Final Project Overview
As mentioned earlier, I am currently participating in the 2022 NASBITE Case Competition. Teams from universities across Ohio and throughout the US develop a presentation and other deliverables for a participating business – in this case, a green chemicals manufacturer in the Cleveland, Ohio area. The business may or may not have exporting experience, depending on the year of the competition, so the project teams are tasked with developing a unique recommendation to maximize their future export growth.
Here are the three main areas of focus that our team identified going forward for this company:
- Top Markets: What markets have the highest export potential in the EU?
- Top Line Growth: How can WGS effectively and sustainably generate leads in the EU?
- Regulatory: What regulatory barriers could impede EU sales?
Here is the structure and timeline of the case:
- January 24, 2022 – Team registration submission deadline.
- January 31, 2022 – Case is released to advisors of registered teams.
- February-March 2022 – A bi-weekly series of webinars will be available both live and on demand for case competition participants. The first webinar will be with the case company and the others will be with sponsors about how to use various trade resources in international business, especially for researching markets and potential partners.
- March 16, 2022 (by 11:59 pm) – Team presentation recordings (30-minute limit) and Executive Summary submissions due.
- March 31, 2022 – Finalists teams announced.
- March 29-31, 2022 – Teams invited to join us for the virtual 2022 NASBITE International Annual Conference proceedings. Student Registration rates will be available.
- Week of April 18, 2022 (TBD) – Virtual presentations to the company and judges from each finalist team.
Final Project Reflection
Engaging with a real life client seeking to have a tangible effect on their top line through an export strategy is extremely exciting and rewarding. Your recommendations and strategic approaches to their unique situation in the marketplace could potentially influence their business success going forward.
As I mentioned, I’ve engaged in this type of work before: in the OEIP, I had two opportunities to engage with a company seeking to increase their export sales. In both of the previous opportunities, I had a tangible impact on their export plan and learned a lot about the respective industries and key factors for success within them. The green chemical space was a very novel industry that I didn’t have a ton of exposure towards prior, so it was an excellent opportunity to apply export principles to a very different market.
Here are the top takeaways I got from this specific company and our approach to their export strategy:
- Top markets with the highest export potential may be countries that they have already done business with.
- Consistent lead generation mechanisms do wonders to drive export sales.
- Current events can make viable business plans unattainable.
It is tempting to want to find an obscure country they never thought of to recommend an export strategy. However, sometimes the best recommendation is a country they have already engaged business with, but there is still a huge untapped market that they simply haven’t accessed yet. This was why our team focused so heavily on recommending as many high quality lead generation mechanisms as possible. One of the biggest secular trends that our group had to focus on was the transition from petroleum to renewable sources of energy in Europe. In order to generate leads to capitalize on this trend, we showcased the epitome of business focus in this change: The Greener Manufacturing Show in Cologne, Germany. In order to sweeten the deal even more, we presented a fantastic financing option provided by the Ohio Department of Development: The Image Grant. As mentioned previously, this provides 50% reimbursement for international marketing activities, including trade show expenses, up to a 10,000 value. I’ve learned that the best way to get action out of a business owner is to make it a waste to not to take action.
Additionally, we had to take a look at the current events in Ukraine and adjust our recommendations accordingly. Although war does not bode well for economic stability, we realized that some inputs for green chemical manufacturing are produced and exported heavily out of Russia and Ukraine. Additionally, green chemical alternatives, which are essentially petroleum based chemicals, were also severely threatened by the cut-off of Russian Oil. We realized this presented an opportunity for United States manufacturers of green chemicals to pick up the slack brought up by the conflict, and thus we added that to our recommendation.
I will apply all the lessons I’ve learned from export development and general business strategy in all my future professional roles going forward.
Global Option Final Reflection/Accomplishments
Let’s take a look back to my original goals for the Global Option and evaluate if I have been able to accomplish them:
- Maintain and improve on my Spanish-speaking abilities
- Prepare myself for a role in international finance and strategy
- Be exposed to new cultures and ideas to develop a global mindset
By pursuing a Spanish minor and continuing to practice my Spanish both inside and out of the classroom, I have been able to accomplish my goal of maintaining and improving upon my Spanish-speaking ability. I am more confident than ever in speaking with native speakers and engaging in conversations on a wide arrange of topics, including using vocabulary often found in the professional setting. If I do end up on an international assignment in the future, I have confidence that I will be able to adapt and excel in that environment. Additionally, my constant improvement in the Spanish language has inspired me to explore the French language as well. There’s quite a bit of overlap in both grammar and vocabulary, so I expect to become proficient in the next few years in French with a bit of luck and dedication. With every new language I learn, the more I open my mind to unique cultural ideas, and the more my mind is open to novel approaches to problem-solving. I’m extremely excited to see where this path takes me.
Building off the language expansion, this has been one of the primary factors that have led towards my development of a global mindset. Other factors have included coursework, such as the Ohio Export Internship Program, case competitions, like the 2022 NASBITE Case Competition, and global experiences, such as my mentorship with a consulting professional in Madrid, Spain. The OEIP gave me the tools and network experience to understand the forces at play in global commerce. The NASBITE Case Competition gave insight into a new industry and exposure to unique global efforts towards secular trends, including greener manufacturing and sustainability in the chemical industry. Finally, the mentorship gave primary source background about cultural phenomenon in Spain and provided invaluable insight in my long term goals of spending time abroad and global sustainability investment.
I’ve undoubtedly become more prepared for a role in international finance and strategy. My core undergraduate coursework combined with my minor in Spanish and the global option credential has given me every opportunity to prepare for just that. As I start up my position in Honeywell this summer, I will already be in a fantastic position to understand their strategic position in the global marketplace and be able to make more informed financial reporting based on the concepts I’ve learned. Concepts that apply to all international companies with foreign operations.
Here are the top three things I’ve gained that are relevant to becoming a global professional:
- Whether you like it or not, your business, big or small, is almost certainly affected by the global supply chain and global commerce.
- Opening your mind to new cultures and languages expands the diversity of your thoughts and enables superior decision-making.
- Whether you are a small, medium or large company, utilize public resources whenever possible!
In the future, I will do my very best to apply the three lessons I learned above. At Honeywell, seeing as they are a globally operating company with manufacturing and distribution facilities across the globe, I will most definitely have to consider the impacts of the global supply chain and e-commerce. I’m already keeping up with the headwinds associated with the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and will keep an eye out for any others as time goes on. Obviously, in an entry level position, I won’t be making the decisions that are influenced by these global macro events, but it’s never too soon to start thinking about the impacts, as that will most definitely affect local decisions. I will continue to try to be exposed to as many cultures and languages as I can, developing my diversity of thought to the fullest extent to make better decisions going forward. And finally, if I ever do start a business in the Midwest or anywhere else in the United States, utilizing government resources is a tremendous asset to catapulting your business both domestically and on the global stage. I’m grateful to have learned more about all the resources available.
To other students considering pursuing the Global Options:
You really have a tremendous opportunity in front of you to set yourself apart. You will be put in positions to learn much about the world of global commerce, trade and supply chains. Hopefully, as COVID-19 is starting to die down, you will have opportunities to travel or work abroad and be exposed to new cultures and languages. You will expand to develop a global mindset and be much better prepared to enter into the workforce. Additionally, you will have fantastic experiences to discuss during the recruiting process.
Thank you for reading through my Global Option journey. Please feel free to reach out to me via email if you would like to speak directly: stewart.1776@osu.edu
