Qn Explores Globalization

The global nature of the current economic downturn has drawn attention to a series of issues related to globalization, whether it’s concerns about protectionism leading to a long-term fall-off in trade, the challenges of coordinating global regulatory reform, or the disproportionate impact of GDP declines on vulnerable populations. Q5 magazine, which asks "Where’s the value in globalization?", provides a variety of perspectives on the forces that tie together the world’s economies.

The entire print issue of Q5 is available online, and new features are added to the website regularly. Topics covered range from an interview with Iceland’s minister of business affairs on what an island with less than .005% of the world’s population can teach us about globalization, to an exploration of what human rights standards should exist for multinational corporations. 

Q5’s title article is a dialog with Peter Schott, professor of economics, Yale School of Management; Kenneth Scheve, professor of political science and co-director of the Leitner Program in International and Comparative Political Economy, Yale University; Miguel A. Centeno '87, professor of sociology and international affairs, Princeton University; and Arvind Subramanian, senior fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics. These experts from different disciplines look at the ways globalization is understood both within an academic context and by people around the world in their everyday experiences. 

Can globalization thrive without a strong foundation of moral and social values? Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair argues that all human systems rely on certain fundamental values to function well over the long term, and that applying this understanding to globalization could produce tangible benefits in "What can values do for globalization?"

American pop music blaring from speakers in North Africa. Indian novels being read on the subway in New York City. Has cultural production become as widely dispersed as the supply chain? Shameem Black, assistant professor of English at Yale, takes on the question "Is there a global literature?"

In 2005, Lenovo, China’s largest PC maker, acquired IBM’s worldwide PC business. The company inherited nearly $10 billion in annual sales, but faced the challenge of introducing itself to millions of consumers. Deepak Advani, who led the firm’s marketing effort as chief marketing officer, discussed the challenges of taking a brand global with SOM marketing faculty Ravi Dhar, George Rogers Clark Professor of Management and Marketing and Director of the Center for Customer Insights, Yale School of Management, and K. Sudhir, professor of marketing and director of the China India Consumer Insights Program, Yale School of Management. 

The global economy is in a severe slowdown. GDPs are dropping, the rosters of the unemployed are getting longer, and there’s no obvious resolution in sight. Will the effects of this economic crisis — and of government responses — threaten the system of commercial relationships that has developed over the last 30 years? Fareed Zakaria, editor of Newsweek International and author of The Post-American World, along with Yale faculty Amy Chua, John M. Duff Jr. Professor of Law, Yale Law School; Paul Kennedy, J. Richardson Dilworth Professor of History; and Jeffrey E. Garten, Juan Trippe Professor in the Practice of International Trade, Finance, and Business and Former Dean, Yale School of Management, and Former Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade discuss "Is globalization endangered?" 

How has globalization benefited the poor? Nina Pavcnik, associate professor of economics, Dartmouth College, talks about the ways the lives of people in distant countries are increasingly being linked, through commerce, communications technology, or culture. And how to parse the impacts of globalization on the lives of the poorest citizens in developing countries. 

Michael Watts, Chancellor’s Professor of Geography, University of California, Berkeley, and editor of the Curse of the Black Gold: 50 Years of Oil in the Niger Delta responds to the question, "Has globalization failed in Nigeria?" Oil pumped from the Niger Delta is loaded on supertankers and shipped into the global market, accounting for 3% of world production and generating substantial revenues for the Nigerian government. What has this connection to the world economy done for Nigeria? 

And another take on Nigeria comes from a look at the country’s film industry, which in just a few years has grown from nothing to producing more titles than Hollywood and Bollywood combined.

You can find Cosmopolitan on news­stands in Korea, India, Russia, Greece, Brazil, China, and 50 other countries. How did the idea of the "fun, fearless female" go global — and pull in profits for Hearst?

With consumers becoming increasingly concerned about how their goods are produced, international companies are faced with managing conditions — as well as productivity — all along their supply chains. In many cases, that means finding ways to oversee factories in China. Can international attention improve factory conditions? 

While many see the changes of the last few decades as a truly new sort of globalization, the degree of interconnection that developed in the world prior to WWI is often forgotten. Many of the institutional structures invented in the late 19th century made possible the world we now know. Before the digital revolution transformed much of our communication into bits and pixels, there was a postal revolution that improved the speed of information flow around the world. How did the mail shape globalization? 

The global reach of the Gates Foundation has changed philanthropy. But some of their projects have a domestic focus. Hilary Pennington ’83, talks about reshaping the country’s social capital with the foundation’s effort on postsecondary education. 

Much of the public anger over the economic crisis has been directed at the CEOs of companies receiving public funds. Ultimately though, CEOs of public corporations are answerable to shareholders. Robert A.G. Monks, who founded and served as president of Institutional Shareholder Services, Inc., a leading corporate governance consulting firm, talked with Qn about the role of shareholders in the financial crisis as well as the effectiveness of policy and regulatory frameworks governing corporations.

Qn, the magazine of the Yale School of Management, is published twice a year, in the spring and fall. The magazine’s website is regularly updated with exclusive content throughout the year. Past issues have covered a variety of topics at the intersection of business and society. Q1 asked "Can we make management a profession?", Q2 looked at "Can we manage with(out) markets?", Q3 covered "Can good health be good business?", and Q4 focused on "What's the new capital up to?" 

The fall issue will consider the question, "What are you thinking?" with a look at cutting edge research in behavioral economics and finance, among other things.

Please contact the editors of the magazine with any comments, questions, or suggestions.