Unit 25: Global Business Environment

Assignment Brief 1

Student Name/ID
Number

Unit Number and Title Unit 25: Global Business Environment

Academic Year

Unit Tutor

Assignment Title Industry review – Competing in a Global and Complex

World

Issue Date 2023

Submission Date

Submission Format

The submission is in the format of a written review report for an industry on the
issue of competing in a global and complex world. The report should make references
to contemporary examples, case studies and images. The review should be written in
a professional format, making use of appropriate headings, columns, bullet points,
titles, subtitles and charts. Citation and bibliography using the Harvard system should
be given. Inaccurate use of referencing may lead to issues of plagiarism if not applied
correctly.
The recommended word count is 2,000-2,500 words, although you will not be
penalized for going under or exceeding the total word limit.

Unit Learning Outcomes

LO1 Analyze the key factors which drive globalization.

LO2 Determine the strategic complexities associated with operating in a global
environment.

Transferable skills and competencies developed

 Commercial acumen based on an awareness of the key drivers for business

success
 The ability to analyze and evaluate a range of business data, sources of
information and appropriate methodologies
 Strong digital literacy

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  Articulating and effectively explaining information
 Communication and listening, including the ability to produce clear, structured
business communications in a variety of media.
Vocational scenario

Organization
KPMG is a global network of professional firms providing audit, tax, advisory and legal
services in 144 countries. KPMG in Vietnam was established in 1994 and now is one
of the largest professional services firms with a balanced mix of international and
local clients. They work closely with their clients, helping them to mitigate risks and
grasp opportunities (KPMG International, 2022).

KPMG Vietnam has been invited to participate in an Investment Promotion

Conference (IPC) organized by the Foreign Investment Agency, which is a unit under
the Ministry of Planning and Investment of Vietnam. The Agency’s role is to assists the
Minister in performing the state management function of foreign direct investment
activities in Vietnam and Vietnam’s offshore direct investment. The purpose of the IPC
is to review the impacts of global business environment on some key potential
industries for FDI in Vietnam.

Role
You have joined KPMG Vietnam as a Research Assistant at KPMG Insight Centre,
which provides in-depth professional business research on corporate, industry and
global scale. Your task is to assist researching activities of the senior research
specialist at the centre. Recently you have been asked to draft an industry* review
that will feature in the Investment Promotion Conference material pack. The review
will be distributed to conference delegates and also be published on the KPMG Online
Insights for existing clients and attracting new potential clients.

(*The industry to be specified by the course tutor. Each class should be assigned a
different industry).

Assignment activity and guidance

The overall aim of the industry review is to address the complexities associated with
operating in a global environment for businesses in general and for companies of the
specified industry in specific. To further support the readers’ understanding of the
research purpose, you will need to analyse the key factors that are driving
globalization in general first.

You are required to research and produce the industry review; it should include the
followings:

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1. Introduction:
Based on the scenario, the student introduces the reasons for paying attention
on the chosen industry, the purpose and the structure of the report.
Note: The student should NOT repeat the scenario.
2. Overview of globalization:
- Define the concept of globalization.
- Explain the concept globalization in terms of different dimensions:
economic, cultural, political and social. Give examples to illustrate your
explanation for each dimension (one of the examples must be the chosen
industry).
3. Key driving factors of globalization:
- Discuss key drivers affecting a specific industry to go globalization based
on Yip’s model. Evidences from the chosen industry should be provided to
justify your argumentation
- Analyse the main challenges and opportunities that the companies operate
in the chosen industry facing in the globalization process from above cited
information and discussion.
4. Key global strategic complexities:
- Explain the complexity of strategic challenges faced by organizations when
operating in a global environment
+ Identify some of the most influential international trade laws and discuss
the impacts of them on MNCs
+ Explain how the global economics may impose more risks to MNCs and
how MNCs may respond to this challenge with their diversification strategy.
+ Explain some issues of the environmental impacts in associated with risk
and diversification strategies
+ Explain the difficulties for MNCs when managing a global supply chain
(including global sourcing, production and distribution).
For each type of strategic complexity, some specific examples/evidences
should be provided to support for the student’s arguments
- Review the consolidated impacts of above-mentioned examples/evidences
to point out the main challenges and opportunities for the company in the
chosen industry competing at global level from:
+ Legislation and regulatory requirements
+ Operating across different time zones
+ Culture differences and cultural diversity
+ Monetary environment
+ Political unrest and instability, and
+ Managing global customer need and expectations
5. Roles of digital technology and innovation:
- Discuss some digital technologies and innovation in the chosen industry
with their impacts on globalisation with some specific examples
- Evaluate how digital technologies and innovation in the chosen industry
could foster or hinder companies in operating in a global environment. The
discussion may link with above-mentioned key opportunities and
challenges that the company in the chosen industry faced with.

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 6. Recommendations for globalization in digitalized world:
- Summarize all key challenges and opportunities identified in the report and
make recommendations on how organizations can respond to, and thrive
in, a globalized, digitalized world.
- Some literature reviews or best practice benchmarking are expected to be
included to support the student’s proposal.
7. Conclusion:
- Summarize all the key findings and analysis
- Conclude whether globalization has done better or worse to MNCs to
compete in the chosen industry and how to encourage the good side and
mitigate the bad side to businesses in general.
8. Reference and Appendix (if any)

Recommended Resources
Please note that the resources listed are examples for you to use as a starting
point in your research – the list is not definitive.
Weblinks

Entrepreneur. How to Take Your Company Global. Available at:

https://www.entrepreneur. com/article/159252

Inc. 6 Tips for Writing Compelling Thought Leadership Articles. Available at:
https://www.inc.com/entrepreneurs-organization/6-tips-for-writing-compelling-thought-
leadership-articles.html

World Business Culture. How to do business worldwide. Available at:

https://www.worldbusinessculture.com/

Velocity Global. Global case studies, videos and reports. Available at:
https://www.velocityglobal.com/resources

HN Global (2021) Reading Lists. Available at:

https://hnglobal.highernationals.com/learning- zone/reading-lists

HN Global (2021) Student Resource Library. Available at: https://hnglobal.highernationals.

com/subjects/resource-libraries

HN Global (2021) Textbooks. Available at:

https://hnglobal.highernationals.com/textbooks

Journal articles

John Cantwell (2017) Innovation and international business, Industry and Innovation,
24:1, 41-60, DOI: 10.1080/13662716.2016.1257422:
https://doi.org/10.1080/13662716.2016.125 7422

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Fred Hu and Michael Spence. (2017). Why Globalization Stalled and How to Restart it,
Foreign Affairs.

Mukherjee, Sonia. (2018). Challenges to Indian micro small scale and medium enterprises
in the era of globalization. Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research. 8.
10.1186/s40497- 018-0115-5.

Textbooks

Bartlett, C. and Beamish, P. (2018). Transnational Management: Texts, Cases, and

Readings in Cross-Border Management. 8th Ed. Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill
Daniels, J. D., Radebaugh, L. H. and Sullivan D. P. (2021) International Business
Environments and Operations. 17th Ed. Harlow: Pearson
Peng, M. (2016) Global Business. 4th Ed. Cengage Learning

Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria

Pass Merit Distinction

LO1 Analyse the key factors which drive globalization

P1 Analyse key factors of M1 Critically analyse the LO2 and LO2

cost, market, impact that key factors D1 Critically evaluate the
environment and have on the global global business environment,
competition that drive business environment in including the opportunities
global commerce and terms of opportunities and challenges faced by
trade. and challenges. organizations.

LO2 Determine the strategic complexities associated

with operating in a global environment

P2 Examine the M2 Evaluate strategic

complexity of strategic challenges in context of
challenges faced by risk and diversification
organizations when and the supply chain
operating in a global flow.
environment, supported
by specific examples.