bout de papier, Vol. 6, No. 4 (1989), p. 35
Is Canada preparing itself adequately to compete internationally by developing needed expertise in international business? This question was examined at the Corporate Higher Education Forum held in the Autumn of 1988. The following quotations were made by various CEO’s who attended the forum, while the exerpts are taken from a working paper entitled “Going Global.”
“Our economy is now inextricably and deeply linked to the world economy. Unless Canada develops a comprehensive, coherent, broadly-based national effort to compete in global markets, the full revitalization of the Canadian economy will not occur.”
“The central objective of domestic policy for the remainder of the decade must be to improve the ability of Canadian management to compete on an international scale.”
“In Canada, you can have a successful career, a fine peergroup relationship and a heck of a pile of creature comforts without going international.”
*In my experience, the people produced by our educational system have little or no understanding of, or interest in, international affairs. They are poorly prepared to deal with the enormous social, economic and political challenges facing business today.”
A recent study at Queen’s University showed that International business was ranked seventeenth out of eighteen listed disciplines in order of importance by respondents representing employers, graduates and academics.
Those who have been calling for urgent attention to the development of Canada’s international business expertise say that international skills are highly complex, requiring a broad, interdisciplinary preparation including languages and an understanding of culture, politics, history and broad economic forces. Such skills are extremely difficult to develop on the job.
The prevailing view seems to be that international business is simply a variant of domestic business, and through the course of first-hand experience the minor adjustments necessary will be made.
“I would submit that there isn’t a Canadian corporation today that knows how to market its services offshore. Yet the trade of the future is going to be selling things you can’t touch, smell or kick.”
“A successful trade policy requires a knowledge of the cultures, language, traditions, economic capacity and management techniques of our trading partners. Without such understanding of our customers and competitors, we cannot trade successfully…
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Originally published in bout de papier, Vol. 6, No. 4 (1989), p. 35. Read the rest of this issue →
