Businesses have been given tips on ways to become more competitive in the international marketplace.
Alejandro Escobar, senior specialist for the access to market and capabilities unit at the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) – a member of the Inter-American Development Group (IDB) – told businesspeople recently that in order to gain greater visibility globally, they should make changes.
He encouraged them to use geographical indicators, set high individual standards, and incorporate affordable technologies.
“Increasingly, there is a compliance [with] international standards that takes place that companies need to become aware of in order to be able to compete and stay a part of these global value chains,” he said, pointing out that international standards were constantly changing.
“How do we compete, then? Many companies have to upgrade their products so they have more sophisticated products. Many companies upgrade their processes and procedures, transforming inputs into outputs more efficiently and introducing technologies. Some take a functional approach and they upgrade their functions in order to increase the skill activities,” said Escobar.
He was making a presentation during a half-day seminar at the Cave Hill School of Business last Tuesday under the theme Building Global Competitiveness.
“We often think that in order for us to compete, we need to have capital-intensive purchases and we need to incorporate these sophisticated and very expensive technologies to be able to compete globally. But what this global value chain approach is saying is, that is not necessarily the case. If you can become competitive at a local level of value within your chain, then you can compete at the global level better,” he said.
The Washington-based specialist further said local businesses that were able to differentiate their products and services from their competitors’ were better positioned to survive international competition. (MM)
