Business Growth and Expansion Through the Lens of Conscious Capitalism and Core Personal Values

The core of this presentation will be based on a multi-unit assignment and discussion question that has been developed for the Purdue University Global (PUG) MBA program capstone course. This classroom project is meant to encourage out of the box thinking in working with different cultures and is useful both in the classroom as well as the boardroom.  This assignment shows a unique approach for students to assess governments through a business lens to determine global expansion suitability and then integrate this information into a country profile, resulting in recommendations for expansion using a linkage to the company values and mission created by the student teams.

PUG students are adult learners, many of whom do business internationally, may have positions of managerial responsibility and may be in the military oftentimes in leadership roles. This classroom project is meant to encourage out of the box thinking in working with different cultures and is useful both in the classroom as well as the boardroom.  The course integrates the Conscious Capitalism model using a business simulation, entitled Conscious Capitalism, a collaborative effort between the Conscious Capitalism, Inc.,(http://www.consciouscapitalism.org/)  and the makers of Marketplace simulations. (http://www.marketplace-simulation.com/conscious-capitalism) . As conscious capitalism is usually applied to business, a gap is created within the simulation when trying to understand these concepts in considering expansion possibilities.

The Multi Unit Assignment and discussion question is geared to have students, examine personal decision-making using core values, and extrapolate these concepts into creating a plan for business startup launch and expansion There are several benefits to these exercises.

• Students gain a greater appreciation for the difficulties that leaders face when trying to operate as a conscious capitalistic businesses.
• Increased visibility to the process of working with company leadership when trying to gain funding for growth opportunities
• Increased understanding of how the tenets of Conscious Capitalism can be applied more broadly when seeking out strategic partners or M&E opportunities can aid in growth strategy success.  If we can view the Conscious Capitalism model through the lens of government, which regulates business models in most countries, it will provide new levels of understanding which can help determine how and if the business leader wants to move forward with this relationship.