INCOTERMS IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

1) CONCEPT:

TERMS:"Conditions under which an action may be undertaken or agreement reached; stipulated or    agreed-upon requirements"*

COMMERCE:"The exchange or buying and selling of commodities on a large scale involving transportation from place to place "**

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE:"An association of businesspeople to promote commercial and industrial interests in the community"***

CUSTOMS:"The official department that administers and collects the duties levied by a government on imported goods"****

2) QUESTION:What are the functions of INCOTERMS in International Business?

ANSWER:Incoterms are a set of rules commonly used in International Business. They seek to avoid or reduce conflicts between the parties (Exporters-Sellers and Importers-Buyers).

The effect of Incoterms is limited with the scope of the rights and obligations of the buyer and seller respect with the delivery of goods sold which are only tangible assets, because the services do not enter in this classification.

According with all aspects raised by the International Chamber of Commerce*****, I will mention all the major functions performed by the Incoterms. These terms define in particular: the transfer of costs and expenses, the transfer of risks and the place where deliver the goods. All above mentioned mean that the sellers know exactly when and where they should bear the costs and expenses of delivery; the buyers know exactly at what time and in which place, they should bear the risks of losing goods during the delivery; and finally these Incoterms specify the exact place where the seller must deposit the merchandise.

At this point is important to mention that according with the need to adapt Incoterms rules to contemporary commercial practice, the International Chamber of Commerce has modified some times these rules from  1936 to 2000. This year the International Chamber of Commerce, is planning to launch in mid-September  the new version Incoterms 2010 and come into effect on 1 January 2011.

In the official website of the International Chamber of Commerce says: "The latest revision of the Incoterms rules reflects major developments and changes throughout the last decade, such as the increased importance of cargo security and the deletion of the former US shipment and delivery terms.

In this version the rules have reduced from 13 to 11. 

The 11 Incoterms rules are:

EXW: Ex Works

FCA: Free Carrier

CPT: Carriage Paid To

CIP: Carriage And Insurance Paid To

DAT Delivered At Terminal

DAP: Delivered At Place

DDP: Delivered Duty Paid

FAS: Free Alongside Ship

FOB: Free On Board

CFR: Cost And Freight

CIF: Cost, Insurance and Freight

In addition to the 11 rules, Incoterms2010 includes:

•extensive guidance notes and illustrative graphics to help users efficiently choose the right rule for each transaction

•new classification to help choose the most suitable rule in relation to the mode of transport

•advice for the use of electronic procedures

•updates on security-related information requirements•advice for the use of the Incoterms 2010 rules in domestic trade."******
To conclude this point is important to remenber that international contracts, is a daily reality for many companies around worldwide. Most of the times, these operations are operations successfully and without any complications, but sometimes, things do not go as expected. Doing a deeply  analysis of this situation, I came to the conclusion that companies must follow 5 basic steps to avoid legal and economic problems, these steps are:
1) To have a writing contract: This serves as proof that an agreement has been made, and serves as reference to identify which parts of the obligations have been met, and how to comply with these parts.
2) Product Description: Specify the characteristics of the goods to be bought or sold, because complaints may arise, and these will be made by confronting the goods with their description.
3) Choice of Incoterms and form of payment: Companies must choose the best incoterm and form of payment for both buyer and seller. It is highly advisable to choose the correct Incoterms, and above all, that mention of which terms are concerned.
4) Inspection of goods: It is advisable to inspect the goods to ensure they arrive in perfect condition at their final destination, it is often advisable to take photographs.
5) Establish the form of solution of potential disputes: In case of arise legal problems companies should specify how to solve it and this can be done through the courts or international arbitration

3) POINT OF VIEW: In my opinion, the Incoterms are the backbone of International Trade. A good knowledge and use of Incoterms allows companies to reduce costs, gives them more bargaining power, allows them to manage and to reduce risks and helps them to define the strategy and action in the process of sale and buy worldwide.

I find very important that the International Chamber of Commerce makes revisions constantly to Incoterms because, as I mentioned before, all these terms should be reviewed, analyzed and adapted to contemporary business practices, because is very important adapting to new realities of International trade, for that reason we have the Incoterms 2010, which in my opinion are one of the most successful revisions of Incoterms in a long time.

The (ICC) International Chamber of Commerce has reviewed every ten years each one of the latest versions of Incoterms. Following this good work, the ICC this year will offer us a new version of Incoterms, which come into force in 2011

I think that the International Chamber of Commerce in addition to reviewing and publishing, should explain to companies the proper use of these terms and rules. What I mean is the following: not only it must explain what is an Incoterm, but how companies should use and what are the recommendations of use depending of the type of business to be conducted

All this is because every day around the world companies misuse these terms, to give clear examples many times we can find companies that closed contracts under a FOB term and the merchandise is shipped by air, another example is when companies make a negotiation under the EXW term and the seller loads the goods into the truck.

Finally I think that for the better understanding of Incoterms 2010, International Chamber of Commerce, should say the ideas and motives that led it to introduce this new version of Incoterms 2010, in order to obtain a more global and strategic vision of how to use them.

________________________________________________________________

*Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Terms.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1297843#m_en_us1297843
**Merrian Webster Dictionary.(2010).Commerce.[Online]:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commerce
***Merrian Webster Dictionary.(2010).Chamber of Commerce.[Online]:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chamber%20of%20commerce
****Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Customs.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1237847#m_en_us1237847
*****Iccwbo.(2010).[Online]: www.iccwbo.org/Incoterms/index.html?id=34848
******Iccwbo.(2010).[Online]: http://www.iccwbo.org/Incoterms_history/






-Image 1: Getty Images.Shipping containers stacked on quayside.(2010).Available at: http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/85393687/Photographers-Choice
-Image 2:Iccwbo, Incoterms 2010.Covers.(2010).Available at: http://www.iccwbo.org/Incoterms_history/

MARKET INTELLIGENCE IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

1) CONCEPT:

INTELLIGENCE:"The ability to apply knowledge to manipulate one's environment or to think abstractly as measured by objective criteria"*

RESEARCH:"The systematic investigation into and study of materials and sources in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions"**

MARKET:"A regular gathering of people for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other commodities"***

MARKET RESEARCH:"Research into the size, location, and makeup of a product market"****

2) QUESTION:What is the difference between Market intelligence and Marketing research and, why is important to make market intelligence in International Business?

ANSWER: The process of market intelligence is very important for any company that wants to expand the sale of their products and services worldwide.

The first thing that I should say is that Market Intelligence is not the same as Marketing Research, and this is explained very well by Ed Crowley, in his article Market intelligence versus marketing research: "Market research is a well-defined discipline with a long history of application in the business world. It takes many different forms, and its ultimate goal is to enhance a firm’s understanding of the market and customer, but it is not market intelligence. While Market intelligence is a much broader term that can be defined as an ongoing, holistic knowledge of all aspects of the marketplace".*****

Although that market intelligence is not the same that marketing research, the first must take, analyze, adapt and implement important information that provides the marketing research.

The first thing that a company must make when it decides to export to other countries and to other markets is a market intelligence, because with this the company can determine if the market that it wants to penetrate is right, after made this first step the company must start to analyze the business environment and with this all risks related to political, legal, cultural and economic factors.

In order to explain properly this last image, I will quote again Mr. Ed Crowley, who makes a very clear and simple explanation about this pyramid: "Market intelligence yields an ongoing and comprehensive understanding of the market. Each of the four knowledge areas - competitor intelligence, product intelligence, market understanding, customer insight- interacts to form a complete understanding of the market. Each competitor’s strategies will impact their product actions, the overall trends of market growth and segment interaction will impact the strategies, and underlying all of this, the customer’s behaviors and attitudes will ultimately drive the market dynamics in terms of growth rates and product acceptance. This integration of all four knowledge areas is the ultimate deliverable for market intelligence. Marketing research is a critical and significant source of information. However, it does not encompass all of the information areas which are covered by market intelligence. The scope of information covered is one of the key differences between marketing research and market intelligence."******

As we saw there are differences between these two concepts, and both provide important information to any organization which wants to operate in foreign countries. The Market Intelligence is very important because day after day makes that companies are in constantly learning, it means that companies have to design, to develop and to implement good strategies, that will seek survival in the market and customer satisfaction.

3) POINT OF VIEW: As own-discipline of strategic management of enterprises, which corresponds to senior management, ie managers and administrators, market intelligence allows, through a constant flow of information, knowing more deeply the market and performance of the company in this market.

Thus market intelligence involves abilities: to add value to existing pricing systems with analysis of trends and prospects in the future; to explain through a clear language the sense of market data; to build local capacities to make sound decisions based on market information and to promote links between opportunities, credit, technical assistance and marketing.

Given that we live in the information age and that we need to know about opportunities for products and services of the companies in the foreign market, we as managers have on hand many aids and tools that allow us to analyze deeply the markets that we want to achieve, these aids and tools are provided by institutions such as PROEXPORT, BANCOLDEX, FIDUCOLDEX, AND THE MINISTERY OF TRADE, INDUSTRY AND TOURISM, which help us to create development strategies in order to plan and prepare better the product and service through a trained staff .

To conclude I want to say that with globalization, the competition is getting stronger and for this reason is completely necessary to know very well the target market of our products and services in order to prevent failures and to encourage the success and profitability. All this can be achieved through a good market intelligence!!!___________________________________________________________
*Merrian Webster Dictionary.(2010).Intelligence.[Online]:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intelligence
**Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Research.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1284427#m_en_us1284427
***Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Market.[Online]: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1266136#m_en_us1266136
****Merrian Webster Dictionary.(2010).Market Research.[Online]:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/research?show=3&t=1283905306
*****Crowley, Ed.(2010).Market intelligence versus marketing research.On: Quirks's Marketing Research Review.[Online]: http://www.quirks.com/articles/a2004/20041209.aspx?searchID=40935096
******Crowley, Ed.(2010).Market intelligence versus marketing research.On: Quirks's Marketing Research Review.[Online]: http://www.quirks.com/articles/a2004/20041209.aspx?searchID=40935096



-Image 1: Getty Images.Globe blotched with blue pin needles.(2010).Available at: http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/86196623/Photodisc
-Image 2: Getty Images.Shapes orbiting head.(2010).Available at: http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/76092061/Stock-Illustration-Source
-Image 3: Quirks's Marketing Research Review.Market Intelligence.(2010).Available at:
http://www.quirks.com/articles/a2004/20041209.aspx?searchID=40935096

THE IMPORTANCE OF PROEXPORT IN COLOMBIAN EXPORTS AND IMPORTS

1) CONCEPT:

EXPORT:"The selling and sending out of goods or services to other countries"*

IMPORT:"Bring (goods or services ) into a country from abroad for sale"**

MARKET:"A regular gathering of people for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other commodities"***

INTERMEDIARY:"A person who acts as a link between people in order to try to bring about an agreement or reconciliation; a mediator"****

2) QUESTION: What is PROEXPORT and why it is important for the Colombian imports and exports?

ANSWER: In its official website Proexport says: "We are the institution in charge of promoting Colombian non-traditional exports, international tourism and foreign investment to Colombia. We provide domestic companies with support and integral advisory services for their international trade activities, facilitating the design and execution of their internationalization strategies, looking for the generation, development and closing of business opportunities.

We promote the effective insertion of Colombian companies into international markets and seek international trade opportunities through:

· Identification of market opportunities.

· Design of market penetration strategies.

· Companies internationalization.

· Assistance in the design of action plans.

· Contact with both sellers and buyers.

· Specialized services to foreign companies interested in acquiring Colombian goods and services."*****

Additionally, PROEXPORT makes alliances with national, international, private and public companies, that allow it to expand the availability of resources to support various business initiatives.

Through the promotion of exports PROEXPORT contributes to the economic growth of companies and the country, this is a good way of giving to know to Colombia in the world and change its poor image. By other hand Proexport through the Identification of Market Opportunities and the Design of market penetration Strategies helps small and medium enterprises to identify their competitive advantages and create products that meet the customer needs.

3) POINT OF VIEW: I am going to analize the importance of the existence of this institution from two perspectives: the company and the country.In conclusion I think that the role played by Proexport throughout the country is very interesting because it brings a lot of benefits to small and medium enterprises and finally to the country.

By one hand we see that companies have a great help to realize their export and import operations, for the foreign importers Proexport provides support services to meet Colombian export supply and contact potential suppliers; for exporters Proexport offers: advisory services in international business, market intelligence, information about transportation logistics, export planning, advice on quality management, etc. In short all companies have to reach all the tools in the field of counseling in order to be successful in the international market


By the other hand we can see that through the role of attracting foreign investors and to encourage and promote tourism, our country has become as one of the best Latin American countries in terms of investments, due to this the national economy has improved considerably with it's international image.


In my opinion we as future business managers are going to have a great help to succeed our exports and to be more competitive in an increasingly globalized world.
___________________________________________________________

*Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Export.[Online]: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1245671#m_en_us1245671

**Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Import.[Online]: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1257355#m_en_us1257355

***Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Market.[Online]: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1266136#m_en_us1266136

****Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Intermediary.[Online]:

http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1258621#m_en_us1258621 

*****Proexport.(2010).About us.[Online]:

http://www.proexport.com.co/vbecontent/newsdetail.aspid=4598&idcompany=17&ItemMenu=3_250

-Image 1: Impulse.Imports & Exports.(2010).Available at: http://www.impulsomaquila.com/imp-ex.html

-Image 2:Proexport.Proexport Colombia.(2010).Available at:

http://www.proexport.com.co/vbecontent/home.asp?idcompany=17

THE PROCESS OF CHOOSING WHERE TO OPERATE

1) CONCEPT:

SCAN:"Look at all parts of (something) carefully in order to detect some feature"*

LOCATION:"The action or process of placing someone or something in a particular position"**

STRATEGY:"A plan of action or policy designed to achieve a major or overall aim"***

CHOICE:"An act of selecting or making a decision when faced with two or more possibilities"****

  

2) QUESTION: What is the correct process of choosing where to operate?
ANSWER: Daniels explains clearly, in his book International Business:Environments and operations, the process that companies should do for choosing where to operate*****

 

                                          

 As we observe the process begins in the objectives of the company, according to these objectives, the company defines strategies to implement, after the company choice the most attractive countries to operate, in this part the company makes a critical and thorough scanning of certain variables according to choosing new locations and the allocating among the locations and finally the company takes the decisions more convenient.

Among the main objectives of a company we can find: to expand business and sales, to acquire better resources and to reduce risks. The strategies are raised by senior executives and relate to how implementing and achieving the objectives. Currently there are approximately 200 countries where managers can look at the opportunities and risks that can bring to operate in these countries, for this reason managers must do a scanning to some variables such as: market size, ease and compatibility, costs and resources, red tape and corruption, financial risk, monetary risk, cultural risk, political risk, legal risk, etc...

"Scanning allows managers to examine most or all countries broadly so that they can then take a more detailed look at a reasonable number of most promising opportinities in much greater detail. In scaning managers compare country imformation that is readily available, inexpensive and fairly comparable"******  
Finally when they have analyzed all the data from each country, final decisions are taken according to the results of the analysis and the compatibility with the profile and objectives of the company.

3) POINT OF VIEW: In order to have operations in other countries, companies must be very careful when choosing, because each country according to their economic, social, political, cultural, natural and geographical, generates a specific level of risk for companies wishing to operate in it. For all is clear that every country has an index of risk, but in turn also offers many opportunities that companies that are practicing international business, can take advantage according to their economic activity and the industry in which it are. 

The most important thing when choosing a country where to operate is to analyze the correlation that exists between the objectives of the company and each oportunity which each country offer for the achievement of these objetives.

To finish I think that companies that want to internationalize have many opportunities and many risks in all countries of the world, but to face all this it must have  studied and qualified staff, who can do a thorough and effective analysis, in order to make the best decision that minimize the risks and increase the opportunities.
___________________________________________________________

*Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Scan.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1287566#m_en_us1287566

**Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Location.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1264044#m_en_us1264044

***Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Structure.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1295059#m_en_us1295059  

****Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Choice.[Online]:

http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1232883#m_en_us1232883
*****Daniels, John D (2004). International Business:Environments and operations.Chapter 12: Country Evaluation and Selection.p 417.
******Daniels, John D (2004). International Business:Environments and operations.Chapter 12: Country Evaluation and Selection.p 416.




-Image 1: GettyImages.Man looking at globe, profile.(2010).Available at: http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/BD6728-001/Stone
-Image 2 Taken and adapted from: Daniels, John D (2004). International Business:Environments and operations.Chapter 12: Country Evaluation and Selection.p 417.

THE INDUSTRY STRUCTURE AND THE FIVE PORTER'S FORCES

1) CONCEPT:

INDUSTRY:"Economic activity concerned with the processing of raw materials and manufacture of goods in factories"*

FORCE:"Strength or energy as an attribute of physical action or movement"**

STRUCTURE:"The arrangement of and relations between the parts or elements of something complex"***

GLOBAL INDUSTRY:"A global industry is one in which a firm's competitive position in one country is significantly affected by its position in other countries"****

2) QUESTION: Which are the five Porter's forces and why are relevant for the industry?

ANSWER: The five Porter's Forces is a holistic model that allows the analysis of any industry in terms of profitability. It was developed by the economist Michael Porter in 1979, according to Porter, the rivalry with competitors is determined by four elements or forces that combine to create a fifth force: rivalry among competitors.

"This model holds that the nature of competition in an industry is the combined outcome of the competitive pressures generated by (1) the moves of rivals battling for market share, (2) the entry of new rivals seeking market share, (3) the efforts of others companies outside the industry to convince buyers to switch to their own substitute products, (4) the push by input suppliers to charge more for their inputs, and (5) the push by outputs buyers to pay less for products. Collectively, the five forces model develops a picture of the structure and competition in an industry that prepares managers to figure out what fundamental forces shape strategic conduct, how strong each force is, what forces are driving changes in the in the industry, what strategic moves rivals  are likely to make next and what the key factors are for future competitive success."*****       

If you like to know more about this image, you can check this video where M. Porter explains clearly his theory about the five forces  http://sciencestage.com/v/13871/the-five-competitive-forces-that-shape-strategy.html

The five Porter's forces are very important because allow the asessment and the analisis of an industry structure and provide to the company the basis for estimating the kinds of strategic moves for implementing in the industry.

Strategies must be very dynamic because the traditional sources of advantages do not provide long-term security, the traditional barriers to market entry are being overcome by competitors fastly. The strength of a strategy is not determined by the initial movement, for this reason companies must anticipate and face the strategies and reactions of competitors and changes in customer demands over time.

3) POINT OF VIEW: I believe that all companies should make a thorough analysis of the industry in which they are, this model that M. Porter raises, is very important to determine the advantages and disadvantages that can have an industry, and to raise and implement appropriate strategies.

The success of the strategy depends on how effectively it can manage the changes that occur in the competitive environment, flexibility and adaptability are very important. Globalization and technological change are creating new forms of competition, deregulation is changing the rules of competition in many industries of many countries, markets are becoming more complex and unpredictable, flows of information in a highly interconnected world are allowing companies detect and react to the competitors much faster.

In conclusion I would say that the rapid competition is telling us that it is not possible to wait for the action of the competitor for us to decide how we will react. What we must do is to anticipate and prepare to face any eventuality, every movement has to face competition quickly, because any advantage is temporary.

___________________________________________________________
*Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Industry.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1257864#m_en_us1257864
**Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Force.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1248351#m_en_us1248351
***Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Structure.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1295059#m_en_us1295059
****Daniels, John D (2004). International Business:Environments and operations.Chapter 11: The Strategy of International Business.p 375.
*****Daniels, John D (2004). International Business:Environments and operations.Chapter 11: The Strategy of International Business.p 378.




-Image 1: GettyImages.Elements of global communication.(2010).Available at: http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/10013540/The-Image-Bank
-Image 2: Quickstep. The Five Forces That Shape Industry Competition.(2010).[Online]: http://qwickstep.com/search/porter-five-forces.html  

view this video http://sciencestage.com/v/13871/the-five-competitive-forces-that-shape-strategy.html

THE IMPORTANCE OF POLITICAL SYSTEMS IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

1) CONCEPT:
POLITICS:"The activities associated with the governance of a country or other area, especially the debate or conflict among individuals or parties having or hoping to achieve power"*

SYSTEM:"A set of principles or procedures according to which something is done ; an organized scheme or method "**

IDEOLOGY:"A system of ideas and ideals, especially one that forms the basis of economic or political theory and policy"***

POLITICAL SYSTEM:"Structures, processes, and activities by which a nation governs itself"****

2) QUESTION: Which are the most important Political Ideologies and which of them is better to do business?

ANSWER: John D. Daniels explains clearly, in his book International Business:Environments and operations, the three types of political ideologies in the world:
"TOTALITARIANISM:The belief that every aspect of people's lives must be controlled for a nation's political system to be effective.
ANARCHISM:The belief that only individuals and private groups should control a nation's political political activities. An anarchism views public government as unnecessary and unwanted because it tramples personal liberties.
PLURALISM: The belief that both private and public groups play important roles in a nation's political activities. Each group serves to balance the power that can be gained by the other"*****

These political ideologies are in a horizontal scale but at the same time each one can be divided according on how it manifests.

As to which of the three streams is the best to do business? I would say that everything depends on the type of business to be done, the market and needs to be covered, and the analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of each ideology presents according to the country in which it develops.

But for most companies is better to have operations in a country that has by political system the pluralism, because under this system, the economic, financial, cultural, legal and business environment is better.


3) POINT OF VIEW: In the field of international business is very important to know the cultures of the countries and with them the ideologies and political systems of each country, this is because in all countries, politics and culture are Closely related. Although in the before point I mentioned that each political ideologies may be the best or the worst for business, according to the analysis of several dimensions in this point I will explain more fully the ideology of pluralism and I will give some reasons to support why I think it is the best ideology to establish international business.

Because pluralism is between totalitarianism and anarchism, it can provide a balance of power, where the participation of government and people will be equal.

In my opinion one of the best way of seeing the pluralism is with the democracy, because this is a "Political system In which Government Leaders are elected directly by the wide participation of the people or by their representatives."******

The reasons why I think it's the best political ideology in a country to do international business, are basically related to: freedom of expression in which all citizens can express their political disagreements without any problem, periodic elections to ensure that nobody take the power for a long time, full civic and property rights, nonpolitical bureaucracies, and the most important thing in democracies maintaining stable business environment where capitalism, the private sector and the Government interact to ensure a stable and healthy economy. Countries with strong democracies are well regarded in the eyes of foreign investors, since them rely on in these countries because their capital and their investment will be safe, and producing better profits.

To give an example, I will talk about my country Colombia, although Colombia is a developing country,it is seen internationally as one of the countries with strong democracy in Latin America, as in recent years citizens has participated massively in the electoral processes, and the results have been very good because terrorism that made the guerrillas and groups outside the law has decreased significantly, which results in an increase in foreign investment, today Colombia is among the top 5 countries for investing in Latin America.

___________________________________________________________
*Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Politics.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1279217#m_en_us1279217

**Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).System.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1296611#m_en_us1296611

***Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Ideology.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1256937#m_en_us1256937

****Wild, John j. 2010.International Business The challenge of Globalization.Chapter 3: Politics, Law, and Business Ethics.p 80.

*****Wild, John j. 2010.International Business The challenge of Globalization.Chapter 3: Politics, Law, and Business Ethics.p 81.

******Wild, John j. 2010.International Business The challenge of Globalization.Chapter 3: Politics, Law, and Business Ethics.p 84

-Image 1: Education server dadalos.Teaching politics:political system.(2010).Available at: http://www.dadalos.org/politik_int/politik/systemtheorie.htm

-Image 2: Photobucket.Totalitarianism vs anarchism pictures.(2010).Available at: http://media.photobucket.com/image/TOTALITARIANISM%20vs%20ANARCHISM/drshrink/no-exit-libertarianism-anarchy-for-.gif

THE IMPORTANCE OF CULTURAL AWARENESS IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

1) CONCEPT:

CULTURE: a) "The customs, arts, social institutions, and achievements of a particular nation, people, or other social group"*
b)"Culture is the relatively stable set of inner values and beliefs generally held by groups of people in countries or regions and the noticeable impact those values an beliefs have on the peoples' outward behaviors and environment"**
AWARENESS: "Knowledge or perception of a situation or fact"***
CULTURAL AWARENESS: "Cultural awareness recognises that we are all shaped by our cultural background, which influences how we interpret the world around us, perceive ourselves and relate to other people. You don’t need to be an expert in every culture or have all the answers to be culturally aware; rather, cultural awareness helps you to explore cultural issues with your care recipients more sensitively".****
2) QUESTION: Which are the most important tips on US business protocol?ANSWER: David Cotton, David Falvey and Simon Kent wrote in their book Market Leader, Intermediate Business English Course Book, the following tips:

"US business protocol

Timing

- You must arrive at business meetings on time. Only a 15-minute delay because of traffic problems is allowed.

Greetings and polite conversation

-You must shake hands during introductions.

- You don't have to make a lot of small talk. Americans like to get down to business quickly.

- You musn't ask about a businesswoman's marital status. It is considered rude.

Business cards
- You don't have to exchange business cards unless there is a reason to get in contact later.
Smoking
- You musn't smoke in many public, spaces. Most business, cabs and many restaurants nowadays have a no-smoking policy.
Gift-giving
- Business gifts shouldn't be given until after the business negotiation are over.

- You musn't give an expensive business gift. It may cause embarrassment.

Entertaining at home.
- You should write a short thank you note to your host and hostess if you are entertained at their home. You don't have to give a gift but flowers or wine are appeciated."*****

As we can see the form of doing business with the United States' people , is very similar to that practiced in our culture, you only have to pay much attention on certain key aspects such as punctuality and objectivity in the meetings, please be careful with these two points, despite U.S. people are direct in business, they have a good sense of humor and they are very open to dialogue outside of a meeting.

3) POINT OF VIEW: Cultural awareness becomes central when companies and business people have to interact with people from other countries and other cultures in order to make international business. Cultural awareness is important because people see, interpret and evaluate things in a different ways. What is considered an appropriate behavior in one culture is frequently inappropriate in another one. Misunderstandings arise when I use my meanings to make sense of your reality, for example if you compare the US protocol business with the Colombian protocol business, you can see that in many ways our culture is different to American culture. For all the things mentioned before, International companies must evaluate their business practices to ensure that they are doing the correct process acording with the foreing norms and behavioral characteristics, because international business includes people from different cultures. This means that problems arising every day as a managing workforce, marketing output, purchasing supplies, dealing with regulators, securing funds, and many others.

At this point is important to mention some of Peterson wrote in his book Cultural Intelligence: "Professionals need a communication strategy that is appropriate for each task and specific culture they do business with. This is true for writting simple letter and e-mails, but it is also important for bigger issues such as designing marketing pieces, selling product, dealing with complaints, making decisions, building workplace and social relationships, and managing people. Communicating appropriately with your international business partners certainly should not be left to intuition!" To summarize I am totally agree with this opinion and with the companies that awareness their employees about the importance of learning foreign cultures in order to make a successful business.

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*Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Culture.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1237613#m_en_us1237613
**Brooks, Peterson.(2004).Cultural intelligence.Defining Culture.p 27.
***Oxford Dictionaries.(2010).Awareness.[Online]: http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1414010#m_en_us1414010
****Centre for Cultural Diversity in Ageing.(2010).Cultural Awareness.[Online]: http://www.culturaldiversity.com.au/NationalResources/ServiceProviderResources/CulturalAwareness.aspx

***** David, Cotton; David, Falvey and Simon Kent.(2007).Market Leader, Intermediate Business English Course Book, New Edition.p 58.

******Brooks, Peterson.(2004).Cultural intelligence.Overlapping the five Scales.p 60.

-Image 1: Gettyimages.Globe with people.(2010). Available at: http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/77384030/Imagezoo

-Image 2: Gettyimages.United States businessmen handshape.Available at: http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/84228339/Photographers-Choice