Preparing Students to Work in Global Competitive

Employment

Prepare workers for the future from an international perspective!

Clelia McCroryESSDACK Grants/CTE Specialist

Cell #: (620)694-9289

Email: cmccrory@cox.net

Served on the U.S. Career and Technical Education Team to South Africa in October 2009.

Our students will do global jobs with these challenges:#1 Challenge: Have CULTURAL

differences between countries of product and THE REGULATION STANDARDS USED IN countries of product origin AND countries that will consume/use the product.

Example: Non-kosher entity producing a product for a Jewish consumer!

QUALITY CONTROLS:#2 Challenge: Have QUALITY

differences between the REGULATION STANDARDS USED IN countries of product origin AND usage in the U.S. or a country having more rigid standards (which if not carefully scrutinized will cause their company to face costly recalls):

Example Product Recalls:About 1,000 Drop side cribs recalled by

Caramia Furniture made in Canada in January, 2010 sold for between $240 and $370 each from September 2002 through December 2005

LOSS TO COMPANY: at least $305,000!

Recall #2 January, 2010 Example:Barbados-based company had to recall

about 635,000 cribs made in China or Vietnam sold by Kmart, Sears, Wal-Mart, and other stores in the U.S. after the death of a 6-month old boy and multiple reports of injuries.

LOSS: at least $196,850,000!

Recall #3 January 22, 2010 Example:About 162,000 Lysol steam cleaning

mops valued at $38 each, made in China by Stamford, CN, are being recalled because hot water mixed with Lysol can spurt out and rupture the product, posing a burn and laceration risk to consumers! COST: at least $6,156,000

What’s the PROBLEM:MANY recalls occur due to:Quality in terms of complying with the

U.S. environmental standards that differ from manufacturing source countries.

Some foreign countries such as China and Vietnam have very lax environmental and manufacturing standards in their facilities.

Challenge #3: Become bilingual employeesGlobal competition is more effectively

dealt with if the students become bilingual and can speak/communicate in two or more languages. WE MUST ENCOURAGE MULTIPLE LANGUAGES TO BE LEARNED AND UTILIZED BY OUR STUDENTS!

Challenge #4: The country’s political structure impacts global marketing.

South Africa President Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years at Robbin Island in this small cell. Once Apartheid occurred, then he was asked to be the country’s leader! What a change!

South Africa is a democracy!But, there are still visible signs of other

political structures. Two very visible communist party signs are shown as follows:

Education/Training varies between countries!South Africa only has compulsory

attendance for Grades 1-9 (grade 0 or reception year and Grades 10-12 are not required).

Educational philosophy of service delivery varies greatly between countries!

Asian vs. American Education:Competition – Supply does not match

demand for school slots in China or Japan. Therefore, students who get to attend school are very motivated and want to be there!

Rote Learning vs. education incorporating higher level creative thinking skills

Asian vs. US Education (cont.)School length: Asian schools have 5-6

hours class per day on weekdays and then 3 hour classes on Saturday.

Much homework for Math and Language but only 5 main subjects in Asian schools plus PE, Art, Music, etc.

Memorization of textbook works for most Asian school exams.

Asian vs. US Education (cont.) If you make a bad grade at Asian

school, you have SHAMED YOUR ENTIRE FAMILY (everyone with your Last Name).

Asian children have less distractions, families are tightly knit, and value education more than Americans.

Top Performing Countries in Science:Top 5 in descending order (according to

the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development – Education at a Glance 2009) are: Finland, Canada, Estonia, New Zealand, and Australia. The United States is #22!

South Africa Initiative to Train Difficult to Employ People

ACTION-Training for Blind and Disabled Children in Johannesburg, S.A. trains blind and disabled people to use computers and computer software needed to write the Microsoft Accredited examinations and obtain gainful employment!

South Africa Has Online Career Information ServiceZenzele Training and Development

Centre at Cape Town, S.A. developed Career Planet web-based tool found at http://www.careerplanet.co.za that includes free information for schools and communities similar to Kansas Career Pipeline. Further collaboration should strengthen both web tools in U.S. and South Africa!

South Africa is rich in many natural resources! Such as platinum, coal, and DIAMONDS

recovered from the mines! South Africa’s rich platinum reserves could

make it a key player in a major future energy source – fuel cell technology! The global market for fuel cells and hydrogen technologies is forecast to be worth US$46 billion by 2011.

South Africa is focused upon renewable energy!The Cahora Bassa Hydroelectric Plant

built in Mozambique, by the apartheid-era government, provides electricity to Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and South Africa!

South Africa Commercial Wind FarmSouth Africa is actively targeting the

greater use of renewable and zero or low-carbon sources of energy. Four Danish-supplied wind turbines with a total of about 5.2 megawatts make up this wind farm northwest of Darling, S.A. on the west coast!

American Source to Learn More About Wind for Schools! Spirit Lake Community School, Spirit Lake, IA

powers its schools with renewable energy sources!

Website: http://www.spirit-lake.k12.ia.us Contact Person: Jim Tirevold, school facility

director, 712-336-1370 ext 3500 Sterling USD#376 took a study trip there under the

direction of Mr. Dan Whisler whislerd@usd376.com !

Sterling, along with other schools, have become chosen Wind For Schools sites.

Global Marketing Text:Peng, Mike W. GLOBAL BUSINESS:

South-Western Cengage Learning, 5191 Natorp Boulevard, Mason, OH 45040 USA (published 2009 ISBN# for student text: ISBN-10: 0-324-36073-8

Most chapters have specific strategies to utilize (sample strategies will follow).

Analyzing Resources and Capabilities With a VRIO Framework:VRIO Framework: The resource-based

framework that focuses on the value (V), rarity (R) , imitability (I), and organizational (O) aspects of resources and capabilities.

(V) The Question of Value:Do firm resources and capabilities add

value? Only value-adding resources can possibly lead to competitive advantage, whereas nonvalue-adding capabilities may lead to competitive disadvantage.

(R ) The Question of Rarity: Simply possessing valuable resources and

capabilities may not be enough. The next question asks: How rare are valuable resources and capabilities? At best, valuable but common resources and capabilities will lead to competitive parity but not to an advantage. Only valuable and rare resources and capabilities have the potential some temporary competitive advantage.

(I) The Question of Imitability Valuable and rare resources and capabilities

can be a source of competitive advantage only if competitors have a difficult time imitating them. It is relatively easy to imitate a firm’s TANGIBLE resources (such as plant), but it is a lot more challenging and often impossible to imitate INTANGIBLE capabilities (such as tacit knowledge, superior motivation, and managerial talents).

(O) The Question of Organization: Even valuable, rare, and hard-to-imitate

resources and capabilities may not give a firm sustained competitive advantage if the firm is not properly organized. Often, it is their invisible relationships that add value. Overall, only valuable, rare, and hard-to-imitate resources and capabilities that are organizationally embedded and exploited can possibly lead to sustained competitive advantage and persistently above-average performance.

VRIO Framework In SummaryBecause resources and capabilities

cannot be evaluated in isolation, the VRIO framework presents four interconnected and increasingly difficult hurdles for them to become a source of sustainable competitive advantage. In other words, these four aspects come together as one “package”.

Implications for Action: Managers need to build firm strengths based

upon the VRIO framework. Relentless imitation or benchmarking, while

important, is not likely to be a successful strategy.

Managers need to develop strategic foresight for future competition.

Students need to make themselves “untouchables” whose jobs cannot be easily outsourced.

Ethics Is Paramount!!!!!!Strategic responses to ethical

challenges include (1) reactive, (2) defensive, (3) accommodative and (4)proactive responses. Challenge your staff to analyze their responses as they consider the following examples:

1. Reactive response You deny responsibility and do less than

required (Historical business incident example: Ford marketed the Pinto car Iin the 1970’s knowing that its gas tank had a fatal design flaw that could make the car susceptible to exploding in rear-end collisions. Sure enough, accidents happened and people were killed and burned in Pintos. But, Ford refused to recall the Pintos for several years!)

2. Defensive response You admit responsibility but fight it; do

the least that is required (Historical business example: In the 1990’s, Nike was charged for running “sweatshops”, although these incidents took place in its contractors’ factories in Indonesia and Vietnam. Although Nike did not own or manage these factories, its initial statement, “We don’t make shoes,” failed to convey any ethical responsibility.)

3. Accommodative response Accept responsibility; do all that is

required (Historical business example: In 2000, when Ford Explorer vehicles equipped with Firestone tires had a large number of fatal rollover accidents, Ford aggressively initiated a speedy recall, launched a media campaign featuring its CEO, and discontinued its 100-year relationship with Firestone. Ford became a better corporate citizen in 2000 than what it was in 1975.)

4. Proactive response Proactive firms anticipate institutional

changes and do more than is required. (Historical business example: In 1990, BMW anticipated its emerging responsibility associated with the German government’s proposed “take-back” policy, requiring automakers to design cars whose components can be taken back by the same manufacturers for recycling. BMW not only designed easier-to-dissemble cars but also signed up the few high-quality dismantler firms as part of an exclusive recycling infrastructure.)

Which Response Fits YOU?Hopefully, this presentation has been

thought-provoking and will get you started in thinking from a global marketing perspective!

Mrs. Clelia McCrory, ESSDACK Grants/CTE cmccrory@cox.net or Cell: 620-694-9289