Mohammad Shamsuddoha
Assistant Professor, Department of Marketing Studies and International marketing
University of Chittagong
Abstract
This paper examines the evolution and transformation of the concept of glocalization
which has come from the root of globalization. The paper will also trace the history and the
development of the concept of “glocalization”, which originated in Japan as a popular business
strategy. The paper examine in broad terms concepts, theories and principles of glocalization in
business perspectives. The paper wants to focus on the epistemological analysis of the
glocalization themes. The article also provides a discussion on the importance of well-defined
concepts and approaches used by scholars and by practitioners in various contexts. The
discussion focuses on and demonstrates through the globalization of business activities and the
term ‘global strategy’. The widespread use of popular jargon cannot cover the fact that a
genuine or true global strategy approach appears to be a managerial viewpoint. The terms
“glocal strategy” and the ‘glocalization’ of business activities are introduced to enhance the
accuracy of the present usage by scholars and by practitioners of the term global strategy and
the phenomenon often described as the globalization of business activities.
Keywords: Globalization, Glocalization, Localization
INTRODUCTION
The globalization of business activities and the term global strategy emerged in the early
1980s. Levitt (1983, p. 92) is often considered as the first to recognize the trend towards
globalization and states that: Companies must learn to operate as if the world were one large
market ignoring superficial regional and national differences. In addition, he argues that the
companies that do not adapt to the new global realities will become victims of those that do.
Jeannet and Hennessey (1992) argue that there are various factors limiting the global strategy
approach and the globalization of business activities. For example, they refer to market
characteristics, industrial conditions, marketing institutions, and legal restrictions.
In the last years, we have known a new economic, political and cultural process, called
globalization, which is universally known like a new stage of capitalistic system, a new
capitalism (Simmonds et al., 2000; Sklair, 2001). The globalization is an economic phenomenon,
that conditions especially economic integrations, but it makes also problems for many cultures
around the world, because there is incompatibility between human relationships and the extreme
explo itation of resources and the maximization of the concept of competitiveness on liberalized
markets (Boyer et al., 1996).
For the moment, it may be worth considering a few actions carried out by the Glocal Forum
as part of an awareness-raising policy of, such as:
THE PRINCIPLES
The identification of glocalization principles is another outcome of CERFE’s study on the
glocal approach. In particular, they emerge from the analysis of the glocal vision in relation to
other alternative visions. In this regard, some prominent differences among these positions can
be identified, pertaining, for example, to the tendency shared by most international aid policies to
keep development programs and peace-oriented initiatives separate. In the glocal approach, this
separation is an anomaly to be rectified. Another difference concerns the widespread attitude to
flatly oppose global to local because of holding international market rather local market. Most of
the country is concerning about balance of payment instead of stable growth of internal or local
market. There are many diverging opinions on this issue since some experts continue to perceive
the urban condition in a very negative way.
For these actors, glocalization could be a real, new prospect, being characterized by some
extrinsic features – to be viewed as expressions and effects of the glocal vision – and namely:
1. Universal nature of the glocal proposal, addressed to actors of both developed and
developing countries, based on equal and not conflicting relationships.
2. Concreteness, emerging from its rejection of any ideology and from its tendency to
assess the results of policies and actions in relation to their effects on the stakeholders’
lives;
3. Mobilize human energy, abo ve all within the local civil societies, but also by spurring
de-bureaucratized public administrations, socially-oriented enterprises, volunteers and
individuals towards glocal action;
4. Sustainability, owing to its double orientation to use both public and private resources
and to exploit both local and global opportunities, also referring to powerful political and
economic actors;
However, the real strength of the glocal proposal and perhaps its very appeal lies in its
intrinsic and content related features. In order to account for this aspect, a “glocalization ideal
map” has been developed through the research, from which a first set of principles listed below:
1. The importance of local actors : The first element making up the glocalization vision is
the full recognition that the actors and social relations at local level have acquired crucial
importance for development and peace. Often it is the agency of the local actors, their
assessment of local problems and needs, their knowledge, their attitude to exercise
governance over issues that affect them directly that makes the difference in terms of
success or failure in development programs. The same is true for the effects that the
quality of social relations at the local level have on peace-building and pacification
strategies. Nevertheless, the relevance of this kind of actors is no longer limited to the
locality. They are showing an unexpected capacity to interact with and influence actors of
higher levels in the global arena, be they States, international agencies or even global
corporations. It is this attitude of local actors that makes the glocalization approach
realistic and able to provide unprecedented concreteness to peace and development
strategies. Among the new actors, one should not underestimate the role of youth, whose
contribution of imagination and orientation to the future is essential to the glocal vision
and women, whose capacity to play a leading role in development strategies and peace
building has been demonstrated repeatedly in these last decades.
2. The war/poverty nexus: At the core of the glocal approach, there is the assumption that
the most destabilizing factor of the current world crisis is the vicious circle
poverty/endemic war, proliferation of conflicts and spread of violence. Situations of war
and conflict, and the culture which derives from and fosters them, tend in fact to go
beyond their place of origin and to attain global dimensions while threatening the overall
stability of the international community. In this perspective the entry point of
glocalization to tackle this circle is not so much the issue of conflict resolution (which is
under state responsibility), but peace building in connection with development.
5. The role of the city: Cities are the place where civil societies are emerging with more
strength and where their relations with governing and administrative bodies are more
direct. They are also engines of economic growth, centers of cultural and intellectual
innovation and privileged arenas for social empathy and change as well as institutional
reform. They can, thus, be considered as the most relevant social units for glocalization
strategies including people-to-people cooperation, preventive diplomacy and cross-border
relationships – for the fight against poverty and in order to promote sustainable
development and peace.
CONCLUSION
Different countries development experience, which underpinned by appropriate science
and technology policies, provides a convincing example of the effectiveness of glocalization as a
conscious development strategy. Although the strategy was not always perfect and there were
lapses from time to time but generally, it has shown that cultural fusion can be an asset if
properly harnessed for the objective of attaining socioeconomic growth without creating gross
inequality and social dislocation. The sociological concepts of globalization in general and
glocalization in particular can be of great value in understanding the dynamic social
transformation in Southeast Asia, especially in Singapore and Malaysia. It is always possible to
carry away with “methodological natio nalism”, a position that says each country or society
should be examined in light of its own context through the devices of its own homegrown
methodology. Such a position would lead to intellectual closure foreclosing dialogue and
understanding between soc ieties. In the globalized world, such discourses have limited value.
Yet, it is important to take the local context and variables and not to fall into the trap of blind
imitation or aping of western ideas and concepts. However, in the end what is needed is a set of
globally valid concepts that will help us examine processes of social transformation that is
inextricably connected with global transformation.
REFERENCES