GBA study guide
GBA · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Global Business Administration (GBA) Certification is a professional credential for individuals who manage or advise organizations across borders. It suits early- to mid-career managers, consultants, and analysts who need a structured, broad foundation in international business rather than deep specialization in a single function. The GBA study guide has 9 sections and about 3,879 words.
01Global Strategy and Business Environment
Global Strategy and Business Environment examines how firms choose where to compete, how they enter markets, and how industry structure and national institutions shape performance. Questions typically ask you to diagnose a situation (industry attractiveness, country distance, entry mode) and defend a choice with a framework, rather than to describe the framework itself.
429 words, about 2 min02International Marketing and Sales
International Marketing and Sales tests your ability to segment and position across borders, decide what to standardise versus adapt, and set prices and channels that survive tariffs, duties and multi-layer distribution. Equivalence in research - construct, scalar and metric equivalence.
420 words, about 2 min03Cross-Cultural Management and Leadership
Cross-Cultural Management and Leadership tests whether you can separate culture-level patterns from individual behaviour, lead multicultural teams, and manage the expatriate cycle without resorting to stereotypes. Hofstede's six dimensions - power distance, individualism–collectivism, masculinity–femininity, uncertainty avoidance, long-term orientation, indulgence–restraint.
402 words, about 2 min04Global Finance and Accounting
Global Finance and Accounting tests your command of foreign-currency translation, hedging decisions, and the reporting differences that change a consolidated number when a subsidiary reports under IFRS rather than US GAAP. Functional currency - the currency of the primary economic environment (IAS 21).
445 words, about 2 min05International Trade and Supply Chain Management
International Trade and Supply Chain Management tests Incoterms accuracy, customs mechanics, and whether you can trace cost, risk and title correctly through a cross-border flow. Incoterms 2020, eleven rules.
452 words, about 2 min06Global Operations and Project Management
Global Operations and Project Management tests capacity and footprint decisions, and whether you can run earned-value arithmetic and interpret schedule and cost indices correctly. Footprint decisions - location drivers (market access, cost, skills, incentives, risk), total landed cost, and the trade-off between concentration (scale) and dispersion (resilience).
417 words, about 2 min07Business Ethics, Law, and Compliance
Business Ethics, Law, and Compliance tests anti-bribery and competition rules with extraterritorial reach, third-party and data obligations, and how you respond to a red flag under commercial pressure. FCPA (US, 1977) - anti-bribery provisions covering issuers, domestic concerns and acts in US territory; accounting provisions requiring accurate books and records and internal controls; third-party payments are covered where the payer knows the payment will be passed on.
474 words, about 2 min08Digital Transformation and Information Systems
Digital Transformation and Information Systems tests the business case for platform change, data governance, and the controls that must survive a move to cloud and AI. Digitisation versus transformation - digitisation converts an artefact; transformation changes the operating model, decision rights and process ownership.
416 words, about 2 min09Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility
Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility tests whether you can apply reporting frameworks correctly, compute emissions, and distinguish credible target-setting from greenwashing. Materiality - GRI is impact materiality (effects on economy, environment and people); SASB is financial materiality by industry; CSRD/ESRS requires double materiality, covering both.
424 words, about 2 min