Course

Trade in the Global Marketplace

Faculty
Commerce & Business Administration
Department
Business
Course code
BUSN 3100
Credits
3.00
Semester length
15 weeks
Max class size
35
Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Seminar
Course designation
Certificate in Global Competency
Industry designation
None
Typically offered
To be determined

Overview

Course description
This course presents the key elements of the international business process that are necessary for local companies to transition into and thrive in the global marketplace. The course focuses on financial analysis of costs and pricing for the import and export of products (goods) and services. It examines the inherent risks of international trade and the steps that must be taken to analyze and mitigate risks including currency, political, economic, social, environmental, ethical, commercial, physical asset, personnel, technology, and intellectual property. The course aims to provide the tools necessary to propose a global business transition plan that incorporates market research and cultural awareness.
Course content

1. Globalization

  • What is globalization?
  • Forces driving globalization
  • Arguments for and against globalization

 2. Cross-Cultural Business

  • Components of culture
  • Classifying cultures
  • Managing across cultures

 3. Politics and Law

  • Political systems and political risk
  • Legal systems and legal risk

 4. International Ethics

  • Ethics and social responsibility
  • Identifying and resolving ethical conflicts in the global business environment

 5. Emerging Markets

  • Political and Business systems
  • Development of nations
  • Centrally controlled, mixed, and free enterprise business environments

6. International Trade

  • Overview of international trade

7. Foreign Direct Investment

  • Management issues and foreign direct investment
  • Government intervention and policy instruments and foreign direct investment

 8. Regional Economic Integration

  • Effects of regional political, economic, and business integration
  • Types of regional economic integration; free trade agreements, regional economic integration, and economic and political unions

 9. International Financial Markets and Foreign Exchange

  • Exchange rate factors, forecasts and theories
  • International monetary system
  • International capital markets
  • Foreign exchange markets

 10. International Strategy and Organization

  • Assessing organizational readiness
  • Planning international market research
  • Screening potential international markets
  • Selecting research design and conducting secondary research
  • Collecting data for primary research
  • Organizing data and presenting conclusions
  • International strategy
  • International organization structure

 11. Selecting and Managing Entry Modes

  • Exporting, importing and countertrade
  • Contractual entry modes
  • Investment entry modes
  • eCommerce entry modes and the effect of eMarketing on market entry strategies
  • Strategic factors in selecting an entry mode

 12. Risk Analysis and Management

  • The risk management process
  • Analyzing and mitigating:
    • currency/foreign exchange risk
    • political risk
    • economic risk
    • social risk
    • commercial risk
    • foreign physical asset risk
    • personnel risk
    • technology risk
    • intellectual property risk

 13. Developing and Marketing Products

  • Product development and adaptation
  • Service Development: International Trade in Services
  • Service development factors
  • Service development processes and design
  • Conducting cost and pricing analysis for exporting products (goods)
  • Conducting cost and pricing analysis for importing products (goods)
  • Conducting cost and pricing analysis for exporting services
  • Conducting cost and pricing analysis for importing services
  • Regulatory compliance
  • Intellectual property protection
  • Product liability
  • Establishing sales channels to international markets
  • Conducting sales and follow up
  • Negotiating terms of international sales agreements 
Learning activities

Methods of instruction may include the following:

  • Lectures
  • Discussions
  • Case study analysis
  • Guest lectures on industry-specific subjects
Means of assessment

Assessment will be in accordance with the Douglas College Evaluation Policy.

Assignment(s)/Case Study(ies)/Quiz(zes) (Individual)

 10 - 35%
Project (Group) 10 - 35%
Midterm Examination(s)  0 - 30%
Final Examination 20 - 40%
Participation   0 - 10%
Total: 100%

Notes:

  1. Fifty percent (50%) of non-exam assessments must be for individual work.
  2. Students must achieve a grade of at least 50% on the combined exam components to pass the course.
  3. Students may conduct research as part of their coursework in this class. Instructors for the course are responsible for ensuring that student research projects comply with College policies on ethical conduct for research involving humans, which can require obtaining Informed Consent from participants and getting the approval of the Douglas College Research Ethics Board prior to conducting the research.

 

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the successful student will be able to:

  1. analyze the current and future global business environments from both a national and global perspective.
  2. examine topics such as codes of conduct for international trade professionals, protecting human rights, implementing ethical practices, recognizing diversity in the workplace, and preserving the natural environment.
  3. analyze costs and pricing for the import and export of products (goods) and services.
  4. assess how the cultural aspects of business affect international trade and business relationships.
  5. evaluate the management of business functions
  6. identify and analyze potential risks, including ethical, of international initiatives and determine if the potential gains and opportunities of the venture outweigh the possible risks.
  7. evaluate how e-marketing and e-commerce are shaping the global business environment.
  8. propose a global business plan that incorporates, among other things, the trade and marketing elements necessary for a business organization preparing to go international.
Textbook materials

Textbook(s) will be chosen from the following list:

  • Wild, Wild, and Valladares. International Business: The Challenge of Globalization. (Latest Canadian Edition): Pearson Education Canada.
  • Cavusgil, Knight, and Riesenberger. International Business: New Realities. (Latest Edition). Pearson.
  • Feasibility of International Trade. (Latest Edition), Forum for International Trade Training (FITT; Free eBook download for students registered with FITT).
  • Products and Services for a Global Market. (Latest Edition), Forum for International Trade Training (FITT; Free eBook download for students registered with FITT).

 And/or any alternative textbook approved by the Business Management Department.

 

Requisites

Prerequisites

BUSN 1200 or BUSN 1210 or ECON 1103, OR currently active in the:

  • PBD Hospitality Services Management or
  • PDD Global Banking and Economics or
  • PDD Hospitality Management.

Corequisites

No corequisite courses.

Equivalencies

No equivalent courses.

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

(Current)

Course Transfers

These are for current course guidelines only. For a full list of archived courses please see https://www.bctransferguide.ca

Institution Transfer details for BUSN 3100
Athabasca University (AU) AU ADMN 3XX (3)
College of the Rockies (COTR) COTR MGMT 3XX (3)
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) KPU BUSI 2490 (3)
Northern Lights College (NLC) NLC MGMT 2XX (3)
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU IBUS 3510 (3)
University Canada West (UCW) UCW BUSI 2XX (3)
University of British Columbia - Vancouver (UBCV) UBCV COMM_V 3rd (3)
University of Northern BC (UNBC) UNBC COMM 303 (3)
University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) UFV BUS 420 (3)
University of Victoria (UVIC) UVIC IB 301 (1.5)
Vancouver Community College (VCC) VCC GNED 3210 (3)

Course Offerings

Summer 2025

CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
35
Currently enrolled
35
Remaining seats:
0
On waitlist
0
Building
Anvil Office Tower
Room
624
Times:
Start Time
12:30
-
End Time
15:20
CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
35
Currently enrolled
25
Remaining seats:
10
On waitlist
0
Building
Anvil Office Tower
Room
609
Times:
Start Time
18:30
-
End Time
21:20