Development of OLI+S Entry Decision Model for Construction Firms in International Markets

The paper aims to provide a holistic approach to address how construction firms make decisions covering all three domains (location, timing and mode) across country, market, firm and project factors within the Ownership, Locational and Internalisation plus Specialty (OLI+S) paradigm. Questionnaires were administered to 62 project managers based on a sampling frame provided by the Construction Industry Development Board Malaysia. The findings provide empirical and theoretical insights on how the OLI+S model addresses firms’ entry decisions to penetrate international markets. It suggests that the ownership-entry decision factors focus on firms’ internal transferable advantages. The locational-entry decision factors emphasise attractiveness of certain locations where firms decided to invest and operate. The internalisation– entry decision factors emphasise the extent to which firms were able to manipulate their internal competitive assets (firm’s resources and capabilities). Finally, the specialty-entry decision factors emphasise on firms’ competency in project management and specialist expertise to handle complex projects based on their previous project experience. An example of construction firms’ unique characteristics, namely, specialty advantages based on the original Dunning’s OLI eclectic paradigm has been adopted. The established OLI+S entry decision model could be investigated to further refine other related internationalisation theory

Entry Location and Entry Timing (ELET) Decision Model for International Construction Firms

This paper proposes a model for entry location (EL) and entry timing (ET) decisions to guide construction firms in accessing targeted international markets.  Neglecting to properly choose the right combination of the entry location and entry timing (ELET) decisions can lead to poor performance of the firms’ international ventures.  The sampling frame was from the Malaysian construction firms that have undertaken and completed projects abroad.  Survey questionnaires sent to 115 firms registered with Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) Malaysia, operating in more than 50 countries, achieved a 39.1 per cent response rate. Based on a comprehensive statistical analysis of survey data it was found that the mutually inclusive significant factors that influenced the firms’ ELET decisions were: the firm’s ability to assess market signals and opportunities, international experience, financial capacity, competencies and capabilities (project management, specialist expertise and technology), resources (level of knowledge based on research and development), experience in similar works, financial support from the home country banks, technical complexities of projects and availability of funds for projects.  Hence, the present research builds on and extends the literature on the ELET decisions in a more integrated way. Keywords: Entry location, entry timing, resource-based view, international markets, Malaysian construction firms

Strategies for international market expansion: Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat (SWOT) attributes of Malaysian construction firms / Che Maznah Mat Isa, Hamidah Mohd Saman and Christopher Nigel Preece

The competitive and saturated construction industry has led many domestic firms to expand internationally. Therefore, in today’s global industry, the construction firms must adopt a superior and an effective strategy to endure the increasing dynamics and uncertainties in the foreign markets. In the early stage of strategic planning, one of the basic but important steps is the need for firms to identify their strength, weakness, opportunity and threat (SWOT) attributes before they expand internationally. The aim of this study is to identify the important SWOT attributes to help the firms to manage and ease the inherent complexities and difficulties within international market domain. Survey questionnaires were sent to 115 Malaysian construction firms listed under Construction Industry Development Board Malaysia 2013 record resulted in 48.7 percent response rate. The relative importance index (RII) was used to rank the SWOT attributes. The findings revealed the following highest ranking of SWOT attributes: the ability to produce good quality products/services (strength), lack of research and development (weakness), mergers (opportunity), and policies, laws and regulations of host country (threat). The correlation analysis reveals a strong positive relationship between the opportunity and the threat attributes which indicates that the abundant opportunities are also accompanied by the inherent threats in the international markets. Thus, this study illustrates the identification of the most significant SWOT attributes related to the firms’ international operations. It is hoped that the findings would offer valuable information and practical guidance to construction firms in their preparatory works to internationalize

Determining Significant Factors Influencing Malaysian Construction Business Performance in International Markets

Market expansion into foreign markets has become increasingly important for construction businesses, including Malaysian contractors. It is therefore imperative that these firms are able to sustain performance in international markets. This paper aims to determine the significant factors influencing the Malaysian contractors' performance in international markets. This study adopts a mixed method using questionnaires that were sent to 115 construction firms as a sampling frame. The quantitative findings were further validated through in-depth interviews with five firms currently operating at the international level. It was found that the firms' profit targets based on return on investment and revenues supported by the firms' competitive advantages due to employees' capabilities and competencies have significantly influenced the firms' performance. However, further insights disclosed that having strong and stable human relationships were very important to enhancing the firms' performance in international markets. The findings build further understanding of international strategies for construction in developing countries. Finally, the study identifies the need to develop a suitable tool to measure firms' performance by taking into consideration the complex elements within the identified significant influencing factors

Strategies for international market expansion : Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat (SWOT) attributes of Malaysian construction firms / Che Maznah Mat Isa, Hamidah Mohd Saman and Christopher Nigel Preece

The competitive and saturated construction industry has led many domestic firms to expand internationally. Therefore, in today’s global industry, the construction firms must adopt a superior and an effective strategy to endure the increasing dynamics and uncertainties in the foreign markets. In the early stage of strategic planning, one of the basic but important steps is the need for firms to identify their strength, weakness, opportunity and threat (SWOT) attributes before they expand internationally. The aim of this study is to identify the important SWOT attributes to help the firms to manage and ease the inherent complexities and difficulties within international market domain. Survey questionnaires were sent to 115 Malaysian construction firms listed under Construction Industry Development Board Malaysia 2013 record resulted in 48.7 percent response rate. The relative importance index (RII) was used to rank the SWOT attributes. The findings revealed the following highest ranking of SWOT attributes: the ability to produce good quality products/services (strength), lack of research and development (weakness), mergers (opportunity), and policies, laws and regulations of host country (threat). The correlation analysis reveals a strong positive relationship between the opportunity and the threat attributes which indicates that the abundant opportunities are also accompanied by the inherent threats in the international markets. Thus, this study illustrates the identification of the most significant SWOT attributes related to the firms’ international operations. It is hoped that the findings would offer valuable information and practical guidance to construction firms in their preparatory works to internationalize

ETR 300 : Perniagaan Hobby Centre / Murni Md. Saman ... [et al.]

Industri permainan elektronik berasaskan alat kawalan jauh di Malaysia merupakan industri baru yang diketengahkan sebagai suatu lagi sumber pendapatan negara yang semakin penting. Dengan kehidupan masyarakat di Malaysia yang serba maju dan canggih, industri ini semkin mendapat sambutan yang menggalakkan

International market entry mode choices by malaysian construction firms using multinomial regression model / Che Maznah Mat Isa ... [et al.]

International market entry strategies involve three major decisions: which market to enter (entry location), when to enter the selected location (entry timing) and how to enter (entry mode). Entry modes and factors influencing the entry mode choices have been the subjects of interest in international market strategic management research but is still lacking in the construction area. Neglecting to choose a suitable entry mode and identifying the influential factors for the choice can lead to poor performance of construction firms in their international business ventures. Thus, this paper seeks to identify the entry modes preferred by the Malaysian construction firms, whether they choose equity the (EQ) mode, non-equity (NEQ) modes or both modes (BOTH) for their international projects. This study also seeks to determine the relationship between the types of mode chosen and the influential factors for the firms’ entry mode choices. The questionnaire surveys were sent to 115 construction firms listed under CIDB Malaysia (2012) resulting in a 39.1 percent response rate. Factor analysis has grouped the highly loaded factors into three components namely, firm, market and performance specific-factors which have significantly influenced the entry mode choices by the firms. A multinomial logistic regression (MLR) model has correctly classified 71.9 percent of the firms which adopted both EQ and NEQ modes and 28.1 percent used the EQ modes. The model reveals the firm-specific factor as the strongest predictor to influence the entry mode choice with logistic coefficient, B = 2.2028. The ANOVA results show no statistically difference between the entry mode types towards the influential factors. This study contributes to the literature on international business and strategy research by linking the firmspecific factors and entry mode strategy. It posits that the firm’s organizational and management supported by its strong resource capabilities has significantly influenced the firm’s choices in adopting both the EQ and NEQ modes. Hence, the significant findings in this context imply that with the identified specific factors, the firms perceive themselves as better equipped to adopt both types of entry modes for their international projects

COVID-19 Review: An Epidemiological Perspective and Malaysian Scenario in Handling the Pandemic (January – May 2020) / Zahir Izuan Azhar … [et al.]

The pandemic of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has brought much fear and anxiety worldwide due to the rapid transmission rate and mortality. The exponential surge of COVID19 cases need to be addressed aggressively to flatten the epidemic curve. This review aims to describe the COVID-19 disease epidemiology and disease transmission, response actions taken by the authorities to control this pandemic and risk communication strategies in Malaysia. A literature search via the ScienceDirect and Google Scholar databases of published articles and official statements from the Ministry of Health, Malaysia from December 2019 to May 2020 was conducted. The first wave of COVID-19 outbreak in Malaysia started in late January involving 22 cases but the second wave involved more cases due to the massive religious gathering that occurred in late February. Malaysia implemented the Movement Control Order (MCO) on 18th March 2020 and other well-coordinated response action plans to prevent community transmission. The reproduction number (R0) was successfully reduced from 3.6 to 0.3 due to the MCO. Malaysia’s risk communication strategies that include daily press conference by the Director General of Health and dissemination of information through national television and social media, played a crucial role in dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak. In conclusion, effective response actions and mitigation plans, should be the main priorities to combat this pandemic. The immediate direction will need to be focused on development of vaccines for COVID-19. Future research should study the origin of the virus in animals and the role of comorbidities contributing to poorer prognosis

Global burden and strength of evidence for 88 risk factors in 204 countries and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

Background: Understanding the health consequences associated with exposure to risk factors is necessary to inform public health policy and practice. To systematically quantify the contributions of risk factor exposures to specific health outcomes, the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 aims to provide comprehensive estimates of exposure levels, relative health risks, and attributable burden of disease for 88 risk factors in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, from 1990 to 2021. Methods: The GBD 2021 risk factor analysis used data from 54 561 total distinct sources to produce epidemiological estimates for 88 risk factors and their associated health outcomes for a total of 631 risk–outcome pairs. Pairs were included on the basis of data-driven determination of a risk–outcome association. Age-sex-location-year-specific estimates were generated at global, regional, and national levels. Our approach followed the comparative risk assessment framework predicated on a causal web of hierarchically organised, potentially combinative, modifiable risks. Relative risks (RRs) of a given outcome occurring as a function of risk factor exposure were estimated separately for each risk–outcome pair, and summary exposure values (SEVs), representing risk-weighted exposure prevalence, and theoretical minimum risk exposure levels (TMRELs) were estimated for each risk factor. These estimates were used to calculate the population attributable fraction (PAF; ie, the proportional change in health risk that would occur if exposure to a risk factor were reduced to the TMREL). The product of PAFs and disease burden associated with a given outcome, measured in disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), yielded measures of attributable burden (ie, the proportion of total disease burden attributable to a particular risk factor or combination of risk factors). Adjustments for mediation were applied to account for relationships involving risk factors that act indirectly on outcomes via intermediate risks. Attributable burden estimates were stratified by Socio-demographic Index (SDI) quintile and presented as counts, age-standardised rates, and rankings. To complement estimates of RR and attributable burden, newly developed burden of proof risk function (BPRF) methods were applied to yield supplementary, conservative interpretations of risk–outcome associations based on the consistency of underlying evidence, accounting for unexplained heterogeneity between input data from different studies. Estimates reported represent the mean value across 500 draws from the estimate's distribution, with 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs) calculated as the 2·5th and 97·5th percentile values across the draws. Findings: Among the specific risk factors analysed for this study, particulate matter air pollution was the leading contributor to the global disease burden in 2021, contributing 8·0% (95% UI 6·7–9·4) of total DALYs, followed by high systolic blood pressure (SBP; 7·8% [6·4–9·2]), smoking (5·7% [4·7–6·8]), low birthweight and short gestation (5·6% [4·8–6·3]), and high fasting plasma glucose (FPG; 5·4% [4·8–6·0]). For younger demographics (ie, those aged 0–4 years and 5–14 years), risks such as low birthweight and short gestation and unsafe water, sanitation, and handwashing (WaSH) were among the leading risk factors, while for older age groups, metabolic risks such as high SBP, high body-mass index (BMI), high FPG, and high LDL cholesterol had a greater impact. From 2000 to 2021, there was an observable shift in global health challenges, marked by a decline in the number of all-age DALYs broadly attributable to behavioural risks (decrease of 20·7% [13·9–27·7]) and environmental and occupational risks (decrease of 22·0% [15·5–28·8]), coupled with a 49·4% (42·3–56·9) increase in DALYs attributable to metabolic risks, all reflecting ageing populations and changing lifestyles on a global scale. Age-standardised global DALY rates attributable to high BMI and high FPG rose considerably (15·7% [9·9–21·7] for high BMI and 7·9% [3·3–12·9] for high FPG) over this period, with exposure to these risks increasing annually at rates of 1·8% (1·6–1·9) for high BMI and 1·3% (1·1–1·5) for high FPG. By contrast, the global risk-attributable burden and exposure to many other risk factors declined, notably for risks such as child growth failure and unsafe water source, with age-standardised attributable DALYs decreasing by 71·5% (64·4–78·8) for child growth failure and 66·3% (60·2–72·0) for unsafe water source. We separated risk factors into three groups according to trajectory over time: those with a decreasing attributable burden, due largely to declining risk exposure (eg, diet high in trans-fat and household air pollution) but also to proportionally smaller child and youth populations (eg, child and maternal malnutrition); those for which the burden increased moderately in spite of declining risk exposure, due largely to population ageing (eg, smoking); and those for which the burden increased considerably due to both increasing risk exposure and population ageing (eg, ambient particulate matter air pollution, high BMI, high FPG, and high SBP). Interpretation: Substantial progress has been made in reducing the global disease burden attributable to a range of risk factors, particularly those related to maternal and child health, WaSH, and household air pollution. Maintaining efforts to minimise the impact of these risk factors, especially in low SDI locations, is necessary to sustain progress. Successes in moderating the smoking-related burden by reducing risk exposure highlight the need to advance policies that reduce exposure to other leading risk factors such as ambient particulate matter air pollution and high SBP. Troubling increases in high FPG, high BMI, and other risk factors related to obesity and metabolic syndrome indicate an urgent need to identify and implement interventions