International firms need to formulate company policies that take account of the fact that they manufacture, service, employ and market to or in countries with different laws, different beliefs and different levels of socio-economic development compared to a firm's country of origin. This course examines the contextual, organisational and managerial issues associated with the operation of multinational firms. Interactions between contextual elements and management of an international enterprise will be studied from both theoretical and practical perspectives. The major topics that will be studied include international strategic planning and implementation in MNCs, strategies for international competition international production and outsourcing, international joint ventures and strategic alliances, organisational structure of MNCs, control in outsourcing, control in international operations, intra and inter-firm technology and knowledge management, cross-cultural negotiation and decision making, motivation and leadership in international management, international human resource management and international social and ethical responsibly of firms.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. explain and illustrate the international strategic management processes used by top level management in multinational enterprises
2. define, explain and illustrate the relationships among philosophic roots and approaches for international strategic planning and implementation, strategies for value chain activity integration, international business strategies, structure of multinational enterprises, and human resource management orientations, and the role which culture plays in managing multinational enterprises
3. creatively apply knowledge from different approaches to strategic management issues and problems of multinational enterprises, demonstrating thorough understanding of the various international strategic management concepts and their practical application
4. communicate effectively in oral and written forms about international strategic management using appropriate concepts, logic and rhetorical conventions.

Research-Led Teaching

Key concepts, cases and practical experiences will be presented in the lectures and tutorials. The lectures will be supplemented with structured learning exercises and activities such as discussion of case and research studies.

Field Trips

Not relevant

Additional Course Costs

There are no additional costs

Examination Material or equipment

For each assessment item, an Assessment Brief, including the marking criteria, will be provided on Wattle and explained in class. In the rare cases where an oral review is conducted it will normally be undertaken using Zoom or Teams both for convenience and to facilitate recording.

Recommended Resources

Peng, M. 2022. Global Strategy. 5th edition. ISBN: 978-0-357-51236-4.

This is available for purchase as an electronic text and in hard copy. (Publisher's web site).

A copy will be held in the ANU library reserve & short loan collection.

The Economist. This is a weekly business and current affairs magazine founded in 1843.

1. It "typically champions economic liberalism, particularly free markets, free trade, free immigration, deregulation, and globalisation. Despite a pronounced editorial stance, it is seen as having little reporting bias, and as exercising rigorous fact-checking and strict copyediting." (Wikipedia)
2. The writing is an exemplar of good quality, clear and sometimes witty, educated modern English.
3. In general its journalists do not have bylines (except for their last article when they retire), so there is no incentive for the attention-seeking, grandstanding and click-baiting behaviour that characterises much modern journalism.
4. It tries to take a genuinely global perspective; by reading it you will develop a better intuition about the relative importance of your own country in the world. Australians will learn that Australia is not all that important, for example. 
5. At a minimum it is suggested you read the "World this week: Business" and "World this week: Politics" sections every week. These are very short. Some of their content is also the subject of longer articles later in the edition.

You can access the Economist from the ANU Library here: https://quicklink.anu.edu.au/nrm4 . Follow the link to Proquest.

Staff Feedback

Quantitative and qualitative feedback will be provided on Wattle, in class and by individual consultation.

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Other Information

An important resource for enhancing educational quality is a stock of student work which can be de-identified and used as exemplars for future students in ANU courses, for educational research and for training tutors to grade assessments according to ANU standards. If you do not wish your de-identified assessments to be used for any of these purposes please inform the Course Convener by email.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	Strategy and the dynamics of competition	Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.
2	Strategy and the dynamics of competition	Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.
3	Strategy and the dynamics of competition	Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.
4	Strategy, Institutions, Cultures, and Ethics	Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.Research proposal video presentation due on Friday, 14 March 2025.
5	Growing and Internationalizing the Entrepreneurial Firm	Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.
6	Entering Foreign Markets	Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.
7	Making Strategic Alliances and Networks Work	Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.
8	Managing Competitive Dynamics	Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.
9	Diversifying and Managing Acquisitions Globally	Primary reading: Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.Research report due on Friday, 2 May 2025.
10	Strategizing, Structuring, and Innovating Around the World	Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.
11	Governing the Corporation Globally	Primary reading: Refer to Wattle reading list.
12	Course review and final exam preparation	Note: Take home exam is due on the Friday of Week 13 i.e. 30 May, 2025.

Tutorial Registration

There are no separate tutorials for this course. Tutorial activities are integrated into the weekly three-hour workshop.

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Return of assessment	Learning Outcomes
Research proposal video presentation (15%)	15 %	14/03/2025	28/03/2025	1,3,4
Research report (50%)	50 %	02/05/2025	23/05/2025	1,3,4
Take-home exam (35%)	35 %	30/05/2025	26/06/2025	1,2,3,4

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website Students may choose not to submit assessment items through Turnitin. In this instance you will be required to submit, alongside the assessment item itself, hard copies of all references included in the assessment item.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Participation

The course will be entirely taught in person on campus. All course materials related related to the lectures and tutorials, other than the textbook, will be available online.

The weekly lecture will be recorded in the usual away.

Attendance at lectures and tutorials, while not compulsory, is expected in line with the ANU Code of Practice for Teaching and Learning , Guidline 2(b).

Examination(s)

A take home examination (task 3) is set for this course. More information about the take home examination will be provided in class and on Wattle.

Assessment Task 1

Research proposal video presentation (15%)

Purpose: To assess the achievement of Learning Outcomes 1, 3 and 4.

Instructions: Students will individually record a short slide presentation - less than 8 minutes, equivalent to about 550 to 800 words. Deliverables will be the video in MP4 or MKV format and a copy of any visual aids such as slides. A detailed Assessment Brief, including the marking rubric, will be provided on Wattle and explained in class. Any use of AI tools in the preparation of the content of the presentation must be explicitly noted in the presentation itself. There is a 1 minute tolerance on the time limit. Exceeding that will attract a penalty of 10% of the total marks for this assessment item per minute.

Assessment Type: Individual

Value: 15%

Marking criteria: The marking criteria will be provided in Wattle at least two weeks prior to the due date.

Form of submission: Documents are to be submitted via Turnitin on the course Wattle site. If the submitted document is in PDF format you must keep and be prepared to supply to the Course Convener the original electronic document (e.g. in MS Word, Pages, LibreOffice, LaTeX etc.). Video files must be submitted by other means - instructions will be provided in the Assessment Brief.

Late submission: Not Permitted.

Due Date: 12 noon Canberra time, Friday of Week 4 (14th March 2025).

Return of assessment: Friday of Week 6 (28 March 2025).

Feedback. Individual and global feedback in both qualitative and quantitative forms will be provided.

Assessment Task 2

Research report (50%)

Purpose: To assess the achievement of Learning Outcomes 1, 3 and 4.

Instructions: Students will individually complete a written research report, as a continuation of their research proposal in assessment task 1, of around 3000 to 4000 words. A detailed Assessment Brief, including the marking criteria, will be provided on Wattle and explained in class. Any use of AI tools in the preparation of the content of the report must be explicitly noted in the report itself. There is a 10% tolerance on the word limit. Exceeding that will attract a penalty of 10% of the total marks for this assessment item per 50 words. Tables, appendices, and figures are excluded from the word count.

Assessment Type: Individual

Value: 50%

Marking criteria: The marking criteria will be provided in Wattle at least two weeks prior to the due date.

Form of submission: Documents are to be submitted via Turnitin on the course Wattle site. If the submitted document is in PDF format you must keep and be prepared to supply to the Course Convener the original electronic document (e.g. in MS Word, Pages, LibreOffice, LaTeX etc.)

Late submission: Not Permitted.

Due Date: 12 noon Canberra time, Friday of Week 9 (2nd May 2025).

Return of assessment: Friday of Week 12 (23 May 2025).

Feedback. Individual and global feedback in both qualitative and quantitative forms will be provided.

Assessment Task 3

Take-home exam (35%)

Purpose: To assess the achievement of Learning Outcomes 1, 2, 3, and 4.

Value: 35%.

Assessment Type: Individual.

Instructions: The final assessment will be an open-book take-home task that will require you to (a) reflect on one or more topics from the course (b) provide short answers to questions (some of which may be based on a short case study) drawn from the topics covered in the course. Questions will require you to both identify and more particularly demonstrate that you are able to apply course materials/models/concepts/frameworks. Questions will be available on Wattle in Week 12.

Due date: 12 noon, Friday in Week 13 (30 May 2025).

Return of assessment: with the release of the final results

Feedback. The final mark for this assessment, according to the ANU grading scale, will be calculated at the end of the course.

Form of submission: Documents are to be submitted via Turnitin on the course Wattle site. If the submitted document is in PDF format you must keep and be prepared to supply to the Course Convener the original electronic document (e.g. in MS Word, Pages, LibreOffice, LaTeX etc.).

Late submission: Not Permitted.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of our culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically. This means that all members of the community commit to honest and responsible scholarly practice and to upholding these values with respect and fairness. The Australian National University commits to embedding the values of academic integrity in our teaching and learning. We ensure that all members of our community understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with. The University has policies and procedures in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Visit the following Academic honesty & plagiarism website for more information about academic integrity and what the ANU considers academic misconduct. The ANU offers a number of services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. The Academic Skills and Learning Centre offers a number of workshops and seminars that you may find useful for your studies.

Online Submission

The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.

Hardcopy Submission

Hardcopy submissions are not required in this course.

Late Submission

Late submission of assessments is not accepted for this course. Late submission without an approved extension immediately results in a mark of 0.

All requests for Assessment Adjustment (including Requests for Extension and for Consideration of Extenuating Circumstances) should be submitted via ISIS.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Wattle site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Returning Assignments

Quantitative and qualitative feedback will be provided on Wattle, in class and by individual consultation.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure The Course Convener may grant extensions for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Resubmission of Assignments

Assignments may be resubmitted up to but not beyond the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information. In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service — including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy. If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes. Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Access and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents all ANU students