It is widely acknowledged that the world today has become a global village. While there are a number of factors which have facilitated this process, there have equally been other concepts that have arisen out of the increased global integration. One of them is the concept of localization. Localization refers to the processes and measures that are adopted by an organization so as to make a particular service or product suitable to a particular group of persons usually defined by geographical boundaries. In most instances, such geographical boundaries usually encompass countries. The ultimate aim of localization is to make a product or service look and feel local. Put differently, while the product or service may be developed in overseas markets, there are particular measures that are usually adopted so as to make the service or product easily blend in with its ultimate users. These users are usually persons in different geographical boundaries from the country where the product or service emanated from.
Localization acts as a driving force towards significant international integration. It does this through enabling people from different parts of the world to have access to similar products and services irrespective of their language or culture. Therefore, in a way, it plays a significant role in eliminating language or culture motivated discrimination. The principal way through which it achieves this is by facilitating the acquisition of knowledge about various cultures and people. While this knowledge is primarily used in ‘localizing’ products and services, it plays a play a key role in fostering international integration. This is because international integration is only possible in an environment where people understand respect the cultures of other persons with whom they may not share geographical boundaries.
References
Edwards, T. (2010). The Nature of International Intergration and Human Resource Policies in Multinational Companies. Cambridge Journal of Economics, 483-498.
Esselink, B. (2010). A Practical Guide to Localization. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing.
