| Course | DBA-8010 The Global Business Context Trends, Issues, and Markets |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 1 |
| Paper type | Module 1 written assignment: drivers of globalization, challenges and culture |
| Length | About 505 words, 4 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Thomas Edison State University |
| Program | Doctor of Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for DBA 8010 Module 1
Beet Red and Spirulina Blue: The Globalization of a Natural Food Color Business
Student Name
Doctor of Business Administration, Thomas Edison State University
DBA-8010: The Global Business Context: Trends, Issues, and Markets
Mentor Name
Month Day, Year
Beet Red and Spirulina Blue: The Globalization of a Natural Food Color Business
The Firm and Its Industry
We employ 85 people and sell about $31 million a year of natural colors to beverage, confectionery and dairy producers, 80 percent of it in North America. Food makers worldwide are replacing synthetic dyes with colors from fruits, vegetables and algae, and our customers are increasingly multinational companies that want the same color supplied to plants on three continents.
Globalization Drivers
De Kluyver (2012) draws on the idea that industries globalize under four kinds of drivers: market, cost, government and competitive. Yip (1989) developed this framework to help firms judge how global their strategy should be, arguing that the strength of each driver differs by industry.
Market and competitive drivers are strongest. Our largest customer, a beverage company, has told us it will consolidate natural color suppliers to two that can serve its plants in North America, Europe and Asia.
| Driver | Evidence in natural food colors | Strength |
|---|---|---|
| Market | Multinational food companies want one color specification for all plants; consumer demand for clean labels is spreading | Strong |
| Cost | Extraction plants need scale; raw materials such as spirulina are grown where climate allows | Moderate |
| Government | Food additive approvals differ by country, slowing harmonization | Mixed: harmonizing in some regions, divergent in others |
| Competitive | Large European ingredient firms supply customers globally | Strong |
Challenges
Globalization brings three challenges for a firm our size. First, regulation: a color permitted in one market may require separate approval in another, and naming rules for "natural" claims vary. Second, supply risk: spirulina and purple carrots come from a handful of growing regions, and a drought or crop failure affects every customer at once. Third, scale: global customers expect technical support and local inventory in each region, which strains a company of 85 people.
Culture
Culture shapes what color means to consumers. Hofstede (2001) showed that national cultures differ along measurable dimensions, and food choices reflect those values in ways that affect product design. Japanese consumers, by our customers' research, expect muted, natural-looking shades in many confections and associate bright synthetic colors with lower quality; German buyers scrutinize ingredient lists closely and favor short, recognizable labels; American consumers accept brighter colors but increasingly read labels for synthetic dyes.
For our business this means that a single global color specification may not satisfy every market; customers may want the same product color but different shades or label language by region.
Implications
The drivers say our industry is globalizing whether we act or not. If we cannot serve multinational customers in at least North America and Europe, we risk losing our largest accounts to European competitors. The challenges argue for a partner rather than building everything ourselves: a European toll processor and regulatory consultants, which later modules will consider.
Conclusion
Natural food colors are a globalizing industry, driven mainly by multinational customers and global competitors. For a small firm, the response must manage regulatory divergence, concentrated supply and cultural differences in what consumers expect color to say about food.
References
De Kluyver, C. A. (2012). Fundamentals of global strategy. Saylor Academy.
Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture's consequences: Comparing values, behaviors, institutions, and organizations across nations (2nd ed.). Sage.
Yip, G. S. (1989). Global strategy... in a world of nations? Sloan Management Review, 31(1), 29-41.
DBA 8010 Module 1 instructions, in plain terms
DBA-8010 grades eight discussions, two synchronous events, five written assignments worth 35 percent of the grade and a final project, built in parts, in which you prepare export plans covering a product and a service alike. The text is de Kluyver's Fundamentals of Global Strategy, an open textbook. This first written assignment covers drivers of globalization, its challenges and culture. Expect to assess the globalization drivers in an industry you know, the challenges they create and how culture affects business in the markets involved, with doctoral-level use of research. Rate the strength of each driver with evidence from your industry, such as customer demands or competitor moves, and say what globalization makes harder for a firm of your size. Treat culture as something that shapes products and decisions, not only manners.
How this DBA 8010 Module 1 example is built
The paper introduces a firm and its globalizing industry. A table assesses four globalization drivers with evidence and strength, drawing on research on global strategy. A section names three challenges for a small firm. A section on culture links national differences to specific product and labeling choices. Implications and a conclusion follow, preparing for later modules. The implications section turns the analysis toward later modules, naming a partner-based approach that the entry and marketing assignments develop. Every driver in the table carries evidence and a strength rating. The culture section ties consumer expectations in Japan, Germany and the United States to shade and labeling choices.
DBA 8010 Module 1 rubric: what earns full marks
Mentors weigh correct use of global strategy ideas, a real industry and firm as the test case, solid scholarly support and doctoral-level prose. Papers that rate each driver with evidence, rather than listing drivers, show analytical depth. Linking culture to product design demonstrates insight. Drawing implications that set up later decisions shows strategic thinking. A table that rates each driver with evidence lets the reader judge the analysis. Implications that set up later decisions show that the paper is part of a strategy, not an isolated exercise. Primary research, such as the original work on globalization drivers, meets doctoral expectations. Specific evidence, such as a customer's plan to consolidate suppliers, gives the driver ratings weight.
DBA 8010 Module 1 help: mistakes that cost marks
Students lose points by listing drivers without evidence, by discussing culture through stereotypes or by describing globalization without implications for the firm. Others cite only the textbook. Rate each driver for your industry. Tie culture to concrete business choices. Draw implications. Use primary research. End with what the analysis means for your firm's next decisions, so the paper sets up the decisions that follow. Draw on the original research on globalization drivers, not only the textbook's overview of globalization. A free first sample on your own DBA-8010 written assignment is available on request. Rank the drivers by how strongly each pushes the color industry toward global operation, and say why.
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DBA 8010 Module 1 questions, answered
Where can I find a free DBA 8010 Module 1 sample paper?
Globalization drivers and culture in the natural food color industry are analyzed in the assignment above.
What are the drivers of globalization?
Market, cost, government and competitive drivers, whose strength differs by industry.
How does culture affect global business?
It shapes what consumers value and expect, which can require changes to products, labels and marketing.
What is the final project in DBA-8010?
A product export plan and a service export plan, built in stages.
What textbook does DBA-8010 use?
De Kluyver's Fundamentals of Global Strategy, an open textbook from Saylor Academy.