International Entrepreneurship Research Articles

Network effects in international entrepreneurship: a meta-analytic review

Network effects in international entrepreneurship: a meta-analytic review

Internationalisation and martial arts: the case of Carlson Gracie's Brazilian jiu-jitsu gym

This study analyses the internationalisation process of Carlson Gracie's Brazilian jiu-jitsu gym from the perspective of behavioural theories of internationalisation applied to services. Using the case study method, it sought to understand the drivers of internationalisation, factors influencing internationalisation, market selection process, and mode of entry to assess the explanatory power of such theories. With this empirical, unique, and interesting case, we hope to contribute, both academically and managerially, by corroborating the important link between the network theory of internationalisation, international entrepreneurship, and the soft services literature. Our findings indicate that forming and exploring entrepreneurial international network relationships can be an essential component for developing a soft embodied-person services abroad, and defining market selection and entry modes.

Operating in international markets through cross-border e-commerce: A practitioners’ perspective

As the global business environment continuously evolves, the cross-border e-commerce becomes an essential part of international markets. This research analyzes practitioners’ perception of the cross-border e-commerce as an emerging channel to expand and operate in the global market and explores the platform structural performance determinants. We conducted the content and statistical analyses based on 35 interviews and constructed database of 150 observed companies. Deploying the springboard approach as the theoretical underpinning, we find the cross-border e-commerce optimal for companies to respond to the global turmoil in the short term and to achieve internationalization in the long term which serves as the most desirable option for firms to conduct cross-border commercial activities. The personalization in multiple language choices, reliable payment system settings, and clear website privacy commitment are the major factors. The diversity of language settings has the most significant positive influence on the cross-border e-commerce performance. This research contributes to the literature on the internationalization of firms and operation strategy in the global market enhancing the knowledge of operating crossborder e-commerce through the comparison with conventional internationalization paradigms and the examination of specific platform setting factors. International entrepreneurs can also benefit by understanding the practical specifications of the cross-border e-commerce and looking at platform structural performance determinants. The managerial implication suggested in this paper can be applied in their strategic decision-making which enhances a firm performance and helps to engage with the global economy.

Digitalisation and internationalisation of SMEs in emerging markets

Digitalisation is one of the drivers for emergence of early internationalising firms. However, only limited empirical studies outline the mechanism of how these firms can benefit from digitalisation. To fill this gap, we explore how digitalisation benefits early internationalising SMEs and the determinants of digital orientation through case interviews of 20 SMEs from low and high tech industries in Malaysia. Our findings reveal the entrepreneur, product, firm, technology and market characteristics that determine the digital orientations of firms in the international market. Firms with the relevant characteristics of determinants could leverage digitalisation for early and rapid internationalisation. The paper also highlights six interesting topics worth further exploration in international entrepreneurship research.

Digitalisation and internationalisation of SMEs in emerging markets

Digitalisation is one of the drivers for emergence of early internationalising firms. However, only limited empirical studies outline the mechanism of how these firms can benefit from digitalisation. To fill this gap, we explore how digitalisation benefits early internationalising SMEs and the determinants of digital orientation through case interviews of 20 SMEs from low and high tech industries in Malaysia. Our findings reveal the entrepreneur, product, firm, technology and market characteristics that determine the digital orientations of firms in the international market. Firms with the relevant characteristics of determinants could leverage digitalisation for early and rapid internationalisation. The paper also highlights six interesting topics worth further exploration in international entrepreneurship research.

Effect of international entrepreneurship indicators on innovative performance: the mediating role of motivation

Effect of international entrepreneurship indicators on innovative performance: the mediating role of motivation

КОРПОРАТИВНА СОЦІАЛЬНА ВІДПОВІДАЛЬНІСТЬ МІЖНАРОДНОГО ПІДПРИЄМНИЦТВА

In the modern world corporate social responsibility is becoming a new business philosophy, according to which companies focus their activities not only on making profits, but also on achieving public welfare and maintaining environmental stability. The focus is on everything – development paths and reputation, payment of taxes and financial stability, lobbyism and corrupt relations, environmental impact projects and climate change, education and philanthropy, public projects and social initiatives. The authors argue that businesses with corporate social responsibility initiatives can gain a competitive advantage in foreign markets at the expense of public image or reputation and generate higher profits. That is why corporate social responsibility of business should be considered as the main condition for the formation of sustainable development strategy of international entrepreneurship. The article reveals the essence of corporate social responsibility and its influence on the activity of enterprise, defines the peculiarities of realization of corporate social responsibility by Ukrainian enterprises and obstacles on the way of corporate social responsibility of business to ensure the development of its international business activity. Conditions, in which the corporate social responsibility of business in Ukraine was formed in the new conditions of economic management and development of its internationalization are considered separately. Despite the prevalence of socially responsible business, there are real obstacles to the implementation of corporate social responsibility in the enterprise: the lack of awareness of stakeholders; lack of financial resources; lack of value of its reputation; lack of social audit; lack of interest of senior management. Ways of implementing and supporting corporate social responsibility of business to ensure sustainable development in international business activities are substantiated. Presented recommendations on state regulation of corporate social responsibility of business at the present stage of its development in Ukraine and in international entrepreneurial activity

Effect of international entrepreneurship indicators on innovative performance: the mediating role of motivation

Effect of international entrepreneurship indicators on innovative performance: the mediating role of motivation

Towards agility in international high-tech SMEs: Exploring key drivers and main outcomes of dynamic capabilities

• Explores the drivers that foster agility in international high-tech small and medium-sized enterprises • Takes advantage of the wealth of dynamic capabilities to evaluate causation and effectuation relationships that boost agility in internationaliser SMEs • Builds on MCDM method and employs G-DEMATEL and DANP. In the era of digitalisation, agility is considered a crucial factor for the successful operations of small and medium businesses in the intricate international markets. That is, this research aims to explore and evaluate the drivers that foster agility in international high-tech small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). In this regard, building on dynamic capabilities, a total of nine capabilities have been identified that assist high-tech SMEs to become agile in their cross-border activities. Taking advantage of an expert-based method, we relied on Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) approach to synthesise the opinion of six Italian international entrepreneurs (experts). In doing so, Grey DEcision-MAking Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (G-DEMATEL) method has been employed to investigate the cause-effect relationship between capabilities and propose conceptual frameworks for agility in international high-tech SMEs. This is followed by the DEMATEL based Analytical Network Process (DANP) to assess the importance and ranking of explored factors. Consequently, the research proposes several theoretical and practical contributions.

Employee Engagement as a Factor of Internal Entrepreneurship

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the topic of developing employee engagement both in the scientific community and in business. Managers are beginning to realize that not only the technologies used, but also the personnel who can be involved in work, submit ideas on how to improve it, or, conversely, silently carry out job descriptions, which can help to occupy leading positions. The purpose of this study is to analyze publications on employee engagement from 2017-2021, as well as the subjects of their study and research. The main hypothesis is that scientists are interested in various aspects of staff involvement, but of particular interest is how it is interconnected with the effectiveness of the organization. The results of this review form the basis for further discussion on approaches and tools for developing engagement as a factor of internal entrepreneurship.

Characteristics and entrepreneurship behavior of strawberry farmers in Serang Village, Karangreja District, Purbalingga

Entrepreneurship is an important mechanism that facilitates the transfer of knowledge and skills that ultimately results in economic growth. Entrepreneurship is needed by strawberry farmers in Serang Village to face future challenges. This research aims to; 1) identify the internal and external entrepreneurial characteristics of strawberry farmers, and 2) analyze the influence of entrepreneurial characteristics on the entrepreneurial behavior of strawberry farmers. Respondents were determined using the census method, namely all 40 farmers who did strawberry farming. Data analysis using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with Partial Least Squares. The results of the study show several characteristics which are internal and external entrepreneurship. The characteristics of internal entrepreneurship are reflected by indicators of farming experience as well as age, education, and extroversion. Meanwhile, external entrepreneurial characteristics are reflected by the economic, social, physical, and institutional environments. In addition, the results also show that the characteristics of internal and external entrepreneurial characteristics of strawberry farmers have a positive and significant influence on entrepreneurial behavior. The results of this study indicate that level of institutional awareness needs to be increased in collaboration of strawberry farmers, even though strawberry farmers are independent, but to increase maximum yields certain parties are needed to help them.

International Entrepreneurship and the Impacts of Catastrophes on the Tourism Sector

International Entrepreneurship and the Impacts of Catastrophes on the Tourism Sector

Essays in Comparative International Entrepreneurship Research

Entrepreneurship does not take place in a vacuum but is deeply embedded in its context. This dissertation proposes three new perspectives which highlight (1) the changing impact of socio-cultural conditions over the course of the venture creation process, (2) the persistence, portability, and intergenerational transmission of entrepreneurial culture, and (3) the different theoretical channels through which culture influences entrepreneurship. This dissertation advances three fresh perspectives which shed new light on the critical role of socio-cultural influences in comparative international entrepreneurship research. <br>

DOES BOARD USAGE OF KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS AFFECT INTERNATIONALIZATION PERFORMANCE OF SMES? A CASE OF LITHUANIA

Internationalization of SMEs is encouraged by the advantages of new environmental conditions and appealing business opportunities, but remains a challenging process. Top management teams and more specifically board of directors appear to be a critical determinant in addressing internationalization issues. In recent years, investigation of boards in small firms’ context has been an interest of scholars, however few investigated characteristics of human capital. This study aims to investigate whether board usage of knowledge and skills is a mediator linking characteristics of human capital of board and internationalization performance of SMEs in Lithuania. The results revealed that usage of knowledge and skills mediates the relationships between international business skills and internationalization performance. Obtained results contribute to international entrepreneurship and upper-echelons theories by highlighting the role of the board in SMEs and linking it to higher internationalization performance through their usage of knowledge and skills. This study fills the research gap and extends the extant studies in internationalization of SMEs. First, the study responds to the need to investigate how board’s capital affect internationalization. Secondly, the study responds to the need to go beyond input-output models.

The impact of intrapreneurship strategy on business performances of Italian companies

Intrapreneurship is a decentralized management strategy applied in large and medium-sized companies. The strategy enables employees to use their entrepreneurial skills for the benefit of both the company and the employee. Talented employees get the opportunity to create ideas, undertake innovative ventures, to experiment, to gain access to financial resources and other resources in order to encourage innovative change and results. The creator of the idea was the Pinchot couple in 1978, but to this day the concept has undergone several evolutionary waves (Antoncic, 2020). The intrapreneurship strategy positively affects the agility in the company, raises efficiency, has a positive effect on team spirit, increases productivity, reduces costs and raises profitability. The main goal of the paper is to analyze the level of intrapreneurship presence in large and medium-sized companies in the Italian region of Campania. The influence of intrapreneurship parameters on companies' business indicators is also measured. An instrument for measuring intrapreneurship was created for the needs of paper. The instrument measures the presence of autonomous teams in the company, the possibility of taking business initiative, speed of access to resources for testing purposes and realization of new business ideas, encouraging risk with the aim of realizing business ideas, mobility of resources within the company, the degree of management tolerance in order to realize new business ideas of employees, the presence of rewards, the level of management support at all levels, the number of hierarchical levels in the company and the role of crowdsourcing in the development of internal entrepreneurship. After factor and regression analysis, Factor 1 has a dominant impact on all three business indicators, while Factor 2 has a smaller but statistically significant impact on the company's volume of business and investments

Application of Entrepreneurial Intention Model in Comparative International Entrepreneurship Research: A Cross-Cultural Study of India and Saudi Arabia

The development of entrepreneurial activities helps in realization of multiple goals of sustainable development. This study aims to inspect the applicability of the entrepreneurial intention model (EIM) to explain entrepreneurial intention in different cultural contexts. A survey was conducted using the Entrepreneurial Intention Questionnaire. Based on 535 valid responses received from business students in India (N = 285) and Saudi Arabia (N = 250), the model was analyzed using the partial least square regression method. The results show that the EIM is validated for the combined sample (R2combined = 0.522) as well as for the individual samples (R2India = 0.644; R2Saudi = 0.412). Demographic variables and human capital variables were found to impact the entrepreneurial intention differently in the combined sample and the individual samples of the two countries. Multigroup analysis was performed to test if the country variable influences the hypothesized paths in the model. The results of the multigroup analysis show that many of the hypothesized relationships (gender-personal attitude; gender-subjective norm; gender-perceived behavioral control, role model-subjective norm, role model-perceived behavioral control, subjective norm-personal attitude, and subjective norm-entrepreneurial intention) are significantly different in the two countries. This study addresses the gap in comparative international entrepreneurship (CIE) research by testing the applicability of EIM in two different cultures. The findings are also significant for policymakers at both national and international levels for facilitating entrepreneurship.

The typology of entrepreneurial exporters: has it all been said? An empirical approach using latent class segmentations

The main aim of this work is to close the research gap that is the lack of a dominant typology of exporting firms in the area of international entrepreneurship (IE). It combines the principles of gradual or stage approaches, scale and scope, with those associated with international entrepreneurial behaviours: time to internationalisation and speed. Latent class segmentation is achieved using a sample of 136 Spanish exporting firms to uncover the nature and characteristics of the different exporters. The results enable us to identify four groups of exporters: true-born global exporters, early international and market concentration exporters, traditional exporters, and true born-again globals. The differences between these four groups are the earliness of their internationalisation, their pace of international expansion, their development of strategies for diversification or market concentration, and their level of international propensity. The results produce both academic and managerial contributions to the field of export activities.

Effect of International Entrepreneurial Orientation on the Internationalization of SMEs: The Contingent Effect of Export Promotion Programs

The study argues that the role of export promotion programs (EPPs) is indirectly exhibited by enhancing the influence of managerial and organizational resources on the internationalization of SMEs. This study proposes that the dimensions of international entrepreneurial orientation (innovativeness, pro-activeness and risk-taking) will show varied strengths as predictors of the internationalization of SMEs’ with the influence of EPPs. Using structural equation modeling, data collected from 266 exporting SMEs in Nigeria were analyzed and it is concluded that SMEs’ risk-taking in internationalization increases with participation in EPPs. Similarly, there was an increase in innovativeness among internationalizing SMEs with increased participation in EPPs. Finally, participation in EPPs did not show any impact in pro-activeness attribute towards internationalization of SMEs. This study demonstrates the supportive role of institutions in SMEs’ managerial capacity building in overcoming internationalization challenges by developing the culture of risk taking and innovativeness.

Effect of International Entrepreneurial Orientation on the Internationalization of SMEs: The Contingent Effect of Export Promotion Programs

The study argues that the role of export promotion programs (EPPs) is indirectly exhibited by enhancing the influence of managerial and organizational resources on the internationalization of SMEs. This study proposes that the dimensions of international entrepreneurial orientation (innovativeness, pro-activeness and risk-taking) will show varied strengths as predictors of the internationalization of SMEs’ with the influence of EPPs. Using structural equation modeling, data collected from 266 exporting SMEs in Nigeria were analyzed and it is concluded that SMEs’ risk-taking in internationalization increases with participation in EPPs. Similarly, there was an increase in innovativeness among internationalizing SMEs with increased participation in EPPs. Finally, participation in EPPs did not show any impact in pro-activeness attribute towards internationalization of SMEs. This study demonstrates the supportive role of institutions in SMEs’ managerial capacity building in overcoming internationalization challenges by developing the culture of risk taking and innovativeness.

The effect of international intrapreneurship on firm export performance with driving force of organizational factors

PurposeThis study aims to reveal the effect of the two international intrapreneurship activities of employee strategic renewal behaviour and new business venture behaviour on small and medium enterprises (SMEs)’s export performance with the direct and indirect effects of transformational leadership, international entrepreneurial orientation and internal corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices.Design/methodology/approachThe study sample consists of 461 employees at 168 Vietnamese import and export SMEs in the Ho Chi Minh City of Vietnam. The data is analysed by structural equation modelling.FindingsThe paper reveals that the two international intrapreneurship activities of employee strategic renewal behaviour and new business venture behaviour significantly contribute to SMEs’ export performance. Transformational leadership, internal CSR practice and international entrepreneurial orientation positively and significantly direct influence the two international intrapreneurship activities. The effects of transformational leadership on international intrapreneurial behaviours are partially mediated by firm internal CSR practices and international entrepreneurial orientation.Research limitations/implicationsFirms would have to form the architecture and mechanisms to apply internal CSR and international entrepreneurship orientation for supporting the dedication of international intrapreneurship with a transformational leadership base.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the body of knowledge on international business by integrating resource-based view theory and dynamic capabilities theory in a way that benefits entrepreneurship and SMEs’ export performance.