a$.$ Analyze their stakeholder position, exploring strategies and backup plans.

b$.$ Engage in a negotiation role play session, striving to achieve their respective objectives.

c$.$ Develop a PowerPoint presentation along with a supplementary report summarizing the entire process, from initial strategy formulation through to the negotiation outcomes and reflections.

Project Scenario:

Transnational companies employ complex structures of management which sometimes require a great deal of negotiation between different actors to agree on plans and strategies to strengthen the financial status of the company. In this case study we will focus on the long$-$term investment of a large company called $$X$.$ The company is focused on the food and beverage business and has one of the largest restaurant outlets in some countries in the MENA region but not in Kuwait. The company has just embarked in the European Union $($EU$)$ with a chain of restaurants in Italy. Their most successful business is seafood. It has activities in approximately $15$ countries worldwide and employs around $20,000$ employees. Its competitors are the likes of Nestle, McDonald, Americana etc. The company is listed on the stock exchanges of Kuwait, Hong Kong and London.

The shareholders of the company have decided to raise a portfolio of investments of up to $ $1$ billion dollars for the next $5$ years. Being successful in the MENA region, the representatives of the MENA branch propose to the shareholders of the company to invest in Kuwait. The EU representatives have an opposite view and propose, that due to the two years quick expansion in Italy, to move to another big EU country such as Germany. Both Kuwait and the EU are in the process of revising their investment policies in January $2019$ which are considered less favorable for the food industry in terms of taxes but more flexible in terms of labor costs. The main objective of the branch representatives is to agree with the shareholders on where to do the investment.

Shareholders Strategy

The initial strategy of shareholders is to invest $50\%$ of the portfolio in Germany in beverages rather than in food chains. Only $40\%$ is planned to go to Kuwait but shareholders are considering diversifying the portfolio and invest in a different business. Their plan is to invest $30\%$ of the portfolio in the perfume industry and only $10\%$ in a restaurant chain. The shareholders are planning to spread the investments

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in five equal tranches $(20$ million US dollars per year$).$ In addition, shareholders are also thinking of increasing the quota of women employed in this investment to at least $30\%.$

Branches$$ Strategy

The objectives of both the MENA and EU team is to negotiate with the shareholders to attract the whole planned capital in their respective areas. In addition, the EU team is interested to focus only on food, not beverage. The MENA team believes that the company should keep the focus on opening the restaurant chain in seafood and should avoid the risk of investing in new businesses. Both teams have conflicting ideas about the investment scale. They think to invest the full capital in the first year $($i$.$e$.$ $$1$ Billion Dollars$).$ Both Branches consider the quota of female employers unrealistic.

Some issues to be considered throughout negotiation are competition, cultural sensitivity$,$ tax policy, legal risk, corporate social responsibility, opening of the new market etc.

Guidelines for the PowerPoint Submission $$ Part $2$:

$$ Slide $1$: Title Slide: Project Title; Team Members$$ Names and Roles; Date

$$ Slide $2$: Introduction: Brief about the company and stakeholders; Summary of the investment scenario

$$ Slides $3-4$: Background: Analysis of the company$$s status and investment need Stakeholder positions and interests

$$ Slide $5$: Negotiation Objectives: Enumerate the primary and secondary objectives of the negotiation

$$ Slides $6-8$: Strategies and Tactics: Outline the planned strategies and tactics; Mention any backup plans or alternate routes

$$ Slide $9$: Negotiation Session Overview: Key points, agreements, and disputes from the role$-$played negotiation session

$$ Slides $10-11$: Analysis: Critical analysis of the negotiation process; Discuss strategy effectiveness, notable moments, and turning points

$$ Slide $12$: Challenges and Solutions: Enumerate the challenges faced; Solutions provided or suggested for each challenge

$$ Slide $13$: Learning and Reflection: Insights gained from the activity; Personal and group reflections

$$ Slide $14$: Recommendations: What could be improved or done differently in a similar future scenario?

$$ Slide $15$: References