Assignment Description and Instructions You have been tasked with preparing a report for expansion of a product into one of the following countries, Russia, Germany, England, Australia, Colombia New Zealand, Iceland or Spain. You must select a product that is made by an organisation from a country in the Caribbean. The product must not be available for sale in any country apart from the country of origin in the Caribbean. The product must be a tangible product for example, food products, health products, hair/skin products. You will be examining the country based on the following criteria. In brief, you will analyze the political, economic, market opportunity and cultural environment of the country; market entry strategy -outline the challenges and opportunities of conducting business in the country selected and provide relevant guidelines and recommendations for entering the market. You will prepare (1) one written report. The report should be more than just a collection of key facts and figures; it should offer valuable management and cultural insights about that country. For example, in Spain the distribution system is very complex with many levels and built on long-standing personal relationships. One takeaway for a foreign company entering Spain is that there must be sufficient margins and incentive programs to motivate the many layers of channel members. Also, a joint venture with a local partner may be necessary to gain access to the complex distribution. All your sources of information must be clearly referenced. The assignments must be based on research, using online and global databases from UWI Linc and demonstrate your understanding of the readings and class discussions. Your reference list must include at least 8 scholarly peer reviewed journal sources. Organization and presentation style is important. Organization refers to readability, flow, logic, professional organization and writing mechanics of the report. It should be clear, concise, with a logical flow of thoughts and ideas. It is important to use theory and concepts from your readings and class discussions to frame the information you present. All papers should be in Microsoft Word and should be correctly formatted use headings, paragraphs. 12 pt. Times with double line spacing in accordance with the APA 7 th Edition referencing style. Format that must be utilised when submitting the Country Report: Title Page a) Name b) Date c) Project name and information e) Name of course coordinator Executive Summary (10 marks) This should be a 1-page summary of what was derived based on your assessment of the political, economic, business, market opportunity, culture, market entry mode. And, do you recommend entering or not entering that market? 1) Political environment analysis: (5 marks) a) Political system and structure b) Stability of government c) Future political risks, if any d) Bribery and corruption risk/index 2) Economic and business environment analysis: (5 marks) a) Demographics: Population, growth rate in the country selected b) Per capita income levels in the country selected c) Major exports and trading partners in the country selected d) Business environment: Government attitude to foreign investment and trends, ease of doing business, trade regulations in the country selected e) Inflation levels, currency exchange rate; risks of devaluation versus the dollar in the country selected f) Education and literacy levels, availability of skilled labor, labor costs in the country selected g) This information must be linked to the product 3) Market Opportunity Analysis: (15 marks) For the product Synopsis: You would have identified a tangible product that you believe will succeed in a country selected. (Recall, you cannot pick an existing brand). You will now state why the country selected represents a good market opportunity for the product. Rationale must include: a) Market prospects in the country selected b) Current product usage habits in the country selected c) Competitive products on the market in the country selected d) Retail distribution channels in the country selected e) Major advertising media used in the country selected f) Total size of the market and market potential for your product in the country selected g) Target market and demographics for your product in the country selected 4) Cultural dimensions of doing business in the country: (15 marks) Cultural insights synopsis: This should be about a 3 to 5-page assessment of key guidelines for success when doing business in that country - how some of the cultural habits and differences are likely to impact doing business and the marketing and distribution of the product in the country selected. a) Major religions, ethnic makeup and languages in the country selected b) Major differences in beliefs, values, customs and behaviors, role of family in the country selected c) Unique business customs, etiquette and practices one should be aware of when doing business in that country (time and decision-making, meetings, negotiations, business relationships, dress code, status, gift-giving, etc.) d) Unique aspects of written, oral and nonverbal communications in the country selected e) Describe the countrys culture using Hofstedes model of cultural dimensions (Power distance-hierarchy, Individualism/collectivism, Masculine/feminine, Uncertainty avoidance, Time) 5) Market Entry mode: (20 marks) a) Suggest the most suitable market entry mode as discussed in the course, e.g. exporting, licensing, franchising, joint venture, wholly-owned subsidiary, etc. Explain your rationale for the choice of entry mode for your product in detail. b) Provide at least 2 recent examples/case studies of market entry strategies of multinational corporations in that country that have succeeded or failed. Be sure to state the mode of entry utilized. 6) Summary: (5 marks) a) Reiterate your assessment of the political, economic, business, market opportunity, culture, market entry mode for the reader. 7) APA and Writing Skills: (20 marks) This section will be a listing of all your research your sources of information for the project. Report of the episode is very concise. There must be at least 12 sources, including relevant research using some of the business newspapers, magazines, and online databases from the Library. This must include at least 8 scholarly peer reviewed journal sources which can be found via UWILinc or Google Scholar. 8) Format and Presentation: (10 marks) Paper should be well-organized, clear and easy to read, laid out effectively, using headings, sub-heads and bullets in accordance with the APA 7th edition referencing system. Paper should be well coordinated based on the requirements. Points deducted for grammatical and spelling errors.