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Center for Global Business and the Economy

 

Global Views

Views and analysis of our faculty, alumni, and invited speakers on international issues.

Faculty Perspectives

Corruption Costs Businesses Competitive Advantage
It has long been known that corruption is associated with lower GNP per capita, and lower investments and growth rates, but the study by Ernesto Dal Bó, associate professor of political economy at the Business School, and Martin Rossi of the Universidád de San Andrés in Argentina, is the first to show that corruption damages nations by making firms inefficient. (August 2008) Details

Exporting Values Through Movies
During the occupation of Nanking in the winter of 1937, hundreds of thousands of Chinese were killed by the Japanese. A small group of foreigners, including an American doctor and a German businessman, saved tens of thousands of lives.

Their heroism is on display in a documentary film, Nanking, directed by Bill Guttentag a filmmaker and lecturer at the GSB. He feels it’s important to make films that address political and ethical issues. “The entertainment industry makes up 6.5 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product,” Guttentag told the San Francisco Chronicle. “For better or worse, we’re exporting our values. It’s an incredibly important industry.” (May 2008)

Pondering the Ethics of Global Business Video video icon
Ethical dilemmas such as selling other nations scanners that can tell the sex of an unborn child or kerosene heaters without safety features available in the United States were debated during a discussion on “Academic vs. Real World Ethics” led by Professor David Brady. (February 2008) Details

Corruption Is Bad for Business
Corruption, whether in government or in private industry, serves as a
serious drag on a nation’s wealth and creates a less favorable climate for business, say researchers including Professor Ernesto Dal Bó. For one thing, corruption swells the number of employees needed, driving up costs and sidetracking workers from jobs that could help grow an economy. (January 2008) Details

More Faculty Perspectives

Global Speakers Series

The Global Management Program, the student facing arm of the Global Center has been honored to host a number of high-level speakers for the Global Speaker Series. Leaders from the worlds of business, politics, and academia discuss the challenges of leading global organizations with our students.

International Markets are Growing for FedEx Express
By keeping its eye on technology, International FedEx Express avoids going the way of the Pony Express, the firm’s president, Michael Ducker, told a Business School audience. (February 2008) Details

Sérgio Rial, CEO of Cargill Brazil, a global leader in food and agricultural products, shared his experiences of managing a fast-growing business in Latin America and of working for one of the world’s largest private corporations. He joined Cargill in 2003, holding the positions of CEO of Seara (poultry) and head of Cargill Food Ingredients Latin America. Slideshow PDF

In the News

 

Criticism May Produce Innovation, Wal-Mart CEO Scott Says
Wal-Mart President and CEO Lee Scott explained how criticism has taught his company not just to look at the specific criticisms being levied but also to anticipate future hot-button issues with the public. For example, the company is currently focused on sustainability, an issue that emerged as a key area in which Wal-Mart could benefit from being ahead of society’s expectations, rather than simply following the law. (March 2008) Details

InBev Practices No-Frills Approach to Corporate Leadership

Developing a cohesive corporate culture that trains leaders from the ground up and rewards strong performers based on merit is an important ingredient in financial success said Carlos Brito, chief executive officer of the Belgium-based company InBev, the world’s second-largest brewer. (February 2008) Details

A Plan to Snuff Out Darkness
MBA students Sam Goldman and Ned Tozan want to light up Third World lives with LED technology. (February 2008) Details

Global Firms Must Understand Local Practices
Establishing Eli Lilly’s operations in China in the mid 1990s was complicated because the firm didn’t understand local dynamics, including how top employees would react to peers being promoted, the firm’s Chief Marketing Officer Robert Brown told a Business School audience. (January 2008) Details

More In the News

Alumni News

GSB Alumnus Jude Shao Released from Chinese Prison
Jude Shao, MBA '93, who was sentenced to 16 years in prison on what supporters called false tax evasion and fraud charges, was released on parole. Shao, 45, is now with his family in Shanghai. (July 2008) Details

See Also: FreeJudeShao.com

Related Article: Campaign to Free Jude Shao Gathers Force

Class Project Takes Wing With Proposal for Columbian Airline
A Business School class project team has created ambitious plans to launch a no-frills airline in Colombia. And just to make it really interesting, the four-member team plans to promote the new airline through a reality television show. (June 2008) Details

Stanford Business School Honors CEMEX CEO Lorenzo Zambrano for Excellence in Leadership
Lorenzo Zambrano, (MBA 1968), who transformed the Mexico-based cement firm CEMEX from a domestic player into a global powerhouse that is now one of the world’s largest suppliers of building materials,
has been awarded the Stanford Graduate School of Business Excellence in Leadership Award from the Stanford Business School Alumni
Association. (May 2008) Details

MercadoLibre is Cornering Latin American Online Sales Market

Latin America is the fastest-growing internet user market in the world today. This is good news for MercadoLibre, the Buenos Aires-based online sales firm said Nicolás Szekasy, MBA ’91, the 2008 Arjay Miller Lecturer. (May 2008) Details

Prospects for Venture Capital in Asia
Faruq Ahmad, MBA ’76, reports dramatic changes in Asian venture capital investment. (May 2008) Details

More Alumni News