Knowledge acquisition for the internationalization of the smaller firm: content and sources

Internationalization process research emphasizes accumulated experience and networks as sources of knowledge for internationalization. Our understanding, however, as to what this knowledge is in practice for smaller firms, the challenges they face in acquiring it, and how they address those challenges is limited. Integrating organizational learning concepts with our theoretical understanding of the small firm internationalization process, we develop a new framework for understanding knowledge acquisition processes, which are examined with a case study of 10 Scottish internationalizing firms. We find smaller firms may not have relevant experience or useful networks, and rely on sources rarely recognised before. Firms used recruitment, government advisors and consultants to acquire indirect experience. Recruitment is a source of market and technological knowledge and government advisors and consultants a source of internationalization knowledge. Accessing internal information is important for firms that have internationalized. Our integrated theoretical framework identifies knowledge content and sources that are critical for internationalization, but that may be absent

Nurturing Business Ecosystems for Growth in a Foreign Market: Incubating, Identifying and Integrating Stakeholders

This paper explores the process of nurturing a business ecosystem to facilitate corporate growth in an unfamiliar foreign market with high product uncertainty and no network resources. The authors conducted a qualitative, longitudinal study by examining a successful business case — ARM (a leader in microprocessor intellectual property) — to demonstrate how firms nurture their business ecosystems to develop in the Chinese market and to stimulate demand even with- out the advantages of resources and stabilized products. Based on the road map method, this paper develops a framework of creating a business ecosystem in three sequential stages namely, incubating complementary partners, identifying leader partners, and integrating ecosystem part- ners. The findings enrich classic international business and demand chain theories by highlighting different roles stakeholders adopt to cope with uncertain products in a foreign market. In practical terms, these findings also provide Mode 2 knowledge with application context (Gibbons et al., 1997) on entering new markets by building up an ecosystem

Factors enhancing the choice of higher resource commitment entry modes in international new ventures

The choice of entry mode in foreign markets is an important strategic decision with major consequences for the success of international new ventures (INVs). It is generally accepted that these firms choose relatively low-resource commitment entry modes to operate in foreign markets. Nevertheless, some researchers have suggested that higher resource commitment entry modes in foreign markets also seem to be competitive strategies for INVs. In this study, from a marketing/international entrepreneurship interface perspective and focusing on organizational issues, we center our attention on international market orientation as a neglected yet important factor in INVs’ choice of higher resource commitment entry modes in foreign markets. We suggest that an entrepreneurial orientation and the timing of international entry are important correlates to an international market orientation. We also suggest that the international learning effort of INVs through their international market orientation has a direct, positive impact on the resources these companies commit to their foreign markets through the use of higher resource commitment entry modes. Accordingly, the model proposes a positive effect of entrepreneurial orientation and early international entry on international market orientation which, in turn, is positively related to higher resource commitment entry modes. The hypotheses were tested on country-level data from Spain, using a structural equation model to analyze relationships between the latent variables. This study extends previous international entrepreneurship research, including insights on antecedents of international new ventures’ choice of resource commitment entry modes in foreign markets. The paper also goes further than previous international entrepreneurship research, by addressing the strategic consequences of rapid entry into foreign markets. Additionally, the results of this work encourage international entrepreneurs to look beyond the explicit value of experiential market knowledge to realize the potential value of international market orientation as an antecedent to higher resource commitment entry modes

SME Internationalization in Emerging Markets: Symbiotic vs. Commensal Pathways

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to develop, test, and validate the symbiotic networking concept of SMEs internationalization pathways. Design/Methodology/Approach – Survey data were collected from managers/owners of SMEs operating in the textile industry in China and Russia. The applied data analysis technique employed is structural equation modeling. The survey was pretested to address reliability, validity, and cross-cultural stability issues. Findings – The symbiotic networking relationships in SMEs were shown to be positively related to their degree of internationalization. The relationship between networking and internationalization is significantly stronger in the conditions of high rather than low environmental turbulence. Research Limitations/Implications – Further research should validate the findings in other industries and other countries. Future research may also include in the model other cultural, attitudinal, environmental, and managerial variables, as well as other dependent variables, first of all from consumer behavior and marketing communications fields. Practical Implications – The findings may assist in identifying networking clusters of SMEs in emerging economies that are more likely to enter foreign markets and develop more targeted support and educational programs aimed at facilitating the internationalization of small businesses. The research results also assist in the elaboration of managerial tools in multinational entrepreneurial businesses. Originality/Value – The research contributes to the field by empirically investigating, testing, and putting into a unified framework the measurement tools required for identifying the symbiotic networking interactions of SMEs and the influence of these interactions on SME internationalization pathways

Spillovers through backward linkages and the export performance of business services. Evidence from a sample of Italian firms

We provide evidence on the role of spillovers through vertical linkages in service firms' internationalisation process. We combine input-output coefficients with region-level information on downstream manufacturing sector exports to build a measure of spillovers through backward linkages, which we assess as a systematic determinant of Italian BS firms' export status. Once considered firm and sector specificities, export spillovers especially matter for exporting to high-income economies outside Europe. This finding originates from higher sunk costs stemming from greater distance to the destination market and tougher competition within the destination market. Furthermore, the spillovers' geographical scope is mainly local. We thus contribute to international business theory by generalising existing evidence from case studies on the importance of buyer-supplier relationships for service firms' internationalisation across several BS sectors. Our research carries important implications for international business practices as well, as joining networks with internationalised customers may play an important role in enhancing BS firms' exports, regardless of the BS supplied. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd

Em direção a uma tipologia de processos de internacionalização

O presente artigo tem como objetivo construir uma tipologia de processos de internacionalização a partir da conjugação dedois campos de investigação que têm se desenvolvido separadamente dentro da abordagem comportamental da internacionalização:o modelo relacional de internacionalização e a literatura de desenvolvimento de subsidiárias. Para tanto, realizou-seum estudo comparativo de casos com 12 multinacionais britânicas no mercado brasileiro por meio de uma ampla pesquisadocumental combinada com a realização de 42 entrevistas semiestruturadas com representantes da matriz e das subsidiárias.A análise individual de dados envolveu o mapeamento dos processos de internacionalização a partir do modo de operação.Já a análise comparativa consistiu em definir as dimensões da tipologia e associar os grupos dessa tipologia com os casos pesquisados.Como resultado, os processos de internacionalização foram classificados em quatro grupos tipológicos que permitiramaprofundar a discussão acerca das dimensões espaciais e temporais da internacionalização da firma

Hur kan Möbelföretag Arbeta för att Utvecklas med Digitaliseringen? : Hur kan showrooms och AR som tillägg till e-handel bidra till att företag inom möbelbranschen kan uppnå fördelar och utvecklas med digitaliseringen?

Abstract Datum: 2023-01-12 Nivå: Kandidatuppsats i Företagsekonomi, 15 högskolepoäng Institution: Akademin för Ekonomi, Samhälle och Teknik, Mälardalens Universitet. Författare: Sonja Blomstermo, Wilma Boberg, Lisa Henriksson  Titel: Hur kan Möbelföretag Arbeta för att Utvecklas med Digitaliseringen? Handledare: Sara Melén Hånell Nyckelord: Detaljhandeln, möbelbranschen, digitalisering, e-handel, showrooms, Augmented Reality (AR), köpintentioner.  Teoretisk Utgångspunkt: The Theory of Planned Behaviour, köpintentioner.  Syfte: Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka effekten av digitaliseringen av möbelföretag kopplat till e-handel, AR och showrooms. Studien ämnar att bidra med en ökad kunskap kring hur företag inom möbelbranschen kan arbeta för att anpassa sig till digitaliseringen och uppnå fördelar med hjälp av e-handel, showrooms och AR. Metod: En kvalitativ metod har tillämpats till studien som uppsatsen behandlar. För att göra djupgående analyser av hur två svenska små- och medelstora företag (SME:s) i möbelbranschen har anpassat sig till digitalisering har en kvalitativ fallstudie utförts. Vidare har intervjuer samt observationer inkluderats för att djupare undersöka hur företag inom möbelbranschen kan arbeta med e-handel med tilläggen showrooms och AR för att uppnå fördelar. Empirisk Grund: En observation av ett showroom tillhörande ett möbelföretag, tre observationer av AR-funktionen som ett möbelföretag tillämpat, två intervjuer med anställda på ett möbelföretag, elva intervjuer med konsumenter och sekundärdata.   Slutsats: Denna uppsats har påvisat att showrooms och Augmented Reality som komplement till e-handel inom möbelbranschen kan leda till köpintentioner. Slutsatsen dras att företag i möbelbranschen som enbart bedriver försäljning från e-handel skulle kunna uppnå ytterligare fördelar genom att kombinera AR och showrooms. Abstract Date: 2023-01-12 Level: Bachelor Thesis in Business Administration, 15 credits Institution: School of Business, Society and Engineering, Mälardalen University Authors: Sonja Blomstermo, Wilma Boberg, Lisa Henriksson Title: How can Furniture Companies Work to Develop with Digitalization?  Supervisor: Sara Melén Hånell Keywords: Retail, the furniture industry, digitalization, e-commerce, showrooms, Augmented Reality (AR), purchase intentions. Theoretical Starting Point: The Theory of Planned Behaviour, purchase intentions. Purpose: The purpose of this essay is to examine the effect of digitalization on furniture companies from the application of e-commerce, AR and showrooms. The essay intends to contribute with an increased knowledge about how companies in the furniture industry can work to adjust to the digitalization and achieve benefits with the help of e-commerce, showrooms and AR.  Method: A qualitative approach has been applied to the study of this essay. In order to conduct in-depth analyses of how two Swedish small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME:s), in the furniture industry have adapted to digitalization, a qualitative case-study research design has been applied. Interviews and observations have also been included to further investigate how companies in the furniture industry can work with e-commerce together with showrooms and AR to obtain advantages.  Empirical Foundation: One observation of a furniture company’s showroom, three observations of a furniture company’s AR feature, two interviews with employees at a furniture company, eleven interviews with consumers as well as secondary data.  Conclusion: This essay has proven that showrooms and Augmented Reality as a complement to e-commerce in the furniture industry can lead to purchase intentions. Companies in the furniture business that solely conducts sales from e-commerce could obtain additional advantages from a combination of AR and showrooms.