KSLU Solved Question Papers
International Business
Previous Year Question Paper with Solution
B.B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 4
2015 Dec (70 marks) Examination
munotes.in
Mumbai
B.B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 4 International Business 2015 Dec (70 marks) Question Paper with Solutions
First published on munotes.in on 21 October 2026.
Published by munotes.in, Mumbai.
Model answers written and edited by the munotes.in editorial desk.
Passages from this volume may be quoted, in print, online or by an AI system, with credit: name munotes.in and link to this volume's page. The volume may not be reproduced as a whole. Full terms at munotes.in/content-license.
munotes.in is an independent study resource for students of Karnataka State Law University. It is not affiliated with Karnataka State Law University, and is not endorsed by it.
The University does not publish an official answer key for this paper. The answers in this volume are model answers, written to show how a full-mark answer is built. They are a study aid, not an authority on what an examiner marked.
The question paper reproduced here is the paper as set by Karnataka State Law University at the 2015 Dec (70 marks) examination.
Contents
The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2015 Dec (70 marks) examination, in the order it was set.
MarksPage
The Paper as Set
The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2015 Dec (70 marks) examination, reproduced as Karnataka State Law University set them, in the order it set them. Long reading passages are shortened to their first and last lines and our summary; the original paper prints them in full. Only the answers are ours. See the original question paper.
Duration 2½ hours · Total marks 70 · 12 questions answered
How to use this volume
Solve the paper first, under exam conditions and against the clock. Then read the answers here and mark your own. Reading a solution before attempting the question feels productive and teaches very little, because recognising an answer is not the same as being able to write one.
Q1Explain internationalisation stages and orientations.[10]
Answer
For full marks, cover: the meaning of internationalisation; its stages, explained through the establishment chain of the Uppsala model and the wider path from domestic firm to global firm; the meaning of international orientation and the four orientations of the EPRG framework; how orientation changes as a firm moves through the stages, in a linking table; the forces that move a firm forward; an example; and a conclusion.
Meaning of internationalisation
Internationalisation is the process by which a firm increases its involvement in markets outside its home country. It is usually gradual. A firm first tests foreign demand with small exports and, as it learns and gains confidence, commits more money, people and decision-making power abroad. Two things change together as it does so: its stage of involvement and its managers' orientation towards foreign markets.
Stages of internationalisation
A. The establishment chain (Uppsala model)
Researchers at Uppsala University, Johanson and Wiedersheim-Paul (1975) and Johanson and Vahlne (1977), found that firms tend to move abroad step by step. They described an establishment chain of four steps in each foreign market:
- No regular exports. The firm sells abroad only occasionally, in response to unsolicited orders.
- Exports through an agent. The firm appoints an independent agent or distributor in the foreign market.
- Sales subsidiary. The firm opens its own sales office or subsidiary to handle marketing and service.
- Production subsidiary. The firm starts making its products in the foreign country.
The model adds that firms usually enter markets that are psychically close first, meaning countries with a similar language, culture and business practice. They then move to more distant ones. Each step is taken after the firm has learnt enough from the previous one.
B. The wider path to a global firm
Across all its markets, a firm's journey can be summed up in a few broad stages:
- Domestic stage. It serves only its home market.
- Export stage. It sells abroad but produces at home.
- Multinational stage. It has sales and production units in several countries, each adapted to its market.
- Global stage. It plans for the world as one market, with standard products and worldwide sourcing.
- Transnational stage. Its units form a linked network that shares knowledge in all directions.
International orientation
International orientation is the outlook of a firm's top managers towards foreign markets and foreign people. Howard Perlmutter described three orientations in 1969, and a fourth was added in 1973. Together they form the EPRG framework:
- Ethnocentric. The home country is seen as the model. Foreign markets get the home product and home managers.
- Polycentric. Each country is treated as unique. Local managers run local units with local products.
- Regiocentric. A region, such as the Gulf or South-East Asia, is treated as one unit for planning and staffing.
- Geocentric. The world is treated as one market, and the best people and ideas are drawn from anywhere.
How stage and orientation move together
| Stage of internationalisation | Typical orientation | What the firm looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Occasional or agent exports | Ethnocentric | Home product sold abroad unchanged |
| Sales subsidiaries in several countries | Ethnocentric moving to polycentric | Local marketing begins |
| Production in several countries | Polycentric | Products adapted country by country |
| Regional hubs | Regiocentric | Planning and staffing by region |
| Global or transnational firm | Geocentric | World market, global talent, shared learning |
The link is not fixed. A firm may stay ethnocentric even with many foreign plants, and that often causes problems with local customers and staff.
Criticism of the stage approach
Not every firm follows the stages in order. Some firms, especially in software and online services, sell to many countries from the very start; they are called born global firms. A firm may also skip steps, for example by buying a foreign company outright. Its authors themselves revised the Uppsala model in 2009 to give more weight to networks of business relationships. The stages are therefore a common pattern, not a fixed rule.
Forces that move a firm forward
- Growing foreign sales and experience, which reduce uncertainty.
- Competition at home and abroad, which pushes the firm to be closer to customers.
- Tariffs or local content rules, which make local production attractive.
- Lower transport and communication costs, and trade agreements.
- The vision and outlook of top managers.
An example
A Karnataka coffee processor first ships a few lots when foreign buyers ask. It then appoints an agent in the Gulf, its psychically closest market. Sales grow, so it opens a sales office in Dubai. Later it sets up a roasting unit there to serve local tastes. Over these steps, its managers move from an ethnocentric to a polycentric outlook, and later to a regional one.
Conclusion. Internationalisation is a gradual process. A firm moves from occasional exports through agents and sales subsidiaries to production abroad, and finally to a global or transnational network. Its international orientation moves alongside, from ethnocentric to polycentric, regiocentric and geocentric. Understanding both helps a firm choose the right step at the right time and adopt the outlook that suits its stage.
The rest of the answers
The first answer is free. The rest come with the KSLU B.B.A. LL.B. Semester 4 solved papers.
You have read the question paper and its first answer in full. Buy the solved papers once and you can read every answer of every solved paper in this semester.
Solved papers: ₹499 Already bought it? Sign in
The question paper itself stays free, and so does the syllabus.
What should we fix or add?
Found an error in this volume? Report it and we will check it against the paper.