View the corporate profile web pages for Nestlé and Samsung to see the various ways in which these two multinational firms are conducting their internationalization efforts. For a more detailed portrait, access Nestlé’s and Samsung’s overview financial statements, which show each firm’s breakdown of sales by geographic region. (For Nestlé’s financials, go to their web page, select Financial Information, and then select Sales Analysis. On Samsung’s web page, compare their 2000 "Domestic" and "Export" figures near the bottom of the page.) Then answer these questions:

1. What areas of international business activity can you identify at these web sites?
2. In what ways do these organizations seem to be responding to global business trends?

Internet Exercise

One of the firms discussed in Chapter 5 is Hoechst AG, the world’s largest chemical company. Look into the company and all of its activities and operations, but focus in particular on its international activities. The web site’s page on History is especially useful. Then answer the following questions:

1. Based on the information you found on its web site, what is the extent of Hoechst’s global operations?
2. What types of adaptation has Hoechst made in response to internationalization pressures? Examine its executives, its product mix and sales, and its acquisition of resources.
3. Does Hoechst’s response seem likely to lead to increased performance for the firm? Why or why not?

Explore Further

Examine the web sites of other major chemical companies and compare their global operations and activities with those of Hoechst. An interesting comparison would be the U.S.-based Eastman Chemical Company, or go to Hoover’s Online industry index to see a list of competitors in the chemical industry.