This one minute video on global business asks if business deals are done because the product is better. Does the best mousetrap mean we got an international customer?
Here are 5 Top false assumptions in doing international business
We see it repeatedly, from the low-level trainee right up to the CEO. Americans often start with the wrong assumptions when entering a foreign market
The assumption set used when marketing, selling, hiring and buying from foreign countries is critical to our eventual success.
When devising an international strategy for a corporation, the presumptions are the first thing to address.
—- There is an “international market.”
Ghana, Greece or Malaysia? This first assumption divides the world into two pieces: us and them. And the danger is apparent: We think of the “rest of the world” as one entity. Intellectually, we know there are several entities, each with their own language, culture and business practices.
—- “Business is business” (the world is getting smaller).
The shrinking of the planet forces us to make less, not more, suppositions about how our counterparts conduct business. Thirty-five years ago, a $50 million manufacturer didn’t worry about Chinese offshoring, Indian software or Italian design. Today’s CEOs must think globally, initially by recognizing the differences, not the similarities.
—- Our technical skills will transfer abroad.
A CFO is a CFO. An XML programmer is the same anywhere in the world. This attitude costs money, reputation and time to market. The CFO who is an expert in financial modeling needs to interact with locals who may not respect his authority or knowledge, and may organize finances differently.
—- A contract comes at the end of the process; a deal is a deal.
The “holy contract” (as Dutch often call U.S. contracts) comes at the end of U.S. negotiations. Contracts often serve as “outlines” in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Central and Eastern Europe. The rule to think about is “first a contract, then a negotiation.”
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