CEO characteristics and SME foreign market entry mode choice

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 246-275 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katharina Laufs ◽  
Michael Bembom ◽  
Christian Schwens
Keyword(s):  
Host Country ◽  
Market Entry ◽  
Mode Choice ◽  
Entry Mode ◽  
Foreign Market ◽  
Foreign Market Entry ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Entry Mode Choice ◽  
Foreign Market Entry Mode ◽  
Ceo Characteristics

Purpose – Using arguments from the upper echelons perspective this paper aims to examine the impact of CEO characteristics on small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs’) equity foreign market entry mode choice and how these associations are jointly moderated by geographic experience of the firm and host-country political risk. Design/methodology/approach – The empirical analysis draws on data gathered from German SMEs testing triple-interaction effects between CEO’s age, firm tenure and international experience, geographic experience of the firm (organizational level), and host-country political risk (environmental level). Findings – Empirical findings validate that the influence of CEO’s age and firm tenure on SME foreign market entry mode choice varies by managers’ level of managerial discretion (i.e. latitude of action) as determined by the SME’s geographic experience and the level of political risks prevailing in the foreign market. Practical implications – Empirical findings help SME owners and managers to understand how CEO’s age and firm tenure are related with individual’s risk-taking behavior and information-processing demands and how these contingencies vary by the context in which the individual CEO is nested. Originality/value – This study contributes to the growing body of literature focussing on SME foreign market entry mode choice by emphasizing the important role of CEOs in the decision to internationalize. More specific, this study contributes by an examination of the interactive effect of CEO’s age, firm tenure and international experience, geographic experience of the firm and host-country political risk and, therefore, emphasizes the context and boundary conditions under which the association between CEO characteristics and foreign market entry mode choice is more or less pronounced.

Internationalisation by Business Services: A Methodological Critique of Foreign-Market Entry-Mode Choice

1995 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 683-697 ◽  
Author(s):  
P N O'Farrell ◽  
L Moffat ◽  
P A Wood
Keyword(s):  
Market Entry ◽  
Service Sector ◽  
Cultural Distance ◽  
Mode Choice ◽  
Entry Mode ◽  
Foreign Market ◽  
Foreign Market Entry ◽  
Business Services ◽  
Entry Mode Choice ◽  
Foreign Market Entry Mode

In this paper the work of geographers, economists, and management scientists in studying interregional and international expansion by service companies is reviewed. A critique is presented of some of the fundamental methodological problems inherent in analysing foreign-market entry-mode choice. These are particularly apparent when studying the process of business service-sector internationalisation. Issues discussed include inconsistencies in the definition of which entry decision to analyse; the level of aggregation to adopt when modelling mode choice; mode choice and cooperative organisational networks; different approaches to measuring cultural distance and country risk; and the methodologies used to develop scales to represent the constructs relevant to internationalisation.

scholarly journals Cross-border e-commerce as a foreign market entry mode among SMEs: the relationship between export capabilities and performance

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabio Cassia ◽  
Francesca Magno
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Financial Performance ◽  
Market Entry ◽  
Entry Mode ◽  
Foreign Market ◽  
Foreign Market Entry ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
Operations Capabilities ◽  
Foreign Market Entry Mode

Purpose Although cross-border e-commerce has become increasingly popular among small and medium-sized enterprises as a foreign market entry mode, research on the determinants of its success is scarce. Drawing on the resource-based view, this study aims to examine the relationship between a firm’s information technology, international marketing and export operations capabilities and its cross-border e-commerce strategic and financial performance. Design/methodology/approach Partial least squares structural equation modeling was used to analyze data from a sample of Italian exporters in the food and beverage industry. Findings The results highlight the mixed effects of information technology, international marketing and export operations capabilities on both e-commerce strategic and financial performance. Moreover, the use of third-party e-commerce platforms reduces the effect of exporters’ information technology capabilities on their e-commerce financial performance. Research limitations/implications The majority of exporters in this study had implemented cross-border e-commerce only recently; hence, longitudinal data on the success factors of e-commerce are not available. Practical implications While cross-border e-commerce may work as an accelerator of the overall export performance, export managers are urged to approach it strategically with a clear medium-term view to develop the required capabilities. Originality/value This study was one of the first to examine the drivers of small and medium-sized exporters’ cross-border e-commerce performance. Moreover, unlike most previous analyzes, it focused on e-commerce as a foreign market entry mode rather than a supplement to offline exporting activities.

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