Organizational Audit - Management InSites

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Your name^* Company^* Your email^* In which country is the company headquartered? How long has the company been in business? What type of products does your company sell? Total global sales? (Average last 3 years) Total global sales? (Average last 3 years)? How many full-time employees does your company have? (Total) Of the full-time employees, how many work in Production? Of the full-time employees, how many work in Marketing & Sales Of the full-time employees, how many work in Technical or After-Sales Service? How many contract workers does your company have? (Total) Given as a percentage, what was your average sales growth during the past 5 years? Was your sales growth satisfactory during the past 5 years? Does your staff have experience with international business? Explain. What is your sales growth objective for the next three years (in percentage of sales)? Your goal is to position your products in the high-end segment of the market. Do you agree with this statement? Is your senior management currently giving priority to Immediate Profitability or Sales Growth? Does the manager responsible for international sales report to the CEO or the Director of Marketing & Sales (or similar position)? Please provide your top three international markets ranked by sales, listed in order of importance: Do you plan to dispose of excess products/Utilize excess capacity in the U.S. market? Do you plan to contribute to company’s general long-term expansion in the U.S. market? Do you intend to enhance firm’s competitiveness by acquiring market knowledge in the U.S. market? Do you intend to extend the valuable life cycle of existing products in the U.S. market? Do you intend to reduce risks by selling to diverse markets in the U.S. market? Do you intend to Exploit the firm’s unique technology and know-how in the U.S. market? Do you intend to improve the overall return on the investment in the U.S. market? Do you currently sell through distributors in the U.S.? How many active distributors do you have in the U.S. market? How many of these distributors combine to make up 80% of U.S. sales? How many orders do you receive from the U.S. in a 12-month period? Do you need to warehouse products in the U.S.? How many products or services do you plan to bring to the U.S. market? Is this the first time the company has attempted to enter the U.S. market via a wholly-owned subsidiary? Do you plan to enter with a marketing & sales office? What expectations (in number of years) does the company have on payback/return of investment required to establish a U.S. marketing & sales subsidiary? Do you plan to establish a manufacturing presence in the U.S.? If yes, what is your timeline to do so? What expectations (in number of years) does the company have on payback/return of investment required to establish a U.S. production plant? Have you decided on a location yet? If yes, please provide the city and state: On a scale from 1 (Very Unimportant) to 5 (Very Important) in terms of its impact on your location decision, how important is access/proximity to international airport: On a scale from 1 (Very Unimportant) to 5 (Very Important) in terms of its impact on your location decision, how important is access/proximity to sea ports: On a scale from 1 (Very Unimportant) to 5 (Very Important) in terms of its impact on your location decision, how important is access/proximity to rail transportation: On a scale from 1 (Very Unimportant) to 5 (Very Important) in terms of its impact on your location decision, how important is access to skilled workforce: On a scale from 1 (Very Unimportant) to 5 (Very Important) in terms of its impact on your location decision, how important is proximity to customers: On a scale from 1 (Very Unimportant) to 5 (Very Important) in terms of its impact on your location decision, how important is proximity to supply chain: On a scale from 1 (Very Unimportant) to 5 (Very Important) in terms of its impact on your location decision, how important are incentive packages (from State, City, County): On a scale from 1 (Very Unimportant) to 5 (Very Important) in terms of its impact on your location decision, how important are local taxes: On a scale from 1 (Very Unimportant) to 5 (Very Important) in terms of its impact on your location decision, how important is standard of living for employees: Are there any location concerns not addressed above that are important to your company? If so, please indicate what they are: Has the company made any contacts to prospective business partners in the U.S.? If yes, please provide the names of the companies: What is your staff's level of knowledge of the U.S. culture? (On a scale from 1 (Very Extensive) to 5 (No Exposure)) To what extent you do agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about TOP MANAGEMENT: Top management is not in agreement about establishing a U.S. subsidiary. To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about TOP MANAGEMENT: Adequate funds will be set aside to establish a U.S. subsidiary. To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about TOP MANAGEMENT: Management is willing to trade-off profits during the start-up period. To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about TOP MANAGEMENT: Senior officers will spend at least 10% of time for expansion in the U.S. To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about TOP MANAGEMENT: The U.S. markets will be developed with a formal marketing plan. To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about TOP MANAGEMENT: Management can live with lower profitability in the short-term. To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about TOP MANAGEMENT: Management will accept a payback period of 3 years or more. To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about PRODUCT STRENGTHS: Product is differentiated To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about PRODUCT STRENGTHS: The production process is exclusive to The Company To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about PRODUCT STRENGTHS: Company R&D level exceeds industry average To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about PRODUCT STRENGTHS: Product has significant advantage over competing products To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about PRODUCT STRENGTHS: Product is bulky; shipping costs are high To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about PRODUCT STRENGTHS: Product category enjoys increasing market demand To what extent do you agree with the following statements from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree) about PRODUCT STRENGTHS: No extensive inventory investment by distributors is needed What do you think will be the dominant strategic mentality that will shape your company’s approach to international operations? Choose one: Centralize all decisions at the headquarters; Transfer key capabilities to foreign subsidiaries and leave subsidiaries autonomous; Complete autonomy to foreign subsidiaries Do you have any employees who are currently authorized to work in the U.S.? Do you plan on sending employees from the parent company to live and work in the U.S.? Will you require help for U.S. visas for any foreign employees? Who is (are) the primary contact(s) within your company on this consulting project? What are you hoping to get out of this free consultation? Please add any information/comment you think is relevant to this project.

I have a foreign-based client who has been in the U.S. market for a few years, but was struggling with their sales agent relationship. MI’s unique IBI program allowed this client to bring order processing and marketing in-house, without having to add staff. Now the business is in a better position to penetrate the U.S. market. I will definitely refer future clients to the MI team.

Joseph J. Santaniello

Attorney, Shumaker Attorneys at Law

I have been referring clients to MI for over ten years because their services are tailored to foreign companies and meet the operational needs my clients previously struggled with. Plus, MI’s end of year financial packets are professional, making my firm’s tax services easier.

Elizabeth P. Murphy

Tax Partner, Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP

Working with a foreign subsidiary is very different from working with one whose parent company is in the U.S. The questions you need to ask are different, and the process itself can be drastically more complicated. We enjoy partnering with MI because they know about all of those pitfalls and can help companies grow without making the classic mistakes.

Doug Mitchell

Senior Sales Executive, USI Insurance Services

We hired MI to act as our controller since our U.S. team is small. And we are glad we did! We unexpectedly had turnover in our internal bookkeeping position, and MI was able to seamlessly carry out the functions while they searched, hired, and trained our new employee.

Jaume Grau

Manager, TecCoat

We have worked with MI across several clients. We find that we are able to get answers and process tax returns faster when MI is involved. MI’s experience and knowledge of the US makes them a great partner for companies entering and navigating the U.S. market.

David Jones

Partner, GreerWalker CPAs & Advisors

We regularly refer our clients to Management inSites for assistance with setting up their U.S. business, and we work with MI to provide visa support for foreign-owned U.S. companies. They have a wealth of expertise and knowledge of multiple industries, business best practices, and practical experience that makes working with them easy, and sets companies up for success.

Meredith W. Barnette

Partner, Garfinkel Immigration Law Firm

6 US Market Entry Tips

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