Analyzing Global Trends for Business and Society - Class #1 (Introduction)

Global Trends in Business and Society affect:

• Consumer Markets
• Labor Markets
• Financial Markets
• Politics
• Geopolitics
• Natural Resources
• Global Relationships

Global trends affect regions, countries, industries and even firms in heterogeneous ways. Global trends do not change everything on their way. They have very large profound effects on some part of the world, for some industries, for some companies, but not for all.

Uncertainty will be a key feature in understanding global trends, hence these trends entail both challenges and opportunities.

What's needed?

• New programs, new products to be launched in the market place to take advantage of the Global trends?
• New Business Models for Companies? as a results of some of the Global Trends
• New Decision Models for Individuals? as a results of some of the Global Trends
• New mindset? Re-think assumptions?

Some initial questions for discussion:

As of today, do more people in the world live in cities or in the countryside?
     Hint: More people live in cities than in countryside since 2009

Are  there more people suffering from hunger or from obesity?
    Hint: There are more people suffering from obesity than from hunger since 2010   

Are the largest consumer markets, in the US and Europe or in China and India?
    Hint: The largest consumer markets are in Europe and US today, but within 20 years they will be in India and China

Is the number of failed states greater or smaller than the number of dictatorships?
    Hint: There are more failed states (like Somalia, Iraq,...) than dictatorships since the late 1980s.


What you will learn...

• Concepts and tools to analyse how the world is changing.
• The direction and intensity of trends in the Global Marketplace.
• The relevance of the main risks threatening businesses and societies around the world

How to take this class:

1. Take each week's opinion survey.
2. Watch mini-lectures
3. Try to answer the discussion questions
4. Consult the powerpoint presentations
5. Do the readings
6. Answer the quiz or test at the end of each week
7. Participate in discussion forums and social media

Manifestations of Global Economy:

• Increased cross-border activity
• Supra-national organisation and forums
•  UN
• World Bank
• International Monetary Fund

• Attempts at Supra-national political organisation     
• European Union (EU)
• North American Free Trade Agreements (NAFTA)
• Spread of idea and practices
• Awareness

Know more about Supranational Organizations and forums:
UN:http://www.un.org/

World Bank: http://www.worldbank.org/

International Monetary Fund: http://www.imf.org/external/index.htm 

European Union: http://europa.eu/

North American Free Trade Agreements: www.nafta-sec-alena.org

Analyzing Global Trends >> Click Here >> Youtube Playlist

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Happy Learning,

Rey

 

Analyzing Global Trends for Business and Society - (Wharton)

What are you about to learn?

What does the future hold for global markets? How are societies and cultures evolving? Who will be global powers of the 21st century? Take this class and find out how global trends are transforming business and society.

About the Course

The world is changing rapidly. Populations are ageing, people are moving from the countryside to the cities, there are more people suffering from obesity or who are overweight than people who go hungry, and the middle-class is growing fast in the emerging economies while it is shrinking in Europe and the United States. These forces are putting pressure on governments around the world as they seek to cope with the consequences. The race for energy, natural resources and food is intensifying, and the global financial architecture based on the U.S. dollar is seriously out of whack with the new realities of the 21st century.
Expect to learn about these and other global trends in this class. Be ready to realize how fast the world is changing, and what are the consequences for markets, businesses, and society at large. Learn how to analyze global trends, understanding their magnitude and how they are related to one another. Realize how the world can cope with massive change.

Suggested Readings

All of the readings indicated below are available for free from our website when the class begins.

Week 1: "Welcome to the 21st Century." Chapter 1 of Mauro F. Guillen and Emilio Ontiveros, Global Turning Points (Cambridge University Press, 2012).

Week 2: "The New Demography." Chapter 4 of Mauro F. Guillen and Emilio Ontiveros, Global Turning Points (Cambridge University Press, 2012).

Week 3: Poverty and Inequality: Persistent Problems and New Solutions. Lauder Institute’s Global TrendLab and Santander Universities.

Week 4: Global Risk: New Perspectives and Opportunities. Lauder Institute’s Global TrendLab and Santander Universities.

Week 5: Global Report 2011: Conflict, Governance and State Fragility. Center for Systemic Peace.

Week 6: Sustainability: New Perspectives and Opportunities. Lauder Institute’s Global TrendLab and Santander Universities.

Week 7: No reading.

Course Format

The weekly videos will walk you through the most important data and concepts to gauge the various directions of change in the global economy and society. I will introduce case studies to illustrate the implications of global trends, such as the launching of the Tata Nano or the problem of piracy around the Horn of Africa. You will also see my reaction to events on the ground as I travel the world examining the impact of global trends.

Enhance Your Career and Employability Skills - Introductory Class #1

In this first video, course leader David Winter introduces the Enhance Your Career and Employability Skills course. He explains:

• The meaning of career and employability skills
• David talks about three elements of Employability.
  
  1. Specific subject knowledge and skills. These are the qualities you need in order to complete the distinctive tasks of any particular job that you gain through experience in that role or through professional training or education
  2. General workplace skills and awareness. These are the "transferable" skills that are necessary to operate successfully in any workplace. They include such things as communication, teamworking, time management, problem solving, planning, leadership, etc. We will look at some of these skills in Week 2.
  3. Career management skills. These are what enable you to take control of your career over the long term. They help you to move between jobs and to take charge of your career development in order to make progress. Through good use of career management skills you can decide which specific subject knowledge and skills you need to gain to help you achieve your career goals. You can also identify which general workplace skills and attitudes you need to develop in order to be more successful.
  • Types of career management skills: Career management skills can be grouped into four main areas:
  1. Self-evaluation skills: These skills help you to identify what is important to you and what you want from your career now and in the future. They help you to assess your value to potential employers and to monitor your progression and development.
  2. Option exploration skills: These skills help you to identify and investigate potential future options, such as new job roles or development and educational opportunities, that will help you to make progress in your career.
  3. Option evaluation skills: These skills help you to prioritise future options, weigh the potential costs and benefits of possible future actions, and make choices between them.
  4. Option implementation skills: These skills help you to act on the choices you have made, such as making job applications or building your professional profile, and they increase your chances of success in these actions.
   
• The aims of the course and the benefits we hope you will gain from taking part in it
• The content and structure of the six-week course

 (please see the Syllabus page for a summary of the course content).

Happy Learning,
Rey

Learn Courses from Higher School of Econ

Coursera Weblink: https://www.coursera.org/hse

National Research University - Higher School of Economics (HSE) is one of the top research universities in Russia. Established in 1992 to promote new research and teaching in economics and related disciplines, it now offers programs at all levels of university education across an extraordinary range of fields of study including business, sociology, cultural studies, philosophy, political science, international relations, law, Asian studies, media and communications, IT, mathematics, engineering, and more.

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Enhance Your Career and Employability Skills

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