Strategic Management in a Global Environment - Assignment Example

Strategic Management in a Global Environment Question One of the US policy decisions that will affect international business is the US sanctions on Russia (Mason, 2015). These sanctions are related to the situation in Ukraine. The US government through the administration of president Obama has concluded that Russia’s actions are against US policy with regard to foreign policy. This decision will affect international business in that it will make it harder for US firms to carry out business in Russia.

Russia is a very important nation with regard to international business, due to its status as one of the leading petroleum exporters (Bowker, 2013). This decision will affect American busies in so many ways and there are those who believe that these sanctions are not necessarily in the best interest of the US government. Question 2 The biggest competitive advantage for Boeing is its international presence. Boeing has been able to achieve an international presence that is unrivaled by its competitors (Lipton, Clark, & Lehren, 2011).

This can be seen in terms of its production and manufacturing sales forces which are both distributed across the globe. This makes its marketing and customer relations much easier. At the same time, Boeing has a range of products that include Boeing 717, 737, 747, 757, 767, and 777 families, all of which serve a certain market need. Boeing is also able to manage its competitors and it has a good relation with most of its competitors making easier for Boeing to be able to survive even in times of economic crisis.

Boeing uses its comparative advantage by giving the customer’s choice as seen in the above listed product range (Arthur, 2011). Only a firm with as much technological and market expertise like Boeing is able to do this. Question 3 As Baumol (2002) argues a globalised world, free markets are almost inevitable. Protectionists seem to believe that the government can have all the solutions to economic problems. Although using government policy to protect the interest of the local economy can have short term advantages, it has long term disadvantages.

One indication that the Smith/Ricardo model is a better model can be seen in the modern concept of outsourcing. When a business outsources, it takes advantage of the foreign production resources such as labor, the benefits can then be transferred to the people in the economy. However, in a protectionist economy, firms are forced to use less productive means in the local market and this in the long runs affects the same economy that was being protected (Leonard, 2005). Question 4 For a firm like Boeing, the decision as to where it is going to locate its manufacturing plants is determined by a number of factors (Clawson, 2013).

These factors include tax issues, availability of labor and other political and economic issues that can affect its operations. Logistics also make a big contribution as to how the firm is going to make its decision with regard to where to set its manufacturing (Wilhelm, 2014). In this case, a firm wants to know that its Products will easily reach the market after they have been manufactured. This can be seen in Boeing with regard to its strategy n where to locate its manufacturing units. References Arthur, H. (2011). Freedoms Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II.

New York, NY: Random House. Baumol, W. (2002). The Free-market Innovation Machine: Analyzing the Growth Miracle of Capitalism. Boston, MA: Princeton University Press. Bowker, M. (2013). Russia, America and the Islamic World. New York, NY: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. Clawson, L. (2013, January 13). Boeings outsourcing strategy in the spotlight as FAA grounds the Dreamliner. Retrieved February 12, 20154, from Daily Kos: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/01/18/1180038/-Boeing-s-outsourcing-strategy-in-the-spotlight-as-FAA-grounds-the-Dreamliner# Leonard, T. (2005). Encyclopedia of the Developing World.

New York, NY: Psychology Press. Lipton, E., Clark, N., & Lehren, W. (2011). Diplomats Help Push Sales of Jetliners on the Global Market. New York, NY: The New York Times. Mason, R. (2015). Foreign Policy in Iran and Saudi Arabia: Economics and Diplomacy in the Middle East. New York, NY: I.B.Tauris. Wilhelm, S. (2014, December 18). Big year for Boeings 737 as Renton ramps up production to record rate. Retrieved February 12, 2015, from Puget Sound Busines Journal: http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2014/12/18/big-year-for-boeings-737-as-renton-ramps-up.html