International Business

Occupy Wall Street (OWS), a series of demonstration that are ongoing in New York City, has been making Wall Street the headlines for weeks. Calling itself a "leaderless resistance movement" among people of all races, genders and political principles, OWS is mainly built around anti-corruption sentiments, and is protesting against corporate greed, economic and social inequality, and corporate influence.

Amid criticisms for making imprecise and informal demands, OWS is relaying its message by the catchphrase "We Are The 99% that will no longer tolerate the greed and corruption of the 1%."

Spearheaded by Adbusters, a Canadian activist group, OWS touts the empowerment of real people to make real change. It insists on a world that needs neither Wall Street nor politicians for a better society. Upholding non-violence, OWS uses the Arab Spring strategies to ensure that all participants are safe.

From its starting point in New York City, Occupy Wall Street demonstrations are spreading to 70 cities and at least 600 communities in the U.S. On the global front, OWS-modeled demonstrations are also simultaneously being held in more than 900 cities - all keeping business leaders speculating, deliberating and trying to find the right way to respond.

In a benefit-disadvantage analysis of the situation, The Harvard Business Review puts emphasis on actuality of the high percentage of CEO pay vis-à-vis its employees' salary, which is a telling sign of persistent economic inequality. It is highlighting the need for businesses to reevaluate their business and software strategies, and include a determination of their existing compensation models.

According to The Harvard Business Review, protests occurring outside the Wall Street offices can be an opportunity to reevaluate their management of anti-business sentiments, while responding to protesters on an equal footing as is the case with public discourse.

Identifying opportunities for business development, Business Finance Store is noting that businesses can learn from the way OWS is successfully expanding itself on a global scale, which it practically did with heavy reliance on social media. Businesses are able to leverage social media as no-cost and low-cost tools for their own global expansion, with international business marketing strategies factored in.

Ordinary people participating on the Occupy Wall Street movement are now getting comfortable with modern technologies such as video conferencing on computers, webinars and interactive programs of the same kind - in order to reach out and share common knowledge. Small and medium business enterprises, as well as the world's biggest corporations, can learn a lesson or two from that.

The rapid increase in the number of OWS protesters is becoming more and more phenomenal. This may be attributed to the kinds of information they are able share through the modern technologies, as well as powerful methods and tools they employ to achieve their own vision and version of success.

Case in point: wide reach through online coverage, as well as the value of the Internet for expansion purposes cannot be overemphasized. Protests can become the next big world story; and so can any business that takes advantage of the power of modern media.