Governments all over the world can both impose costs and generate competitive advantages for multinational companies. Either way multinational companies cannot ignore the impact of governments on their global value chain. This course will focus on political strategies of multinational companies focusing on the relationship between the headquarters, subsidiaries and governments.
The course will help students to develop their corporate diplomatic skills. The course will discuss how multinational companies emerged as global actors, how they negotiate with governments, what corporate diplomacy and corporate diplomats are, how nongovernmental actors can affect companies and how to deal with institutional voids in emerging markets.
The classes will be composed of lectures, business cases, discussion forums and other resources that will help students to connect business strategy concepts to international politics, and to connect them to the real world of government-multinational companies’ relationship.
Course Date & Time
January 31 – April 11 (Jan. 31; February 7, 21 & 28; March 7, 21 & 28; April 4 & 11)
Class meeting times
Wednesdays (please pay attention to time zones and time changes in your region)
-São Paulo time – 9:00 – 10:30 p.m.
**Please note that clock changes around the world happen at different times, and in different directions. In Brazil clocks will move one hour backward on Sunday, February 18; in the US clocks will move one hour forward on Sunday, March 11; and in Europe clocks will move one hour forward on Sunday, March 25**
Instructor
Professon Gilberto Sarfati
Gilberto Sarfati is Associate Dean of Specialized Masters and professor of entrepreneuship and international business at FGV-EAESP. He is the author of the books “Theories of International Relations” published by Editora Saraiva in 2005, “Handbook of Corporate Diplomacy” published in 2007 by Editora Atlas and The Third Chessboard: How Multinational Companies Negotiate in the Internactional Economic Relations published in 2009 by Edusp, “Handbook of Negotiation” published in 2010 by Editora Saraiva and co-author of Cross Cultural Managemente published in 2013 by Editora Atlas (available only in Portuguese) and several articles and book chapters. He is a former VP of Webster Bank-Brazil, Country Manager of Segurlink and Director of New Business Ventures at Nexxy Capital. He has been entrepreneurship consultant for the Brazilian government (Ministry of Strategic Affairs) and UNDP He also has been consultant in hundreds of national and international business plans.
Academic Background
BSc Economy: PUC-SP - 1994
MSc International Relations: Hebrew University of Jerusalem - Israel - 1998
PhD International Relations University of São Paulo (USP) - 2006
Post Doctoral Fellow in Business Strategy – FGV-EAESP-2008/09