Preparing Students for the International Marketplace

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Preparing Students for theInternational MarketplaceVictoria D. Bush a & Alan J. Bush ba Department of Management and Marketing,College of Business , University of Mississippi ,University, MS, 38677, USAb Fogelman College of Business , University ofMemphis , Memphis, TN, 38152, USAPublished online: 09 Oct 2008.

To cite this article: Victoria D. Bush & Alan J. Bush (1999) Preparing Students for theInternational Marketplace, Journal of Teaching in International Business, 10:2, 1-16,DOI: 10.1300/J066v10n02_01

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Preparing Students for the International Marketplace:

Practitioners’ Perceptions of Specific Skills and Characteristics

Needed for Success Victoria D. Bush

Alan J. Bush

ABSTRACT. While universities in the U S . appear to be addressing international business and marketing curriculum, research emphasizing the input of practitioners to this area has bcen limited. The purpose of this paper is to further identify the particular skills and characteristics perceived by experienced international business practitioners that MBA students need when embarking on an international business career. Data collection consisted of personal interviews and a survey of a sample of international business practitioners. The results indicate that practitioners would likc to see students with more specific skills and characteristics related to actual job experience. The findings from this study can provide insights to international business educators for curriculum development and the importance of internships for international MBA programs. [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Ser- vice: 1-800-342-9678. E-mail address: getinfo@lraworthpressLic. corn]

Despite corporations’ continued expansion into businesses interna- tionally, U.S. universities have lagged behind in training students for

Victoria D. Bush is Assistant Professor of Marketing, Department of Manage- ment and Marketing, College of Business, University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677 (E-mail: [email protected]).

Alan J . Bush is Professor of Marketing at Fogelman College of Business, Univer- sity of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152.

Journal of Teaching in International Business, Vol. lO(2) 1998 0 1998 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved. I

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2 .IOURNAL OF TEACHING IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

international trade. A great deal has been written about AACSB-ac- credited schools’ efforts to add international courses and content to its programs (e.g., Nehrt 1987; Thanopoulos and Vernon 1987; Efendio- glu 1989; Fleming, Shooshtari and Wallwork 1993; Kuhne 1990). Yet, only a handful of colleges or universities appear to be addressing the specific training needs of the international business community. Nehrt (1993) summarizes the current state of research on training students for international business as he posits, “The United States has entered a global era, and it is the responsibility of education to prepare people for the world in which they will be living. Business schools in the United States have fallen short in fulfilling this mission” (p. 81).

While research on internationalizing business curriculums and training students for international trade has made strides since Profes- sor Nehrt’s wake-up call in 1993, more research is needed given the extreme importance of international trade to the US. economy and corporate growth. In particular, more insight is needed from those practicing in the field of international business (Lundstrom, White and Schuster, 1996) and what specific tasks and skills are important for student success in international business. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to further define and explore the particular skills and tasks that are important for MBA graduates to possess when embarking on an international business career-as perceived by experienced international business practitioners.

INTERNATIONAL MA= TING EDUCA TION: PRACTITIONER PERSPECTNE

Researchers in international business have begun to investigate the general knowledge and skill areas needed for graduates to be successful. However, little has been done from the practitioners’ viewpoint. Yet, interaction between practitioners and academics continues to be of great importance in designing relevant training programs and curriculum. Even less research has been conducted at the international marketing level.

While practitioner input into the international content of MBA programs is extremely important, there is a dearth of research in this area. Reynolds and Rice (1988) conducted some of the initial research of practitioners concerning trainingheaching students for the international marketplace. The authors surveyed 127 US. firms with internation-

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Kctorin D. Bush and Alan J. Bush 3

a1 operations and focused upon practitioners’ opinions about the rela- tive importance of seven functional fields of specialization within international business. The results of this study indicated that international marketing and international finance were perceived as more important than other functional areas of international business.

In a study of Canadian practitioners, Beamish and Calof (1989) focused on practitioner perceptions of the importance of various academic disciplines and international courses on success in an international business career. One hundred and twenty-two (122) Canadian practitioners ranked business degrees and engineering as highest for students preparing for an international career. Respondents also rated the importance of various courses as they related to career progress within multinational firms. Courses rated as most important for career development were international marketingjsales (x = 3.32), international finance (x = 3.04), and international trade and exporting (x = 2.90). While all courses of study were deemed somewhat important, these three were most preferred by practitioners.

The significance of foreign language skills for job positions in multinational firms was investigated by Walters (1990). This study surveyed 20 US. firms and two European multinational corporations who hire MBAs from American Universities. The findings of this study indicate relatively high importance attached to foreign language skills as a selection criterion for the multinational firms. Although less significant than the personal characteristics of the students, this study suggested foreign language skills were as important as the students’ technical skills.

Most recently, Lundstrom, White and Schuster (1996) conducted a survey of professional members of a national marketing association regarding skills and knowledge areas that are important to international business practitioners. The authors found that several general skills and knowledge areas were consistently ranked as important for the international marketing student. Some of the most important skills consisted of general marketing competence, human relations or people skills, assessing market potentials, international marketing skills, and general world business knowledge. In their discussion, the authors state that “the student should have general marketing and people skills first, then the tools needed for marketing on a global level.” This study was instrumental in surfacing critical skill/knowledge areas needed by international marketing students.

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4 JOURNAL OF TEACHING IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

The results of these studies suggest a trend in this literature from general areas of international business and courses to more specific areas. As the importance in designing curriculum and programs for international business and marketing continues to be important, the research in this area has grown more in-depth with each new study. It is the focus of this paper to continue this trend and explore these general skills/knowledge areas more in-depth. What specific skills and characteristics are important to international business executives within these general categories? In the present study, in-depth personal interviews and a detailed survey are used in an attempt to identify more specific skills/characteristics that a student should possess to be successful in an international corporation.

ME THODOLOG Y

The research design for the current study consisted of two phases. First, in-depth interviews were conducted with experts in international business. Then, this information, along with current relevant literature, was used to generate an exploratory survey instrument. A questionnaire was designed to further gather information from experts in international business on specific tasks needed to be successful in international business.

Phase I: With a working knowledge of the general skills needed to be successful in international business, the authors sought out experts in the field to gain more insight into how these general skills and knowledge areas translate into actual tasks performed in the international marketplace. A series of in-depth interviews were conducted with individuals from export companies and/or universities who had at least 10 to 20 years of experience in international business or trade. A total of six personal interviews with individuals ranging from presidents and product/sales managers in export organizations to a director of an international MBA program were conducted. Each interview took about 45 minutes. Extensive notes were taken during the interview.

The personal interviews focused on what specific skills or characteristics were associated with the general knowledge/skill areas identified by Lundstrom, White and Schuster (1996). These areas consisted of general marketing competence, human relations/people skills, assessing country/market potentials, international marketing skills, etc.

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Each interviewee was given these general areas and was then asked what tasks make up these areas. In addition, they were also asked if there were any other important issues that should be included in training students for success in international business.

After several of the interviews, there appeared to be a general consensus concerning specific skills needed by students for international business. These individuals pointed out that, indeed there are some general skills that graduate students should be familiar with. However, a major weakness that these experts consistently observed was the lack of knowledge about the day to day activities of the international business professional. Additionally, they were surprised at the students’ lack of understanding the impact of cultural differences. In sum, experts felt that graduates of MBA programs are very well versed in the “big picture” of how marketing is conducted at the international level. However, graduates are not prepared for the various tasks that are undertaken that make up the big picture. Further, they mentioned a tremendous amount of patience and perseverance must somehow be taught and recognized by graduates as one of the most important and hard-to-accomplish personal skills. Indeed, these skills can impede their overall job performance-an area most of the interviewees felt was also overlooked by international programs.

The experts all agreed on general international marketing skills, cross-cultural human relations/people skills and international export skills as the critical determinants of job success in the international marketplace. Incidentally, these three general knowledge areas were rated as the most important areas in the Lundstrom, White and Schus- ter (1996) survey. The experts were also asked their perceptions of the specific skills and characteristics associated with each of these three general areas. The twenty-four specific skills/characteristics identified by the experts during the personal interviews are presented in Exhibit 1.

Interestingly, all of the experts mentioned some aspect of overall job performance during the personal interviews. The practitioners’ eluded to the fact that these specific skills can impede or enhance an individual’s overall job performance. Moreover, they all felt that not enough students came out of international business courses with an understanding of overall job performance. Therefore, a fourth skill area-job performance skills-was added to our domain of specific skills/characteristics needed for success in the international marketplace.

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EXHIBIT I. Specific Tasks Associated with General Skill/Knowledge Area as Identified by International Marketing Experts

General International Marketing Skills:

1, Identify overseas marketing opportunities 2. Identify international marketing research options 3. Track global business trends 4. Recognize cultural barriers 5. Determine product development issues 6. Analyze distribution options 7. Develop pricing strategies 8. Coordinate promotional activities 9. Demonstrate personal selling skills

10. Develop an international marketing plan

Cross-Cultural Human Relations/People Skills:

1. Strategically plan for a visit 2. Have patience 3. Demonstrate perseverance 4. Deal with the anxiety of culture shock 5. Deal with time delays brought on by cultural differences 6. Communication of misunderstandings 7. Deal with different communication styles

International Export Skills:

1. Export financing 2. Licensing and insurance issues 3. Shipping practices 4. Global telecommunications and computer literacy skills 5. Tariff and non-tariff barriers 6. Identifying reputable agents overseas 7. Where to go find international export information

Job Performance Skills:

1. Accept direction from you 2. Understand your company’s mission 3. Be motivated to learn on the job 4. Perform with little or no advice 5. Tolerate ambiguity 6 . Perform under stress 7. Demonstrate professionalism 8. Work independently 9. Work in groups

10. Solve problems quickly .

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Phase /I: Based on these in-depth interviews with international business and marketing experts and a review of the literature, a questionnaire was designed to incorporate the more specific skills neces- sary for MBAs to be successful in international business. Four general areas were identified: general international marketing skills, cross-cultural human relations skills, international export skills and job performance skills. These areas are consistent with previous research (e.g., Lundstrom, White and Schuster 1996; Beamish and Calof 1989). In addition, the questionnaire also included some general demographic information such as the number of employees, number of offices outside the U.S., type of products exported and to which countrieshe- gions, and the position of the respondents.

The questionnaire was reviewed and pretested by a panel of several experts who were knowledgeable about international trade. Upon their review, redundant items were deleted while some items were modified for clarity. Given the nature of this study, the population was defined as current exporters in a metropolitan area in the mid-United States. The sampling frame was a membership roster of 123 members of an exporting association from the metro area.

Telephone interviews were conducted by trained graduate students. Each student was given a randomly selected list of international exporters to contact. A three-week period of time was selected to contact the members of the sample frame. A random sampling of these members yielded a total of 48 completed questionnaires resulting in a response rate of 39%. Given the nature of the individuals in the sample frame and the detail of the questionnaire, this was an acceptable rate of response and the sample size is quite typical of such studies (Arora and Stoner 1992).

RESULTS

Characteristics of the practitioner sample are as follows. In terms of general demographic information, the average number of employees per respondent firm was 180. The average number of offices outside the U S . was 16. The type of products exported by the sample ranged from food, cosmetics and medical supplies to wood products along with various services such as banking, consulting and brokering. Countries/regions that the respondent companies export to included Mexico, the Pacific Rim, Canada, Eastern and Western Europe, Asia,

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and Africa. The position of the respondents in the contacted organizations primarily consisted of International Marketing and Sales Manag- ers, International Vice Presidents, Export Managers and Presidents.

The importance ratings of the specific skills/characteristics needed by the international marketing student concerning international marketing competence are presented in Table l. The specific tasks/skills are listed from most important (highest mean rating) to least important (lowest mean rating). While all specific skills/characteristics related to international marketing competence were perceived as important, developing an international marketing plan (x = 8.30) and recognizing cultural barriers (x = 8.27) were rated as the most and second most important specific skills needed by students. Identifying overseas marketing opportunities (x = 8.17) and demonstrating personal selling skills were also rated as important determinants of job success in the international marketplace. Coordinating promotional activities (x = 7.27) and determining product development issues (x = 7.00) were perceived as less important for international marketing students.

Based on these ratings, several specific marketing skills/characteristics as emphasized by the business community should be emphasized in an international marketing course. A working knowledge of how to develop an international marketing plan should be incorporated into the class. Also, of critical importance is educating interna-

TABLE l . Importance Ratings of Specific SkillslCharacteristics Needed by the International Marketing Student: International Marketing Competence

Task/Skill Mean Develop an international marketing plan Recognize cultural barriers Identify overseas marketing opportunities Demonstrate personal selling skills Analyze distribution options Develop pricing strategies Track global business trends Identify international marketing research option Coordinate promotional activities Determine product development issues

8.30 8.27 8.17 8.13 8.04 7.92 7.63

S 7.58 7.27 7.00

Items were evaluated on a 10 point scale where 1 = "not important at all" and 10 = "extremely important."

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Victoria D. Birsli mid Alan J. Bush 9

tional marketing students on cultural diversity and in identifying overseas marketing opportunities.

Table 2 presents the importance ratings of the specific skills/characteristics needed by international marketing students concerning human relations/people skills. The ability of international students to have patience was rated as the most critical determinant of job success by the practitioners (x = 9.30). Nso, of importance concerning people skills is the ability to demonstrate perseverance (x = 8.90), and to communicate misunderstandings (x = 8.81). While still important, to strategically plan for a visit received the lowest importance rating in this group of skills (x = 7.98).

It is apparent from these ratings that practitioners perceive people skills as critical determinants of international job success. Mean ratings near or above 9.0 on a ten point scale are among the highest of all items in this survey. Therefore, the focus of an international marketing curriculum containing specific skills or even traits desired by practitioners would be on having patience, demonstrating perseverance and being able to communicate misunderstandings. While these skills and/ or traits are people based, they are a result of cultural differences.

The next area of specific skills needed by international marketing students concerns international export skills. The importance ratings of these specific skills are presented in Table 3. The three highest rated skills by the practitioners are global telecommunications and computer literacy skills (x = 8.36), where to go to find international export information (x = 8.34), and identifying reputable agents overseas (x =

TABLE 2. Importance Ratings of Specific Skills/Characteristics Needed by the International Marketing Student: Human Relations/People Skills

Task/Skill Mean Have patience 9.30 Demonstrate perseverance 8.90 Be able to communicate misunderstandings 8.81 Deal with different communication styles 8.31 Deal with time delays brought on by cultural differences 8.28 Deal with anxiety of culture shock 8.18 Strategically plan for a visit 7.98

~~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~


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TABLE 3. Importance Ratings of Specific SkillslCharacteristics Needed by the International Marketing Student: International Export Skills

Task/Skill Mean Global telecommunications and computer literacy skills 8.36

Identifying reputable agents overseas 8.15 Shipping practices 7.72 Tariff and non-tariff barriers 7.62 Export financing 7.19 Licensing and insurance issues 7.10

Where to go to find international export information 8.34


8.15). Rated as less important by respondents were shipping practices (x = 7.721, tariff and non-tariff barriers (x = 7.621, export financing (x = 7.19), and licensing and insurance issues (x = 7.10).

The perceived importance ratings of the specific international export skills needed by students provides some important insights for marketing educators. Practitioners rated the more traditional export skills such as shipping practices, tariff barriers and export insurance and financing skills as less important than skills related to more mod- ern technology such as computers and identifying overseas information and customers. Based on these ratings, practitioners are seeking international marketing students with computer technology and, perhaps, internet skills.

The fourth area of importance as identified by practitioners relating to job success in the international marketplace was an overall understanding of job performance skills. The ten items relating to job performance along with the mean values associated with each item is presented in Table 4. An understanding of a company's mission (x = 9.15) was rated as the most important factor in helping students with their overall job performance with international companies. Motivated to learn (x = 8.90), demonstrate professionalism (x = 8.83), work independently (x = 8.63), and perform under stress (x = 8.58) were also rated as highly important by practitioners.

Based on these ratings, an international marketing curriculum should emphasize overall job performance skills. Eight of the ten job performance items were rated as 8.0 or better on a 10 point scale by

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TABLE 4. Importance Ratings of'specific SkillslCtiaracteristics heeded by the International Marketing Student: Job Performance Skills . , ~

Task/Skill ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~

Understanding your company's mission Be motivated to learn on the job Demonstrate professionalism Work independently Perform under stress Accept direction from you Work in groups Solve problems quickly Perform with little or no advice Tolerate ambiguity

Mean 9.15 8.90 8.83 8.63 8.58 8.13 8.13 8.04 7.46 7.02


the international marketing experts. Thus, an important part of an international marketing curriculum should be to provide students with the fundamentals of job performance skills and to relate them to international companies.

IMPLZCA TIONS

The purpose of this study was to further identify and define the particular skills/characteristics that are important for MBA marketing graduates to possess when embarking on an international business career. Personal interviews and surveys from a sample of experienced international marketing practitioners identified many specific international business skills for each of the following four general areas: international marketing competence, human relations/people skills, international export skills, and overall job performance skills. The findings from this study can provide insights to marketing educators for course and/or curriculum development for international marketing and MBA programs. Suggestions for how these findings can be inte- grated into a course or program are discussed below.

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International Marketing Competence

Experienced international marketing practitioners emphasized the importance of understanding a marketing plan, recognizing cultural barriers, identifying overseas opportunities and having personal selling skills as the most important skills for international MBA students concerning general international marketing competence. A class proj- ect which would have an international MBA class develop a marketing plan for a global company would help students develop several of these aforementioned skills. Actually doing a marketing plan for a global company would not only help the students become familiar with the basics of a marketing plan but would also get them involved in identifying potential opportunities and threats in overseas markets. The development of a marketing plan with a global emphasis could easily be incorporated into an international management or strategy course.

The specific skills concerning cultural barriers and personal selling could be enhanced by international marketing students in several ways. First, international marketing students could be required to take a personal selling course to help them develop these general skills. Second, role playing exercises can also help students tone dyadic communication skills as well as to help recognize cultural barriers. Additionally, there are several cultural diversity training exercises that can give students an appreciation for the difficulty in communicating across cultures. For example, one simulation that has been used in academic and workplace settings is called BAFA BAFA (Shirts 1973). Here, students learn to role play two fictitious cultures who try to interact with one another. The result is a feeling of culture shock which can raise the awareness of students of the importance of learning about other cultures. Finally, a course that focuses specifically on diversity and intercultural communication could be incorporated into the curriculum. This could either be developed specifically for marketing students or be used cross-functionally with schools/departments of communication.

Human RelationslPeople Skills

Patience, perseverance, the ability to communicate misunderstandings and dealing with different communication styles were perceived by practitioners as the most important human relations/people skills

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Wctoria D. Bush atid Alan J. Bush 13

for international marketing students. While role playing exercises and diversity training would help students tone these skills, actually inter- acting with people from different cultural backgrounds can be more realistic. This can be accomplished in two ways: (1) working in culturally diverse teams and (2) completing an internship with a global company.

Throughout their International MBA career, students can be as- signed to a team to work on projects. These teams can be made up, as much as possible given the demographic profile of the class, of class- mates from culturally diverse backgrounds. Here, students can learn to work together on a more informal basis toward a class goal such as developing a global marketing strategy. Working in teams can provide the initial exposure to how different cultures go about accomplishing a common goal.

An internship may be the ideal tool for helping international students with further refinement of these important human relations skills. Several International MBA programs across the U.S. have incorporated Internships into their curriculum. Perhaps the best way to help international marketing students deal with patience, perseverance and different communication styles is to have them live and work in a foreign environment.

With these internships, it is extremely important for the professor to be available and help mentor the students on these very important people skills. Having patience was the highest rated item in the entire study. It is apparent that the practitioner sample must have experienced this lack of patience themselves or among their employees to rate it as the most important item for international business success.

International Export Skills

The most important specific international export skills identified by practitioners dealt primarily with computers and technology. Global telecommunications and computer skills along with where to find international export information were perceived as the most important international skills needed by students.

These skills point to the need for computer labs in an international marketing curriculum. International marketing students must be familiar with the latest in technology and computer applications to be successful in the international marketplace. Computer labs with access to the internet, LEXUWNEXUS and international resource information

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14 JOURNAL. OF TEACHING IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

must be incorporated into the curriculum. Specific courses or projects could be developed for computer labs. Students would not only learn the technology but gain important skills on secondary data that is available to help them identify global opportunities.

To remain current with technology, it is important for professors and managers of International MBA programs to develop and main- tain relationships with global organizations. These organizations can provide access to the latest technological advances.

Job Performance Skills

Perhaps the most surprising finding from this study is the practitioners’ rating of specific job performance skills. “Understanding your company’s mission” was rated as the second most important skill in the entire survey with a mean rating of 9.15. International marketing practitioners apparently perceive a students success with their company directly related to understanding the company’s mission and how it operates in the international marketplace. This finding implies that marketing educators should not forget traditional aspects of strategic marketing in their international courses. Strategic planning on a global level is essential for students seeking careers with multinational companies. The mission statement and its importance in directing a company and its employees must be a part of the international marketing curriculum. While cultural diversity, communication styles, and technology are all critical aspects of an international marketing curriculum, marketing educators should not forget the importance of strategic planning.

To emphasize the importance of strategic planning, students should be exposed to global corporations. This can be accomplished by get- ting involved with global organizations locally as well as abroad. A program could be developed to get global marketing managers involved with the International MBA program. For example, making these practitioners a “professor for a day” where they speak to classes on how strategic planning i s incorporated into their organization can be a great way to develop an ongoing relationship between the international business community and academia. Further, a summer seminar could be developed, apart from an internship, where students travel abroad to visit various global organizations and observe their operations first-hand.

International marketing practitioners also rated motivation as an

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Mctorio D. Bush and Alaii J. Bush 15

important determinant of a students’ success in the international marketplace. Marketing educators and employers alike should consider the patience and perseverance that is needed to succeed in foreign markets. Motivation to learn among student interns or new employees could quickly dissipate after experiencing frustration on the job. Therefore, it is extremely important to include motivation as a part of an internship program for students. Global companies could evaluate their student interns’ motivation on the job as an overall part of the students’ educational experience. Providing constructive feedback can be valuable for the students.

CONCLUSION

It is apparent from the responses presented here that international marketing practitioners would like to see students with more specific skills related to actual job experience. While knowledge of traditional strategic marketing is extremely important, so are the specific tasks of developing a marketing plan, telecommunications, computer literacy, personal selling and cultural diversity skills. Moreover, marketing educators must realize the frustration students can encounter in a global environment and address the importance of such personal characteristics as patience and perseverance to international marketing students.

Perhaps the best way to incorporate these skills into an international MBA program is to recognize the valuable input that practitioners can provide to the students’ learning experience. Clearly, each major area reviewed here calls for “real-world” involvement. The more students can be exposed to how business is actually conducted at the global level, the more successful the International MBA program is at plac- ing these students in the global work force.

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Preparing Students for the International Marketplace