International Business

2025/2026

Academic Year

ENG

Instruction in English

3

ECTS credits

Delivered at:

Department of Strategic and International Management

Course type:

Compulsory course

When:

3 year, 3 module

Instructors

Vishnevskaya, Natalya

Knatko, Dmitrii

Tekic, Anja

Tishchenko, Olga

Shaposhnikov, Sergei

Course Syllabus

Abstract

Why do some companies thrive abroad while others fail spectacularly? This course on International Business explores how firms navigate the opportunities and risks of globalization by understanding countries, institutions, and strategy rather than just geography and distance. We start by unpacking what globalization really means for firms today: shifting value chains, digital platforms, and rising geopolitical and regulatory uncertainty. We then zoom in on formal institutions (laws, regulations, trade and investment regimes) and informal institutions (culture, norms, values) to see how they shape what firms can and should do abroad. Building on this, we examine how companies design international strategies and organizational forms, choose modes of entry (export, alliance, joint venture, subsidiary), and configure their core functions—R&D, marketing, HR, and operations—across borders. Throughout the course, we work with case-based projects. In seminars, small teams analyze institutional environments, cultural challenges, and entry mode decisions for specific companies. The course culminates in a foreign market entry strategy project, where teams design and justify a concrete entry plan for a firm into a new country, integrating institutional analysis, strategic choice, and functional implications.