November 1st, 2008
Now here is something to feel good about!
“The annual World Competitiveness Yearbook from Swiss business school IMD ranks 55 countries on 323 criteria, ranging from the per capita GDP and economic growth to exports, computer penetration, and even the cost of mobile phone service. It also includes qualitative assessments of dozens of factors, such as the level of corruption, state support for education, attitudes towards globalization, and the regulatory framework.”
As a country, the U.S. tops the list at #1…
See the rankings here…
http://bwnt.businessweek.com/interactive_reports/comp_countries/
November 1st, 2008
At a recent Globalization Conference at Eclipse sponsored by the Rockford Chamber of Commerce, Eclipse shared some of their experiences with the attendees. Thanks to Paul Carpenter, he’s agreed to allow me to pass these on to our blog, and I will do so in several issues.
The first topic discussed was: Advantages, why go global?
1. Growth…obviously we all look (or should look) to grow our companies
2. New Markets…geographically
3. Product Development Ideas…often come out of discussions with others
4. Access to Talent…other countries have people that are well trained, know the local market, etc.
5. Support Global Customers…if your local customer is exporting or has facilities abroad, you can serve him better by following him
6. Hedge against exchange fluctuations…weak dollar means strong international currency and more dollars to come back home
7. Hedge against Regional Economic Downturns…if U.S. softens and you sell into an international market that is still strong, then you get better balance
8. Network to support Global Sourcing…with presence in global markets, you can also find new global suppliers.
While there are many advantages, it does take some thinking to determine where to locate and that will be the topic for the next issue of Globalization.
