Doing Business in Emerging Markets

Professor Harry Costin

COURSE AIMS

The course aims:

-to help students develop country analysis skills;

-to define concepts such as “development” and “emerging markets” in a manner that is useful to those who plan to do business with and in these environments;

-to develop skills and the capacity to analyse, evaluate and formulate strategy at a company level in emerging economies;

-to study cross-cultural issues that international companies encounter.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

-Understanding frameworks to analyse country environments.

-Capacity to define development in a systematic way.

-Applying the understanding of cultural differences to specific business skills such as negotiations.

COURSE CONTENT

Module 1

Day 1: Monday

The question of development

- GDP and GNP.

- Income distribution.

- Social indicators.

- The World Bank classification of economic development.

- UNDP: the Human Development Index.

- UNCTAD: Transnationalisation Index for MNEs (TNI).

- Development of Latin America.

Read: Summary of latest Human Development Report (

Country Analysis

- The Harvard Business School Framework for Country Analysis

Read: Country Analysis (Harvard Business School 9-797-092)

The cultural dimension

Understanding cultural differences: Hofstede

Read: National Culture and Management (9-394-177)

Day 2

Cultural differences. Group presentations

Module 2

The BRIC countries

  1. CHINA

Case: China Unbalanced (HBS 9-711-010)

Case: negotiation in China: How Universal? (HKU956 through HBS)

  1. BRAZIL: Instructor

Day 3: Wednesday

  1. INDIA

Case: Infosys in India: Building a Software Giant in a Corrupt Environment (HBS 9-707-030) (Group 2: Case analysis

  1. RUSSIA

Read: Can American Management Concepts Work in Russia? (CMR 129)

Read: Russia: Revolution and reform HBS 710030-PDF-ENG

Module 3

Other emerging economies

  1. MEXICO

Case: CEMEX´s Foundations for Sustainability – HBS 308024-PDF-ENG

Case: CEMEX (A): Building the Global Framework - HBS 308022-PDF- ENG

  1. CHILE

Case: Chile´s Copper Surplus: The Road not Taken (A) - HBS 710019- PDF-ENG

Case: Capital Controls in Chile in the 1990s (A) - HBS 705031-PDF-ENG

  1. VIETNAM

Case: Vietnam´s Private Sector Development: Mr. Nam´s Dilemma –

HKS348-PDF-ENG

READING LIST

Assigned readings are listed above. Cases will be provided by the university (a few copies might be placed on reserve).

Some country reports from the Economist Intelligence Unit will be provided to the students by the instructor for their country analysis group project.

Recommended books:China by Henry Kissinger.

TEACHING METHOD

The course will be taught using a combination of instructional methods: lectures, discussions of cases, group projects, and student presentations.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The exam can be taken on the basis of one of two options:

Students attending class on a regular basis

- Class attendance and active participation is mandatory.

- Written exam (50% of final grade).

- 2 group projects/presentations: country analysis and case analysis (25% + 25% of the grade).

Students not attending class on a regular basis

- Written exam (50% of final grade).

- 2 individual projects: country analysis and case analysis (25% + 25% of the grade).