Doing Business in Guatemala: Challenges and Opportunities

Preface
Contents
List of Figures
List of Tables
1: Introduction
	1.1	 Introduction
	1.2	 Governmental Promotion of Investment and Business Development
	1.3	 Broader Market Exposure
	1.4	 Incentives
	1.5	 Opportunities and Obstacles That Exist in Guatemala Business Development
	1.6	 Why Study Guatemala
	1.7	 The Structure of the Book
	1.8	 Conclusion
	References
2: Economic Environment
	2.1	 Introduction
		Globalization
	2.2	 An Overview of Guatemala
	2.3	 Economy
	2.4	 Regarding Exports and Imports
	2.5	 Major Trends in Business Activity in Guatemala
	2.6	 Monetary System and Banks
	2.7	 Money Markets and Investment in Guatemala
	2.8	 Capital Markets
	2.9	 Banks
	2.10	 Foreign Trade
	2.11	 FDI Trends in Guatemala
	2.12	 Investment Incentives
	2.13	 Import Substitution Versus Domestic Economic Liberalization Versus Export-Led Growth
	2.14	 Guatemala’s Strengths and Weaknesses
	2.15	 Discussion
	2.16	 Conclusion
	References
3: Political and Legal Environment
	3.1	 Introduction
	3.2	 Political Systems
	3.3	 Government
	3.4	 Political Constitution of the Republic or the PCR
	3.5	 Guatemalan Court System, Laws and Courts
	3.6	 Justice in Guatemala
	3.7	 Regional Political Issues that Affect Business-Transparency Issues
		Transparency
	3.8	 Voting Favors and Gifts
	3.9	 Fake News and Mistrust in the Media
	3.10	 Transparency and Corruption—Private and Public Interests
	3.11	 Technology and Transparency
	3.12	 Opportunities for Reform
	3.13	 Citizen Participation
	3.14	 Corruption Index
	3.15	 Intellectual Property Rights
	3.16	 Discussion
	3.17	 Conclusion
	References
4: Cultural and Socioeconomic Environment
	4.1	 Introduction
	4.2	 What Is Culture?
	4.3	 Guatemalan Customers and Traditions
	4.4	 Guatemalans and Food
	4.5	 Ancestors
	4.6	 Social Structures
		Social Hierarchy
	4.7	 Relationship Between Education and Occupation
	4.8	 Religion
		Catholics
		Protestants
		Other Religions
		Syncretism
	4.9	 Personal Communication
	4.10	 Languages of Guatemala
		Mayan Languages
	4.11	 Guatemalan People’s Attributes
	4.12	 Hofstede’s Insights
		Interpretation
	4.13	 Values and Attitudes
	4.14	 Education
		Educational System Challenges
	4.15	 Celebrations and Fiestas
	4.16	 Guatemalan Socioeconomic Issues
	4.17	 Guatemalan Demographics
	4.18	 Poverty and Inequality
	4.19	 Socioeconomics and Corruption
	4.20	 Gini Coefficient
	4.21	 Discussion
	4.22	 Conclusion
	References
5: Establishing a Business in Guatemala
	5.1	 Introduction
	5.2	 Business Development
	5.3	 Current Framework for Doing Business in Guatemala
	5.4	 Worldwide Ranking
	5.5	 Entrepreneurship in Guatemala
	5.6	 Enterprise Characteristics
	5.7	 Informal Vendors (Entrepreneurs)
	5.8	 Entrepreneurship Types
	5.9	 Business Types
	5.10	 Ownership and Control
	5.11	 Where the Markets Are Located
	5.12	 Financing
	5.13	 Microfinancing
	5.14	 Market Entry
		Foreign Trade and FDI Business Opportunities
	5.15	 Licensing and Franchising
	5.16	 The Global Food Sector
	5.17	 The Challenges Posed by the Industrial Sector
	5.18	 Distribution and Supply Chain Issues
	5.19	 Logistics
		Infrastructure
	5.20	 Transportation Infrastructure
		Road Network
		Ports
		Airports
	5.21	 Global Logistics and Supply Chains
	5.22	 Negotiation Patterns
	5.23	 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
	5.24	 Discussion
	5.25	 Conclusion
	References
6: Marketing in Guatemala
	6.1	 Introduction
	6.2	 Overview of Marketing
		The Structure of Marketing
	6.3	 Marketing Decision Making
	6.4	 Industrial Products
	6.5	 Consumer Products
	6.6	 Marketing Mix
	6.7	 Promotion Strategies
	6.8	 Market Research (MR)
	6.9	 Online Selling and Marketing in Guatemala
	6.10	 Market Regions
		Central Region
		Western Highlands
		Northern Pacific Coast Area
		Southern Region
		Eastern Region
	6.11	 Top Global Consumer Trends
	6.12	 Market Expansion
	6.13	 Discussion
	6.14	 Conclusion
	References
7: Conclusions and Future Trends
	7.1	 Recap of Ideas
	7.2	 Culture and Traditions
	7.3	 Challenges and Positive Attributes
		Positive Attributes
		Negative Attributes
	7.4	 Effects of COVID-19 on Business Development
	7.5	 Discussion
	7.6	 Conclusions
	7.7	 Future Trends
	References
Index