Cross-National Comparison of Export Promotion Services: The Views of Canadian and Austrian Companies

Export promotion systems in Canada and Austria are contrasted and their services evaluated from a company perspective. The Canadian system is government-based, while the Austrian one operates in the private sector. Apart from the philosophy under which these export support systems operate, they differ also in strategic orientation. A survey of stratified samples of exporters in Canada (271) and Austria (312) shows significant differences in perceived usefulness of services given similar exporters needs. Companies desire more tailored support as well as greater involvement of private sector institutions which are not currently providing export support. Overall, Austrian companies appear more inclined to use export support and generally seem more willing to acquire exporting know-how externally compared to Canadian firms. Conclusions are offered with respect to improving the respective export promotion systems.© 1991 JIBS. Journal of International Business Studies (1991) 22, 115–133