2. Read the following article and answer the questions "The Feng Shui Kingdom" (found online at http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/featured_articles/20050427wednesday.html)
Related Article
The
Feng Shui Kingdom
By LAURA M. HOLSON
(Go
to Article
a. Where did Disney build a new amusement park?
b. Whom did the company consult?
c. Why did the company put a bend in the walkway to the gate?
d. Why did Disney heed the advice of a Feng Shui expert?
e. What does Disney do to commemorate the opening of each new building in Hong
Kong and why?
f. What does the World Tourism Organization expect China to become in the next
15 years?
g. What examples does Robert Thompson cite as indications that American
corporate behavior in foreign countries has changed?
h. What organization is collaborating with Disney on the development of Hong
Kong Disneyland and how?
i. Name some of the ways in which Disney has tried to respond to the cultural
differences in China.
j. Why is one of the park's main ballrooms 888 square meters?
k. According to Jay Rasulo, what lesson has he learned from past experience and
why?
l. What mistakes did Disney make when opening Disneyland Paris, according to the
article?
m. What Chinese pop singer did Disney hire and why?
n. Why must park employees speak three languages and what are they?
o. How does the park's most anticipated attraction differ from other parks with
a similar attraction?
3. You will develop a business plan to introduce a major company to a foreign country. What do they need to know about the corporate culture? What do they need to know about the people and culture of the foreign country?
You will be acting as an advance development team introducing a company to a region of the world for the first time (imagine this situation even if the company already exists in that region today). Before students divide off in groups, have lets share some assumptions about the country and its people, and suggest how the people in this country might respond to the introduction of this new company?
Divide students into groups of four, and assign each one a company category - Fast food, Entertainment, Media, Clothing/Fashion. Ask each group to first choose a company in their category. Suggested companies include:
--Fast food: Burger King, McDonald's, Subway or other convenience restaurant
chain
--Entertainment: MTV, Six Flags, Block Buster, movie theater
--Media: Newspaper, Magazine, Television or radio station
--Clothing/Fashion: Gap, Pac Sun, Triple 5 Soul, other retail clothing line
Next, each group choosesa different country. Some suggested countries
include:
Canada
Dominican Republic
Iceland
India
Israel
Mexico
Nigeria
Singapore
Saudi Arabia
South Africa
After each group has been assigned a country, ask each group to choose a major
city in this country in which to introduce its company.
Within each group, two students will conduct research on the corporation, while the other two will conduct research on the country they have chosen, answering the following questions :
THE CORPORATION
--What does the company do/make/sell?
--Who is the target audience or consumer for the company (who typically buys or
uses their products or services)? Are there any cultural differences that might
shift this target to a different population in the country?
--What is the average cost of the company's product or service in the U.S. (in
U.S. dollars)? What would this price be in the country's currency?
--How many people currently work for the company? What types of jobs do they
have?
--What is the average salary for an entry-level employee (in U.S. dollars)? For
an executive? What would these salaries be in the country's currency? How do you
think the company will adjust these wages in the new country?
--Are entry-level workers required to learn specialized skills?
-What steps might the company need to take to train local residents?
--What are the company's annual profits?
--Who is the company's competition?
--In what countries does the company currently sell or produce its products or
services?
THE COUNTRY --What is the physical environment like?
--What kinds of religious traditions do the people follow?
--What cultural rituals do they engage in?
--What kinds of foods do the people eat? Are there restrictions on the kinds of
foods they can eat?
--What do people do for entertainment? Are there restrictions on the kinds of
images they can see or language they can hear?
--What do they wear? Are there restrictions on what they can wear?
--How do they get their news? Are there restrictions on the kind of information
or news they are allowed to receive?
--What languages do they speak?
--What is the average age of the working population?
--Are there any days or times in which work is restricted?
--Are there restrictions on who can work?
--What is the average income for local workers?
--What types of industries currently exist in the country?
After you have conducted their research in pairs, the larger groups of four will reconvene to share with one another what they learned. Each group will prepare an artifact that demonstrates what their company can produce or sell in their chosen country. For example: the fast food group will prepare a sample menu, the clothing group will a catalog of the clothes they might sell, the media group will prepare a descriptive table of contents for a newspaper or magazine or program schedule for a radio or television station, and the entertainment group will present a list of movies, music videos that can be shown. Alternatively, groups may produce an advertisement marketing the product or service they are offering.
We will do #4 or we will choose to do one extension activity and one interdisciplinary connections activity. Class will vote.
4. Reflecting on what they learned from the article and the group work,
students will pair off to develop a business plan that should include the
following information:
--Overview of the company (1 paragraph)
--Statement of purpose (1 paragraph)
--Data on current earnings
--Earnings projection
--Statement about why company would like to do business in the new country (1
paragraph)
--Statement of opportunities and challenges (1-2 paragraphs)
--Cultural considerations the company has addressed (1-2 paragraphs)
You will present their business strategies to the class, and discuss the viability of each plan based on what they learned about how and why companies must adapt business practices to meet the needs of different cultures.