Global Development Initiative Report When companies from other countries enter the USA market, a critical part of their market entry planning is obtaining credible research on the potential market for their products and services, competitors, supply chain and distribution options. The Global Development Initiative (GDI) is a collaboration between the Center for Global Business (CGB), Jindal School of Management, at the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) and the Richardson Economic Development Partnership (REDP), dedicated to assisting international small and medium enterprises (SMEs) interested in entering the USA market. The GDI program is offered to pre-selected companies as an incentive to those companies considering establishing a presence in Richardson, Texas. Over the past 3 years, the program has attracted more than 25 companies from all over the world. Benefits For the Partnering Foreign Companies The opportunity to obtain valuable research in the USA market WITHOUT COST to them. To gain a better understanding of potential market entry strategies into the USA market. To identify quality international business talent in the form of interns or permanent employees. To develop a strong relationship with the REDP to better understand the benefits of establishing USA operations in Richardson, Texas, and the soft-landing resources available to them. How It Works The GDI Program is run each Spring and Fall semester. Each prequalified international company is assigned a team of 3 to 5 UTD students from the Global Business School. Each team is assigned an experienced C-level business executive who serves as a mentor. The projects and teams are managed by Lawrence P. Howorth, Director, Mayor’s Office of International Business, Richardson, Texas (linkedin.com/in/lawrencephoworth), together with Hubert Zydorek, Director, Center for Global Business at UTD (Naveen Jindal School of Management) (linkedin.com/in/hubert-zydorek-b244051). During the semester the teams work on a dedicated project for their assigned company culminating with a report and presentation on their research structured in accordance with the initial defined scope agreed to by the Client Company and the GDI Team. International Company Selection The international companies are selected on based on a set of criteria that includes: A minimum USD$20 million annual revenue (unless a non-Revenue Operations such as Research and Development). Lower Revenue levels will be considered, depending on the company’s growth, USA market potential and available capital to support a USA Market Entry Strategy. If the company is launching a new product or service, it needs to be beyond the start-up stage and have a proven business model in their home country with revenues and adequate investment capital. While the companies are not required to pay any fees for the program, we will give preference to companies that have adequate capital and a commitment to invest in a presence of some kind in Richardson – sales office, partnership, small assembly, etc. The companies need to be able to commit time on a weekly basis to work with the student interns throughout the semester (approximately 15 weeks). The company needs to have English speaking representatives that can work effectively with the students. The company does not have an existing USA office / facility. If the company has an existing USA office / facility but has a plan to relocate or expand to a different USA location and would consider Richardson. The company must plan to expand to the USA within one to two years, and will have a stated preference to locate in Richardson, Texas. (The company may begin operations in Richardson though a distribution partner or sales office.) Richardson, Texas, has an interest in companies from the following industry sectors: Telecommunications / Wireless technology Information & Communications Technology (ICT) Semiconductors Data Centers Professional / Financial / Insurance Services (FinTech) Software / Cloud Computing Video gaming / Animation / Simulation Nanotechnology IT Services / Cyber Security AgriTech (AgTech) Cleantech / Power Management Medical Devices and software solutions (MedTech & HealthTech) Aerospace – Drone Technology Artificial Intelligence / Robotics / Autonomous vehicles Defense Contracting RFID Research & Development BioTech Educational technologies (EduTech) Others on a case-by-case basis Application Process The GDI program has a limited number of openings for international companies each semester based on the number of students enrolled in the program. Therefore, Candidate Companies will be required to go through an evaluation process before being accepted into the program. An indication of interest (Application) with a description of the company and details of how the company would fit with the requirements of the program should be submitted. Prior Participating Companies Over the past 3 years, the GDI program has successfully attracted more than 20 companies across all industries. For more information, please visit www.utdallasgdi.com.