IMT DUBAI

DUBAI INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC CITY (DIAC)

International Business Strategy Section A/B Midterm Examination Spring, 2013 Students Name: Abhishek Gupta Instructors Name: Prof. Eric Student ID#: SMBA12040 Date: 19th Feb 2014

SECTION 1: Indicate whether the following statements are True or False. If you find a statement to be False, correct the statement so that it is True, without changing the integrity (meaning) of the sentence.

1. According

to

the

definition

given

in

class,

Globalization

is

the

internationalization of companies.

Sol. False, Globalization is the integrated internationalization of companies and markets

2. If all MBA graduates being hired by Nestle are given equal pay and positions during any given recruitment year, it is best described as following the distributive justice approach to decision making.

Sol. True 3. According to the author, Florida, the World is Flat.

Sol. False, Thomas Friedman was the author 4. Saudi Arabia is a good example of a low - context culture. Sol. False, Saudi Arabia is a High-Context culture

5. According to the case study distributed in class, Nigeria is a country rich with natural resources incl. oil, with low levels of corruption, while Indonesia, has relatively few natural resources, and is highly corrupt.

Sol. False, as Nigeria is having endemic corruption while Indonesia natural resources are high and the corruption is low

6. The question of corruption is really a social and ethical issue.

Sol. True

7. Expropriation is the act of a government demanding that a partial transfer of ownership and management responsibility from a foreign company to local entities with or without compensation.

Sol. False, Expropriation is the act to the taking of private property by a private entity authorized by a government to take property in certain situations

8. As discussed in class, Matsushita Corp. (Panasonic) is a good example of an ethnocentric corporate culture.

Sol. True

9. According to Kohlberg, most people complete their moral development at the principled level

Sol. True

10. According to Kohlberg, we all begin our moral development at the conventional level Sol. False, we all begin our moral development at the Pre-conventional Morality

SECTION 2: Answer the following questions by either filling in the blank, or with a short answer as required 1. Explain the concept of acculturation

Sol. Acculturation is a process in which members of one cultural group adopt the beliefs and behaviors of another group. Although acculturation is usually in the direction of a minority group adopting habits and language patterns of the dominant group, acculturation can be reciprocal--that is, the dominant group also adopts patterns typical of the minority group. Assimilation of one cultural group into another may be evidenced by changes in language preference, adoption of common attitudes and values, membership in common social groups and institutions, and loss of separate political or ethnic identification.

2. If you decide to weigh the possible financial gains versus the possible financial costs as the basis for deciding on a course of action, you are applying which decision-making model discussed in class?

Sol. As discussed in the class, the decision making model is Utilitarian approach which assesses an action in terms of its consequences or outcomes; i.e. the net benefits and costs to all stakeholders on an individual level. It strives to achieve the greatest good for the greatest number while creating the least amount of harm or preventing the greatest amount of suffering. It holds that every entity's interests should be considered equally when making the decision, and this includes those of other species since they also are capable of suffering.

3. You are stopped by the police for exceeding the speed limit on the Dubai Abu Dhabi road, and they give you a ticket for AED 100.00. This is an example of which ethical model discussed in class?

Sol. Retributive Justice as it is the idea that people deserve to be treated in the same way they treat others. It is a retroactive approach that justifies punishment as a response to past injustice or wrongdoing. The central idea is that the offender has gained unfair advantages through his or her behavior, and that punishment will set this imbalance straight. In other words, those who do not play by the rules should be brought to justice and deserve to suffer penalties for their transgressions.

4. Terpstra and David mention the need for three levels of socialization. List the three levels:

Sol. The three levels of Socialization: a. National Socialization b. Professional Socialization c. Corporate Socialization 5. According to The Royal Womens Infirmary (case), was the hospital customer-centric, product-centric, or capital centric? (Explain) Sol. The Royal Womens Infirmary is the capital centric hospital as the patients are treated like a number among others, the medical staff doesnt care about the patients feelings, condition and needs and despite the international standards, the technical and qualified human resources, the Royal Womens Infirmary has forgotten the principal of the social & humanity aspects.

Section 3: The Brookstone Hospice Case

1. Is Brookstone true to its mission and vision?

Sol. Brookstone is not true to its mission and vision because the mission and vision of company clearly states to help the surviving patients to get back to normal level of functioning. As Gardner who was suffering from cancer, their duty was to save the his life, they were not willing to perform surgery thinking that he has few months of life left and this was against the principles of organization and it was unethical for the fact that when patient was suffering from such an ailment he was said to go through all the procedures and they did not treat him instantly, as it is said in case that to be profit oriented is accepted in any business but when that profit is given priority over patients life it is unethical and unacceptable. 2. Were Kathys actions justified? Sol. A. Kathys actions were well justified considering the fact that she was a nurse and her job required her to help her patient. Hospice or not, a medical practitioner is required to help a patient in whichever way to make him/her better and to relieve the person form his/her disease. She had reached a point in which she had to make a call either to help Mr. Gardener, who was in a critical state or to follow the Hospice policy and go through the long procedure during which Mr. Gardener could die. Though Hospice was responsible to make the last few days of an individual go smoothly but they did not have any say to make a call which could object with the persons survival.

3. Did Gardner receive the treatment he deserved?

Sol. Gardner was bleeding profusely internally for almost 16 hours. As soon as the Brookestones staff got the information regarding this. They sent an on -call nurse to assess the condition of the patient. As Kathy the Nursing Supervisor received the call from the nurse saying that the condition was critical she started the procedure for admitting the patient to one of the hospital with which Brookestones had a contract. As she understood that the patient was waiting in the ambulance to get instructions from her, she stopped following each and every instructions of Brookestones and asked to take him to the nearest hospital. Gardner was then operated by the urologist in that hospital even though he was denied permission from the Brookestone hospice. The reason for the denial was that the surgery would extend the life of the patient and it would cost a huge amount for the hospice which was indeed unethical and inhuman.

4. If you were made the new manager of Brookstone, what changes would you make? (Use bullet points and be specific.)

Sol.

I will try to remove the bureaucracy and improve the procedures of the

company. The policies of companies should be changed and be made according to the need of the consumers and it should be made more lenient for patients who are really serious Retributive justice should be used against the doctors and staff who dont perform the work properly The ethical values should be inculcated in the staff, make it more people oriented and not money oriented , there should be training on ethical issues The company mission and vision should be followed properly and the service provided should be in line with the mission and vision of the company