Slides from St John's Innovation Centre workshop

1. Doing International Business is no Holiday!
David Jenkins; i2i-management.com
St John’s Innovation Centre; 25 Feb 11
February 2011 doing business internationally 1

2. An outline of today’s workshop
• In today’s business world, doing business internationally
is essential. This training session will give you an
understanding of the basic principles of being successful
internationally. On this profitable international journey
the emphasis is on action and not just on theory.
– Key questions include:
• Why do you wish to export?
• Is the company fit for this?
• What are the big issues you need to address and what little
things can trip you up on the way?
• Where do you go for help?
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3. This is how the workshop will
proceed
• Setting the scene
– Options for doing business internationally
– Why might we want to export?
• Hard issues
– How should we use marketing to facilitate exporting
• Soft issues
– How might we avoid cultural clashes?
• Practical matters
– What extra functional skills will we need?
• Getting help
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4. And what right have I to be here
today?
• Been there ... done
that ... got the gold
cards
• Lived in a few places
• Worked for a couple
of companies
• Run some
international
businesses
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5. And forgive me ...
• My background is B2B with a focus on products
• This workshop should not be so limited and
should embrace BtoC (and in fact CtoC) and
services as well.
• My language is going to be tilted towards BtoB
and products but that will not be to exclude the
rest.
• Please challenge me if you think that I’m not
getting the balance right.
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6. The topic is doing business so
let’s explore what’s possible
discover
develop deliver market sell supply service
or design
• This is the value chain which I’ve just
rediscovered
• Just about every business can be represented
this way. Just change the sizes of the boxes
• So if this is what a business does what business
can be done internationally ... discuss!
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7. Where does marketing fit into
this scheme?
discover develop deliver market sell supply service
inbound strategic Internal tactical operational relationship
marketing marketing marketing marketing marketing marketing
• Marketing people will hate me for this but
marketing is a resource function like HR and
finance.
• It takes place where ever the marketing
resources need to be managed
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8. Your can do just about
everything internationally
• Links to universities;
Discover or design • In-licence of technology
• Using foreign design partners
Develop • Putting your badge on a foreign product
• Out sourced manufacturing
Deliver • Distributing a foreign product
Sell • Selling into foreign markets
Supply • Maintaining foreign stock positions
Service • Employing local service people
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9. But the focus today is on the
sell, supply and service end
• David Frost, director general of the BCC,
recently said:
"Our survey reveals some uncomfortable truths
for British business and for the Government
about our ability to export. Too many of our
companies lack an exporting culture, even
though they produce high-quality goods and
services. We cannot rebalance Britain's economy
when so many companies say they're simply not
ready or able to take their products overseas."
• http://on-msn.com/eYTrgq
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10. So should we export: isn’t it
rather difficult?
• It’s never been easier
– The internet enables all companies, and in fact
private individuals to offer their products for sale
world-wide;
– Globalisation: the media, education and travel result
in markets becoming increasingly standardised; and
– The oft maligned EU and the Euro: barriers to doing
business across Europe are almost non-existent
• But should we export?
• Why would we want to ... discuss!
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11. But because it’s easy/possible
isn’t sufficient reason to do it
• Why should you export?
– To increase sales
– To respond to a competitive threat
– To be able to supply an international customer
– To get access to better market information
– To develop partnerships with eg key OEMs
• But most important:
– Because we’ve thought about it and it’s an important
part of our strategy
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12. Making the key decisions
(Kipling’s honest serving men)
why • This is the big strategic question and you should have just
addressed it
• Decide where you’re going to go?
where • Immediately global, programmed entry into Europe, specific
countries?
• Web or physical?
how or who • Direct or in partnership?
• Distributors, agents or franchises
• Products and services?
what • Complete range or just a selection?
• Current products or something new or modified?
when • Don’t set artificial deadline but by all means use external events to
help you to set targets
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13. Hard issues are easy to define
• The business climate
– Market size and requirements
– Competition
• Marketing: the 4Ps are always useful:
– Place/partners: routes to markets
– Communications: in its broadest form; language
– Pricing and margins
– Products: quality and standards
• How should we use marketing to facilitate
exporting ... discuss!
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14. Keep it simple: stay with the 4Ps
Place and Promotion or Pricing and
Products
partners communications margins
Meet local
service Pricing to
standards Material in Meet local
reflect local
local language regulations
value
Establish
appropriate
management
Ensure
Margins to Understand
internal
Employ the reward activity market needs
understanding
right people
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15. Soft issues: they may be soft but
that doesn’t mean they’re easy
• What are the soft issues which we need to
consider?
– Language and nuance
– Attitudes to women in the work place
– Local negotiating practices
– National chauvinism
– Inter-personal communication etiquette
– etc etc
• But all of these are a part of a bigger picture
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16. Fact is that there are different
cultures and they pervade
• Geert Hofstede is one of the gurus in this area.
Let’s not take his ideas as gospel but they do
alert us to some of the difficulties we might have
• Geert talks about
– Power distance
– Individualism
– Masculinity
– Uncertainty avoidance
– Long term thinking
• www.geert-hofstede.com
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17. Let’s take a look at some of our
near neighbours: France
• Very different profile
but it’s what we’d
expect isn’t it?
• Lots of hierarchy and
lots of thinking.
• Surprisingly ‘feminine’
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18. Let’s take a look at some of our
near neighbours: Germany
• Surprisingly similar
• Emphasis on
uncertainty avoidance
is to be expected
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19. Let’s take a look at some of our
near neighbours: Netherlands
• Surprisingly different
in some respects
• The high ‘femininity’ is
shared with the
Nordic countries
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20. The US is similar ... as
expected?
• As expected and
echoed in other work
• Biggest challenge
with the US is not
being caught out by
the similarities
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21. Whereas China is very different
• Quite different as
expected
• Long term view is
typical of Asian
countries
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22. 7 cultures of capitalism
• Hampden-Turner and
Trompenaars looked
at 7 ‘dilemmas’
(dimensions) which
largely overlapped
those of Hofstede.
• One interesting
question: what image
do you aspire to?`
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23. Neutral vs affective;
Analytic vs integrative
Approval Esteem
• Sweden • Japan
• Netherlands • Germany
Enjoyment Love
• United • France How might we avoid
States • Italy
• Spain cultural clashes? ...
discuss
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24. Practical matters: organisation,
management and resources
• What’s your new organisation going to look like?
• Who are you going to employ and where are
they going to be located?
• How are you going to manage the activity?
• What changed and additional functional skills do
you need? ... discuss!
February 2011 doing business internationally 24

25. Practical matters: organisation,
management and resources
• What’s your new organisation going to look like?
• Who are you going to employ and where are
they going to be located?
• How are you going to manage the activity?
• What changed and additional functional skills do
you need?
Changed additional
Customer service Supply chain
Marketing Finance and credit control
Sales management Legal
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26. There’s plenty of help around
• UKTI: www.ukti.gov.uk
• The Institute of Export: www.export.org.uk
• Business Link: http://bit.ly/fGk4RO
• HM Revenue and Customs: http://bit.ly/eLtdJ1
• British Chambers of Commerce: http://bit.ly/e0Rt1X
• Industry associations such as Gambica:
www.gambica.org.uk
• Trade shows eg Interpack www.interpack.com
• Coaches, consultants and non-execs
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27. and finally .. .if you want to know
more about sales channels
Come along to ‘sometimes you’ve got
to meet your customer’
11.00 Tue 8 Mar 11 St John’s
http://bit.ly/eIl4v5
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28. David Jenkins
i2i@davidjenkins.org.uk
www.i2i-management.com
+44 1223 236232 or +44 7739 759859
Skype i2i-management
Twitter thisisi2i
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