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This research investigates how small multinational enterprises (small MNEs) internationalize by opening branch offices or subsidiaries in foreign markets, managing their multiple embeddedness in their host and home locations, and their subsidiaries’ dual embeddedness in external environments and within their organizations. We study four small multinational enterprises, two each from the small open economies of New Zealand and Finland, and we use literature from entrepreneurship and international business to derive a model of these multiple dimensions of embeddedness. The cases illustrate how firms can become more (or less) embedded in their locations through their physical presence, operations, key employees, and local hires while achieving internal organizational embeddedness through their corporate structure and social and technological bridging. Our research gives insight into how small MNEs may overcome their liabilities of smallness, foreignness, and outsidership by drawing on resources from home and host locations and sharing this throughout the organization.

We assess the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on venture capital (VC) investments, documenting a significant decline in investments using a dataset of 39,527 funding rounds occurring before and during the pandemic in 130 countries. In line with our theoretical considerations, we show that this decline is more pronounced for investments characterized by higher uncertainty, namely investments in seed-stage ventures, industries affected more heavily by the COVID-19 crisis, international investments, and non-syndicated investments. Investor prominence partially moderates these effects., Plain English Summary A new study, investigating 130 countries, finds that COVID-19 influenced the global venture capital landscape in surprising ways. We assess the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on venture capital (VC) investments, documenting a significant decline in investments using a dataset of 39,527 funding rounds occurring before and during the pandemic in 130 countries. Our study shows that this decline is more pronounced for investments in seed-stage ventures, industries affected more heavily by the COVID-19 crisis, international investments, and non-syndicated investments. However, prominent investors are affected differently compared to less prominent VC firms.

PurposeResearch has reliably demonstrated that decision-makers, especially expert ones, use heuristics to make decisions under uncertainty. However, whether decision-makers with little or no experience also do, and if so, how? is unknown. This research addresses this issue in the marketing context by studying how a group of young and generally inexperienced entrepreneurs decide when asked to set a price and choose a distribution channel in a scenario involving a hypothetical firm.Design/methodology/approachThe authors used think-aloud protocols to elicit data and then used inductive procedures to code the data for analysis.FindingsThe inexperienced entrepreneurs in the sample used three types of heuristics in their decision-making, forming a structured process that narrows in scope. First, metacognitive heuristics, which specify a decision-making approach, were used, followed by heuristics representing the criteria they considered, and finally, heuristics detailing the execution of a selected option. The authors also found that heuristics relating to a market orientation, especially customer-centric criteria, were the most common, but these were balanced with ones representing an internal orientation or growth.Research limitations/implicationsThe generally inexperienced decision-makers the authors’ studied used heuristics in a structured way that helped them to select and balance several potentially conflicting decision-making criteria. As with most research using qualitative research designs, the generalizability of these findings is unclear. Further research on the mechanisms by which relatively inexperienced decision-makers learn the heuristics they use is recommended.Originality/valueThis research's novelty lies in its focus on heuristic use by nonexpert decision-makers under conditions of uncertainty and the findings about their scope and the order they are used. As the authors collected data from think-aloud protocols with relatively young entrepreneurs with limited experience, they also offer a description of the heuristics used by nascent entrepreneurs when making marketing decisions about pricing and channels. The most surprising conclusion is that even without relevant domain-specific knowledge, decision-makers can use heuristics in an ecologically rational way (i.e. structured to match the environment).

The literature advises managers that under certain conditions developing an entrepreneurial orientation (EO) may lead to superior financial performance. However, little guidance has been forthcoming about how to develop an EO and the impediments that may be encountered. Data collected from senior managers in 120 Canadian firms in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector reveal four sets of capabilities that enhance EO (research, recruiting and retention, building customer relationships, and decision-making processes), and three primary impediments (risk-aversity, complacency, and scarcity of capital or other resources). This study provides practical insight into how firms can develop their EO.

Building on a perspective of the entrepreneur as an interpretive agent, we argue that in situations where there is absolute uncertainty, heuristics are useful design rules that aid entrepreneurs’ judgment by synthesizing mental models and expectations to enable purposeful action. This is because decisions under absolute uncertainty pertain to subjective judgments of both outcomes and options. In contrast, objectively rational decision heuristics are useful under predictable risk. Our argument provides balance to the extant literature, which, due to the overemphasis on biases and an unrealistic view of uncertainty in entrepreneurial decision making, often overlooks the positive role of heuristics.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to review existing literature at the intersection of resilience and entrepreneurship. It identifies six scholarly conversations, each of which draws on distinct notions of resilience and entrepreneurship. Based on those conversations, shortcomings in the existing literature are discussed and avenues for future research are outlined.Design/methodology/approachA systematic multi-disciplinary review of 144 papers that are categorized into six scholarly conversations to build the foundation for a critical discussion of each line of inquiry.FindingsThis paper identifies six conversations or research streams at the intersection of entrepreneurship and resilience: resilience as traits or characteristics of entrepreneurial firms or individuals, resilience as a trigger for entrepreneurial intentions, entrepreneurial behavior as enhancing organizational resilience, entrepreneurial firms fostering macro-level (regions, communities, economies) resilience, resilience in the context of entrepreneurial failure, and resilience as a process of recovery and transformation. The review revealed these publications imprecisely define constructs and use a limited amount of the extant scholarship on both entrepreneurship and resilience. Future research should take a more holistic approach to explore entrepreneurship and resilience from a multi-level and longitudinal perspective, especially in the context of socio-ecological sustainability.Originality/valueThis paper incorporates insights on resilience and entrepreneurship across academic disciplines to show how future contributions could benefit by incorporating research from other fields. In doing so, it provides a starting point for more nuanced discussions around the interrelationships between the different conversations and the role entrepreneurs can play in promoting a positive, long-term trajectory for a socio-ecological system.

How firms learn about foreign markets and internationalization processes is an important theme in the literature on SME internationalization, evidenced by the Uppsala model’s emphasis on experiential learning as an explanation for incremental internationalization, and attempts to explain how early and rapid internationalization can be facilitated by alternative modes of learning, especially congenital learning. Yet, the learning processes used, and the content and source of learning, have not been compared systematically, especially with respect to how these evolve as firms become increasingly internationalized. This paper reports the findings of a retrospective longitudinal analysis of the learning processes, sources and foci of four New Zealand-based SMEs that internationalized incrementally, and four that internationalized rapidly. The findings demonstrate that while experiential learning is important, both incrementally and rapidly internationalizing firms use other learning modes at different stages of their internationalization, and that there are differences in the content and source of learning. Thus, the relationship between internationalization and learning processes may be more complex than the literature currently suggests, inviting further exploration of the multiple ways that SMEs learn, and the contingent factors that might influence this.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to introduce the special issue on links between entrepreneurship and resilience. Design/methodology/approach The authors discuss some key themes in this emerging area of research and reflect on how the papers in the issue contribute to debates in the literature on resilience. Findings While the papers in the special issue make important contributions, there is still scope for more research. Originality/value This is one of the first issues of a journal devoted to investigating this topic.

Understanding Local Networks and Their Links to Competitiveness: Global competitiveness and local networks - a review of the literature, Peter Brown and Rod B. McNaughton Clusters, industrial districts and competitiveness, Frank McDonald and Giovanna Vertova Networks and proximity - theory and evidence from the car and telecommunications industries, Anastassios Gentzoglanis Region knowledge and competitiveness, Sean B. O'Hagan and Milford B. Green. Innovation in Local Networks: Spatially binding linkages in manufacturing product chains, Edward J. Feser and Stuart H. Sweeney Skills networks and local dynamics, Patrick Burlat and Sophie Peillon Birthing biotech - agglomerations in San Diego and Atlanta, Susan Walcott Innovation networks in reconversion regions - the case of Styria, Franz Todtling, Michaela Trippl and Hubert Bratl. The Constraints of Local Networks: Limits of local networks - use of local and external knowledge in technological adaptation in the Seto Ceramics industry, Hiro Izushi Lean and its limits - the Toyota production system in Chukyo and Northern Kyushu, Japan, David W. Edgington Local and global networks in the economics of SMEs - is proximity the only thing that matters?, Mario A. Maggioni and Alberto Bramanti The spatial configuration of inter-firm networks in producer service agglomerations, Neil Coe and Alan Townsend. Contexts of Network Strategies: Rural entrepreneurs - using personal networks as a business strategy, Mae Deans Developing and co-ordinating regional networks for international competitiveness - the case of Queensland agribusiness exports, Sheelagh Matear, Brett Tucker, Andrew McCarroll and Les Brown Integration in the multinational corporation - the problem of subsidiary embeddedness, Ulf Andersson and Mats Forsgren.

In this paper, we examine the co-evolution of learning and internationalization strategy in international new ventures (INVs). Many researchers have suggested that in contrast to the reliance on experiential learning by firms that internationalize incrementally, firms that internationalize rapidly use alternatives such as congenital and vicarious learning. However, few empirical studies explicitly examine how the use of learning processes in INVs evolves. We used retrospective longitudinal analysis to explore the learning processes of four New Zealand-based INVs, and found that their dominant learning mode and foci of learning changed as internationalization increased. Around the time of founding, congenital learning dominated, but as the firms began to internationalize, they relied more on experiential, vicarious, searching and noticing learning processes. The focus of their learning also shifted from product knowledge to knowledge about foreign markets and the internationalization process. In the later stages of their internationalization, experiential learning increased in importance, as did other resource-intensive learning processes such as grafting by hiring locals or acquiring foreign companies. We conclude that the learning processes used by INVs co-evolve with their internationalization, and are more rapid and less systematic than is implied by traditional models of the internationalization process, with substitutes for experiential learning dominating early in the process.

PurposeThis paper seeks to provide evidence that the long‐term success of capital‐intensive technology products requires continuous integration of innovations in the form of new features and capabilities that meet broad user preferences.Design/methodology/approachMagnetic resonance imaging (MRI) research centers, which represent lead users in this industry, are used as a case study. An online survey was developed to identify and rank the main factors behind brand switching, then secondary sources are used to confirm the research results.FindingsA multi‐faceted approach to data collection is used to show that product innovations in the form of specific features are the main motive for switching to a new technology, consistent with the expectation that lead users seek technologies that maintain leading‐edge positions.Research limitations/implicationsThere are limitations to generalizing from this case study to other industries. The findings can be generalized to industries with similar characteristics, such as aircraft and heavy machinery manufacturing. In practice, managers should find a reliable strategy to assess factors underpinning brand switching that is unique to their industry. Determining the main factors behind switching is a critical matter when defining the appropriate strategy to keep their market share from eroding.Originality/valueThe literature reports considerable research that investigates brand switching. However, most of it focuses on highly competitive markets for consumer goods. This paper addresses a paucity of knowledge about what influences lead users of capital‐intensive products to switch between brands.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present an overview of the conceptual frameworks and concepts with which the research on internationalization patterns of small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) should be conducted.Design/methodology/approachA comprehensive overview of concepts and a conceptual framework to study internationalization patterns of SMEs is offered.FindingsThe complexities of existing definitions and methodologies for researching internationalization patterns are highlighted, and a synthesis of the issues is provided. An integrative model of internationalization pathways, and their antecedents and outcomes is presented.Research limitations/implicationsIt is recommended that future research focuses especially on the time dimension of internationalization patterns. Future research can contribute to the literature by adopting a longitudinal approach with larger samples and more detailed cases to capture the dynamics of internationalization.Practical implicationsPractitioners might map their positions, and look for challenges and opportunities with regard to their chosen internationalization pattern. They can also benchmark other firms’ pathways and fine‐tune their own approach to internationalization.Originality/valueThe paper integrates a large body of research in an important research area in international marketing. It also provides guidance on how to conduct future research in the area, and introduces the content of this special issue of the International Marketing Review.

The development of a new scale, ENTRE-U, that measures the entrepreneurial orientation of university departments is described. Governments, industry, and funding organizations challenge universities to become more "entrepreneurial", often in the context of increasing the commercialization outcomes of publicly funded research. The extant literature on corporate entrepreneurial orientation (EO) suggests this orientation is beneficial when organizations face dynamic or hostile environments. However, the EO concept and related empirical research focus on firms in competitive markets. Little is known about the nature of EO in other organizational contexts. ENTRE-U was developed to facilitate empirical research on EO within public universities. Interviews and a follow-up focus group with faculty members from departments in computer science, health science, and engineering at Canadian Universities elicited items for the new scale. A survey of university department heads provided data for statistical development of the scale. ENTRE-U consists of four dimensions – research mobilization, unconventionality, industry collaboration, and perception of university policies – that successfully predict department involvement in commercialization activities. Implications of the findings and opportunities for research using the ENTRE-U scale are discussed.

Internationalisation is increasingly being seen as an organisational learning process. However, entrepreneurial enterprises tend to be smaller, more innovative and more agile than their larger counterparts. When they internationalise, entrepreneurial firms often expand at a rapid rate. The cultures of so-called ‘born global’ firms also appear to differ from firms that internationalise in a more gradual, stepwise fashion. This raises interesting questions about how entrepreneurial firms acquire and manage knowledge about markets, networks and capabilities in turbulent and uncertain environments and how the values embedded in organisational cultures might influence strategic choices. The following articles in this special edition of the Journal of International Entrepreneurship focus specifically on how innovative firms—particularly small and medium-sized enterprises—recognise and exploit market opportunities, how they learn from international market entry and penetration experiences to improve core capabilities and how values may influence supply chain management and start-up decisions.

Literature on the internationalisation of small- and medium-sized firms identifies location in a geographic cluster of networked firms as a source of competitive advantage. In particular, local networks are cited as a source of market information and referrals that can help firms enter international markets. Co-location and the local interactions that it fosters create externalities that benefit entrepreneurial firms. This paper identifies four types of externalities: supply side, demand side, active, and passive. Supply and demand side refers to inputs to the firm and markets for outputs, respectively. Passive externalities occur simply because firms are co-located, while active externalities only occur because firms are co-located and work together in networks. Representatives of firms in the Christchurch, New Zealand electronics cluster were interviewed about the extent to which they perceive benefits from externalities. A statistical cluster analysis reveals two patterns of responses. Both groups of responses report benefiting from passive externalities. However, about 40% of the firms also benefit from active externalities. These firms are typically smaller and less export intense. The notion of active externalities has implications for the management of firms located in clusters. To benefit from active externalities, managers must develop capabilities that maximise network opportunities. There is also an implication for economic development policy: Resources should be targeted at encouraging active externalities rather than passive, as passive externalities occur without public intervention.

PurposeExtant studies of the market orientation of service firms rarely consider the contribution of individual employees to the realization of this orientation. Existing scales that measure market orientation reveal the perceptions of a key informant about the dominant orientation within the firm. These scales do not measure the willingness of employees to act in a market‐oriented way. This paper aims to report the development of a multi‐dimensional scale of individual market‐oriented behavior.Design/methodology/approachThe scale development process included identification of items from focus groups with employees of a major Canadian financial services firm and the market orientation literature. A pretest with marketing practitioners and academics helped to purify and reduce the number of items. Finally, a sample of North American financial services employees responded to the items in a web‐based questionnaire.FindingsConfirmatory factor analysis of the responses confirmed the presence of a single latent construct with three dimensions: information acquisition, information sharing and strategic response, measured by 20 items.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough scale validation included both qualitative and quantitative tests that triangulated the opinions of multiple stakeholders in the service delivery chain, future research must also test the predictive validity of this scale.Practical implicationsSuch research is important to increase understanding of how service organizations foster market orientation. The I‐MARKOR augments the organizational scorecard approach with individual level measurement.Originality/valueThe scale provides a method to assess differences between individuals within an organization, enabling empirical research on differences between departments, roles, training and other characteristics that may influence the extent to which an individual performs market‐oriented behaviors.

While the importance of top management teams in the formation and development of new ventures is well recognised, their impact on the rapid internationalization of such firms remains relatively under-researched. This article presents the findings of a cross-national study conducted in Australia, Canada, Ireland and New Zealand that demonstrate the significant impact that such teams have in creating the core internal capabilities and leveraging the external resources required for rapid and dedicated internationalization. The need to augment the management team in order to address key resource or knowledge gaps and/or to expand international networks is also evident among many firms, as is the impact of changes in team structures on business strategy and internationalization. Directions for future research and implications for public policy in support of rapidly internationalizing small firms are presented and discussed.

The market orientation literature focuses upon external stakeholders as the content or target of a market orientation strategy. This is problematic for understanding the successful implementation of a market orientation strategy because internal stakeholders provide the link between strategy‐makers and external stakeholder targets. Anchored in market orientation, dynamic capabilities, and stakeholder research, the study describes how internal stakeholders in a market orientation process can impede or encourage the achievement of market‐oriented objectives by a market‐oriented company. Focus groups were conducted with both management and non‐management employees of a large market‐oriented financial services organisation that recently introduced a market‐oriented agency call program. The extent to which the company is market‐oriented was determined through preliminary interviews with senior executives and distributor/customers. Results highlight: (1) program antecedents related to employee disposition and control; (2) potentially competing program objectives (relationship and knowledge acquisition); (3) issues of role conflict, time constraints; and (4) the need to confirm program value through feedback solicited from other stakeholders.

Multinational subsidiaries constitute a potential source of social capital for SMEs that can help in the internationalisation process. Such social capital is particularly valuable because it is a form of bridging (socially heterogeneous), rather than bonding (socially homogenous), social capital, and therefore could potentially lead to new information, ideas and opportunities. However, even in the best situations, limits on information exchange and trust hamper collaboration between SMEs and MNC subsidiaries. Facilitation by a neutral agency may help to overcome these barriers. This paper presents the case of the Scottish Technology and Collaboration (STAC) initiative as an illustration of the facilitation process—comprising architecting, brokering and coaching—and its outcomes, chiefly the formation of social capital, which in turn has the potential to lead to knowledge outcomes and ultimately internationalisation for the SME. This case reveals important implications for both policy and theories of SME internationalisation, especially the need to recognize and lever under-utilized sources of social capital.

PurposeTo test the hypothesis of increased specialisation during the 1980s in the aggregate pattern of intercorporate ownership in the Canadian economy.Design/methodology/approachThe network of ownership between enterprises and subsidiaries is characterised for the period 1976‐1995 using data for the population of medium‐sized and large Canadian corporations collected by Statistics Canada.FindingsAggregate diversification declined slightly over the period in terms of the average number of industry groups in which enterprises have subsidiaries. However, there was an increased likelihood that subsidiaries were outside of the core industry group of the enterprise.Research limitations/implicationsThe data provide insight into ownership changes across the economy and are not sensitive to changes in a few very large firms. However, a weakness of these data is that the ownership linkages are not weighted to reflect the economic importance of the enterprises involved. There is evidence that the pattern of inter‐corporate ownership is different between manufacturing and service sectors. Future research should treat these separately.Practical implicationsIncreased specialisation to the core industry of an enterprise has implications for the management skills required to design and manage networks of independent firms (for example, through strategic alliances), the performance expectations and risks taken by shareholders, and the commercial and tax policies set by government. At an aggregate level, a reduction in diversification may change the industrial structure of the economy, with sectors less integrated through ownership relationships, and thus potentially more sensitive to patterns of market exchange.Originality/valueMuch of the literature on the effect of ownership restructuring on aggregate diversification is focused on the US economy, and there is little empirical evidence in the Canadian context. The data are unique, representing a population of medium‐sized and larger firms. To our knowledge there are no published analyses of the ownership structure represented in these data.

The concept of an ‘entrepreneurial orientation’ is well established in the literature on the strategic posture of firms. Increasingly, large public and non-profit organizations are also turning to entrepreneurship in their efforts to become flexible and respond to pressures to ‘do more with less’. Government rhetoric encourages universities in particular to become more entrepreneurial, increasing the commercialization of research and contributing to economic growth. To understand what it means for university departments to be ‘entrepreneurial’, interviews with 40 faculty members explore the issue. Transcripts of the interviews were analysed using content-analysis software. The results suggest that risk taking is the most important dimension in developing an entrepreneurial university, and may be a prerequisite for commercialization.

This paper discusses the recent development of a new undergraduate international business program at the University of Otago in New Zealand. Firstly, it describes the context of the initiative in terms of the New Zealand business environment, the university sector in New Zealand and recent global trends in international business education. Thereafter it outlines the four-stage design process adopted, the influence of internal and external considerations on program design, proposed mechanisms for evaluating and monitoring the new offering and, opportunities for future developments. Finally, it proposes a conceptual program design framework that provides guidelines for other academic institutions considering similar developments, or for tertiary institutions considering the redesign of extant international business offerings.

Knowledge is seen as a critical resource, with both tangible and intangible attributes. Effective knowledge management is emerging as an important concept that enables all the resources of firms, including knowledge, to be used effectively. A knowledge‐management orientation is positioned in this paper as a distinctive capability that supports the creation of sustainable competitive advantages such as innovation. Using an instrument to measure a knowledge‐management orientation, which is grounded in Kohli, Jaworski and Kumar's work on a market orientation, this paper identifies four clusters of firms based on knowledge‐management practices that exist within the New Zealand business environment. The clusters are then described according to their innovation and financial performance profiles. The study finds that firms with a knowledge‐management orientation outperformed those classified as market‐oriented. The study also shows a market orientation to be a subset of a knowledge‐management orientation.

An implicit assumption in process models of internationalization is that firms gradually increase the number of markets to which they export. In contrast, recent research on born-global firms highlights cases where firms enter numerous geographic markets around the time of their inception. This paper draws on both process models and the literature about born-global firms to identify possible influences on the number of export markets served by a firm. The results of a survey of micro-exporters suggest that the number of export markets is positively associated with firm age, proprietary and knowledge-intense products, industries that are internationalized, and small domestic markets. This research provides a description of the market, product and industry conditions where entry into a larger number of export markets should be considered.

Firm internationalisation has long been regarded as an incremental process, wherein firms gravitate towards ‘psychologically close’ markets and increase commitment to international markets in a gradual, step-wise, manner through a series of evolutionary ‘stages’. However, much of the recent literature provides clear evidence of rapid and dedicated internationalisation by ‘born global firms’. Typically, these are smaller entrepreneurial firms that internationalise from inception, or start to shortly thereafter. Their main source of competitive advantage is often related to a more sophisticated knowledge base. In addition, the authors have found evidence of firms supporting this ‘born global’ pattern of behaviour but also evidence of firms that suddenly internationalise after a long period of focusing on the domestic market. These ‘born-again’ globals appear to be influenced by critical events that provide them with additional human or financial resources, such as changes in ownership/management, being taken over by another company with international networks, or themselves acquiring such a firm. Based upon the extant literature and our own research, we propose an integrative model that recognises the existence of different internationalisation ‘pathways’. We then explore differences in behaviour due to the firm's internationalisation trajectory and discuss the strategic and public policy implications.

The management of knowledge is frequently identified as an important antecedent of innovation. However, very little empirical research has specifically addressed antecedents and consequences of effective knowledge management. Using data collected from 443 New Zealand firms, a knowledge management instrument, which comprises three components and 16 factors, is regressed against a three‐factor innovation scale that captures incremental innovation, innovation that changes consumers’ behaviour and innovation that destroys existing competencies. The results of this research show that knowledge acquisition and responsiveness to knowledge are more important for innovation than knowledge dissemination.

A transaction cost analysis model of the situations in which small knowledge‐intensive firms use multiple distribution channels to serve a foreign market is developed. The central argument is that integrated modes are generally preferred, as they facilitate protection of knowledge‐based assets and the provision of high levels of customer service and support. However, it is hypothesised that either plural or hybrid selling may be used, if assets can be protected in other ways, as a response to environmental diversity, when sales volumes are sufficient to support multiple channels, and in relatively mature markets, where sales growth has started to plateau. Data gathered from Canadian software developers generally support these propositions. The results help the managers of knowledge‐intensive firms to identify some of the circumstances in which multiple export channels might be deployed to enhance sales performance in a foreign market.

The eagerness of global marketers to establish a competitive advantage based upon service quality excellence within emerging markets displays a degree of naïveté in respect to the influence of environmental factors upon consumption behaviour. An example of this is the global application of Parasuraman, Zeithamal and Berry’s conceptualisation of service quality (SERVQUAL) in 1988 without consideration of the possible influence of the variety of cultures found in international markets. This paper takes a cautionary stance to such global application, and proposes that cultural values endow consumers with rules that guide their evaluation of service quality. Field research was conducted within Taiwan to ascertain whether the dominant service quality model holds in this “foreign” environment. The results indicate that not only do cultural values influence the hierarchy of service quality dimensions, but also that Parasuraman et al.’s SERVQUAL conceptual model does not capture the breadth of criteria utilised by Taiwanese consumers. Interpersonal relations are highlighted as a dimension of service quality that is not adequately addressed by SERVQUAL.

Theories of internationalization generally focus on individual market entries, and thus do not explain how entrepreneurs allocate scarce resources between competing opportunities and develop a port...

Firm internationalisation has for long been regarded as an incremental process, wherein firms gravitate towards ‘psychologically close’ markets and increase commitment to international markets in a gradual, stepwise manner through a series of evolutionary ‘stages.’ However, much of the recent literature provides clear evidence of rapid and dedicated internationalisation by ‘born global’ firms. Typically, these are smaller entrepreneurial firms that internationalise from inception or begin shortly thereafter. Their main source of competitive advantage is often related to a more sophisticated knowledge base that they use to exploit the dynamics of an increasingly global market environment. This contribution posits that there is growing evidence of another phenomenon, that of the emergence of ‘born-again’ global firms. These are firms that have been well established in their domestic markets, with apparently no great motivation to internationalise, but which have suddenly embraced rapid and dedicated internationalisation. The underlying motivations and triggers leading to such a strategy are explored and illustrated through a number of case studies. Research and public policy implications of the ‘born-again’ global phenomenon are discussed.

Several studies in the market orientation literature demonstrate a positive relationship between a market orientation and firm performance. However, the mechanisms of this relationship have yet to be explored in detail. This article addresses such a gap by proposing a conceptual model that links market orientation to wealth creation in firms. The model posits that a market orientation guides investment in market-based assets that may be deployed to create customer value. The realisation of customer value helps to both capture and retain customers. Quicker and more extensive market penetration, shorter sales cycles, and decreased marketing and sales costs enhance the cash flow of a market-oriented firm. This may be recognised in higher valuations, which ultimately translate into higher share prices and wealth creation for the owners of the firm. This model is used to describe the creation of value in the Major Business Division of BT, a large information technology service company. Recent success in this D...

Examines Web sites of firms in high technology business markets, and identifies three categories of sites: image building sites, sales assistance sites, and integrated sites. This categorisation is derived from a content analysis of the Web sites of 150 members of the American Electronics Association. The motives for establishing a Web site, site objectives, the Web site planning process and methods of evaluating site effectiveness were investigated through e‐mail interviews with the people responsible for the Web sites in 28 firms. The results reinforce the importance of links from objectives through implementation, control and effectiveness/performance assessment.

This paper focuses on the antecedents of the form of inter-organisational governance used by U.S. software firms in their relationships with European firms. Specifically, whether the choice between acquisition, investment (joint venture or equity exchange) or contractual agreement is associated with characteristics such as the host country, industrial sector, range of functions covered by the relationship, technological intensity, or year in which the relationship occurred. The influence of these antecedents is investigated using data on 682 relationships between U.S. and European software firms that occurred between 1985 and 1995. The analysis shows that choice of a contractual agreement is almost exclusive, but the relative likelihood of an acquisition or an investment is increased when a relationship involves a larger number of functions. The likelihood of an acquisition is decreased if the European partner is located outside of the U.K., but the likelihood of an investment is increased. Final...

The authors develop a transaction cost model of the circumstances in which small, knowledge-intensive firms switch from the channel they use in the domestic market to a different channel in a foreign market. The authors argue that the domestic channel is frequently extended into a foreign market to gain economies of scale, because product characteristics are generally similar and because of strategic momentum. In knowledge-intensive sectors, integrated channels predominate in both domestic and foreign markets. Integrated channels facilitate the protection of knowledge-based assets and high levels of interaction with customers. However, firms may switch to a less-integrated mode in a foreign market if asset specificity is relatively low, as a response to environmental diversity, and when the market makes a small contribution to overall sales. Data gathered through a disk-by-mail survey of the export channel choices of Canadian software developers generally support these propositions. The authors make a contribution to the literature by rephrasing the channel selection decision so that the conditions under which firms switch modes are emphasized, thus linking the choice of modes in a foreign market to experience in the domestic market. The authors suggest that managers need to be aware of the momentum created by domestic channels and fully evaluate alternatives before extending existing channels into a foreign market. The results help identify conditions under which an international channel strategy that is different from the one used in the home market should be considered for a knowledge-intensive product.

The choice of export mode is a key decision for firms entering foreign markets. The channel management and internationalisation literatures provide rationales for the selection of channel modes but offer little insight into the nature of the decision‐making process itself. There is a paucity of research that answers questions such as how long does it take to make a decision, is a formal plan prepared, and is advice solicited from external sources? This paper reports the results of a disk‐by‐mail survey that collected information on the export mode decisions of Canadian software firms. Managers of the responding firms most frequently reported that they made their decision quickly and by intuition, without the benefit of formal studies or consultation with outside experts. Further, the characteristics of the decision process have no statistically significant association with channel performance. The implications of these results for the theory and practice of export marketing are discussed.

The short time-span between start-up and foreign market entry observed for some small firms poses a challenge to the widely accepted characterization of small firm internationalization as an incremental process. This paper contributes to the study of early internationalization by empirically testing hypotheses about firm, market, product, and management characteristics thought to be associated with the time-span to foreign market entry. The hypotheses are tested using information from a mail survey of Canadian micro-firms that export manufactured goods. The results show that the small firms most likely to enter a foreign market early are new ventures with a knowledge intensive product selling in a niche market with few domestic competitors but numerous foreign ones. The interpretation is that these firms are influenced to internationalize by the need to reach markets of sufficient size, and to appropriate the benefits of their knowledge through first-mover advantage. These results support several...

Intranets are a recent development in groupware technology based on the same open format as the Internet. The literature on computer aided communication suggests that groupware can facilitate information sharing and inter-functional co-ordination within firms. Inter-functional co-ordination is a significant component of a market orientation and is associated with marketing performance. This paper reports the results of a survey of Intranet adoption by New Zealand firms, and the effect of Intranets on inter-functional co-ordination. The level of Intranet adoption is shown to be moderate (38% of responding firms) and independent of characteristics such as company resources or objectives. The presence of an Intranet is not significantly associated with the level of inter-functional co-ordination. There is, however, evidence of a learning curve, indicating that companies begin to experience co-ordination benefits from an Intranet after one year or more.

Disk by mail (DBM) offers an alternative to traditional pencil-and-paper surveys that achieves some of the benefits of in-person interviews at a comparable cost. DBM provides a solution to some of the unique problems encountered when conducting research that involves firms in business markets. This article reviews what is known about DBM, compares DBM with both pencil-and-paper surveys and on-line surveys, discusses the response effects of computerized questioning, and describes a recent study of international channel selection by software firms that illustrates the use of this method.

The author continues the discussion of foreign-market entry-mode research begun by O'Farrell, Moffat, and Wood. These authors reviewed and compared the contributions of economic geographers and marketers to our understanding of the channel choices of business service firms. Their central argument was that extant research methods, especially those employed by marketers, suffer significant limitations which impede the advancement of knowledge about channel decision-making. They also implied that the dominant theoretical paradigm, transaction cost analysis (TCA), provides a poor explanation of observed behaviour. They made a significant contribution by bringing together the economic geography and marketing literature on this topic. However, they did not fully review the contributions of the TCA approach to entry-mode studies in marketing, and this may have biased their conclusions about the value of this theory. An alternative account of this literature is provided, along with a response to each of O'Farrell et al's criticisms.

Few studies have examined the relationship between inter-industry, inter-corporate ownership (ICO) patterns and inter-industry resource exchange patterns. Using data from Statistics Canada, this paper reveals a positive association between the degree of ICO linkages and the degree of input–output dependence among Canadian industry groups. This provides empirical support for the primary assertion of resource dependence theory: that corporations employ ICO linkages to manage their input–output dependence resulting from recurrent resource exchanges. This research differs from extant tests of resource dependence in that it uses data for the population of firms (over a size threshold) in Canada and includes all forms of interdependence between enterprises. The findings suggest scenarios in which corporations can adopt ICO linkages to manage resource dependence and reduce transaction costs.