国际商务环境(英文)chapter-7-Social-environment-facing-inte.ppt

Click to edit Master title style,Click to edit Master text styles,Second Level,Third Level,Fourth Level,Fifth Level,*,*,*,Chapter 7,Social Environment Facing,International Business,Learning objectives,identify the social groupings and interactions that make up societies,understand the social changes taking place in industrial,developing and transitional economies and their impact on business activities,appreciate how social stratification systems in diverse societies affect the international business environment,access the importance of social change in a variety of contexts relating to business,including the changing nature of work in the gender and family issues,Text:Society and Business,Introduction,Types of society:the development of modern industrial societies,Stratification in societies,Changing populations,Aging societies and implication for business,Urbanism,Labour relations,Gender and work,Families,Introduction,Social interaction and social relations are among the most basic of human activities.,Within societies there may be numerous cross-cutting ties:religion,gender,age,race or ethnic grouping.,Differences in the social environment from country to country have a direct effect on international business operations and,in particular,on business practices and consumer markets.,Stratification in societies,Social stratification refers to this hierarchy of groups into which people in a society are classified.This classification may be rigidly institutionalized,as in caste systems;or it may allow for upward mobility,as in a capitalist class society.,Social class is one of the key factors used marketers in understanding consumer behaviour.,Changing populations,Populations are not static,but constantly changing.,Demographic change refers to these population changes.They include births,deaths and migration.,Demographic changes,while they take place at a slow pace,can have profound long-term effects on societies.,Aging societies and implication for business,In industrialized countries,low birth rates,coupled with a growing proportion of elderly people,are creating a looming demographic crisis in the twenty-first century.,There are long-term implications of these trends for business.Many businesses have seen opportunities for targeting older consumers,who have leisure time and money to spend.,Paying pensions and medical care for the elderly is a potential problem if pensions and health insurance schemes prove to be inadequately funded.,Declining birth rates mean that businesses in key sectors may face a shortage of skilled labor which could affect production.,Labour relations,Relations between management and workers vary considerably,depending on both the internal environment of the organization and the wider social and cultural environment.,Workers traditionally organize themselves into trade unions in order to achieve higher wages,better working conditions and greater security of employment.,Gender and work,Men enjoy greater status and wealth than women in virtually every society.,Gender inequality has been accepted over many generations as somehow dictated by nature,reinforced by the stereotyped picture of the father as sole breadwinner and the mother as homemaker.,While womens pay has improved in relation to that of men,they still fall behind in both pay and opportunities.,Key terms,industrial society,工业社会,social stratification,社会阶层化,demographic change,人口变化,urbanization,都市化,labour relations,劳资关系,family,家庭,Comprehension Questions,1.What are the characteristics of industrial society,and how are industrial societies changing?,2.What does social stratification refer to?,3.What is the current situation of urbanization in the world?,4.What are the problems associated with urbanization and why have they become most acute in developing countries?,5.The structure of families is changing in almost all societies.What are the changes and how do they affect the ways in which businesses operate?,1.What are the characteristics of industrial society,and how are industrial societies changing?,Industrialization refers to the shift from human and animal power to machine production,in which energy was derived from inanimate sources,such as water power,steam and the internal combustion engine.The transition to an industrial society can also be described as a shift from traditional to modern society.Ties to the land loosened as people left the rural way of life for work in the new factories in cities.Major social changes brought about by industrialization,including urbanization,changes in the nature of work and changes in family life.,3.What is the current situation of urbanization in the world?,Urbanization is generally associated with economic development.Western countries,first to experience urbanization,are now about three-quarters urban,whereas developing countries,just 40 per cent urban in 2000,are expected to become 56 per cent urban by 2030(UN Population Division,1999).Most of the global population increase expected during 2000-30 will be concentrated in urban areas.The current rise in urbanization is now taking place mainly in developing countries.However,the pattern of urbanization,and its social and economic effects,have differed between the industrialized Western economies and the developing economies.,4.What are the problems associated with urbanization and why have they become most acute in developing countries?,Cities in the developing world struggle to cope with the pressures of huge and growing populations.Traffic congestion,pollution,sanitation and inadequate housing are endemic problems.Slum areas,with their proliferation of shanty dwellings,are particularly vulnerable to disease and natural disasters.According to a World Bank report,numbers in slum and squatter settlements will double in 25 years,and the average age of slum dwellers is decreasing(World Bank,1999).The urban landscape in the developing world,therefore,exhibits a stark juxtaposition between modern high-rise centers,symbolic of new economic wealth,and the slum areas inhabited by the poorest inhabitants.,5.What are the changes and how do they affect the ways in which businesses operate?,The unit of the nuclear family,consisting of mother,father and one or more children,has been the basic family unit in European societies.The extended family,which also may include grandparents,brothers and their wives and children,has been the pattern in Asian and Southeast Asian societies.One in five families with dependent children in Britain today are lone-parent families,and in most of these it is the mother who is the lone parent.,As a growing segment of consumer markets,the lone parent has different needs for goods and services than larger families.Apartments rather than houses may be more suitable.While ready-meals for one are now quite common,package holidays are still typically based on two sharing and holiday operators charge a supplement for single people.For a lone parent,childcare facilities and flexible working hours may be crucial,but while some employers are accommodating,many,especially small organizations,lack the resources.State provision of childcare support has become an important issue as the numbers of lone parents have risen.,Apply understanding,What are the effects of the demographic time bomb faced by industrialized societies and what steps can be taken to deal with them?,To what extent is the changing economic environment affecting social relations in modern in modern industrial societies?,Assess the changes in the structure and nature of work in the new information economy.,Case study:,B&Q in China,Case-related questions:,1.What does B&Q need to do in the local market?,2.What are the difficulties faced by B&Q in China?,3.How is B&Q benefiting from the social changes taking place in China?,POINT,Competition equals incentives equals clawbacks equals protection.,In todays competitive business environment,the incentive package is just one part of the overall decision to relocate or expand operations.,Companies who are unwilling to include a clawback clause in their contract for incentives or subsidies,in essence are holding a community hostage.,COUNTERPOINT,There is one little secret that folks in government often just cant handle.,Governments are not about risk.They are about security.,So it goes with clawbacks.,Assignments,Preview Chapter 7,Look for some other information about social environment and make a report in the class.,