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Globalization: opportunities and threats to developing country business

24 February, 2015 - 17:30

To succeed in business today, it is critical to understand the changing global business world and the environment in which a business operates. Not only are entrepreneurs faced with the internal factors affecting their business, they must also understand the external environment in which they operate.

In the United States and Western Europe, globalization has been highly controversial and sparked protests driven by fears of outsourcing jobs, ceding authority to international organizations and declining labor and environmental standards. Views of globalization in lower income countries, however, are more positive. A recent Pew survey found that there was more enthusiasm for foreign trade and investment in less industrialized countries than in industrialized ones. In sub-Saharan Africa, 56% of respondents thought, “growing global trade and business ties are very good for my country (Dollar, 2003).” In developing countries in Asia, 37% had a positive view of globalization, while only 28% of respondents in the United States and Western Europe had such a view (Dollar, 2003). This section discusses the concept of globalization and its positive and negative implications for developing country business.

This chapter will utilize examples of large corporations, as these firms incorporate all necessary aspects required to run a successful business.