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2025/2026  BA-BDMAO2003U  Globalisation, Outsourcing and Virtual Organising

English Title
Globalisation, Outsourcing and Virtual Organising

Course information
Language English
Course ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Mandatory
Level Bachelor
Duration One Semester
Start time of the course Autumn
Timetable Course schedule will be posted at calendar.cbs.dk
Study board
Study Board for Service and Markets
Course coordinator
  • Michael Wendelboe Hansen - Department of Management, Society and Communication (MSC)
Main academic disciplines
  • Globalisation and international business
  • Information technology
  • Strategy
Teaching methods
  • Face-to-face teaching
Last updated on 27-06-2025

Relevant links
Learning objectives
  • Identify and analyze challenges companies and their employees are facing in globalization processes
  • Demonstrate an overview of how virtual platforms and designs may facilitate globalization processes and potentially overcome the challenges individuals and companies face
  • Select relevant theory to conceptualize, analyze and critically assess practices of virtual organization in a case study of an organization of own choice
  • Demonstrate understanding of the characteristics of virtual organizing and virtual teamwork
  • Demonstrate understanding of the role of social interaction and perceived cultural differences in global virtual work relations
  • Discuss and reflect upon the use of digital technologies in global organizing of a company´s internally and externally dispersed activities
Examination
Globalisation, Outsourcing and Virtual Organising:
Exam ECTS 7,5
Examination form Oral exam based on written product

In order to participate in the oral exam, the written product must be handed in before the oral exam; by the set deadline. The grade is based on an overall assessment of the written product and the individual oral performance, see also the rules about examination forms in the programme regulations.
Individual or group exam Individual oral exam based on written group product
Number of people in the group 2-4
Size of written product Max. 10 pages
Assignment type Synopsis
Release of assignment Subject chosen by students themselves, see guidelines if any
Duration
Written product to be submitted on specified date and time.
20 min. per student, including examiners' discussion of grade, and informing plus explaining the grade
Grading scale 7-point grading scale
Examiner(s) Internal examiner and external examiner
Exam period Winter
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
If a student participated in writing the group synopsis, but was sick at the time of the oral examination, the re-examination will be based on a resubmission of the original group synopsis.

If a student participated in writing the group essay, but did not pass the oral examination, the student can choose either to resubmit the original group synopsis or to write a new, individual synopsis of maximum 10 pages, within a specified time period.

If a whole student group did not pass the oral examination, the group can choose either to resubmit their original group synopsis, or write a new group synopsis of maximum 10 pages and submit it within a specified time period.

If a student, due to illness or other reasons, did not participate in writing the group synopsis, the student must on individual basis write a synopsis, max 10 pages, within a specified time period.
Description of the exam procedure

During and after the course, the students will write a synopsis where they deal with virtual global organizing in a firm with international operations/ an MNC and make use of the theories, models and practices presented and discussed throughout the course. 

 

The oral presentation must take up a maximum of 3-4 minutes. The following discussion with examiners will take the point of departure in the synopsis and the literature referred to in the presentation, but is likely to broaden out to other parts of the readings for the course.
Course content, structure and pedagogical approach

 

The course will take its point of departure in the global organization of industries and firms and examine how this organization is affected by and affects global virtual team work. Moreover, the course will examine drivers of MNC virtual team work related to politics, economics, and especially, technological developments.

 

The scene will be set with an introductory module on virtual team work in multinational corporations (MNCs). The introductory module will examine MNC global organizing and strategies and how global virtual team work and digital tehnologies relate to MNC organizing and strategizing. The Module will further examine how MNCs configure their value chains and value added activities across borders in new ways due to virtual teams and digital platforms, and how virtual teams and digital technology allow startups to embark on rapid global expansion paths, socalled Born Global strategies. 

 

The second module will focus on AI and digital technogies and examine how thesee allows MNCs to expand and deepen knowledge and innovation work in an international seeting. The module further examines some of the challenges and opportunities of virtual team mediated knowledge work, included how work from anywhere practices and asyncronious work impacts on the dynamics and performance of global virtual teams in MNCs. 

 

The third module deals with intercultural challenges and opportunities of global team work. The challenges and opportunities are to a large extent associated with communication across geographical, professional and cultural boundaries and about issues relates to lack of trust and identity on virtual cross border and cross cultural settings. The module will take up issues related to choice of common language, choice of communication technologies and media, perceived cultural differences and challenges of trust-building. It will be examined how diversity - cultural, professional, geographical – can be both a strength and a challenge for global team work. The module will further zoom in on management and leadership in global team work, examining how so called boundary spanners can facilitate coordination of activities within and between of global virtual teams. 

 

During the course, students will be presented to a number of cases of virtual team work in MNCs that may inspire them to choose a case for their exam synopsis.

 

Students will get an opportunity to pitch their case ideas for the class and the faculty and get feed back.
Research-based teaching
CBS’ programmes and teaching are research-based. The following types of research-based knowledge and research-like activities are included in this course:
Research-based knowledge
  • Teacher’s own research
Research-like activities
  • Development of research questions
  • Analysis
Description of the teaching methods
The course will be conducted as on-campus lectures and exercises. The course consists of 11 lectures and three exercise classes.

Throughout the course, students are expected to participate actively in discussions of theories, models, cases and new forms of organizing in global virtual teams.
Feedback during the teaching period
On the basis of the lectures, students will get an opportunity to engage with - and critically assess – the texts and theories in relation to specific cases. The lecturers will provide feedback on the inputs from the students.

In the exercise classes, students will work with developing research questions and models to analyze specific cases of virtual team work in MNCs and present their cases to the rest of the class. Immediate feedback is given by the class and by the instructor.

After the exam, the groups will get feedback on their synopses and oral exam.
Student workload
Lectures 30 hours
Exercise classes 9 hours
Preparation and readings 110 hours
Development of student project for exam synopsis 50 hours
Exam and preparation of presentation 10 hours
Expected literature

Course literature (indicative)

 

Bolwijn, Richard, Bruno Casella, and James Zhan. "International production and the digital economy." International business in the information and digital age. Emerald Publishing Limited, 2019. 39-64.

 

Brett, J., Behfar, K. & Kern, M.C. (November 2006). Managing Multicultural Teams, Harvard Business Review, p. 84-91.

 

Campbell, C. (2019) 'AI Farms' are at the forefront of China's global ambitions. TIME, 1st February 2019. Available: http:/​/​time.com/​5518339/​china-ai-farm-artificial-intelligence-cybersecurity/​

 

Das, T., & Teng, B. (2001). Trust, Control, and Risk in Strategic Alliances: An Integrated Framework, Organization Studies, 22 (2), 251-283.

 

Dasí, Àngels, et al.  New Business Models In-The-Making in Extant MNCs: Digital Transformation in a Telco', Breaking up the Global Value Chain (Advances in International Management, Volume 30)." (2017): 29-53.

 

Dery, K., Sebastian, I. M., & van der Meulen, N. (2017). The Digital Workplace is Key to Digital Innovation. MIS Quarterly Executive, 16(2), 135–152. 

Digiturn case study

 

Jimenez, Alfredo, et al. 2017 "Working across boundaries: Current and future perspectives on global virtual teams."      Journal of International Management 23.4 (2017): 341-349.

 

Lenovo–IBM: Bridging Cultures, Languages, and Time Zones (2013) – Case written by Günter Sthal and Katrin Köster 

 

Leonardi, Paul M. 2021. “ COVID-19 and the New Technologies of Organizing: Digital Exhaust, Digital Footprints, and Artificial Intelligence in the Wake of Remote Work.” Journal of Management Studies.

 

Meyer and Peng, 2023,  International Business, London: Cengage Learning.

 

Neeley, T. (October 2015) Global teams that work, Harvard Business Review.

 

Newell, S., Morton, J., Marabelli, M., & Galliers, R. (2020). Managing Digital Innovation: A Knowledge Perspective. Springer Nature 2020, Red Globe Press.

 

Nonaka, I., & Konno, N. (1998). The Concept of “Ba”: Building a Foundation for Knowledge Creation. California Management Review, 40(3), 40–54.

 

Razmerita, L., Brun, A., & Nabeth, T. (2022). Collaboration in the Machine Age: Trustworthy Human-AI Collaboration. In M. Virvou, G. Tsihrintzis, & L. C. Jain (Eds.), Advances in Selected Artificial Intelligence Areas - World Outstanding Women in Artificial Intelligence (pp. 333–356). Springer Nature.

 

Stahl, G. K., Maznevski, M. L., Voigt, A., & Jonsen, K. (2010). Unraveling the effects of cultural diversity in teams: A meta-analysis of research on multicultural work groups. Journal of International Business Studies, 41: 690–709.

 

Taras, V., Baack, D., Caprar, D., Dow, D., Froese, F., Jimenez, A., et al. (2019). Diverse effects of diversity: Disaggregating effects of diversity in global virtual teams. Journal of International Management, 25(4): 100689.

 

Zakaria, N. and Yusof, S.A.M (2015). "Can we count on you at a distance? The impact of culture on formation of swift trust within global virtual teams." Leading global teams. Springer, New York, NY.

 

Zander, Lena et al TEAM-BASED GLOBAL ORGANIZATIONS: THE FUTURE OF GLOBAL ORGANIZING Progress in International Business Research, Volume 10, 227_243
Last updated on 27-06-2025