New Open World of Science Goes Global

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The Institute For the Future research affiliate -- founder of spacehack.org and open science strategist Ariel Waldman -- announced at her morning keynote at OSCON (the O’Reilly Open Source Convention in Portland) that Science Hack Day is going global.

About Ariel Waldman:
Ariel is an open science strategist, interaction designer and the founder of Spacehack.org, a directory of ways to participate in space exploration. She currently works at Institute For The Future, a non-profit founded by early internet pioneers and ARPANET researchers. Recently, she founded Science Hack Day SF, an event that brings together scientists, technologists, designers and people with good ideas to see what they can create in a weekend.

Additionally, she sits on the advisory board for the SETI Institute's science radio show Are We Alone?, is a contributor to the book State of the eUnion: Government 2.0 and Onwards, and is the founder of CupcakeCamp. In 2008, she was named one of the top 50 most influential individuals in Silicon Valley. Previously, she was a CoLab Program Coordinator at NASA, a Digital Anthropologist at VML (a WPP agency), and a sci-fi movie gadget columnist for Engadget.
Learn more: Science Hack Day Goes Global

Posted by:  The Global Small Business Blog

How to Translate Social Media Activities Into International Expansion

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Liz Elting, co-founder and Co-CEO of TransPerfect, provides common pitfalls when translating social media activities into international expansion.

Four Social Media Pitfalls to Avoid As Your Business Goes Global

Here are the four:

1. Let social media efforts carry the international marketing campaign.
2. Isolate social media efforts from the rest of the international marketing strategy.
3. Adopt social media marketing abroad no matter what.
4. Put resources into social media at the beginning of a campaign, then taper off those efforts.

World: Celebrate Something!

©Laurel Delaney 2011, Cupcake Heaven
Go out and have yourself some fun.  Celebrate something.  Enjoy the weekend!

Will There Be a Change in the Global Economy?

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Standard & Poor's recent decision to downgrade the U.S. on its triple-A credit rating has people wondering whether this move will affect the entire global economy.

Find out here and be sure to read the reader's comments.  Always enlightening.

What Does It Mean to Be Truly Global?

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Having just given a presentation for the Women Presidents' Organization last week at McDonald's Hamburger University in Oakbrook, Illinois on "What It Means To Be Global," I was quite pleased to discover this newly published work featured below by one of my favorite authors:  C.K. Prahalad (may he rest in peace).

Background:
August 8 was C.K. Prahalad’s 70th birthday. To commemorate Prahalad’s work, strategy+business is pleased to publish an article that was in progress at the time of his death in April 2010. In it, he and his coauthor, Hrishi Bhattacharyya, explain why multinational business models are no longer relevant, and how skillful companies can integrate three strategies — customization, competencies, and arbitrage — into a better form of organization.
How to Be a Truly Global Company
by C. K. Prahalad and Hrishi Bhattacharyya

Snippet:
The problem is not globalization, but the way our current institutions are set up to respond to this new demand. The prevailing corporate operating model does not work well with the structural changes that have taken place in the global economy.
Definitely worth a read - several times over.

Past blog posts on CK:
Posted by:  The Global Small Business Blog

Five Countries To Look at For Expanding Internationally

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I can't say the five countries (Mexico is one) mentioned in the article below are the easiest nor friendliest places to do business but they do offer market potential if you are able to gain access.

Read:

Expanding Internationally?  Consider these business-friendly countries

America: Land of the Free, Home of the Brave

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Is the United States headed for a double-dip recession? Read what experts say here. And it's always provocative to obtain perspectives from country experts other than the United States.

Related:

America's economy:  Time for a double dip?

What's your opinion?


Australian Suits That Sizzle

How To Cultivate International Skills

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Go to a school that offers a global education. 
As national borders become less meaningful, business schools are pushing to increase the number of international students they attract as well as the amount of international work experience their domestic students get.
 Read:

Top MBA Programs Going Global

Google Gone Global Once Again

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Google Talk (VoIP service) is expanding its phone call service beyond the United States to more than 150 locations around the world in 38 languages.  No kidding.  No connection fees.  Pay only for talk time.
Many small businesses are turning to Skype to cut telephony costs, but with Google offering a lower-cost alternative, businesses and consumers may soon reap the benefits of increased competition.  
Learn more here.

How to Create An Export Action Plan

©Laurel Delaney 2011, Chicago Aon Center and Blue Cross Blue Shield Building
The process of developing a realistic export business plan and relevant activities that support your export vision is discussed in this column for Crain's Chicago Business.

How to Create -- and Act On -- An Export Business Plan

The New Normal: Going Global

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Takes a while to get to the point but the title and last sentence is so true.

Going Global Has Become the Norm

Related to going global:  50 Ways to Go Global

How to Test Cultural Adaptation Skills and Grit

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According to Fortune, corporations are taking a new approach to the overseas assignment and have begun to send employees abroad to work on short-term projects as a means to test how they work, and adapt, outside their comfort zones.

Could the days of traveling overseas to glamorous places on the company's nickel for global experience be over?

Read:

Overseas Job Assignments Get a Haircut

How To Sell Your Products Internationally Without Ever Leaving Home

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For most business owners there comes a point when you look critically at every aspect of your business to determine how to squeeze out more growth. 

Big "aha's" can come by looking at transitioning from local to global.

Read:

Less Local, More Global
9 Ways to Sell Your Products Internationally Without Ever Leaving Home

Posted by:  The Global Small Business Blog

What's Your Excuse For NOT Going Global?

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Too busy, too complicated, too expensive or too risky?  It's all of these excuses plus more on why companies don't expand their businesses internationally. 

My latest contribution ...

Top 10 Excuses For Not Going Global
American Express OPEN Forum via Small Business Trends

What's yours?

A Piece of the World Trade Center Arrives

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A 4-foot, 215-pound piece of steel rectangle arrived on the flatbed of a Department of Public Works truck July 19th in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey. The piece of steel will be permanently installed at Memorial Pond (dedicated in 2003 in memory of four residents killed in terrorist attacks 9/11).
Those in attendance greeted the steel by taking pictures of it. By noon, it was in the firehouse, where it will stay until officials decide where to place it at the pond.
 The pond is behind Borough Hall and adjacent to Muni Field.
The final phase of the pond project — the creation of a waterfall — is in progress and will be completed in time for the 10th anniversary of 9/11, officials have said. A commemorative ceremony will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 10, at the pond.
Learn more about this symbol of healing story here.

Overtake America? Seriously?

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Is the United States losing status as a global superpower?
A new Pew Global Attitudes survey finds that while the U.S. is better regarded around the world now than it was in the Bush years, in 15 of 22 nations surveyed most say that China either will replace or already has replaced America as the world's "leading superpower." This view is especially widespread in Western Europe, where at least six in 10 respondents in Britain, France, Germany and Spain see China eventually overtaking the U.S.
Read the entire commentary here:

Andrew Kohut (president of the Pew Research Center) and published by The Wall Street Journal: The World Says China Will Overtake America

Related resource:

Pew Global Attitudes Project
China Seen Overtaking U.S. As Global Superpower

What do you think?

Are Your Processes In Place For Going Global?

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As your organization grows global, do you have a support system in place that can take you where you want to go with total transparency and minimal operational, supply chain and distribution missteps? We hope so.
What the management needs is a global view of its inventory and operations, as well as tight coordination between manufacturing and distribution operations to ensure an efficient supply chain. In addition, they want a consolidated view into the company’s financial data so that they have clear visibility into their costs and margins. This ensures that the organization is able to monitor its financial and operational model closely as it prepares to take on the significant new risks of going global.
If you have doubts, read:

Is Your Company Ready to Take Advantage of Market Growth?
Manufacturing Business Technology
by Thomas Tan

Posted by:  The Global Small Business Blog

2011 (Global) Small Business Influencer

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I am honored to be nominated for the "2011 Small Business Influencer" - the top influencers in the small business market.  If you haven't cast a vote, I'd welcome yours for the (global) guru category.  Go here to learn more. Thanks in advance.

Four Misconceptions About Exporting

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Yes, exporting is a little more challenging than conducting local business but it doesn't mean you shy away from it altogether.  Quite the contrary.  You just need to learn the ropes!  That's why you're here.

Here are four misconceptions about exporting.  See if you fall into these traps (or what I call excuses for not exporting).

Four Common Misconceptions About Exporting

Be sure to check out because there is a whole lot more featured than just misconceptions!

Illustration credit:  SUSTA (Southern United States Trade Association)
SUSTA is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), its member states and private companies. FAS administers and executes many foreign market development activities.
Posted by:  The Global Small Business Blog
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