Category Archives: International management

All taxes or what?

Posted on Tuesday June 3rd, 2014 by Marc Ambrock| Leave a comment
Alles Steuern oder was ?

Taxes: like a sword of Damocles, they hover over companies

Taxes: like a sword of Damocles, they hover over companies; like snakes, business leaders freeze when faced with their complexity; like disasters, their avoidance is often declared as one of the central business objectives!

Indeed, we don’t have to pretend: the tax burden is increasing, as is the complexity of tax regulation. Tax competitiveness between states does the rest, in particular since national laws have been and are being adjusted according to international tax optimization options (read: tax avoidance).

As a result, one can see increases in uncertainty, in grey area tax avoidance strategies and in tax evasion. These consequences are being accompanied by a cost explosion for tax firms which often have to explain to out of their depth fiscal authorities what the international tax situation is like. Even when no taxes are due, the costs for those advisory services are born by the company. Politicians and fiscal authorities are never held accountable for their mistakes after all! Certainty for investors looks different!

However, to me the most depressing aspect seems to be the situation of the large mass of mid-size businesses that are the back bone of business after all! According to my estimates, these represent over 90% of all companies (with up to just 10 employees). These firms are not only simply unable to cope with the complexity but are also unable – unless they are set up internationally – to even participate in the international tax competition.

Of course I could “just” demand the simplification and harmonization of at least corporate income tax, wage tax and value added tax inside the European Union. But I am fully aware that, on the one side, I cannot change anything and that “only” Europe is not enough, and that, on the other hand, politicians won’t accept such a perceived disempowerment.

What remains for me and entrepreneurs, who never participate in demonstrations, is to point out those glaring problems more or less loudly, but certainly with insistence. Harmonization and simplification of the tax system will, in my opinion, not only improve transparency, decrease costs for both companies and the state, as well as increase tax honesty, but will also increase the credibility of the taxation system.

Posted in International management

Tagged ,

“You’ll never, ever walk alone.Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart”

Posted on Friday March 28th, 2014 by Marc Ambrock| Leave a comment

You will know the song “You’ll never, ever walk alone.  Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart”. So goes the anthem of FC Liverpool on Anfield Road.

To me, this basic message is most accurate as, generally speaking, much more can be achieved by pooling diverse strengths together than by operating alone. And a most important one as well because as a business owner, that way, you send out the clear message that with team spirit a lot more can be achieved than with single, genius soloists. And to remain in the football field: why does FC Barcelona or FC Bayern Munich generally offer much better football than the Spanish or German national teams respectively, despite the fact that the majority of the players is the same. The reason is that they are not just a well-integrated TEAM, they stick together and have to do so every day.

Let me describe my x-ray vision and have a closer look at internationally active businesses. Why are some growing more than others and why are some a lot more profitable than the rest?

First, it is clear to me that companies that work on the basis of a consistent brand approach, team work and a multinational cooperation are a lot more successful. And let’s be realistic: it is just as clear to clients who are 10.000 km away, and with the same consequences.

That brings me to another factor, profitability. In my view, the most profitable internationally active businesses are the ones with the best local setup in the export country. When I really want to inform myself about another country, direct local knowledge is necessary to remain competitive. It sounds admittedly somewhat martial but the information value of my respective local network (whether Aleksey in Ukraine, Gabriel in Sao Paulo, Keisuke in Tokyo, Iwona in Warsaw or Vikal in New York) is almost always a lot more compact, realistic and to the point than what the Internet can tell me.

Going back to the FC Liverpool anthem, with just hope in the heart you cannot achieve anything, or as my father would keep telling me:  you can’t get something from nothing.  That is why everybody should build his own glocal network. Our glocal Adminex partners meeting in Cologne at the beginning of April will give us such an opportunity. Our partners are welcome to come by, with no strings attached and free of cost, introduce themselves and ask questions.

In this context, my glocal regards to all of you.

Posted in Experiences, International management

Tagged , , , , , ,

I am a guest worker, I am always a foreigner

Posted on Wednesday February 19th, 2014 by Marc Ambrock| 1 Comment

In the context of my business activity, I am constantly on the road and consequently, practically always a guest worker. As a guest of the countries I travel to and as a guest of my clients, I am grateful for the always and without exception friendly reception, despite the fact that I often do not speak the native language nor am familiar with the local customs. My approach of choice is then respect (or should I say my arm?)

In a global world, which is fortunately slowly but surely growing together, there are nevertheless a few recent trends that concern me as they have more to do with separation and distance then mutual understanding and collaboration. Catalonia and Scotland want to isolate themselves, populist politicians are catching votes in Europe using xenophobe slogans, and even Switzerland has just voted in favour of limiting the access to foreigners. And in Germany, the fear of Romanians, Bulgarians and East-Europeans is being fuelled.

In that light, I no longer really understand the world as it seems schizophrenic to me: on the one side, we would like to drive German cars, drink French wine and English whiskey, wear Swiss watches, and eat Chinese or Indian food while also needing care givers for an aging society. And what is the reaction? We keep the barriers in the European Community high so that no work force come in, and impose non-European products with a great amount of separate customs duties while simultaneously subsidizing the domestic industries, which is not an exclusive European characteristic.

I don’t think that I am deluding myself when I think that without my central and East-European colleagues, I can just as well close down our plant in Germany. You can also simply ask around in Novartis or Roche in Switzerland about the percentage of their foreign workers. First you will not believe it and then you will be amazed!

Or just try to obtain a visa for an international colleague for maintenance work or a business meeting. I promise you that, rather than disbelief, you will feel great anger at how much energy is wasted by the states in order not to grant you any visa or only when it is too late. One of my female colleagues got almost stuck in the Middle East because her visa expired due to a late flight arrival. And it was all just for a one-week business stay in New Zeeland! (Here our gratitude goes to the Spanish consular officers for handling the issue unburocratically and at their own risk!!).

In my activities I am always and everywhere a foreigner, and thus RESPECT is definitely my approach of choice. That is why I am a strong supporter of TOGETHER and not of SEPARATE, even when this often means that the pay off will only come in the long term.

In that sense: let us strengthen the TOGETHER.

Posted in Experiences, International management

Tagged , , , , , , , , ,