Globalization and Internationalization - Essay Example

? Globalization and Internationalization Task Qn Internationalization and globalization are two different concepts. Globalization refers to the integration of the world economic resources into one boundary-less unit. Internationalization on the other hand refers to increasing international relations between nations around the world. Internationalization is different from globalization in at least two distinct ways. First, the basic unit for internationalization is the nation which means that national boundaries are still respected even from an economic point of view (Daly, 2009). This is different from globalization because globalization is the erasure of national boundaries in the attempt to integrate all the nations in the world into one economy where the flow of capital and other economic resources such as labor is not hindered or limited by national boundaries. By the very fact that globalization tries to do away with national boundaries and come up with ways to integrate the world economy, it is clear that internationalization and globalization are not only different but actually opposite. Secondly, while internationalization is achieved mostly through human effort, globalization is an inevitable process which is happens on its own. However, human effort is applied to facilitate globalization. Internationalization can happen even without involving all the nations in the world. For instance, some international firms refer to themselves as internationalized even though they operate in just a few countries. Globalization on the other hand has to touch at all corners of the world. Q2 Globalization will offer an organization at least two main advantages. Globalization will offer a larger market niche for any firm. In a globalised economy, it means that a firm in one nation can sell to any other country without having to face the many hindrances such as custom duties that make the products prohibitively expensive. Such barriers are created to discourage firms from other countries from participating in the local economy and therefore make a tremendously large step towards making sure that only the local firms have the advantage to swell their products at competitive prices in the local market. With globalization, such barriers are eliminated and, therefore, it is easy for any firm to participate in business anywhere around the globe. The second significant advantage to firms may be the easy flow of labor which can also be used by such firms to manage labor costs. Through globalization, it is easy for a firm in one place to take advantage of the affordable labor. Organizations can access better economic resources and this can give them strategic edge is they are able to use these resources in a better way. A good example is the way most American firms are seen to take advantage of China, both as a source of affordable labor and as a market for their products. According to Moon (2010), firms are for instance taking advantage of the internet to be able to exploit their strategic edges. Q3 Technological advances have been extremely useful in advancing globalization. There are two significant technological advances that have made globalization to be achievable. One such technology is the communication technology which enables information to flow easily from any point of the world to the other. The other is the transport technology that makes the moving of goods from one point to the other. Information technology has made it extremely easier for money to be easily sent across the world with minimal cost. More than that, technology has made it possible for people to trade goods outside the formal channels. Retail websites such as e-bay, Amazon.com and many other websites work in conjunction with online payment systems such as PayPal, Moneybookers etc to make sure that individual in any part of the world can buy and sell goods and services in any other part of the world. Communication technology has also made it possible for individual and organizations to be able to get workers from any part of the world. For most jobs that do not require physical presence, individual and organizations can hire virtual workers online through websites such as freelancer.com and odesk.com. These platforms offered by communication technology and especially the internet have stripped off all the physical barriers that were once provided by the political boundaries that secluded each nation to itself. Task II Age: 47 Gender: male Occupation 20 years ago: office operator in the healthcare sector Occupation now: office operator in the healthcare sector Summary Modern technology has made world life easier and harder at the same time. It is easier because communication has improved and therefore coordination of teams is much easier and information flows in a smoother way. It is harder because it has meant that work can follow the worker even at home and during their private time. This happens when mobile phones are used to contact an employee person and ask them to do certain things. Most of the time he is called to work during weekends and nights and sometimes he is not paid for overtime works. This happens because the organization has provided him and most of the other employees with laptops and tablet computers that they can use to work with during the time they are not in the office. Technology has made it easier for works to be done even in a twenty four hour basis because he can even work during the night using his laptop. Computer system has made office management easier and more efficient because the file system makes it easier for data management. The organization has bought a database management system that is used to manage the data. Data mining and data analysis is achieved more easily as compared to when twenty years ago when they used to use manual file systems. This makes work easier especially in repetitive tasks such as managing office suppliers because the system can track the usage of the suppliers. Travelling is less necessary because the worker can work remotely. The office system can be accessed from anywhere and make sure that the workers can do work even in remote offices instead of having to travel there in person. Reference List: Daly, H. (2009). Globalization Versus Internationalization: Retrieved February 07, 2013, from Global Policy Forum: http://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/162/27995.html Moon, H. (2010). Global Business Strategy: Asian Perspective. Singapore: World Scientific. Read More