Activity

Activity objective

To recommend the best expansion strategy that suits a Mexican client’s international business endeavor.

Instructions

The presentation should follow this structure (at least one slide per sentence):

1. Start with a clever business quote that is relevant to your project.
2. Introduce yourself in order to generate empathy. 
• Mention who you are, who you work for (consulting firm), what brought you here, what it means to you to work with them as a client.
3. Use your findings on the actual business environments that prevail in the targeted country/region. 
• The relationship between demographics and purchasing power in that country. Is it favorable for the Mexican company?
• How can their political system help or undermine your client?
• How will the project play out within the economic system of the targeted country?
• How can you use their legal system and relevant government regulations to your client’s favor?
• How do foreign direct investments work in that country? Are there any fiscal incentives for your client?
• How is the local currency doing? Analyze the monetary trends around it.
• An insight of that country’s culture in the workplace: what the Mexican company will find and how to deal with it.
• How to comply with relevant fiscal and/or environmental regulations that apply directly to your client’s business?
• Write about what to expect of local hiring practices, employment benefits, minimum wage standards, and the role of labor unions.
• Enlist relevant trade policy details between Mexico and the other country, in terms of signed free-trade agreements, tariffs, subsides, import quotas, antidumping duties, etc.
4. Write a recommendation on which strategic decisions might bring success to the expansion efforts.
   • Should your Mexican client enter the market in the targeted country? If so, when should they start? What are the costs?
   • What are the scales? Should they enter the national market directly or through the regional market instead? Why?
   • Between exporting, licensing, franchising, joint ventures, and owned subsidiaries, which entry mode is their best option?
   • Are there any acquisitions or strategic alliances to be made in the targeted country?
5. Conclusions.

Checklist

• The student creates a Power Point presentation and begins with a clever business quote that is relevant to the project.
• The student introduces themselves.
• The student uses the findings on the current business environments that prevail in the targeted country/region.
• The student makes a list of relevant trade policy details between Mexico and the other country, in terms of signed free-trade agreements, tariffs, subsides, import quotas, antidumping duties, etc.            
• The student writes a recommendation on what strategic decisions could bring success to the expansion efforts.
• The student ends the presentation with conclusions.