RMIT International University Vietnam

BUSM 3311 – International Business

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Subject Code:
BUSM-3311 / 4626

Subject Name: International Business

Location & Campus RMIT Vietnam , HCMC / Hanoi

Class Group Number: G2

Student Name: Pham Nhat Duong

Student Number: S3883259

Your Teacher: Tzach Ronen

Word Count: 536

Practicing International Business – Case Study

International Entrepreneurship: Challenges and Implications

I found the interview with Dr. Andrew H.F Tsang of West Coast International Vietnam– a leading
dental specialist who is currently running several healthcare companies in Vietnam specialized in
dentistry, skincare, chiropratic and even acupuncture - really engaging and fascinating as it extensively
expands my theoretical perspectives of the global business environment and the complexities that
comes with international entrepreneurship.  

As discussed by Dr. Andrew Tsang, entrepreneurs often face many hindrances in international business
operations due to diverse local cultures along with influences from legal institutions (Johanson &
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Vahlne, 2009). In attempting international business endeavours, entrepreneurs have to navigate through
the legalities and domestic laws of multiple jurisdictions, including but not limited to: company and
employment laws, corruption problems, tax regulations,… while learning multiple business and
managerial disciplines and ethics in running a successful international start-up.

Working in an Asian, high-context culture, Dr. Andrew realized that good interpersonal, inter-business
relationships is vital in maintaining effective cross-cultural business communication; the fact that he is
natively from Hong Kong further improves his understanding of the business practices shared by
Vietnamese people. In a relationship-based society that relies a lot of nonverbal, implicit
communications, business owners need to manage a healthy ego to avoid damaging personality/ego
clashes with clients and partners. Understanding about the distinction of cultural differences in business
can equip entrepreneurs with necessary skills and judgement in handling negotiation proceedings,
business agreements, and employee management. With this awareness, he has managed to expand his
operations from a team of 3 dentists in 2004, the initial launch of his business, to 177 active employees
– both fulltime and part-time. In a dynamic, entrepreneur-friendly business climate, Vietnamese people
has a lot of latent start-up intentions which indicates high competitiveness between Small and Medium
enterprise (SME); however, due to the lack of management and workforce skills along with limited
resources, a lot of Vietnamese firms are unable to expand their businesses and attract the market’s FDIs
(World Bank Group, 2017, p.7). According to Dr. Andrew, this challenge can be overcome through
thoughtful recruitment practices - aligning the organization’s requirements with finding qualified and
dedicated talents; by doing this, even small operations can maintain profitable business.

In terms of general tips for business and personal growth, I learned that in any career paths, I have to
stay open-minded for any business opportunities or negative changes and internal conflicts to
spontaneously adapt without losing sights of my judgement. Furthermore, the ability to assess your
behaviours introspectively and your business trajectory is extremely beneficial in decision making;
actively seeking for feedbacks and meaningful inputs from people around me will also be an important
communication skills necessary in handling customer feedbacks and stakeholders’ input from your
future business. Finally, patience will be a monumental asset in running a business as every business
processes will take a lot of trials and errors to guarantee long-term vitality.

In my opinion, the meeting with Dr. Andrew Tsang has enlightened a lot of important aspects about
running an international entrepreneurship, more specifically within Vietnam’s business climate and
cultures. I have acquired business insights into effective business communication, healthy
organizational cultures and practices along with emotional management skills which expand my
knowledge and learning in starting a future international start-up.

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References:
Vietnam Enhancing Enterprise Competitiveness and SME Linkages. (2017). World Bank, Washington,
DC.

Patricof, A. 1989. The internationalization of venture capital. Journal of Business Venturing, pp. 227-
230.

UKEssays. November 2018. International Entrepreneurship Leading To Greater Cultural

Understanding Commerce Essay, <https://www.ukessays.com/essays/commerce/international-
entrepreneurship-leading-to-greater-cultural-understanding-commerce-essay.php?vref=1>

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