EXPLORING THE BORN GLOBAL CONCEPT IN THE BIOTECHNOLOGY CONTEXT

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this research paper is to explore what constitutes being "born global." We approach the born global phenomenon by applying ideas presented in existing international entrepreneurship, business, and marketing literatures. In addition, the paper illustrates how market orientation is a relevant construct for understanding the existence of born global firms. Market orientation is contrasted with science driven strategies in young, technology based firms and in both domains. In markets as well as in science, both global and local forces influence the behavior of new biotechnology based companies. Methodology: This paper uses mixed methods including interviews and multiple industry cluster surveys. Qualitative data is analyzed by categorizing and combining data (thematic interviews). Numeric (quantitative) survey data is summarized by using non-parametric statistics. Findings: Young ventures in a global biotechnology based industry simultaneously face forces that drive them towards localization and other forces that require a more global approach. Even though both the markets of biotechnology products as well as the science base are increasingly global, this paper suggests that true born globals must do more than passively adapt to this global scene. Born global firms should pursue active, market oriented strategies in their internationalization. Since our sample firms typically perceive international market orientation as less valuable that international scientific reputation, we conclude that they do not always fulfill the "born global" criteria.