and change agents, we want to improve our organizational performance. Often training is seen as an important tool in this pursuit. Training is a fabulous tool!
It can provide awareness, knowledge, skills and maybe even a chance to practice. However, all of our change efforts aren’t nails, so training isn’t our only tool. This special report identifies seven common reasons why training doesn’t meet it's goals - even when it is the right tool - and more importantly - gives you some action steps to avoid these pitfalls.