Oklahoma needs to catch 'export fever'

A study this week shows that southern states, including ours, are lagging behind the rest of the nation in exports to foreign countries. <br/><br/>That means we miss out on billions of dollars in sales

Tuesday, June 15th 2004, 10:19 am

By: News On 6


A study this week shows that southern states, including ours, are lagging behind the rest of the nation in exports to foreign countries.

That means we miss out on billions of dollars in sales and tens of thousands of jobs. The study says Oklahoma would have 75,000 more jobs today, if we had been exporting at the same rate as the national average.

Callidus Technologies on the other hand has export-fever. News on 6 business reporter Steve Berg says exports are 50% of the business at Callidus.

And now that they're independent, they say they'll pursue the overseas markets even more. Callidus President Bill Bartlett saw the importance of exports early on. "I realized 3 years ago that if we were going to continue to grow our company, we had to get a bigger share of the marketplace overseas."

Callidus is just the kind of business that state leaders say Oklahoma needs. Not only do they export. They're in manufacturing. Historically, says ORU professor David Dyson, southern states have been agricultural. "Agricultural products are certainly a good exporting-type opportunity, but the manufacturers provide the bigger ticket prices, and therefore build a lot more dollars as far as export trade."

Dollars and jobs. How does Callidus do it? Some of it is old-fashioned shoe leather, making lots of sales trips overseas. But Bartlett says they also get help from someone who lives in the country. "We will have a local agent that we work with, because he knows that culture and we know our product and together, we make a pretty good team."

Dyson says Americans actually have to work harder at English, since we often use slang that foreigners don't understand. And we have to learn their customs. "Understanding everything from the Japanese bow, the distance, the activity. So much of communication is beyond the words that are spoken."

For Bartlett, that once meant eating a fish eyeball with chopsticks. "I've eaten some things that I wouldn't have put on my own menu, but y'know, if they've taken the time to prepare the food and they're eating it, then I'm going to eat it too."
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