A Secret Weapon for Success in International Markets

By James Latham, vice president of marketing, ACD Systems International

Edited by Scott Goddin, F&CS

Portland State University’s Masters in International Management (MIM) program

Oregon’s most successful international companies are those that have been best able to establish a well-integrated global supply chain with local high-end design, marketing, and research and development activities. While Nike, Columbia Sportswear and even Freightliner come to mind, high-tech companies including Intel, Hewlett-Packard, Pixelworks and InFocus – among others – have moved inexorably towards this corporate model to remain globally competitive. SAO members serving packaged, embedded and even open source clients and customers have developed increasingly global relationships to pursue their business lines and customers most aggressively.

The appetite for US-designed software applications of all forms and in all industries overseas exceeds the US market. However, entry into many markets – particularly in the Asia-Pacific region of the world – remains both challenging, potentially expensive and without any guarantee of success. Issues of product localization, business partnering, legal concerns and cross-cultural collaboration and project management can quickly become key determinants of success.

A sound strategy backed by proper research and opportunity assessment by region or country can reduce your risks significantly. The challenge is, of course, finding internal resources to provide such research and analysis, or absorbing the expense of a consultant to do so. Once established, the challenge of developing internal resources to solidify relationships and grow a market locally or regionally will come into play. To meet these challenges successfully, many firms in the Portland area have taken advantage of the resources and capabilities offered by the Masters in International Management (MIM) graduate program at Portland State University.

A high-tech and Asia-Pacific focus

Over the next ten years, the highest growth in software development as well as software sales will be in the Asia-Pacific region. For software companies looking to take advantage of these trends, the MIM is well suited to assist them with their marketing efforts. The program has a unique and specific focus on business in the Pacific Rim and a business-hardened faculty including instructors from SAO members InFocus, Pixelworks and Microsoft, among others. Over forty percent of the student body has business experience in high tech, and over one-third is from outside the U.S.

This environment serves to develop a global mindset in the students, the greatest asset and most critical skill in business today. The program is unique among international management programs in its focus on developing leaders with a deep knowledge of the political and business environments of the Pacific Rim, tempered by practical business experience of succeeding in these challenging markets.

Curriculum meets business needs

The curriculum is designed using input from local business leaders who articulate the international business needs of their companies. They include:

• Business etiquette, including areas of cross-cultural communications that target the social skills necessary to conduct business in particular countries.
• International negotiation skills, such as contractual negotiations between firms operating in different countries.
• Functional competence in international marketing, accounting, finance and management areas of business.
• Ability to develop business connections, conduct negotiations and other activities in the language of the business partners.
• Knowledge of regional issues and politics that affect business.

The Asian market orientation of the MIM program includes development of international as well as general business skills, including proficiency in an Asian foreign language, and tracks closely the needs and focus of many companies in Oregon’s high-tech (including SAO members) business community. The program strives to create a strong cross-cultural learning community by enhancing skills that are increasingly important in software design and development. Customer/client applications are more often coordinated by global teams in multiple locations, using modern communications to collaborate. Managing this activity requires a highly developed set of skills spanning language, business and cultural sensitivity.

The secret weapon: International Business Research Project (IBRP)

As software companies develop global strategies, it is increasingly important to prioritize their markets and develop a game plan that set realistic objectives achievable within the capabilities of the firm. In a Fortune 500 company, it would be traditional to hire an outside consultancy or put some key executives on a planning team to develop and implement such a strategy. Smaller and medium-sized firms without this luxury can take advantage of a program offered by the MIM program that engages students in a real-life problem-solving activity with potential bottom-line results.

After five terms of case-based instruction, simulation, seminars, course work and a field study in Asia, MIM students undertake a real-world problem-solving project, in lieu of a traditional thesis. The IBRP provides students the opportunity to apply knowledge and skills gained through the program and helps companies address pressing international business challenges that limited time and resources have not allowed them to tackle. This IBRP project puts the academic and theoretical knowledge to work in a real-life situation. The students benefit from the experience in applying their learning, testing strategy formulation skills, working together to solve problems, and making a valuable contribution with their new skills.

IBRP projects help local companies compete internationally

The projects can involve help with market entry strategy, market research, partner and alliance opportunity assessment, sales planning, and logistics. Individuals and teams work on a project basis with a representative of the sponsoring company to add skills and augment your current team. Projects are usually undertaken by a team of three to four students, generally take eight to twelve weeks, and will represent 200-300 hours of teamwork. The results are produced in a written report and in a professional, final presentation made to the representative(s) of the company. The key elements for success in this endeavor are early identification of your needs, clear communication of those needs internally and to other resources, and continued monitoring and checkpoints as the projects unfold.

If your company has a particular international business challenge that you think is suited for an IBRP, then check out the MIM website at www.mim.pdx.edu. Also, you can call the MIM executive director at (503) 725-3761. The MIM program’s IBRP is a great opportunity for software companies to leverage the knowledge and skills of motivated graduate student for investigating challenges faced in the international business arena.

Ken Thrasher, CEO of Compli and an SAO member, said of his IBRP experience: “In just a few weeks, without taking focus or resources from our busy staff, the MIM project team set up the project for a specific country market entry, gathered the appropriate research, provided a detailed and incisive analysis of the regulatory issues and opportunity size, and delivered an excellent report and presentation to the executive team.”

International success depends on international skills

Success in global markets will depend increasingly on how companies position themselves in their market niche and, most critically, on the human capital they are able to engage in the effort. PSU’s MIM program represents an important local resource for assisting companies in their global marketing efforts, both short and long term. SAO members HP and Symantec among others are sponsoring students through the program. Is there something they know?

About the author

James Latham is vice president for global marketing of ACD Systems International (www.acdsee.com). For the past 25 years he has worked in marketing at some of the best-known (and some little-known) software providers, including Lotus Development Corporation, IBM, ViewStar, and Atlas Telecom. His work has focused on market entry strategy, planning, and implementation for software seeking to penetrate international markets. James sits on the advisory board for the MIM program at PSU, and has contributed as a guest lecturer for global marketing in the program. He can be reached at james@jameslatham.com.