International Business Strategy: Globalisation, Deglobalisation and Market Entry – Dubai, 4–15 Oct 2027

Programme overview

Introduction:

International business strategy has become harder to set as trade and investment flows fragment, supply chains regionalise and the assumptions behind earlier foreign expansion stop holding. Boards approve new markets on thin evidence, choose entry modes by habit and discover currency, political and organisational exposure only after capital is committed. This Core Concept course gives executives a structured way to read globalisation and deglobalisation, choose where and how to compete abroad, organise the multinational and exit when needed. Participants leave with an International Expansion Strategy and Entry-Mode Business Case for a case company.

Course Objectives:

• Interpret globalisation and deglobalisation indicators and judge what regionalisation, friend-shoring and supply-chain decoupling mean for the firm's footprint
• Choose an international strategy posture by weighing global integration pressures against local responsiveness
• Prioritise foreign markets using country attractiveness scoring and distance frameworks
• Compare export, licensing, franchising, joint venture, acquisition and greenfield entry modes on control, commitment, risk and reversibility
• Decide how to structure the multinational, assign subsidiary mandates and manage currency and political exposure
• Present an International Expansion Strategy and Entry-Mode Business Case to a board

Target Audience:

• Executives who set the direction and capital allocation for growth outside the home market
• Strategy and corporate planning leads who frame market choices for the board
• Business development heads who originate foreign deals, partners and acquisitions
• International expansion and country leaders accountable for new subsidiaries and regional hubs
• Senior finance and risk leads who approve cross-border investment cases

Course Outline:

Day 1: Globalisation Drivers and the Shift Towards Deglobalisation

• Trade, Capital and Technology Flows as Drivers of Economic Globalisation
• Deglobalisation Indicators: Trade-to-GDP, FDI Flows, Tariffs and Capital Controls
• Regionalisation, Reshoring and Friend-Shoring Patterns in Cross-Border Investment
• Supply-Chain Decoupling and Dual-Sourcing Responses to Concentration Exposure
• Globalisation Exposure Scan of Revenue, Sourcing and Asset Base

Day 2: Reading Geopolitical and Macroeconomic Shifts

• Macroeconomic Signal Dashboard: Growth, Inflation, Interest Rates and Exchange Rates
• Trade-Bloc Formation and Shifting Economic Alignments as Strategic Signals
• Scenario Axes for a Fragmenting World Economy
• Economic Nationalism, Industrial Policy and Local-Content Requirements
• Strategic Implications Memo for the Executive Committee

Day 3: Global Integration Versus Local Responsiveness

• Integration-Responsiveness Grid: Cost Pressures Versus Local Adaptation Pressures
• International, Multidomestic, Global and Transnational Strategy Types
• Standardisation Versus Adaptation Choices Across Product, Price and Brand
• OLI Eclectic Paradigm: Ownership, Location and Internalisation Advantages
• Home-Base Advantage Audit Before Going Abroad

Day 4: Foreign Market Selection and Prioritisation

• Country Attractiveness Scoring Model With Weighted Criteria
• CAGE Distance Framework: Cultural, Administrative, Geographic and Economic Distance
• Psychic Distance and the Uppsala Model of Incremental Internationalisation
• Market Sequencing: Waterfall Versus Sprinkler Rollout
• Market Prioritisation Heat Map and Shortlist

Day 5: Week-One Case: Setting International Strategic Direction

• Consumer Goods Case: Choosing Between Multidomestic and Transnational Postures
• Industrial Equipment Case: Rebalancing a Footprint After Supply-Chain Shocks
• Professional Services Case: Ranking Candidate Markets on Distance and Attractiveness
• International Strategic Intent Statement Drafting
• Syndicate Presentations and Executive Challenge on Week-One Choices

Day 6: Foreign Market Entry Modes and Their Trade-offs

• Direct and Indirect Export Through Agents and Distributors
• Licensing and Franchising: Protecting Know-How and Brand Standards
• Equity Joint Ventures and Minority Stakes
• Cross-Border Acquisitions Versus Greenfield Subsidiaries
• Entry-Mode Decision Matrix: Control, Resource Commitment, Risk and Reversibility

Day 7: Currency, Political and Cross-Border Compliance Exposure

• Transaction, Translation and Economic Currency Exposure
• Natural Hedging, Invoicing Currency and Foreign Pricing Policy
• Political Exposure Categories: Expropriation, Transfer Restrictions and Contract Frustration
• Cross-Border Compliance Overview: Sanctions Screening, Anti-Bribery and Transfer Pricing
• Incoterms Rules and Risk Transfer Points in Export Contracts

Day 8: Organising the Multinational and Leading Global Teams

• International Division, Geographic, Global Product and Matrix Structures
• Headquarters-Subsidiary Role Typologies and Subsidiary Mandates
• International Joint Venture Partner Selection: Complementary Resources and Control Rights
• Parent-Country, Host-Country and Third-Country Leadership Staffing Choices
• Global Virtual Team Operating Rhythm and Decision Rights

Day 9: Global Operations Footprint, Performance and Exit

• Supply Chain Footprint Design: Offshoring, Nearshoring and Regional Hubs
• Plant and Sourcing Location Decisions Using Total Landed Cost
• International Business Unit Scorecard: Share, Return on Invested Capital and Cash Repatriation
• Divestment, Market Exit and Restructuring Triggers
• Exit Route Options: Trade Sale, Local Buyout, Licence Conversion and Wind-Down

Day 10: Capstone: International Expansion Strategy and Entry-Mode Business Case

• Case Company Briefing and Expansion Hypothesis
• Target Market and Entry-Mode Recommendation Build
• Financial Case: Investment, Break-Even Horizon and Downside Scenarios
• Board Presentation of the International Expansion Business Case
• Peer Challenge Panel and Implementation Milestone Roadmap

Skills You Will Gain:

• Deglobalisation Signal Reading
• International Strategy Posture Selection
• Foreign Market Prioritisation
• Entry-Mode Evaluation
• Multinational Organisation Design
• Foreign Exchange Exposure Management
• Global Footprint Planning
• International Divestment Planning

Why Attend This Course:

• Leave with an International Expansion Strategy and Entry-Mode Business Case built and defended before a peer board
• Test your own organisation's foreign footprint against regionalisation and supply-chain decoupling trends
• Walk into the next market-entry decision with a scored shortlist and a clear view of what each entry mode costs in control and capital
• Compare international expansion experience with executives from other sectors and organisations

Conclusion:

Competing abroad now means choosing markets, entry modes and structures while the global economy itself is being redrawn. The first week moves from globalisation and deglobalisation signals, through integration versus responsiveness and strategy types, to market selection with attractiveness and distance tools. The second week adds entry-mode trade-offs, currency and political exposure, multinational organisation, footprint design and exit. The capstone brings both weeks together in an International Expansion Strategy and Entry-Mode Business Case that participants present to a peer board.