Alcorn finance professor publishes manuscript on international business
June 26, 2011
Dr. Akash Dania, an assistant professor of finance in the School of Business, recently had his manuscript “Approaching the Asian elephant: understanding business-to-business relationships in India” published in the International Business and Economics Research Journal.
In a globally connected business world, it has become important to understand how business is conducted in different countries where cultural backgrounds vary significantly from the United States. As emerging markets grow more significant for multinational companies, it becomes imperative that foreign firms identify factors that contribute to successful negotiations and business strategies.
This study proposes and empirically tests a framework that measures the impact of “social formalities” and “power distance” on business relationships in context of India, a rapidly expanding emerging market. The model shows that power distance sets the stage for negations, and the respect for social formalities sets a tone of mutual reference and understanding that will facilitate the establishment of a foundation for long-term business relations.
An important implication of this research is that foreign companies should place their managers (negotiators) within the foreign social context. Being sensitive to local values and customs conveys a willingness to facilitate communication by understanding the parties’ mutual cultural differences and establishes a personal relation based on mutual respect and trust. This sensitivity and its impact will help the negotiation process move through its various stages and culminate in a business-to-business relationship.
Alcorn State University to host 2008 Multicultural Festival
November 7, 2008
In a celebration of institutional as well as regional diversity, Alcorn State University is hosting its fourth Multicultural Festival. The Festival has been expanded to include more days and more activities this year. Festival activities are taking place on Monday, November 17 – Wednesday, November 19.
The major feast and activities will be happening Wednesday, November 19, 2-4 p.m. at the E.E. Simmons Gymnasium and 4-6pm at the Dr. Clinton Bristow Dining Facility on the institution’s main campus in Lorman, Mississippi.
Alcorn Professor Publishes in Journal of Mississippi Academy of Sciences
February 27, 2008
Dr. Alex D.W. Acholonu, Professor of Biology, Alcorn State University, published an article Water Quality Studies on Freshwater Bodies in New Orleans, Louisiana One Year After Hurricane Katrina in the latest issue of the Journal of the Mississippi Academy of Sciences (October 2007). This article was published with his student Tiffari Jenkins and with assistance of several other students.
In September 2006, Dr. Acholonu applied for and was awarded a grant for $5000.00 by the Ecological Society of America (ESA) to take ecology majors and Ecology Club students on a field trip to New Orleans, Louisiana to observe the devastations caused by Hurricane Katrina, and to investigate the water quality (extent of pollution) in the Mississippi River, Lake Pontchartrain, and Southern University, New Orleans (SUNO) Golf Course Pond, one year after the occurrence of the hurricane (August 28- 29, 2005).
Alcorn Receives a Check for $15,000 from AT&T for Preparation for Study Abroad Program
January 16, 2008
Alcorn State University School of Graduate Studies received a check for $15,000 from AT&T on January 16, 2008. It will be used to help fund honor students’ preparation for study abroad. A representative of AT&T presented a check to Dr. Donzell Lee, Interim Dean of the School of Graduate Studies, who submitted the proposal on behalf of Alcorn State University.The project description reads:
“During the 2007-2008 academic year, Alcorn State University will place special emphasis on enhancing its co-curricular offering in global studies and study abroad activities for students. The obvious interconnections of our world mandates that students in all disciplines are prepared to meet the challenges of global understanding. To this end, the university has established a Center for Undergraduate Experiential Learning. Under the auspice of this center, the Honors Curriculum Program will offer an intensive Summer Language Institute to prepare students for study/travel abroad experiences. The institute will provide an eight-week intensive immersion in the study of three languages- Spanish, Chinese, and Russian.”
