International Business: Hofstede cultural dimensions, political and economic risks, legal systems, intellectual property protections, entry mode, CSR, organizational structure, global operations

This document explores the international business operations of Walt Disney Company, including Hofstede cultural dimensions, political and economic risks, legal systems, intellectual property protections, entry mode, CSR, organizational structure, global operations.

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NAME
SCHOOL
COURSE
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

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1. Examine the countries where your company does business according to where they
rank on the Hofstede cultural dimensions. Think of some examples of how a U.S.
manager would need to modify his or her behavior when communicating with
associates from one or more of these foreign countries.
According to Hofstede (2017), UK and U.S have cultures with a high level of individualism. The
individualism cultures mean people are busy with their own lives and immediate families.
Therefore, if a US manager is working in the UK, he or she must modify its behavior because
both countries have similarities in the culture. However, China people have collectivism culture
(Hofstede, 2017) meaning they tend to look more on groups than individuals. Therefore, a US
manager working in China needs to modify its behaviors to fit Chinese collectivism culture.
2. Does your company operate in any countries that are considered very politically or
economically risky?
The Walt Disney Company is a multinational company it operates in countries that are
considered to be very economically or politically risky. Operating in countries like Brazil, the
company faces economic risks such as high tariffs and corporate taxes while operating in
countries like Venezuela the company faces political risks like political tensions and instability.
3. Does your company primarily operate in civil law or common law countries? What are
some of the implications of this?
The Walt Disney Company operates in both types of legal system. The implication of operation
is that in common law systems precedent are set by the ruling of court hence making contracts
and binding to be written on the agreement of both parties (Bonell, 2009). In countries operating

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under civil law systems, several requirements must be met when facilitating binding and
developing contracts.
4. Has your company purchased any insurance from the U.S. Overseas Private Investment
Corporation (OPIC)?
The Walt Disney Company has purchased OPIC’s insurance especially in some countries of
Asia, Africa and South America where the possibility of political and economic influence is
high.
5. What are some key intellectual property protections, if any, that your company
possesses? When do these protections (e.g., patents) expire? How does your company
intend to recoup lost revenues due to any patent or other intellectual property
protection expirations?
Trademarks- The Walt Disney Company usually expires after a duration of the year. The
company has the intention of recouping lost revenues because of trademark expiration by taking
legal actions against companies using Walt Disney’s trademark without renewing it.
Patents- The patent rights are renewed quarterly as it is difficult for the organization to work
without them. Walt Disney Reduces time for patent rights usage in order to recoup lost revenues
due to patent expiration.
6. Find the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) score for two countries where your
selected company does business, one country with a relatively high score and one
country with a relatively low score. Search for news stories about corporate financial
scandals in these two countries. Prepare a short summary of news stories about
financial scandals in these countries. Briefly describe what you perceive are the risks of

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corruption, such as paying bribes, that your selected company might face in these
countries.
The countries selected are the USA and Kenya. Corruption perception index (CPI) score for the
USA is very low while for Kenya is very high. In Kenya, there had been financial scandals
concerning Eurobond and NYS where leaders have misused funds (Magu, 2018). In the USA,
the scandals involving finances are minimum. The risks of corruption that the company might
face in Kenya is high taxations, imports and export restrictions or even closure of business by the
government.
7. Determine your company’s mode of entry into foreign markets. This should be based
upon a serious analysis of your company’s risk-return tradeoff. In your opinion, has
your company taken the right approach?
The Walt Disney Company entry mode to foreign markets is determined by analysis of all risks
that business could face. The company produces high-quality products to gain a competitive
advantage over competitors. Furthermore, it sells its products globally through the diverse
indirect and direct channel of distribution such as direct sale force, value-added resellers,
wholesalers and stores. Walt Disney Company use two entry mode to foreign markets which
include acquisitions and wholly-owned subsidiaries. Some of the company subsidiaries include
shopDisney, Walt Disney World resort and Pixar (Gringer, 2019). In addition, the company was
able to acquire 26 companies as of 2017. In my conclusion, despite high competition in the
industry, the company has taken the right approach.
8. Does your company have an exit strategy? Recall that exit strategy are to be determined
before entry into the foreign market, rather than after entry.

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Currently, Walt Disney Company does not has an exit strategy which is documented and
therefore the exit processes could be disused by shareholders as an arising concern.
9. Critically and objectively evaluate how ethical your company’s global operations are
and determine if they are good corporate citizens (i.e., do they have a well-thought-out
corporate social responsibility program for the long term?).
Walt Disney Company is an ethical company with consideration of the company’s commitment
to upholding ethical values in its internal and external operations. The company has been
involved in diverse corporate social responsibility(CSR) initiatives that include gender equality,
supporting local communities, environmental conservations, empowering and educating workers
and observation of labour and human rights (Hou & Reber,2011).
10. What is the corporate mission statement of your target company, assuming it has one?
How well do the company’s actions adhere to its stated mission?
The corporate mission statement of Walt Disney Company is to be the world’s leading producer
and entertainment provider. The company adheres to the mission by offering products of high
quality at a fair price.
11. With respect to its strategy formulation, would you categorize your company as a
shareholder model or a stakeholder orientation? Why?
Walt Disney Company’s strategic formulation can be categorized as shareholder orientation
because it is clear that the company focuses on market impression through the provision of hight
products that matches the value of money but not to just making profits as many companies
always do.

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12. Is the company a stateless corporation? If not, is the company on its way to becoming a
stateless corporation?
Walt Disney Company is stateless corporations at its operation are extended globally.
13. What type of organizational structure is the company currently using?
The organizational structure of Walt Disney Company is horizontal. According to de Wit, K.
(2010) horizontal structure is a form of organization that is based on departmentalization.
The company has five business segments media networks, parks and resort, studio media,
consumer products and interactive media.
14. Do you think the company may benefit from a hybrid or matrix structure? Why or why
not?
The company has already benefited from the hybrid structure and has enjoyed the benefits of
economies of scale and specialized experts.
15. Are any employees of your company represented by labor unions or covered by
collective bargaining agreements? Are any of these employees working outside of the
United States?
The Walt Disney Company is represented by labour unions. The labour union covers from actors
to clerks. In addition, the company has a lot of agreements with many labour unions and some of
the employees working outside the United States.
16. Does your company employ expatriates in any overseas operations it might have? If so,
what resources does the company provide to train expatriates before they go to the

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foreign location? Does the company also provide training or support for expatriates
during the repatriation phase?
The company employs expatriates in the overseas operations. The company also provides
training and support for expatriates during the repatriation phase. The training may include
learning of basic language skills, transportation orientations and legalities of working in foreign
countries.
17. To what extent, or in what ways, does your company use the Internet for employee
training and development?
The company often use the internet for training and development of employees including the
provision of online learning, assessments of tools and internet information resource. The
company has further set up classrooms where employees can be taught through the internet by
use of teleconferencing and Skype services.
18. What products are sold in the company’s international markets? Do they vary by
country or by region?
The Walt company offers a variety of products to international market consumers including
family vacation experience, theatrical productions, spa treatments, hotel rooms, books, movies,
music, toys and costumes. The products offered by the company vary by region or country
although they are integrated to suit the needs of a region. For example, books are written in
accordance with the language of the country being sold.
19. What types of promotion does your favorite company emphasize in its international
markets? Do they differ from those used in its domestic market?

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The promotional of The Walt Disney company is on social media, televisions, youtube and
interactive website for engaging consumers, strong email for marketing campaign and catalogs
for consumers products. In addition, the promotional plan of the company is used in both
internationally and domestically.
20. What kinds of distribution channels are being employed in your company’s
international markets?
The Walt Disney companies use foreign middlemen to make sure that the advertisements are not
tasteless to a new culture market.
21. Is the company practicing global procurement? If the company is procuring globally,
what goods and services are it procuring and from which countries?
The company practices global procurement as it partners and contracts small and large
companies ranging from regional and local suppliers. The goods and services procured by the
company include school supplies, action figures and toys which are in plants from China.
22. Is the company practicing global production? If the company is producing globally,
what goods and services are produced globally and in which countries?
The company is still practicing global production on diverse goods and services with live
performances being created and rehearsed in performance’s regions. Although many consumer
goods are outsourced, music, books and movies are produced in the company.
23. Has the company outsourced goods and services? Has the company insourced goods
and services?

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The company has outsourced services and goods with a specific department mandated to
focus on corporate procurement of services and goods. The outsourced goods include
theatrical shows, action figures and toys. The Walt Disney company has also insourced
entertainment with Imagineers focusing on strategizing on how they can build theme parks
and new attractions.
24. Is the company a member of one or more supply chains? If yes, can you identify the
major members of the supply chain(s)?
The Walt Disney company is a member of more supply chains. The company focuses on 5
diverse business areas including media networks, consumer products, studio and entertainment,
parks and resorts with each key are having different management of supply
25 In what countries does your company export goods? Import goods? How would changes
in the values of these countries’ currencies relative to the U.S. dollar affect transactions and
translation risks? Economic risk?
The Walt Disney company imports and exports its products in more than forty countries
globally. Some of the countries include Canada, USA, France, Mexico and China. The changes
in the values of currency in these countries affect the demands and supply of the products hence
impacting on net profits. When the currency value rises higher than U.S. dollar, the price per unit
cost fluctuates and therefore the change rate lost can be offset by influx products bought.

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Refernces
Bonell, M. J. (2009). An international restatement of contract law: the UNIDROIT principles of
international commercial contracts. Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.
De Wit, K. (2010). The networked university: the structure, culture, and policy of universities in
a changing environment. Tertiary Education and Management, 16(1), 1-14.
Gringer, B. (2019). Every Company Disney Owns: A Map of Disney's Worldwide Assets.
Retrieved from https://www.titlemax.com/discovery-center/money-finance/companies-
disney-owns-worldwide/
Hofstede. (2019). Country Comparison - Hofstede Insights. Retrieved from
https://www.hofstede-insights.com/country-comparison/the-usa/
Hou, J., & Reber, B. H. (2011). Dimensions of disclosures: Corporate social responsibility (CSR)
reporting by media companies. Public Relations Review, 37(2), 166-168.
Magu, S., 2018. Toa kitu kidogo: When “chai” is not tea–and Kenya’s corruption scandals. In
Corruption Scandals and their Global Impacts (pp. 77-96). Routledge.