International Business Environment and Business Processes

 
 Tittle  International Business Environment and Business Processes
 Department  International Management and Marketing 
 Type (compulsory/optional) Optional
 Cycle (first/second)  First Cycle
 Semester when the component is delivered  2-nd semester
 Course description  In the last few decades globalization has transformed the economic and social landscape. The world is changing rapidly. Populations are ageing, people are moving from the countryside to the cities, there are more people suffering from obesity or who are overweight than people who go hungry. The middle-class is growing fast in the emerging economies while it is shrinking in Europe and the United States. The problems of conflict, global security and insecurity are getting back on the global stage with numerous economic, political and social consequences. These forces are putting pressure on governments around the world as they seek to cope with the consequences. The race for energy, natural resources and food is intensifying, and the global economic architecture is endangered with the new realities of the 21st century.
This course is to form a system of knowledge about the current international business environment and business processes including history, trends, governing/advising bodies, cultural influences, political issues, regional market groups and other factors impacting the transaction of business in the international community.
 Course content
Module 1. International business environment, business trends, and development
Topic 1. Globalization
Topic 2. Demographic trends
Topic 3. Inequality and the global middle class
Topic 4. Global economic and financial imbalances
Topic 5. The quest of sustainability
Topic 6. Global issues of health protection
Module 2. International conflicts, security and terrorism
Topic 7. The shifting geopolitical landscape
Topic 8. Conflict and security
Topic 9. Global power of the 21st century
 Learning outcomes  - the ability to use basic tools to understand: macroeconomic concepts and issues, the role of government policies in determining macroeconomic outcomes, and the implications of the economic environment for global and international business
- the ability to assess a country’s prospects for global business and its competitiveness in the global business and economic environment
- the ability to assess the business environment in other countries, including economic and financial structures, institutions and institutional voids, business practices, regulatory systems, and cultural and social conditions
- the ability to develop an international business perspective by understanding the similarities and differences in the business and economic environment across countries
- the ability to understand how heterogeneity in the business and economic environment across countries affects international business practices and strategies
- the ability to understand patterns of international competition through examination of specific industries and firms
- the ability to develop skills in analyzing strategic challenges and opportunities in the global context and competencies to anticipate the potential strategies of global and local competitors in specific industries
- the ability to develop an appreciation of ethical issues confronting companies engaged in international business and the options for responsibly managing these ethical issues
- the ability to integrate and apply frameworks, models, tools, and concepts from various perspectives to a real world global setting.
 Contact hours (lectures/seminars)

  30/30
 
Prerequisites

 Fundamentals of Economics
 Number of ECTS credits allocated

  5 credits