TEAM PROJECT Description of Team Project Completed projects are due at the end of the semester (see course outline for due date). Any students not handing in a research paper by this date will receive a failing grade of “0” for that paper. Research papers must be submitted at the beginning of class. The project is to be done as a group of four (more or less depending on total student enrolled in class). The team will be assigned a country and a company to research. The purpose of the paper is to (i) provide an indepth analysis of the assigned country from an economic, political, and cultural perspective, and (ii) provide an overview of the assigned company and to determine whether a strategic fit exists between the company and the assigned country. In certain cases, the company may already exist in the selected country. That being the case, the team is to provide an overview of how the company operates in the country and to provide recommendations for the future. The paper should include the following topics: 1. Country analysis a. Economic (i) include exchange rate analysis b. Political (i) make sure you cover regional economic integration in this section c. Cultural (i) include Hofstede's cultural dimensions, etc., as well as business and consumer cultural customs specific to the country (ii) compare cultural similarities and differences between the country and the US 2. Company analysis a. Background information on the company b. One of the following: (i) a strategic plan for entering the country above (in this instance, the company is not currently operating in the assigned country). - A rationale for the mode of entry (export, franchise, FDI, JV, etc.) and size of entry (small scale vs. large scale) - A detailed overview of the marketing mix that will be used in the country, with particular emphasis on the issue of standardization versus customization. (ii) an overview of the strategy used by the company in the assigned country, along with recommendations for the future. Group presentation Towards the end of the semester, each team will be asked to present its project to the class. Presentation should follow the same outline required for the written portion of the project. Each team member must be involved in the team presentation. Grading of presentations will be based on structure and content, professionalism of delivery, and the use of visual aids such as PowerPoint®, video, websites, etc. Students are expected to develop a PowerPoint presentation with a recorded voice narration and submit it through Blackboard on the due date found in the course syllabus. RUBRIC FOR WRITTEN PAPER TEAM: ___________________ Measures Issues to be addressed Title Page Name of project, name of students, name of course, date Tabulated information on content of paper, including page numbers 1 to3 page synopsis of the paper. An executive is written for an executive who most likely DOES NOT have the time to read the original. Its purpose is to summarize the KEY POINTS within the document and to make a recommendation. It is generally considered to be the most important part of a business document since executives may act on the recommendations outlined in the summary. Introduction of the document, introducing the brand and the country and outlining the purpose of the project. Description of the key economic indicators for the country (GNI, PPP, GNP, population, inflation rate over time, unemployment etc.) in comparison to the USA, as well as an analysis of the exchange rate. The paper should also discuss the demand potential for the product. Comparison of the country’s business and consumer culture relative to the USA. What are the differences, what are the similarities? Use of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, time orientation, etc.. Description of BUSINESS culture. Brief description of the political situation in the country. Is there political risk in the foreseeable future? Attitude towards FDI? Attitude towards the USA? Comparison of positioning strategy in the USA versus the foreign country. What is the entry strategy? What is being customized, what is being standardized? How is the marketing mix being altered? Graphs, survey, photos, coupons, bibliography, etc. Is the paper well written? Is the paper free of typos and grammatical errors? Is the paper presented in a professional manner? Table of Contents Executive Summary Introduction Economic Analysis Cultural Analysis Political analysis Brand Analysis Appendices Paper format Total Possible Points 2 3 10 5 20 20 10 20 5 5 100 Comments Score RUBRIC FOR PRESENTATION NOTE: This is an online class so please develop a PowerPoint presentation with a recorded voice narration. Each team member will present a certain part of the presentation with their recorded voice embedded in the PowerPoint presentation. Use the following instructions to learn more about recorded voice narration: https://support.office.com/client/Record-and-add-narration-and-timings-to-a-slide-show9d136e4a-9717-49ad-876e-77aeca9c17eb TEAM: ___________________ AREA INTRODUCTION ECONOMIC ANALYSIS CULTURAL ANALYSIS POLITICAL ANALYSIS COMPANY OVERVIEW INTERNATIONAL STRATEGY MARKETING MIX PROFESSIONALISM VISUALS TIME TOTAL DESCRIPTION General introduction of team and topic Discussion on economic indicators such as GNI, interest rates, inflation, PPP, exchange rates, etc. Discussion on consumer and corporate culture in country, focusing on similarities and differences with USA. Type of political and economic system, political stability, risk, government intervention in business, etc. Discussion of company in the U.S. POINTS SCORE 5 15 Rationale for choice of international strategy Discussion on use of standardized versus customized marketing mix Professionalism of presentation, attire, demeanor, flow, etc. Use of visuals to capture branding and results sections Appropriate use of time (10-15 minutes) 10 10 5 10 15 15 10 5 100 Team 2 Alaa Alrubayyi Savannah Babino Dej’a Dingle Dr. Zuniga BUAD327.W01 01/18/2017 Team Project Solar City in India Table of Contents Page 1: Executive Summary Page 2: Introduction Page 3: Economic Analysis Page 4: Cultural Analysis Page 5: Political Analysis Page 6: Brand Analysis Page 7: Appendices Executive Summary India is a massive country in South Asia with 28 states and 7 territories in need for sustainable development. India is also the seventh largest country in the world with a massive 3,287.263 area in square kilometers. Based on 2015 stats from (www.statista.com), India is the second most populated country in the world, with an astounding population of 1.2 billion people. An estimated 17 million natives live in the capital of New Delhi. With its growing wealth creation in the economy, India is on the rise to become one of the highest entrepreneurship capitalist countries. Its accelerated population growth of over 30% in surrounding cities, and expansion in economic development has also driven the demand to support the Development of Solar Cities programs. India’s governmental agency, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has dedicated itself to leverage the massive potential of the sun through renewable energy and other efficiency projects that will decrease the conventional energy demand by 10% in the next five years. Retail makes up the largest industry, contributing close to a quarter of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product, (GDP). Agriculture and mining also contribute greatly to the economy with a more recent increase in development of there IT industry where IT specialist are utilized greatly for outsourcing. A major aim for this over populated the country is to develop ‘Solar Cities’ or ‘Renewable Energy Cities’ to provide clean energy that would reduce the cost and dependence on conventional energy sources which include electricity, petrol, diesel, kerosene and LPG consumption. There is a Solar City model under development will utilize the 275-300 days of sunshine; reduce the use cost of utilities and the use of conventional energy consumption with efficiency measures and renewable energy resources such as solar, wind, hydro- and geothermal in the various cities. The growth and development in India has pushed for the demand to create self-sustaining cities. Going ‘green’ in India is a wave of the future, and will have a major impact on India’s people, population, industries and country as a whole. Introduction The country and company that was focused on in this analysis are India and Solar city. India is the largest country in South Asia with a population of about 940 million people. It has a very diverse terrain that is all the way from the Himalayan peaks to the Indian Ocean coastline. India is a predominantly democratic country that shares land borders with Pakistan, china, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Bangladesh. India is a wonderful place to visit that encompasses a lot of wealth and history. Solar city is America's number one full-service solar provider that makes clean energy available to homeowners, businesses, schools, nonprofits and government organizations. Instead of them paying for energy to be generated by burning coal, oil, and natural gas, it is now offered for a lower price and easier for customers to switch to cleaner energy. The purpose of the paper is to provide a Country analysis of India economically, politically, and culturally form a business's perspective. Another purpose is to provide an overview of solar city and to determine whether a strategic fit exists between India and Solar city. Economic Analysis for Solar City India’s economy gained momentum in Q2 FY 2016, but miserably failed to fire on all cylinders. Positive movements to consumption from a near normal monsoon and public pay hikes drove the pick-up in the economy in GDP growth; however, a visible decrease in investment and a decreased performance in the external sector restricted growth from catching market expectations. For Solar City it can be seen as an upgraded move since the economy is flourishing. The economy’s momentum is likely to have floundered in Q3 FY 2016, hit by the government’s strong demonetization program. Cash deficits have been reported and leading indicators imply they are operating activity. The services PMI fell into contractionary territory for the first time in over one year in November. However, the effect is anticipated to be temporary, and the economy should profit in the longer run from a smaller parallel economy. India’s long-standing institutional weaknesses continue to undermine the energy for economic development. Here we see that the economic climate in terms of Solar City’s analysis is weak since it will be facing many barriers from the government. In the absence of a well-functioning legal and regulatory structure, corruption remains a serious impediment to the emergence of a more dynamic private sector. The state’s presence in the economy remains extensive through state-owned enterprises. With forecasted annual growth of 7.5% in the fiscal year 2017-18, India will undoubtedly remain the most active growing G20 economy. Private consumption will be supported by the hike in public wages and pensions and by higher agricultural production, on the back of a return to normal rainfall. Private investment will revive gradually as excess capacity in some sectors diminishes, infrastructure projects mature, corporates deleverage, banks clean their loan portfolios, and the Goods and Service Tax GST is implemented. Despite commendable fiscal consolidation efforts at the central government level, the combined debt of states and central government remains high compared with other emerging economies. Inflation expectations are adjusting down only slowly. Overall there is little room for accommodative policies, although some monetary impulse is still to come, as recent cuts in policy rates are yet to be reflected fully in lower lending rates. Repairing public banks’ balance sheets and improving their governance would support the revival in investment (Diane, 2016). Creating more and better jobs will require policies to improve the ease of doing business further, in particular faster and more predictable land acquisition, and upgrading social and physical infrastructure. Despite the high public deficit compared with other emerging economies, there is room to make public finance more growth-friendly and inclusive. Solar City’s products for the Indian market are extremely efficient since India is now focusing on renewable energy and Solar City provides the perfect solution by an American brand (Martin, 2016). The ongoing landmark GST and subsidy reforms are promising. The government plans to cut the corporate income tax rate while broadening the base is also welcome. More revenue could be raised from the personal income tax, and its redistributive impact enhanced, to finance higher spending on health, education, housing, transport and water infrastructure and make growth more inclusive. Cultural Analysis India, a massive country on the continent of Asia has a rich history, a thriving population and consists of many diverse cultures. The country’s diverse terrain exists all the way from the Himalayan peaks to the Indian Ocean coastline. It shares land borders with Pakistan to the west, China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the northeast, and Myanmar and Bangladesh to the east. The country is predominantly a democratic country with Hindi being the official language used by the government. At the root of Indian culture is a very high priority in family which contributes to a strong communities and ways of life. Although complicated with an entrenched caste system, poverty and corruption, India gained its independence from the British Commonwealth in 1947 with the proclamation of a new constitution and the establishment of The Republic of India in 1950. Over fifty years later the country has become a major multi-national player and a major focus is on developing methods to move to solar energy and surpass conventional energy demands. The historical growth in the population and consumption levels in Indian culture is assessed by the energy consumption. There is a Power Distance Individualism (PDI), which means that all individuals in society are not equal. This entails the extend at which the less powerful people in society expect and accept that power is not distributed equally among it’s public. Real power should be centralized and not just distributed to the power-privileged of a country. There is also the dimension of interdependence that is maintained in a society among people who are only suppose to be loyalty to themselves and their families. It is high in the masculinity dimensions of the culture and is motivated by competition, achievements and success by those who are experts in their fields. India is known to have both collective and individualist traits. A challenge in the culture that confronts humanity in the past and moving to the future is indulgence, which is connected to how children are socialized, and how desires and impulses are based upon childhood rearing. Long term orientation and uncertainty avoidance are also scores that are reflected in a better understanding of India’s culture. At the highest Hofstede dimension for the culture, with a score of 77 compared to a world average of 56.5. This PDI score for India indicates a high level of inequality of power and wealth within the society. It assesses why India as an up and coming nation is able to exist and compete in the global market. Other key aspects that are a threat to energy demand is economic growth are connected to the country’s culture, which is been a key factor to understanding what’s possible for future advancement and sustainability. Political Analysis The Indian political situation is in a state of complete disarray and dilemma. No one can predict a bright political future for the country. Same lies with the social situation as both social and political situation are closely intertwined. While observing the continuity of scams and other malpractices meted by the Indian political culture gives a clear picture that crowds are greatly manhandled and ridiculed by the political and social elites. This is an extremely a pitiful state of affairs and Indian prestige has been badly hurt. This could adversely impact Solar City since many decisions are based on governmental decisions and binding. Politics in India takes place within the structure of its constitution, as India is a federal parliamentary democratic republic. The President of India is the supreme head of the country. The Prime Minister of India is the leader of the government. India mimics the dual polity system, that is a double government, which comprises of the central authority at the center and states at the periphery level. The constitution defines the organization powers and limitations of both central and state governments, and it is well recognized, rigid and considered supreme; laws of the nation must adhere to it. Foreign investments in India pose some grave problems. First, the jump in foreign investment is not huge as is assumed by many. The Government set a target of attracting $ 10 billion of such inflows; the actual figure is just a third of the targeted goal. Between 1991 and 2006, actual inflow of FDI came to Rs. 1,81,566 vis-a-vis the approved amount of Rs. 2,84,812. Furthermore, foreign investment inflows into India are less than a tenth of China. This indicates that India has failed to exploit the benefits of FDI even in this liberalized day and age. Secondly, the gap between established and actual inflows of investment is widening over time. Approximately 35 percent of FDI is actually realized and, thus, 65 percent remain on paper. This gap may be associated with the existence of barriers in the way of implementing foreign investment plans (Jones, 2016). Thirdly, foreign investors have preferred sectors like power generation and oil extraction. This can be extremely influential for what Solar City is going to offer to Indian customers. Power generation is now being done and solar power is the turning point in today's energy developments. In addition, the most important sectors are telecom, electrical facilities including computer software, energy, and the transportation industry. These four sectors now account for approximately 50 percent of FDI inflows. Such preference is due to the wide possibility of the profit margin. Brand Analysis The brothers Peter Rive and Lyndon Rive, and their cousin Leon Musk founded solar city in 2006. This all started when Musk gave the brothers the suggestion to start a solar company, and now they are the United States largest provider for solar energy. But they do not limit their services to only their primary solar power, they also provide manufacturing, permitting, installing, designing, and monitoring solar energy systems for all residential areas. The company is also one of the founding members of The Alliance for Solar Choice (TASC), which is a rooftop photovoltaic power station solar advocacy organization in 2013. One of the most important concepts is how solar city accomplishes their services, and that includes a step-by-step process. The most important step is when they take a look at their customers' energy usage and identify opportunities for improvements. That step determines the problem and what needs to be changed, and how they are going to fix it. If solar city wanted to expand its company and do business in India, they would need to create an extensive step-by-step strategic plan for how that would get done. Before they invest all of this time and money into India they need to figure out if business would be worth it, and if the company could satisfy not only their needs, but also the consumer’s needs also. The very first step would be to do research and gain knowledge on the cultural and business ethic and morals of the market. Next, they should gather the countries gross domestic product and their historical data on the country’s Currency value fluctuation form their imports and exports. Then, they should gain information on the country’s laws when governing a business and start a focus group in the country to test the product. After the focus group they should now know the consumers and what they are looking for. Lastly, they should look at their competition and see what they have done or attempted to do in India and the outcome. After noticing certain trends and strategies that have already been used, they should know what and what not to do and whether it would be worth doing business in India. Solar city would actually be perfect to run in India, especially because of their model Solar Leasing, but they do face many problems if they were to do so. Some of the issues are high costs, low returns, finding availability for funds, and contract and credit risks. But business in India does also come with possibilities and advantages; A rise in electricity prices and lower costs of solar power, solar potential across the country, roof space, and Support form regulations and policies. Works Cited "Learn More About Solar City, the Top Solar Energy Company." Solar Energy Company - Top Solar Energy Companies | Solar City. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Jan. 2017. . Chillakuri, Sandeep. "Is It Feasible to Replicate the SolarCity Model in India? If So, Why Isn't Anyone Doing It?" Quora. N.p., 27 Sept. 2013. Web. 10 Jan. 2017. . "SolarCity." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2017. . "India." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2016. Peng, Daven, and Juliane Gatschke. "• Statista - The Statistics Portal for Market Data, Market Research and Market Studies." • Statista - The Statistics Portal for Market Data, Market Research and Market Studies. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Jan. 2017. "U.N. Surveys Development of New Sources of Energy." Science 129.3356 (1959): 1114-115. Web. Diane, J. (2016, November 26). The Economic Times. Retrieved from Jones, R. (2016, September 2). Export.gov. Retrieved from Martin, T. (2016, December 15). Focus Economies. Retrieved from "Geert Hofstede." India - Geert Hofstede. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Jan. 2017.
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