Introduction
The global market has been developing due to increased technology and the continued development of current issues in entrepreneurial activities. It has led to the development of global management that ensures that the companies run their activities in the proper manner. This paper will explore international management, its major risks, the strategies companies use to thrive internationally, and a case study involving Marriot Chain Hotel.
Definition of International Management
International management is how a company handles its business dealings with other countries. It is used to do business in more than one country, which means that one has to be informed of legislation that governs trade and be able to handle transactions that may involve multiple currencies. International managers play significant roles in ensuring good progress in various global companies. These roles include planning a company’s global strategy, managing human resources, overseeing multiple departments in sales, advertising, and financial affairs, and being responsible for their division’s foreign operations (Luthans & Doh, 2018). Other functions include understanding the company’s needs in overseas nations and analyzing challenges and opportunities in foreign markets.
International management differs from management in the United States in many ways. State business culture defines the management style of a professional, unlike in global management, where the cultural settings of transnational entities are similar. The US manager will find it easier to do market analysis because they are familiar with their country’s language and general patterns (Drezner, 2019). A domestic manager has fewer problems to deal with than an international one does. Business owners’ home country is usually their first market; the risks of running a business are usually lower.
Success in Global Market
Various strategies determine the success of a company in the global market. Forming many strategic partnerships is one of the best decisions for a company that wants to thrive in international business. For example, partnering with a worldwide employer of record informs enterprises about local labor laws and helps them find top employees in the nation of their choice. For global businesses to be successful, they need to be innovative; continuous implementation is another defining strategy.
Companies can get the strategic advantage they want in the global market by implementing a solid strategy, learning about local labor laws, focusing on how quickly they bring new products to market, and using partnering to drive innovation and efficiency. Consequently, the enterprise needs to adapt and enter a market swiftly. No matter how innovative a company’s products and services are, there is a risk that it will not be as successful as they expect it to be. People may believe that a company’s product or service is outdated if it is extremely slow to market, especially if competitors can present and deliver it faster.
Risk Assessment
Risk assessment for international management entails evaluating the dangers and possible advantages of starting and managing a business in the global market. Under risk management, assessing risks involves internal and external problems that will arise in managing the external market. The assessment is essential in that it will give the managers easier work in ensuring that they venture into a business that will be profitable rather than a business that will lead to losses. (Anton & Nucu, 2020). Assessment is determining what dangers could happen and what those dangers could lead to.
Challenges exist for organizations that seek to compete in the global marketplace. These challenges include language barriers, variations of currencies, and difficulties in managing global teams. The issue of the language barrier negatively affects trade among nations. An example of a language barrier can be illustrated with the Benz issue in China. The company name was phonetically similar to one of the Mandarin Chinese words close to death semantically. The company had to change the name to a more realistic one to make the product acceptable to the Chinese people.
Another challenge is the constant currency variations and inflation rates in different countries. It becomes difficult for the company to maintain the profit margins due to liquidity. Managing different global groups also impacts an enterprise negatively. When working together as a team, it can be challenging to account for issues such as differences in language and culture, multiple locations, and different degrees of access to and reliance on technology.
There are different strategies that a company can use as filters to enter a market. A company can review its assets to determine whether it can expand with the available resources. The most important aspect is knowing whether the resources are enough for expansion. The company can also ensure that the available leadership can cooperate through teamwork and effective management (Kraus et al., 2020). The assessment of the competitiveness of products or services is another measure.
Marriot Chain Hotel
Marriot is one of the largest chain hotels in the world, having covered a total of 131 countries. In 1993, the Marriott Corporation split into two companies: Marriott International, which is in charge of franchising and managing hotels, and Host Marriott Corporate entity, which owns hotel chains and is now called Host Hotels & Motels. Marriott International is in charge of running hotels and selling hotel franchises. The strengths of the chain hotel include global presence, strict conduct, loyal partnership with powerful corporations such as Alibaba, market leadership, and a good reputation (Wei, 2018). However, it has some significant weaknesses, such as inadequate data protection, family-centered business, negative publicity, and civil lawsuits, such as when it was reported to be blocking the customer’s wi-fi connection hence tampering with the privacy of customers.
Marriot Hotel has its most robust global market in Courtyard, which has a wide range of hotels ranging from airports to other properties in Bali. The Chain hotel is doing many things to ensure it integrates with the partner cultures. First, Marriott has achieved 100% on the HRC’s Corporate Equality Index for nearly a decade (CEI). The company has always supported transgender and gender-affirmation health insurance benefits. The LGBTQ+ Associate Network promotes an inclusive and honest workplace.
Marriott International endorsed the UN LGBTI Standards of Conduct for Business in January 2018 to combat global prejudice against sexual minorities. Marriott has achieved 100% on the HRC’s Corporate Equality Index for nearly a decade (CEI). Transgender and gender-affirmation health insurance benefits have always been supported by us (Bhuyan et al., 2018). They have been on the move always to ensure that the partner cultures are adequately integrated.
The potential risks they have as a company include stiff competition, which comes from the rising companies. They also face the problem of global pandemics, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, which made them experience significant losses. Another considerable risk is terror attacks due to their widely known status. The hotel has developed strategies that ensure they remain relevant in the industry. The primary strategy that they used is the change in their marketing. The offline-to-online transition has been the focus of Marriott International’s marketing plan for the past few years. It concentrates more on marketing itself through digital channels than traditional marketing methods.
Introspection
My cultural intelligence is sufficiently advanced, but the practice is needed to be fully completed. I fit into the CQ model in Livermore’s text in that I can apply the cognitive, physical, and emotional constraints in understanding different cultures. Learning and practical knowledge gathering is the goal I should constantly pursue to improve my cultural intelligence. As I see it, I need more cultural training on sensitive interaction with ethnic groups. Moreover, I would like to work for an Asia-Pacific international company in the future.
Conclusion
In conclusion, international management deals with managing different businesses globally. This process requires reliability since it involves different geographical locations with issues such as different inflation rates and fear of terror attacks; thus, the management should be conducted effectively. Companies that have survived globally must make extra efforts to ensure they are always on the move to provide better services each day. Therefore, companies must use the best possible strategies to counter risks.
References
Anton, S. G., & Nucu, A. E. A. (2020). Enterprise risk management: A literature review and agenda for future research. Journal of Risk and Financial Management, 13(11), 281. Web.
Bhuyan, R., McIntyre, J., & Klieb, L. (2018). Examining the relationship between organizational culture and turnover intention: A study of a five-star hotel in Bangkok, Thailand. In 8th Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Marketing and Management (AHTMM) Conference (p. 183).
Drezner, D. W. (2019). This time is different: Why US foreign policy will never recover. Foreign Aff., 98, 10. Web.
Kraus, S., Roig-Tierno, N., & Bouncken, R. B. (2019). Digital innovation and venturing: An introduction into the digitalization of entrepreneurship. Review of Managerial Science, 13(3), 519-528. Web.
Luthans, F., & Doh, J. P. (2018). International management: Culture, strategy, and behavior. McGraw-Hill.
Wei, L. (2018). Marriott International, Inc: A Financial analysis. Web.