Business Case Studies & Business Publications

The World is Flat...The World is Lumpy?

Yemen, Gerry, Venk...

Technical Note

The World is Flat...The World is Lumpy?

Yemen, Gerry; Venkataraman, S.

S-0191 | Published August 12, 2011 | 15 pages Technical Note

Collection: Darden School of Business

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Suitable for MBA, EMBA, GEMBA, and executive education programs, this note sets the stage to unfold an analysis of popular notions about how the world works. On one hand, some believe that global competition has created a flattened world and that globalization has leveled the playing field. Yet a zest to view the world as flat, others have said, results in an underestimation of the differences between countries?standardization, exact replication, and scale expansion on a global basis could be problematic. In this note, we acknowledge that the flat world has some lumps, but regardless of whether the world is considered to be flat or round, there are certain implications on both sides that business leaders need to be aware of in order to create global efficiency. The note offers three practical examples that students can work through and apply their learning.

Encourage managers to consider that every global decision has a "flat" component and a "lumpy" component. Develop skill and judgment to determine what aspects of management in a global context are lumpy and what aspects are flat. Explore global decision making through practical applications.