Mini Series: What is Globalization?

What is this Globalization thing everyone is talking about? Or, what is this globalization thing everyone Was talking about say, 7-8 years ago.

Globalizing and globalization means a lot of different things to people. Some fear that it means offshoring jobs to India or China, some think that it means traveling the world, corporations think it means selling their products and services everywhere. I like to think of globalization as a process, I'm not sure what the end point is but, its a process that is making the world a smaller place, its been enabled by technological advances in communications and opening of free trade agreements which allow people and data to move across borders.

Globalism: a derivation of the other words is typically referred to as the process wherein nation-states play a less important role in the world economy and politics as people develop a truly "internationalist" prospective. Thats a long ways off.

For the most part, when I think about Globalization I think about it from the perspective of large international companies and organizations. They're goal is to stretch our of their national or multinational boundaries and begin sourcing materials and selling products on multiple playing fields world wide. Globalization isn't something they fear, its something they need because it enables them to remain (or become) competitive in a larger marketplace. For most companies thats where they end, the get cheaper materials, or cheaper labor and are able to sell more stuff. By most standards and methodologies that would place them in the Transnational category and Not the Global.

What does a global company do that a transnational company doesn't? That question is a little more difficult but to give you a hint of next week's answer, the core of it is the companies ability to move "Human Capital" around like chess pieces.

Most companies are less "global" than they think:

Transnational Company example:
General Electric, Coca Cola
Mulinational Company example:
Caterpillar, Goodyear Tire (most heavy or large manufactures)
International Company example:
Koch Industries