This piece is an empirical study of how students experience and conceptualise internationalisation of higher education at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), South Africa. The central question of this empirical study is, how do students experience and conceptualise internationalisation of higher education at Wits? The conceptual framework presents Wits within three domains, which are the Official, Pedagogical and Social, as the context within which the university operates. Using a qualitative methodology – phenomenography – that aims to explore the qualitatively different ways in which a group of people experience a specific phenomenon, in this case internationalisation of higher education, four main constructs about internationalisation have emerged from students’ accounts: (I) internationalisation as Wits is striving to be a top global university; (II) internationalisation as the presence of international students; (III) internationalisation as an issue of mutual respect and acceptance, and (IV) internationalisation as enhancing the students’ learning experience. The argument is that, though students converge on these conceptions, their differences regarding the emphasis and significance points to a scenario of unbalanced institutional mediation, with strong mediation within the logic of dominant pedagogical practice in the university, constrained by forms of weak mediation in the social domain.

Companies within Artificial Intelligence are receiving increased international attention in many industries and the technology is affecting the everyday life of many people, with or without their knowledge. Simultaneous to this development, the BRIC countries have gained a spot in the global sitting room due to their rapid growth and industrialisation, which in its turn has made way for vast business opportunities. The purpose of this thesis has therefore been to explore how Artificial Intelligence companies utilise these opportunities and internationalise to the BRIC countries. This has been done through a qualitative study where four cases have been interviewed to explore whether traditional or new internationalisation processes are applicable in this context. Additionally, the drivers and barriers of this market expansion have been researched to broaden the view of the process. The findings reveal that Artificial Intelligence business is global and that networks are significant in the success of internationalising to the BRIC countries. It is also found that there are great drivers and challenging barriers that affect the decision to enter the BRIC countries and the success in these markets. Lastly, several topics for future research are presented in the hope of encouraging more contributions to the field.

This study examined the different roles of social capital (i.e. efficacy, serendipity, and liability), network relationships, network closure and structure important to the internationalisation process of high technology International New Ventures (INVs). Although there has been a growing recognition of the role of social capital in the internationalisation process of firms, research into the three roles of social capital and their interrelation with network closure and structure is a research area that very few empirical studies exist. This study seeks to fill this gap by gaining rich insights into the internationalisation process of high technology INVs and by exploring the importance of strong and weak ties mechanism in early and later international market entries. In this study social capital is the sum of actual and potential resources that derive from network relationships. The study built on qualitative data collected from nine in-depth case studies of Greek and Scottish software INVs. The multiple semi-structure interviews were carried out in 2013 and 2014 with founders and CEOs. The material of the nine cases was used to understand and explain the internationalisation process and how social capital and network relationship influence it. The case material analysis proceeded from within case analysis to cross-case analysis in order to explore common patterns and differences across the cases. A theoretical framework based on the existing gaps was developed and tested in this research. This study contributed to the literature on International Business (IB), International Entrepreneurship (IE) and Social capital by exploring the evolution of social capital diachronically. A new type of INV was found: the niche market INV, which strategically uses its social capital to capture and exploit new opportunities in foreign markets. New insights are given to which role of social capital becomes more crucial in initial and later international market entries. This study found that the efficacy role of social capital played an important role both in initial and later stages of internationalisation. However, the serendipity role of social capital was more important for companies with many structural holes that did not have the necessary network relationships to bridge them. This study showed that Greek and Scottish entrepreneurs have different backgrounds; Greek entrepreneurs lack previous international work experience. It was found that virtual social capital in the digital era is becoming more and more important. A number of implications for management practice, policy and education are presented for developed markets firm managers and governments in the fields of IE and IB.

Student Number : 0010372Y - MEd research report - School of Education - Faculty of Humanities / This study aims to investigate the experiences, problems and challenges faced by Foreign Faculty at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), with a special focus on how both the institution and the Foreign Faculty address them. The broader focus of the study is to examine and explore how universities address the challenge of internationalisation at the faculty level. An increase of faculty from Africa at an institutional level highlights the changing features of North to South and South to South faculty mobility, within an increasingly international and globalised world. While Foreign Faculty are accepted into internationally acclaimed universities (such as Wits), the study reveals the limited nature of the knowledge base documenting the experiences of Foreign Faculty in South African Universities. The research indicates that in spite of high level qualifications and research experience many Foreign Faculty are required to accept middle-level lecturer and senior lecturer positions. Findings also indicate that Foreign Faculty often experience a variety of challenges as a result of moving from one country / system to another. This study represents a contribution towards the debate on the employment of Foreign Faculty.

L’internationalisation du droit n’est pas indifférente aux contrats publics. Les deux pourraient même entrer en contact de manière privilégiée. Leur rencontre, voir leur confrontation, pourraient bien réinterroger des pans entiers du droit des contrats publics en France et au Canada. Si chacun des deux systèmes fait état d’un degré de perméabilité différent face à un tel phénomène, de sérieux arguments militent pour leur rapprochement sous l’effet de ce dernier. Il convient ainsi de proposer une étude approfondie des rapports d’influence entre ce phénomène et cette discipline afin de révéler la présence ou l’absence d’une internationalisation du droit des contrats publics en France et au Canada / The internationalization of law is not indifferent to public contracts. Both would have even come into contact in a privileged way. Their meeting, or even their confrontation, could well re-examine large parts of the law of public contracts in France and Canada. While each of the two systems reports a different degree of permeability in the face of such a phenomenon, there are serious arguments for their rapprochement under the effect of the latter. It will thus be necessary to propose an in-depth study of the relations of influence between this phenomenon and this discipline in order to reveal the presence or the absence of an internationalization of the law of public contracts in France and in Canada

With social structure and technology rapidly changing, business globalisation has been regarded as a worldwide trend. While there have been many cases and literature on management of culture integration for merger and acquisition from a Western perspective, few have discussed cultural integration in an Asian context. This study provides a case study of cultural integration strategies Lenovo has undertaken to manage employees from both teams after the M&A. It adopts a semi-structure face-to-face interview research method, which 5 participants were selected from the culture integration committee for interview. During the interview, each participant answered the questions from their perspective of the job position they are currently in. The method would enhance the quality of the research as it looks into the problems and strategy that Lenovo has encountered and undertaken from various points of view. However, as no employees from IBM PC-D on the committee were available to participate in the research, it might place some limitations on the research simply because IBM team’s opinions were not taken into account. After analysing the results obtained from the participants, the researcher found that there were several motives for Lenovo to acquire IBM PC-D, including: - 1) internationalization, 2) acquiring technology and skills, 3) acquiring a brand, 4) obtaining access to new customers, 5) increase bargaining position to suppliers. Among these five motives, acquiring brand was considered to be the most important motive. As Chinese product has always been marketed at the lower end of the product line with low costs and poor quality, acquiring IBM’s brand would enable Lenovo to boost its product image and to gain access to customers outside the Chinese market. In managing two teams within the organisation, Lenovo has taken very few steps to integrate two teams into one. Instead, a separate management mode was encouraged by Lenovo to allow IBM PC-D to maintain its own management system and procedures. In addition, a culture integration committee was voluntarily set up by employees from various departments to design initiatives to encourage communication between two teams. When problems arise due to the difference between two teams, Lenovo has adopted an accommodation strategy by making adjustments to the work schedule of its employee in the Lenovo team in order to accommodate employees in IBM team. As a result, it has increased the workload for staff in Lenovo team and this may thus lead to stress and work-life imbalance to its employees. Overall, the strategy that Lenovo has adopted to manage two teams seems to have worked well and the culture integration committee appears to have served well in encouraging the communication between two teams. On the other hand, as the participants in the interview were not directly involved with the designing and crafting the strategy of culture integration, that might have some limitation on the result. Therefore, it is suggested that further research can be done to capture the opinion from members that are directly involved in the design of culture integration strategy as well as teams from IBM PC-D in order to ensure a well provided empirical and consistent view.

This thesis examines the risk and internationalisation practices of International New Ventures (INVs) in the environmental sector. The purpose of the research is to make observations regarding the manner in which environmental INVs manage risk when internationalising.The literature review focuses upon the published literature that relates to INVs, risk and risk management, mode of entry and the environmental sector. Section one of the literature review provides the characteristics of what constitutes an INV. Section 2 provides a review of the risk literature, this allows the differences between Multi National Enterprise (MNE) and INV risk and risk management to be reviewed. Section 3 takes the international business risks mentioned in section 2 and relates them to the mode of entry literature (i.e. the internationalisation of firms). The final section of the literature review is used to justify the investigation into the water pollution and control sector of the environmental industry. The research question is 'What strategies do environmental INVs use when entering new international markets?' The research question is broken into five specific research questions and addressed using the Repertory Grid process. The Repertory Grid process is used as it can turn the tacit knowledge held by the participants into explicit knowledge. The results show areas of convergence and divergence between practice and academia. The results also suggest new issues that need to be considered when firms internationalise. This culminates in the observations made in regard to the way environmental INVs manage risk when internationalising.

<p>Syftet är att analysera integrationen i förvärvsprocessen mellan Pernod Ricard och Vin&Sprit genom att göra en fallstudie för att se vilka förutsättningar de har för att lyckas.</p><p>Undersökningen är en fallstudie och har en kvalitativ ansats. Metoden i denna uppsats kommer att bestå av intervjuer och skriftliga källor. Till största delen används primärdata men även sekundärdata kommer att förekomma.</p><p>Erfarenhet och tidigare kunskap om internationella förvärv spelar en stor roll vid internationella förvärvsprocesser. Kulturella skillnader verkar inte spela en så stor roll som det ofta sägs. En decentraliserad affärsmodell kan dock förhindra att de eventuella kulturella skillnader som finns inte påverkar förvärvsprocessen negativt. Andra viktiga faktorer vid ett internationellt förvärv är ledarskap, kommunikation och utformandet av en ny vision.</p> / <p>The purpose is to analyze the integration of the acquisition process between Pernod Ricard and Vin&Sprit by making a case study to see what conditions they have to succeed.<strong> </strong></p><p>This study is a case study with a qualitative approach. The method in this paper consists of interviews and written sources. For the most part primary data is used, but secondary data will also occur.</p><p>Experience and previous knowledge of international acquisitions play a major role in international acquisition processes. Cultural differences do not seem to play as large a role as it is often said. A decentralized business model can, however, prevent potential cultural differences from affecting the acquisition process in a negative way. Other important factors in an international acquisition process are leadership, communication and the creation of a new vision.</p>

<p>In this thesis we wanted to investigate whether there is a connection between the inward and outward internationalisation of a firm. To do this we have conducted a case study on the Turkish telecom company Turkcell. To examine if Turkcell’s inward internationalisation has affected its outward internationalisation we have studied the relationship between Turkcell and Swedish Ericsson. To collect the primary data for our study we performed interviews in Istanbul Turkey with the procurement manager at Turkcell and the strategic manager at Ericsson. Since there is limited research on the inward-outward connection we have chosen to see this connection from Håkansson and Snehota’s relationship perspective. Further, to analyse the results of Turkcell’s outward internationalisation we compared the findings to the Uppsala Internationalisation Process Model to see if it Turkcell’s establishments abroad was affected by the inward internationalisation by Ericsson.</p><p>We found that Turkcell and Ericsson have a very close relationship which has given Turkcell many resources such as know-how, opportunities and knowledge. Whether these resources have helped Turkcell in their establishments abroad or not is difficult to determine. However we found that Turkcell had ventured abroad relatively fast which indicates that they have gained the relevant knowledge from external sources. As our results show that Ericsson has transferred many resources to Turkcell it is reasonable to conclude that Turkcell’s success abroad is at least partly due to their relationship with Ericsson.</p>

Subcontractors today find themselves in an increasingly fierce competitive environment, much due to the famous or should we say infamous globalisation. When the big important clients of subcontractors expand over boarders the subcontractor might be obliged to follow them, especially if holding competences of particular value to the outsourcing principal. A subcontractor that thus follow a client abroad might take a great leap, both in regards to what cultural differences or geographical distance might exist as well as the risk associated with such an investment. In this thesis we have highlighted the situation of these so-called client-following subcontractors. The purpose is to investigate how well client-following subcontractors take advantage of opportunities in a new market and how the relationship with the client has affected this. We found that a qualitative study would best serve our purpose and to be more specific we chose the method of case studies. Two Swedish subcontractors was selected through certain criteria and contact via an outsourcing principal. These two cases was researched through in-depth interviews but also by gathering secondary data such as financial reports. To further increase our understanding of the research area we put significant focus on building a sound frame of reference. Three main theoretical areas was emphasized; first the internationalisation process, second customer relationship and trust, and third strategic choices for subcontractors. In conclusion we found distinct differences in the underlying strategies of the two cases that could be connected to just what laid behind the decision to internationalise. We could develop this picture by looking at the relationship between the subcontractor and its major client in both instances. A relationship in which more long-term objectives are taken into account had a positive effect on the expansionary strategy of the subcontractor. / Underleverantörer idag möter allt hårdare konkurrens vilket till mångt och mycket beror på den välkända, eller ska vi säga den ökända, globaliseringen. När stora och viktiga kunder till underleverantörer expanderar över gränserna kan underleverantörerna vara tvungna att följa efter, speciellt i de fall där dessa har kompetenser av särskilt värde för uppdragsgivaren. En underleverantör som följer efter sin kund kan därför ta ett stort steg, både gällande kulturskillnader och geografiskt avstånd men också den risk som är förknippad med en sådan investering. I denna uppsats har vi belyst situationen för dessa så kallade klientefterföljande underleverantörer. Syftet är att undersöka hur väl klientefterföljande underleverantörer utnyttjar möjligheterna i en ny marknad och hur relationen med klienten har påverkat detta. Vi fann att en kvalitativ studie bäst tjänade vårt syfte, för att vara mer exakt valde vi att göra fallstudier. Två svenska underleverantörer valdes utifrån vissa kriterier och via kontakt med en uppdragsgivare. Dessa var sedan undersökta genom djupgående intervjuer men också genom sekundärdata som exempelvis finansiella rapporter. För att ytterligare öka vår förståelse av ämnet lade vi extra vikt på att bygga en gedigen referensram. Tre teoretiska huvudområden identifierades; först själva internationaliseringsprocessen, sedan kundrelationen och tillit, och sist strategiska val för underleverantörer. Sammanfattningsvis fann vi distinkta skillnader i de underliggande strategierna av de två fallstudierna vilka kunde kopplas till vad som låg bakom beslutet att internationalisera. Vi kunde utveckla bilden genom att titta på relationen mellan underleverantören och dess huvudkund i båda fallen. En relation som tog mer hänsyn till långtgående mål hade en positiv effekt på den expansiva strategin hos underleverantörerna.