The Multinational Enterprise In Global Production And Trade Networks - Individual Essay

Length: 3,000 words

Details:

The world of international business is complex and contested. It is also changing rapidly. These changes apply to international business as a whole, the frameworks and structures of businesses themselves, and the way we understand them.

The task of this assignment is to select one of the four international business theories that we have looked at in weeks 6 and 7 of this course – global value chains, global production networks, the global factory, or the platform economy – and apply it to a specific industry of your choosing. Once you have chosen your theory and industry, the essay should be written in response to the following question:

“Does the [your selected theory] theory accurately reflect the current nature of the [your selected industry] industry?”

Some examples:

Does the global factory theory accurately reflect the current nature of the clothing industry?

Does the global value chain theory accurately reflect the current nature of the consumer electronics industry?

Does the platform economy theory accurately reflect the current nature of the transport industry?

Does the global production network theory accurately reflect the current nature of the food industry?

This full question should be written at the opening of your essay.

 Further Guidance

In order to successfully complete this assignment, your final essay should include the following (note that this is NOT a suggested essay structure):

A firm understanding of your chosen theory, including:

Its scholarly origins

The problems that it tries to address.

How it differs from theories that came before it

Its contemporary critics and alternatives

A firm understanding of your chosen industry, including:

Key firms

Industry structure

Ownership and financing

The influence of government or civil society institutions in firm behaviour

Changes to the above over time, and the reasons for these changes.

A thorough application of theory to industry, including:

The strengths of the theory in understanding the current nature of the industry

The limitations of the theory in understanding the current nature of the industry

A consistent argument in response to the question: does this theory accurately reflect the current nature of your chosen industry?

See also the rubric below for guidance on what we are looking for.