Each year Forbes produces a list of the 'Best Countries for Business', which ranks countries across fifteen different metrics.

Each year Forbes produces a list of the 'Best Countries for Business', which ranks countries

across fifteen different metrics. While it may be regarded as too general for managerial decision

making, it does receive considerable media attention and serves as a good indicator of macro trends relevant to business. Another aspect of value is the comparison of country's business environments through simple aggregated measures.

For this week's tutorial, familiarise yourself with this year's list and methodology to prepare

responses to the following questions.

https://www.forbes.com/best-countries-for-business/list/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2017/12/19/best-countries-for-business-2018-behind-the-numbers/#ad35aac34379

Questions

1. The U.K tops the 2018 list despite the ongoing uncertainty surrounding Brexit. What factors

contribute to it remaining an excellent location for business? How might the future impact of

Brexit affect their position in the list?

2. Identify a country that has had a substantial improvement (green arrow) and another that has

had a substantial deterioration (red arrow) in one factor. Try to find information as to the

environmental trends or events that may contributed to this change. You should consult the

methodology to understand what the metrics are based on.

3. Compare a country in the top 20 to a country in the bottom 20. Consider how a marketer might

adjust their approach to market entry based on these conditions. .

4. What are some of the problems in using a list based on these metrics to inform managerial

decision making? What other information would be useful to properly understand a country's

business environment?

A recent Planet Money podcast focuses on the use of rankings in selling countries to investors at

the Davos World Economic Forum. It's recommended to listen to this episode to get a better

understanding of the context, including the impact and issues of ranking systems. The link is

available on LMS or download through your usual podcast app: Planet Money Episode 821 - The

Other Davos.