By Joan

Editor’s note: “International Business Corner” is a weekly column written by Joan Keston that provides information for people involved in or considering international operations. Keston is an international business consultant. Over the next several months she will be writing about important issues that international businesses face as they compete in the 21st century global business environment. This article is part of a series that discusses women working in international business. RALEIGH, N.C. – Women suffer great discrimination and even brutality in some Muslim cultures. We are witnessing the effects of extremism and terrorism that are joining religion and politics...

Editor’s note: “International Business Corner” is a weekly column written by Joan Keston that provides information for people involved in or considering international operations. Keston is an international business consultant. Over the next several months she will be writing about important issues that international businesses face as they compete in the 21st century global business environment. This article is part of a series that discusses women working in international business. RALEIGH, N.C. – I first arrived in Brazil in the mid 80s. I had never been in what was then termed a third-world country and had no preconceived notion...

Editor’s note: “International Business Corner” is a weekly column written by Joan Keston that provides information for people involved in or considering international operations. Keston is an international business consultant. Over the next several months she will be writing about important issues that international businesses face as they compete in the 21st century global business environment. This article is part of a series that discusses women working in international business. RALEIGH, N.C. – I moved to Paris in the mid-80s and worked throughout Europe. The Berlin Wall had not fallen yet, so when Americans said Europe they only thought...

Editor’s note: “International Business Corner” is a weekly column written by Joan Keston that provides information for people involved in or considering international operations. Keston is an international business consultant. Over the next several months she will be writing about important issues that international businesses face as they compete in the 21st century global business environment. This article is part of a series that discusses women working in international business. RALEIGH, N.C. – “Women in international business” is a very complex and individualized topic. A constructive way of handling the subject is by means of case studies that are...

Editor’s note: “International Business Corner” is a weekly column written by Joan Keston that provides information for people involved in or considering international operations. Keston is an international business consultant. Over the next several months she will be writing about important issues that international businesses face as they compete in the 21st century global business environment. This article is part of a series that discusses women working in international business. RALEIGH, N.C. – I tend to avoid addressing “women’s issues” when discussing business or professional topics. The subject is very individualized and generalizations once made can easily be refuted...

Editor’s note: “International Business Corner” is a weekly column written by Joan Keston that provides information for people involved in or considering international operations. Keston is an international business consultant. Over the next several months she will be writing about important issues that international businesses face as they compete in the 21st century global business environment. This article is the third in a series that addresses international law. RALEIGH, N.C. – One of the primary areas in international business where the issues of international law are currently playing out regards the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and its application...

Editor’s note: “International Business Corner” is a weekly column written by Joan Keston that provides information for people involved in or considering international operations. Keston is an international business consultant. Over the next several months she will be writing about important issues that international businesses face as they compete in the 21st century global business environment. This article is the second in a series that addresses international law. RALEIGH, N.C. – According to the Legal Information Institute at Cornell Law School, the line between public and private international law has become increasingly uncertain in recent years. Issues of private...

Editor’s note: “International Business Corner” is a weekly column written by Joan Keston that provides information for people involved in or considering international operations. Keston is an international business consultant. Over the next several months she will be writing about important issues that international businesses face as they compete in the 21st century global business environment. This article is the first in a series that addresses international law. RALEIGH, N.C. – As business becomes increasingly global, it is important to understand the concepts related to international law. The purpose here is not to delve deeply into an analysis of...

Editor’s note: “International Business Corner” is a weekly column written by Joan Keston that provides information for people involved in or considering international operations. Keston is an international business consultant. Over the next several months she will be writing about important issues that international businesses face as they compete in the 21st century global business environment. RALEIGH, N.C. – Once you are “ready in-country,” i.e., you have executed a well thought-out and adequate business plan, you must be ready as a company. (It may be difficult to write a business plan for international expansion that is as complete and...