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XAVIER
UNIVERSITY
Im AD 684
Xav ier G loba l- Doing Bu siness in C u ba
Spring 201 4
Sa mple Sy lla bus
Faculty:
Dr. To m Hayes
Office:
Smith 303
Office Hour: 10:0 0AM - 12:00PM Mon-Tues
Campus Phone: (5 13) 745-3059
Email: hayes@xavier.edu
Lecture Location: TBA
Co urse Introdu ct ion
While Cuba is curren tly closed to businesses from the United States, it is not to the rest of the
world and will, in all probability, eventua lly open to our markets. Goo d strategic planning
involves anticipating and being ready for new business opportunities. This 3-credit -hour MBA
elective course is designed to provide a high-level survey of the Cuban econ omic, cultura l and
geo-po litical drivers integral to the globa l econ omy. By attending faculty lectures and traveling
abroad , students have the oppo rtunity to learn Cuban culture and business practices in person. A
key focus of the course is for students to deve lop an understanding and awareness about the
many opportunities and challenges faced by busines ses abroad. As part of the course
requirements, students are expected to apply the theo retica l framew orks learn ed throughout the
MBA program and complete the group assignment.
Co urse Learnin g Obj ectives
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Understand the cultural and business environment in Cuba and be able to defi ne the so
many differences between the U.S. and Cuba
Identify important issu es associated with glo bal business environment, in particular,
related to Latin America and Cuba
To promote intercul tural awareness and communication, in particular, gam visiting
experience and knowledge of important cultu ral and historical sites in Cuba
Develop in-depth knowledge o f one business theme chosen by students
Achieve a work ing knowledge of local business practices through direct interaction with
managers and government officials
Explore the value of different economic model s as benchmark s for global business
practices
Course Components
The course consists of three main components: I) on-campus sessio ns; 2) a 8-day study tour; and
3) course assignments. As a credit-bearin g course, you will be eva luated on your attendance and
participation duri ng the program as well as the quality of your assig nment work.
I. On-Campus Sessions - We plan to meet for about two class sess ions prior to travel. The
sessio ns typically meet at times so as not to confl ict with other classes and exa ms (for
example, Friday even ings). The sessions are led by the trip leader faculty. Studen ts will
discuss the history, politica l systems, social structures, and economies of Cuba . Assigned
readings, cases, and videos will serve to augment classroom lectures and disc ussions.
These class sess ions are designed to prepare you for what to expect on the progra m with
respect to travel in an unfamili ar environment and the particular schedule of visits
arranged. You will be provided with information on business etiquette, language and
cultural expectation s. You will also receive information on sightseeing resources to help
you plan your free time.
2. Study Tour - This component of the course is the immersion experience taking place
during the Spring break at Xavie r, focusing on scheduled business meetings and cultural
events in three Cuban cities/regions. These three cities/regions include: Havana, the
political and cultural center of Cuba; Regia and the Artimesa Province (see trip itinerary
for details):
• Institutio n/Government Meetings: Thi s feature of the program is designed to
introdu ce you to the region through direct interaction . During meetings with business
leaders and mana gers, you will see how they run their companies. how market forces
influence their deci sions, and what they perceive as current and future challenges and
opport unities. Government influence on commerce is unique in Cuba. You will
discuss relations betwee n the public and private sectors with officials from national
and regional regulatory agencies. The objective here is to prov ide an introduction to
gove rnment com mercial policy and its effec tiveness in stim ulating business growt h.
• Cultural Events : Thro ughout the immers ion experience, you will have opportunities
to learn about cu lture and its influence on society. These might take the form of
planned group eve nts suc h as a city tour or an excursio n to a significa nt historical
area.
The importance of unplanned informal cultural activities cannot be
overe mphasized, since they expose you to social norms without the co nstraints of
prescribed expectations.
3. Course Assig nments - The component includes the following
• Pre-assignment - Prior to departure, students are required to finish
o Individual readin g ass ignments (about 5 hours)
o Individual video watching ass ignment (2-4 hours)
o Group project proposal (selecting one theme. at least three pages) (due two
weeks before the trip )
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Do research and provide profiles of the compa nies we plan to visit (each
group chooses two) (due one week before the trip )
During-trip - Parti cipate full y in the 10 day field trip to Cuba
o Group reporting on the profil es of institutions we are visi ting
o Trip debriefin g session participation
o Refl ective j ournal (write at least two full pages)
Post-a ssignm ent o Group project paper and present ation
Project Requirements
Your project is sugges ted to be done in groups. Your team (no more than 3 students) represent s a
con sulting group that ha s been retained by a large multinational corporation with busine ss
interests in Cuba. Your ass ignme nt is to prep are a business report that includes an environment
and indu stry ana lysis and /or a plan of action for succeeding in that environment. The repo rt
should be profession ally prepared as iffor a real consulting project.
During pre-trip lecture sess ions, in addition to the other specified ass ignments, each group will
need to make a 15 minute oral presentation of their preliminary research outcomes (about their
proj ect proposal , the company or indu stry the y inve stigated, other interestin g items, resear ch
questions, etc ). Th ese pre sentation s are scheduled to take place in the second pre-trip lecture
class. Based on the feedback they get , they wi ll finali ze their project proposal. Please note that
the project proposal and company profile will be due two wee ks before the trip.
During th e trip , students continue to work in the same group. You need to writ e a 2-page indepth reflective j ournal about your per son al experience and reflections on how the cour se has
changed your perceptions about Cuba, the U.S., the world or yourself as a globa l citi zen.
Your rep ort should use the following format: single-spaced, use 12 point font , with 6-8 pages of
text (ex clusive of ex hibits and references). The border margin s should be set at no less than one
inch on all sides. The report should also cont ain a hal f-page execut ive summary. You ca n
choose one of the following main topi cs (but not limited to them , you ca n propose your ow n
topic , making sure it is approved) for the project:
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Manufacturing com petitiveness of Cuba
Succes sful marketin g in Cuba
Retail ing and distribution in C uba
So urc ing and pro curem ent in Cuba
Global supply chain man agem ent
Logistics in Cuba
Production clu sters in Cuba
Investment oppo rtunities in C uba
Glo ba l financi al sys tem and the role of C uba
Economic developme nt in C uba
To urism in Cuba
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To give an exa mple, if you want to develop an internati onal business plan for a particular
co mpany, you are sugge sted to use the following item s to develop your rep ort (the follow ing
items might not be applica ble if you are choosing other research topics):
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A des cription of the ex ternal environment as it relates to the research top ic yo u selected
A descr iption of the mission, objectives, strategic predispositions, and intended corp orate
and business strategies for the comp any . Pay attention to que stion s like: What are the
long-term goal s of the company? What are yo ur long-term exp ansion plans for this
country?
A plan for implem entation which may include faci lity dec isions, functional strategies,
supply cha in design and so on. You need to provide justifications to convince readers.
Please consi der qu estions like these: What will be the composition of the top
management team for this venture? Who is go ing to finance this venture? Will you jointventure with a local compa ny or will you have a wholly-owned subsidiary? How are you
going to facilitate the local distributi on network and marketin g channel? What
suggestions do yo u have for the top managem ent team? Who will co ntro l the operations?
What are the staffing polici es for this co untry? Where are you go ing to find employees?
How are you going to de velop and maint ain the busine ss comp etitiven ess?
Your entire group also need s to mak e a short presentation (30 minutes long, including questions
and answers) to explain you term project. Present ation grades will be based on the co ntent of the
presentation (depth , thoroughn ess, correctness, and det ail) and the format of presentation (we llprepared, eye cont act , multi-media, effective way of deliverin g inform ation). Every team
member is expected to make active contributions on an equal basis. Peer evaluation will be
conducted at the end of the semester and the result will be counted toward each individ ual
stude nt's group-based work.
Cours e Evaluation and Grading
Gradin g Co mponents
Participation an d professionalism
Project proposal (group)
Co mpany profile research (group)
Reflective journal
Pro iect naper (gro up)
Final presentation
Percentage
20%
10%
10%
5%
40%
15%
Grad ing Scale
A - =90 -92% A=92- IOO%
B (incl uding + 1- ) = 80 - 89%
C (incl udi ng + 1-) - 70 - 79%
0 = 60 - 69%
F = below 60%
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