Chinese media has recently reported that Wal-Mart may add yet another country to it’s growing list of international failures. In 2008 Wal-Mart has 208 stores throughout China. Within the past 12 years of trying, Wal-Mart has not only failed to become profitable, but it even had to accept a loss in market share. According to […]
I just found an older, but still good article about some interesting cases of failure of American firms in Japan: Knight, Gary A. (1995), International Marketing Blunders by American firms in Japan – Some Lessons for Management, Journal of International Marketing, Vol. 3, No. 4, 107-129. Knight writes about well known brands’ failures, including the big three […]
For confidentiality reason I can’t disclose the company’s name, but the story is great anyway. A major player in the semiconductor industry which was acquired by a private equite firm a few years ago is currently being dressed up for a public offering. In it’s attempt to make the bride look slim, they have embarked […]
A short while ago, PepsiCo announced that it would invest $500 million in India over the next three years. While PepsiCo has been very successful in India with sales exceeding $1 billion a few years ago, this major investment is definitely a case to watch for everyone interested in international business. Let’s wish them well.
This fall term (08/09) I am teaching a course in FH Joanneum University of Applied Science’s (Graz, Austria) “Master in International Management” program on deadly sins in international business. The course is project-based and experimental in that it combines elements of lectures, guest lectures and work sessions (some of it in non-classroom settings). Students work on […]
Greed has a special role in international business. On the one hand, one must admit that there would be no international business activity at all, if companies and managers didn’t feel the need to grow their business across national borders. Taking such action simply involves a little greed. On the other hand, greed can become dysfunctional […]
Why blogging about the „Deadly Sins in International Business“. If you run a search on the internet, you’ll discover that the metaphor of the deadly sins has been used for a lot of different things – from investing to human resources management to pottery. So why not use it in an international business context. Sometimes […]
Is it a deadly sin not be a first-mover in foreign markets? Burger King, the world’s second largest burger chain, recently announced that it would expand it’s business in China by 250 to 300 outlets. Compared with McDonald’s 950 or KFC’s 2,200 this seems to be a relatively small number. Looking at the timing of […]
There’s a great new textbook on Managing International Business out there. Published by Springer (New York / Vienna) this book provides nice background reading on globalization and multinational enterprises and has a very hands-on chapter on international market entry. Unfortunately, the book’s only available in German so far: amazon
Looking for a list of international business failures? Keep searching, and if you find any, let me know. One list I know of which contains international business failures, but is largely composed of “normal” failures based in the United States.
The Deadly Sins of International Business. Professors Gerhard Apfelthaler of Graz, Austria and Duane Kujawa of Miami, USA are working on a book titled “The Deadly Sins of International Business”. The book to be published in 2009 is providing a fresh look at famous’ companies’ failures in international markets. Looking at globally active companies of […]
