Name: Aarish Julian Patloo

Madonna id: 260377

Subject: international management

Week 3 assignment

Submitted to: Dr. Abdullah Alshboul

Summary:

The Vodafone group started off under a different name i.e., Racal Strategic Radio Ltd. Which

was a subsidiary for the largest U.K based military radio manufacturer going by the name of

Racal Electronics PLC. Vodafone’s roots date all the way back to 1982 and by 1988, the parent

company floated 20% stock of its subsidiary in London exchange market where it was valued so

high that Racal Electronics was forced to demerge its telecom operations by 1991. As such, the

demerger gave way to the Vodafone group we know now. Its first CEO, Gerry Whent, acted as

its CEO for about 5 years, either trading or controlling stakes in various phone stores pr service

providers in the U.K. Business really started booming by 1997 when Sir Christopher Gent came

into power as CEO of the company where his decision of expanding into Egypt and acquired

AirTouch communications which then was renamed into Vodafone AirTouch PLC. Which then

led to acquiring a 35% stake in Mannesmann which owned Germany’s largest mobile network

which then led to a fierce fight for control between Vodfone and Mannesmann where

Mannesmann finally relented and accepted the offer of a corporate merger with Vodafone for

$185 billion. By 2003, Arun Sarin was the CEO and he withdrew Vodafone from nonprofitable

markets and expanded into emerging markets such as India, Romania, Turkey. By mid-2008,

Sarin managed to bring back Vodafone to profitability after a 21.9 billion Euro loss in 2006. He

was then replaced by Vittorio Colao who wished to continue expansion into Africa, Asia and the
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Middle East. By 2010, revenues were low in European countries but Asian countries showed

promise.

Vodafone in Egypt showed a lot of promise where the company began with 30% in the MisrFone

group which by 2010, Vodafone had over 2.200 staff members who spoke 10 different languages

so they could provide customer support to everyone around the globe. Vodafone also acquired

51% share in the Raya telecom company in Egypt. By 2007, Hatem Dowidar took over as CEO

and his executive team of 9 members, two of whom were women. Vodafone’s workforce had

about 1,450 which equated to 33% of whom were women. Vodafone Egypt also made sure to

never step out of bounds and always took care of the community which they were situated in

where they donated to NGO’s and civil society organizations.

What really placed all of the telecom companies in Egypt in peril was the 2011 revolution in

Egypt where all of them were forced to comply with the demands from the Egyptian

government. These demands came in the form of shutting down communication services. This

was a real situation where people’s freedom came into question as this can be properly explained

through the words of then UN secretary general, who said that the availability of interrupted

communications services was an important prerequisite for the freedom of the Egyptian people.

Answers to the case study questions:

1. Compile a list of at least five alternative actions for Vodafone Egypt.

(Ans) Considering the position Vodafone was in during the protests, Vodafone Egypt did not

have many alternatives but the actions they could have taken are as follows:

 They could have followed through with the instructions given to them by the

Egyptian government and shut off all communications.

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 They could have sent propaganda SMS to everyone but kept their communication

network up for everyone to continue to use.

 They could have completely disregarded the Egyptian government’s instructions and

sent no propaganda SMS and kept their communications network online.

 They could have placed a limit on the propaganda material that was being sent

through their network services.

 They could have only suspended internet services on their network but could have

kept calls and SMS texting open for everyone.

2. Provide reasons to support all identified alternatives.

 By following through with the instructions given to them by the government, they

could have shown support for their cause.

 By allowing propaganda SMS through but keeping their communication network

would show that they support the Egyptian government but would also show that

they support the citizens that took part in the protests.

 By completely disregarding the orders given to them by the Egyptian government,

they could have shown that they wanted no part in the Egyptian government’s

schemes.

 By placing a limit on propaganda being sent through, they could have shown

support for both the government and the people protesting against the

government.

 By only suspending internet services, they could have shown more support for the

people protesting and also could have shown the government that they are willing

to play along with their schemes as well.

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3. Select the action that you would have take if you were in the position of Hatem Dowidar

as CEO of Vodafone Egypt.

(Ans) Hatem Dowidar held out as long as he could against the orders of the government and

kept his communication network up as long as he could but was later held at gun point by the

government’s forces where he was forced to shut down all communications from his

network. Considering that, if I was in his position, I would have done the same as not only

life but the lives of my co workers would also be in jeopardy if I do not comply with the

government’s orders.

4. Identify information or perspectives that you are missing. Whom would you like to talk

to in order to get the information you are looking for?

(Ans) I believe the perspective of someone who was a part of the protests is missing and as

such they should the best possible source of information for what truly transpired during

those events. They could give us information which could show how the banning of

communication by the Egyptian government affected the protests and everyday life as well.

Listing of lessons learned from the case:

One of the lessons I learned from the case study was that despite cultural in Egypt being

mostly male oriented, Vodafone went against the norms where 33%of their staff were women

and where 2 of them were chief executives of the company in Egypt.

I learned how politics can force businesses to either take sides or how politics can affect

business landscape in a region. An example would be how the protests in Egypt forced

communication service companies to either take sides of the government or the protestors

and also how it affected Vodafone from continuing their business as they were forced to shut

down their communication services.

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The case study also showed how important internet and social media services can be in

situations where other forms of communications are banned. An example would be how the

people used twitter and Facebook to communicate during the protests in Egypt.

Another point I wish to bring into focus is the economic risk involved during the protests as

the then president of Egypt, Mubarak, tried to get more investment into the country but in

doing so took away many freedoms from the people.

Another lesson I learned was the ethical dilemmas involved and how managers to make

decisions accordingly. An example can be how Dowidar held out as long as he could because

he understood where protestors were coming from and what their agenda truly was but

ultimately, he was forced to shut off his network as he was held at gunpoint by government

forces.

Reflections:

What surprised me the most about this case study is how political leaders use varying

methods to get the upper hand even against their own people where they would turn a blind

eye to their suffering and only aim fill their own pockets and when they finally speak out

against their leaders, they are shut down without remorse. I always understood that political

risk would be involved for doing business in a country but never to the degree of other

people’s lives being in danger and where a country’s leader cared so little about his fellow

countrymen. I also have come to understand how an ethical dilemma can force managers to

make difficult decisions especially when one’s life is in danger.