Beyond financial indicators: An assessment of the measurement of performance for international new ventures

Abstract

This study examines the measurement of performance for international new ventures (INVs). While there is a growing area of literature on INVs that includes the internationalisation patterns, networks and entry strategies of these firms, there is generally a lack of research on how INVs measure their own performance. Using a sequential mixed methods approach of exploratory interviews and a survey sample of 310 firms from New Zealand and Australia, we find that INVs tend to be significantly more international performance oriented than non-INVs. Our study also indicates that financial performance measures are generally viewed as more important than operational indicators. In addition, we find that manufacturing INVs generally place more importance on financial performance than service INVs. The study offers two key contributions to the literature: (1) an integrated examination of international performance measures as used in practise by INVs, and (2) a comparative perspective between INVs and non-INVs in terms of performance measurement.