From export entry to de-internationalisation through entrepreneurial attributes

Purpose: This study examines export behaviour from a broad perspective considering the influence of entrepreneurial attributes on export entry, export sustainability and de-internationalisation in Romanian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Design/methodology/approach: Based on theoretical underpinnings from the Resource-Based View (RBV) of the firm and the Institutional Economics (IE) framework, the proposed hypotheses are tested with a rich survey dataset of 319 Romanian SMEs. The data are analysed by means of a multinomial logit regression. Findings: The study reveals that exporting is not a single event and that variables commonly used to study export propensity linked to the entrepreneurial attributes have a differential influence over the export decisions. More concretely, export entry is positively impacted by the presence of management studies and an entrepreneurial team while sustainment in the international arena is strongly and positively influenced by decision-makers’ prior labour experience. De-internationalisation is explained by the entrepreneurs’ fear of business failure. The conclusions of this study point towards a holistic view of export policy-making revealing relevant implications for SMEs’ internationalisation. Originality/value: This study enriches the international business literature by simultaneously examining different export decisions, namely export initiation, sustainability and de-internationalisation, at the SMEs’ level in a Central and Eastern European (CEE) emerging market. The paper also highlights the dynamic character of entrepreneurial resources and suggests that at distinct stages in the international development of a SME, different entrepreneurial attributes may play a significant role.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author’s final draft

Tecnologías de la información y comunicación (TIC) y crecimiento de la empresa

Este trabajo presenta y valida, mediante un estudio cuantitativo y cualitativo, una tipología de usos y posibles ventajas estratégicas asociados a las inversiones en TIC, entendidas como plataformas de crecimiento. Nuestros resultados muestran que las empresas pueden realizar hasta tres usos o aplicaciones estratégicas de las TIC: 1) mejorar la eficiencia interna de la empresa; 2) mejorar la atención a los clientes actuales; y 3) definir nuevos mercados y nuevas oportunidades de negocio. En el trabajo se argumenta, además, que tales usos no son sustitutivos, sino complementarios

Los enfoques micro-organizativos de la internacionalización de la empresa : una revisión y síntesis de la literatura

En este trabajo se identifican los principales enfoques existenes en torno al fenómeno de la internacionalización desde un punto de vista empresarial o micro-organizativo: las teorías de la empresa multinacional/IDE, el denominado "modelo del proceso de internacionalización" (enfoque gradualista) y la reciente literatura sobre los modos de entrada al exterior. Aunque intrínsecamente relevantes, ninguno de estos enfoques se muestra capaz, por sí solo, de recoger y explicar en toda su amplitud la compleja naturaleza de la internacionalización de la empresa, por lo que se requiere una perspectiva más amplia que aglutine sus principales aportaciones. Esta concepción más integradora del proceso internacionalizador debería entrelazar la existencia de ciertas ventajas específicas de la empresa (de carácter productivo, tecnológico, organizativo, gerencial y/o comercial) con un relativo gradualism

¿Son las nuevas empresas internacionales más eficientes que las domésticas en un periodo de crisis?

Esta investigación tiene como objetivo determinar si las nuevas empresas internacionales, establecidas en un período de crisis, son más eficientes que las nuevas empresas domésticas creadas en ese mismo período. Con esta finalidad, se aplica el Análisis Envolvente de Datos (DEA) y regresiones por cuantiles para más de 12.000 nuevas empresas españolas de diferentes industrias, creadas entre 2008 y 2010. Los resultados más relevantes sugieren que las empresas de temprana internacionalización tienen mejores niveles de eficiencia en comparación con las nuevas empresas domésticas en este período

The export development process of the Spanish manufacturing SMEs participating in an export consortium: A case study

In spite of the recent efforts made by the Spanish governmental institutions to promote hem, there are just a few export consortia really successful in Spain as compared to those being projected that never reach their formal constitution or simply fail to survive. Also, there are very few national studies in this specific area. This research is focused on the analysis of the existing phases in the export development process of several Spanish industrial SMEs participating in a specific export consortium as well as on the factors influencing the selection and performance of this institutional, collaborative arrangement to be understood as a potentially more successful way to penetrate foreign markets.Export consortium, business partners, export development process, Spanish case study.

The influence of country and brand image on the evaluation of foreign products the moderating role of the nationality of the consumer

El objetivo de esta investigación es analizar la relación bidireccional o no recursiva entre la imagen del país and la evaluación del producto. Nuestro objetivo es contribuir al debate sobre la dirección causal entre estos conceptos que existe en la literatura. Además, se confirma el papel mediador de la imagen de marca and su contribución a la relación entre la imagen del país del país and la evaluación del producto. Con el fin de contrastar las hipótesis propuestas, los datos de tres grupos de consumidores se compilan mediante una encuesta en un hipermercado simulado. Los resultados confirman la relación no recursiva entre la imagen del país and la evaluación del producto, sin embargo, ni el papel mediador de la imagen de marca es el mismo para ambas direcciones de la relación antes mencionada ni para los diferentes grupos de consumidores en cuestiónThe purpose of this research is to analyze the bidirectional or non-recursive relation between the image of the country and the evaluation of the product. Our aim is contributing to the debate about the causal direction between these concepts that exists in the literature. Additionally, the mediating role of brand image and its contribution to the relation between the country image of the country and the evaluation of the product is confirmed. To contrast the proposed hypotheses, data of three groups of consumers is compiled by means of a survey in a simulated hypermarket. Results confirm the non-recursive relation between the image of the country and the evaluation of the product, however neither the mediating role of brand image is the same for both directions of the relation nor for the different groups of consumers in question

Collaboration strategies and technological innovation : a contractual perspective of the relationship between firms and techonological centers

In this paper, a theoretical framework for analyzing the selection of governance structures for implementing collaboration agreements between firms and Technological Centers is presented and empirically discussed. This framework includes Transaction Costs and Property Rights' theoretical assumptions, though complemented with several proposals coming from the Transactional Value Theory. This last theory is used for adding some dynamism in the governance structure selection. As empirical evidence of this theoretical explanation, we analyse four real experiences of collaboration between firms and one Technological Center. These experiences are aimed to represent the typology of relationships which Technological Centers usually face. Among others, a key interesting result is obtained: R&D collaboration activities do not need to always be organized through hierarchical solutions. In those cases where future expected benefits and/or reputation issues could play an important role, the traditional more static theories could not fully explain the selected governance structure for managing the R&D relationship. As a consequence, these results justify further research about the adequacy of the theoretical framework presented in this paper in other contexts, for example, R&D collaborations between firms and/or between Universities or Public Research Centers and firms

The Phenomenon of international new ventures, global start-ups, and born-globals : what do we know after a decade (1993-2002) of exhaustive scientific inquiry?

In this paper, 27 studies from the last decade which deal more or less explicitly with the International New Venture, global start-up or born-global phenomenon are first identified, and then fully examined and critically assessed as a basis for obtaining an adequate view of the state-of-the-art of this increasingly important research avenue in the field of International Entrepreneurship (IE). The methodology used for this synthetic review allow us to analyze a number of recent, purposefully-chosen studies that are systematically compared along the following criteria: 1) main objective and type of research; 2) theoretical framework/s of reference, 3) methodological issues, and 4) main findings and/or conclusions. As a result of this literature review, a critical assessment follows in which the most relevant benefits and contributions as well as potential drawbacks, limitations or major discrepancies in the research activities conducted so far are discussed. Finally, some suggestions and implications are provided in the form of future research directions

Moderating effect of the type of brand on the belief-attitude-behaviour model

Drawing from the Signaling theory we built a model of the moderating effects of the type of brand in a belief-attitude-behaviour model, namely brand evaluation, brand attitude and purchase intention. We empirically test this model with 400 consumers in Mexico. Previously we had conducted another survey with also 400 Mexican consumers to classify brands into global, local and glocal. Our results suggest that brand quality, brand familiarity and brand image are common factors that positively influence brand attitude for the three brand categories. In addition, brand attitude is closely linked to brand purchase intention. Moreover, the type of brand moderates the relationship between brand quality and brand attitude, and between brand attitude and brand purchase intention, the relationship being weaker for glocal brands than for local or global

Determinantes de la elección del socio tecnológico : especialidades sectoriales y de tamaño

El objetivo de este trabajo consiste en explorar las especificidades en los determinantes de la elección del socio tecnológico cuando se tiene en cuenta el tamaño de la empresa así como el sector al que pertenece. Concretamente, se analiza la selección de tres tipos de socios: clientes, proveedores y organismos de investigación (universidades y centros tecnológicos). La estimación se ha llevado a cabo a partir de datos longitudinales de la Encuesta sobre Estrategias Empresariales (1997-2002) y utilizando un probit multivariante. Explorando en diversas submuestras sectoriales y de tamaño, los resultados arrojan nueva luz sobre la heterogeneidad de los factores que determinan la elección de cada tipo de socio tecnológico.The purpose of this paper is to explore the special features on the determinants of partner selection taking into account firm size and sectoral characteristics. Particularly we analyze the selection among three partners: clients, suppliers and research organizations (universities and technological institutes). The estimation technique has been a multivariate probit and it has been run with longitudinal data of the «Encuesta sobre Estrategias Empresariales» (1997-2002). Exploring on several subsamples, according to firm size and sectoral characteristics, our results shed new light about the heterogeneity of the factors that determine the choice of each type of technological partner