Business Management

Critical Issues in Business Management; Portfolio Task The portfolio consists of a mixture of short reports and reflections relevant to the topics covered in the class for critical issues in business management. Background information Advances in digital technologies are changing what and how we trade, lowering barriers to internationalisation and fuelling the rise of e-commerce and borderless digital trade, diversifying the content of traded goods and services and enabling new players to engage in international trade. Digitalisation affords opportunities for our Commonwealth to build new industries, devise new ways to deliver better services and enhance market access through digital trade. Advanced digital production technologies create new ways to accelerate innovation, boost productivity and raise the value-added content of goods produced in Commonwealth countries. More generally, the rise of the digital economy is creating new economic pathways, livelihoods and job opportunities that support inclusive and sustainable development across the Commonwealth. It also creates new avenues to expand the role of women in trade. Fintech has emerged as the new ‘disruptive market force’ and is challenging the traditional means of providing financial services. Global Fintech investments had increased from $2.5 billion in 2012 to over $31 billion in 2017. Fintech stands for Financial Technologies and refers to technological innovation in the financial sector, including anything and everything from mobile banking and peer-to-peer payments to distributed ledger technologies and digital currencies. The main challenge is striking the right balance between regulation and promotion of this rising sector. International business (IB) enterprises face complex interactions with non-business entities such as governments, NGOs and supranational organizations such as the UN, the Commonwealth and specialist regulators. They take actions to influence policy, but their strategies are also affected by public policy choices in various areas. These include emerging areas such as digital trade and fintech. As students of IB, it is increasingly important to consider the policy implications of such emerging areas and, especially in a post-COVID world and recovery, the public-private interface given the high level of government intervention to help economies build back better. 1. Write a report in response to the following questions: a. What is the state of play and opportunities and challenges in Digital Transformation in the Commonwealth? (1,000 words) b. What is your evaluation of the impact that COVID-19 has had/will have on trade and investment and in particular on the fintech sector? (500 words) Links ·       https://thecommonwealth.org/connectivity-agenda/digital-connectivity (Links to an external site.) ·       https://thecommonwealth.org/sites/default/files/inline/Digital%20Connectivity%20Report_low%20res_.pdf (Links to an external site.)  ·       https://unctad.org/news/covid-19s-economic-fallout-will-long-outlive-health-crisis-report-warns (Links to an external site.) ·       https://unctad.org/system/files/official-document/osg2020d1_en.pdf (Links to an external site.) ·       https://unctad.org/news/new-survey-shows-covid-19s-impact-e-commerce-poorer-nations (Links to an external site.) ·       https://unctad.org/system/files/official-document/dtlstictinf2020d2_en.pdf (Links to an external site.) ·       https://unctad.org/system/files/non-official-document/dtl_ecommerce_covid19_p01_AVitale_en.pdf (Links to an external site.) ·       https://business.facebook.com/watch/?v=1319807351685654 (Links to an external site.) ·       to an external site. ·       https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/financial-services/articles/beyond-covid-19-new-opportunities-for-fintech-companies.html (Links to an external site.) ·       http://cdn.hl.com/pdf/2020/fintech-market-update-covid—April-2020.pdf   For the question a. What is the state of play and opportunities and challenges in Digital Transformation in the Commonwealth? , it is very useful to use the report I put in uploading files, in PDF format, especially chapter 1. Digital Transformation in the Commonwealth: State of Play and chapter 2. Digital Transformation Opportunities and Challenges. …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Acceptable Formats for Submission Microsoft Word Quotes and Reference List / Bibliography in the style of the academic format Havard. Word Limits All written assignments include clear guidance on the maximum amount that should be written in order to address the requirements of the assessment task (a ‘word limit’). If the submission exceeds the word limit by more than 10%, the submission will only be marked up to and including the additional 10%. Anything over this will not be included in the final grade for the item of assessment. Abstracts, reference lists, indented quotations, and footnotes are excluded from any word limit requirements. In-text citations, embedded quotations, and all headings and titles are included in the word limit. Where a submission is notably under the word limit, the full submission will be marked on the extent to which the requirements of the assessment task have been met. Generally speaking, submissions under the word limit fall short of the requirements of the assessment task.