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1、本份文档包含：关于该选题的外文文献、文献综述一、外文文献标题:Internationalizationstrategy,firmresourcesandthesurvivalofSMEsintheexportmarket作者:Baum,Matthias期刊:JournalofInternationalBusinessStudies卷:45；期:7；页:821-841；年份:2014Internationalizationstrategy,firmresourcesandthesurvivalofSMEsintheexportmarketINTRODUCTIONBorn-globalfirms,

2、sometimescalledinternationalnewventures(INVs),havebeendescribedascompaniesthatfromornearfoundation,obtainasignificantportionoftotalrevenuefromsalesininternationalmarkets(Knight&Cavusgil,2005:15).Althoughborn-globalfirmshaveattractedsignificantresearchattention(Autio,2005;Jones,Coviello,&Tang,2011)th

3、athasemphasizedtheirabilitytoachieveconsiderableforeignsalesearlyintheirevolution(Autio,Sapienza,&Almeida,2000)withlimitedresources,littleisknownaboutthecontinuingabilityofthesefirmstoremainactiveininternationalmarketsandaboutthetypesofresourcesthatdeterminetheirsurvivalabroad(Keupp&Gassmann,2009;Sa

4、pienza,Autio,George,&Zahra,2006;Zahra,2005).AsKuivalainen,Sundqvist,Saarenketo,andMcNaughton(2012:449)note:thereisstillapaucityofempiricalresearchonwhetheracceleratedinternationalization(oranotherinternationalizationpath)playsaroleindetermininglong-termsurvival,successand/orgrowth.Thefewstudiesthath

5、aveinvestigatedthis,reportcontradictoryorambiguousfindings(e.g.,Bloodgood,Sapienza,&Almeida,1996),arebasedonsmallsamples(e.g.,Gabrielsson,Kirpalani,Dimistratos,Solberg,&Zucchella,2008),orfocusonalimitednumberofpathways(e.g.,Mudambi&Zahra,2007).Thedominanttheoreticalapproachesinthefield-theinternatio

6、nalizationprocessmodel(IPM)(Johanson&Vahlne,2009),theINVframework(Oviatt&McDougall,1994)andtheregionalizationhypothesis(Rugman&Verbeke,2007)-resultinsignificantlydifferentpredictionsregardingwhichinternationalizationstrategyismostbeneficialfortheexportmarketsurvivalofsmall-andmedium-sizedenterprises

7、(SMEs).TheIPMimpliesthatborn-globalinternationalizationendangersafirmssurvivalintheexportmarketbecausesuchfirmsdonothavesufficienttimetolearnaboutforeignmarketswell,whichincreasestheirprobabilityoffailure(Figueira-de-Lemos,Johanson,&Vahlne,2011).AccordingtotheINVframework,firmsmayprofitfromaborn-glo

8、balstrategybyexploringandcapitalizingoninternationalopportunitiesandbyexploitingcertainlearningadvantagesthataccompanynewness(Autioetal.,2000).Theregionalizationhypothesispostulatesthatrapidinternationalizationispossiblebutthatsuchdevelopmentwillbemostvaluableifrevenuesarerestrictedtocomingfromthefi

9、rmshomeregiontodiminishtheliabilityofforeignness(Rugman&Verbeke,2004).Thistheoreticaldiscordmakesitimperativethatresearchersempiricallyexaminetheimplicationsofdifferentinternationalizationstrategiesforfirmsurvival.Inthisstudy,weinvestigatetheeffectofdifferentinternationalizationstrategies(born-globa

10、l,born-regionalandgradualinternationalizationstrategies)ontheexportmarketsurvivalofSMEs.Weshowthat,inadditiontointernationalizationstrategy,firmslackresourcesandinnovationresourcesdetermineINVsviabilityintheinternationalmarket.Firmsthatarebetterabletoacquireadequateresourcesduringinternationalizatio

11、naremorelikelytosustaintheirexportmarketactivities.SeveralstudieshighlighttheimportanceofresourcestothesurvivalofINVs.Sapienzaetal.(2006),forexample,arguethattheabilitytoshiftresourcesisimportanttothesurvivalofyoungfirmsbecausetheuncertaintyinherentinunknownforeignenvironmentscangenerateunexpectedre

12、quirementstoadjustestablishedroutinesandcapabilities.Firmswithmorefungibleresourcesarebetterabletoadapttheirroutines,whichallowsthemtobetterreacttoenvironmentalchangesandbolsterstheirsurvivalchancesabroad.Inaparallelvein,weproposethat,althoughfirm-specificresourcesareimportantfortheexportmarketsurvi

13、valofallSMEsperse,therelativeimportanceofslackresourcesandinnovationresourcesiscontingentuponwhichinternationalizationstrategyisemployed.Comparedwithothermoreincrementalinternationalizationapproaches,aborn-globalfirmwillhavegreaterdemandforresourcestoprevailininternationalmarkets.Born-globalfirmsreq

14、uireslackresourcesandinnovationresourcesmoreurgentlyfortheirsurvivalthanotherinternationalizingSMEsbecausethetwinliabilitiesofnewness(Stinchcombe,1965)andforeignness(Hymer,1976)areparticularlystrongforborn-globalfirms,enteringmultipleforeignenvironmentsatanenhancedspeed.Forthisaggressiveinternationa

15、lization,born-globalshavetoestablishbusinessroutinesandlearnabouttheirmultiplemarketsatthesametime,inordertoovercometheshockofentry(Carr,Haggard,Hmieleski,&Zahra,2010:184)effectively.Bycontrast,theexportmarketsurvivalofgraduallyinternationalizingfirmswillbetheleastdependentonslackresourcesandinnovat

16、ionresourcescomparedwithborn-globalandborn-regionalfirms.Theliabilitiesofnewnessandforeignnessdonotadherethatstronglytograduallyinternationalizingfirmsbecausethesefirmsenterforeignmarketssequentiallyandcanmoreeasilylearnfromtheirownoperationsandbuildexperientialknowledge.Accordingly,theirsurvivalint

17、heinternationalenvironmentwillbelessdependentonslackresources(Chang&Rhee,2011)andinnovation(Shrader,Oviatt,&McDougall,2000).Inthisstudy,wefurthersharpentheunderstandingabouttheimpactofresourcesonthesurvivalofINVsandshowthatresourcesareanimportantboundaryconditionforthefunctionalityofdifferentinterna

18、tionalizationstrategiesregardinginternationalmarketsurvival.OurstudyprovidesthreeimportantcontributionstounderstandingSMEsurvivalabroad.First,byobservingtheeffectofdifferentinternationalizationstrategiesonthesurvivalofSMEsintheexportmarket,weunderscorethestrategic-choicerationaleandfindstrongempiric

19、alsupportforthenotionthatfirmsself-selectintoafittingstrategy.Basedontheforeigndirectinvestment(FDI)activityof275UKfirms,MudambiandZahra(2007)findthatemployingaborn-globalstrategyhasnodirectimpactonfirmsurvival.Basedonthisfinding,thatstudyproposedthatthefirmsinitssamplewereabletodecideefficientstrat

20、egiesduringtheprocessofinternationalization.Inourstudy,basedontheexportactivityofallCanadianSMEs,theresultssuggestthatneithertheborn-globalnorborn-regionalstrategyhasastatisticallysignificanteffectonfirmexportmarketsurvival.Thereforewefurtherdemonstratethatsmall,newventuresfirmsareasrationalaslargef

21、irms;theyareabletopursuestrategicchoicesanddecideupontheoptimalinternationalizationstrategythatbestfitstheirresourceendowmentandenvironmentalconditions.Second,wedifferentiatepreviousstudiesoninternationalizationstrategiesbyintroducingtheborn-regionalstrategyintoouranalysis.Previousstudieseitherfocus

22、edonasinglestrategy(Efrat&Shoham,2012)orcomparedonlyborn-globalsandgradualinternationalizers(Mudambi&Zahra,2007).Weturntomorerecentnotionsthatshowthatborn-regionalsemployadistincttypeofinternationalizationstrategy(Lopez,Kundu,&Ciravegna,2009),whichmightbetterbalancetherisksandbenefitsofearlyinternat

23、ionalization.Ourthirdcontributionliesattheintersectionofinternationalizationstrategiesandresources.Althoughnosingleinternationalizationstrategydominatesotherstrategicapproachesundereverycondition,wedemonstratethatinternationalizationstrategiesareanimportantmoderatorforafirmssurvivalandfirmresources.

24、Firmresourcesnotonlydirectlyaffectafirmssurvivalanditsstrategicself-selectionbutalsointeractwithafirmsappliedinternationalizationstrategy.Incontextualizingthefirmresources-survivallinkthroughinternationalizationstrategy,weaddtopreviousstudiesonborn-globalfirmsandsuggesthowSMEsmightbettersustaintheir

25、internationalactivitieswithdifferentinternationalizationstrategies.Thisisanimportantadvancementinthecurrentunderstandingbecauseitsuggeststhatalthoughsmall,newventuresareabletointernationalizeearlywithlimitedresources,itisparticularlycriticalforborn-globalfirmstoacquireadequateresourcesduringtheinter

26、nationalizationprocesstosurviveabroad.ThedatasetusedtoexamineourresearchquestionsistakenfromtheadministrativedatabasesproducedbyStatisticsCanada.ThesampleincludesallCanadiansmall-andmedium-sizedmanufacturersthathadatleastoneshipmenttoaforeignmarketbetween1997and2005.Combiningthisuniquedatasetwithemp

27、iricalanalysesthatcontrolforpossiblesampleselectionbiasandendogeneity,weprovideavalidandreliableexaminationofthesurvivalofSMEsintheexportmarket.THEORYANDHYPOTHESESInternationalizationStrategiesandSMESurvivalintheExportMarketTraditionalinternationalizationtheories,suchastheIPM(Johanson&Vahlne,1977),a

28、relargelybasedonthetheoryofthegrowthofthefirm(Penrose,1959)andthebehavioraltheoryofthefirm(Cyert&March,1963).IPMscholarspositthatinternationalizationshouldbeincrementalandexperience-based,suchasbybeginningwithlow-involvementmodesofentryinnearbyorculturallysimilarareas.Thisstrategywouldminimizerisksa

29、ssociatedwithinternationalizationbecausethedegreeofresourcecommitmentisrelativelylowandtheresourcesinquestionarefocusedonmarketswithlowpsychicdistance.Bygraduallyincreasinginternationalmarketcommitmentandthescopeofinternationalactivities,firmscanbuildexperientialknowledgeaboutforeignmarkets.Thisknow

30、ledge,inturn,willhelpthemtomanageriskmoreefficientlyandwillincreasetheprobabilityoftheirsurvivalintheinternationalmarket(Figueira-de-Lemosetal.,2011).Throughexperientiallearning,firmscanbegintomoreefficientlyidentifymarketopportunitiesandreducetheliabilitiesofforeignness(Johanson&Vahlne,2009).Fromth

31、istheoreticalperspective,gradualinternationalizationbalancestherisksandopportunitiesassociatedwithinternationalization,andmaximizesthesurvivalofexporters.Althoughthereasoningbehindtheinternationalizationprocesshasinformedmanyscholarsandhasbeenproveninmultiplestudiesacrossvariouscontexts,itcontinuest

32、obesubjecttocritique(Pedersen&Shaver,2011).Evans,Lane,andOGrady(1992)showthatfirmsfromCanadadonotnecessarilysucceedintheUSmarket,althoughCanadaandtheUnitedStatesareculturallyclose,whereasBenitoandGripsrud(1992)cannotempiricallyconfirmthatfirmsinvestfirstintoculturallyproximatecountriesinasystematicm

33、anner.Additionally,instudyingthesurvivalofMNEsubsidiaries,Mitchell,Shaver,andYeung(1994)demonstratethatFDIsinculturallycloseandnearbycountriesoftenfail.Basedonsuchnotions,theresearchfieldonINVsevolvedandbegantoarguethatfirmsareneithernecessarilyenteringintoculturallyorpsychicallyclosecountriesfirst(

34、Benito&Gripsrud,1992),noraretheymoresuccessfulwhentheydoso(Evansetal.,1992;Mitchelletal.,1994).Earlyinternationalizationisarguedtobeanimportantcatalystinthedevelopmentofnewcapabilitiesforyoungfirmsbecausetheuncertaintyandriskthataccruestoyoungfirmswhentheyareexposedtoforeignmarketswilltriggertheexpl

35、orationandexploitationofnewopportunitiesandresources(Sapienzaetal.,2006).Firmsthatventureintomultipleenvironmentsshortlyaftertheirinceptionfacestrain,buttheyalsoenjoyhigherlevelsofpotentiallearningeffects(Autioetal.,2000)asaresultoftheseearlyforaysintointernationalmarkets.Relativetoamaturefirm,ayoun

36、gfirmcanmoreeasilyadaptitsprocessesandstructuretotheinternationalenvironment.Thusthelatterfirmsenjoythelearningadvantagesofnewness(Autioetal.,2000).Inaddition,exportactivitymayenhancethelegitimacyoffirmsintheirdomesticmarketsandenablethemtomoreeffectivelyaccessandmobilizeresourcesforgrowth.Althought

37、heborn-globalapproachdemandssignificantresources,itenablesfirmstorealizetheirlearningpotential,toexploitmarketopportunitiesonabroadscaleandtogenerateandmobilizeresources.BeyondgeneralsupportfortheexistenceandpositivefeaturesofINVs,thereisincreasingevidencethatINVsarenotahomogenousgroupoffirms,buttha

38、ttherearedifferentstrategicpatternswithintheirpopulation(Kuivalainenetal.,2012).Onlyrecently,severalscholarshaveemphasizedimportantdifferencesbetweenborn-globalandborn-regionalfirms(Lopezetal.,2009;Sui,Yu,&Baum,2012).Althoughbothtypesoffirmsinternationalizeearlyintheirexistenceandrealizesignificants

39、haresoftheirrevenuesabroad,born-regionalsdirecttheirinternationalizationtowardtheirhomeregion,whereasborn-globalfirmsspreadtheiractivitiesintomarketsoutsidetheirhomeregion(Lopezetal.,2009).Theborn-regionalstrategyiswellexplainedbyamorerecentlydevelopedframeworkregardinginternationalization;theregion

40、alizationhypothesisemphasizestheadvantagesofageographicallyfocusedorregionalizedapproachtointernationalization(Rugman&Verbeke,2007).Arapid,high-commitmentapproachtointernationalizationmaybesuperiorifinternationalizationeffortsarerestrictedtoaspecificgeographicregion(Rugman&Verbeke,2004).Ifafirmposse

41、ssesfirm-specificadvantages(FSAs),itshouldcapitalizeonthemininternationalmarkets.Moreover,theearlytransferofFSAstointernationalmarketsprovidesfirmswithanopportunitytofurtherdevelopthebyexploringandexploitingcountry-specificadvantages(CSAs).However,thesebenefitscanbecounterbalancedbytheliabilitiesoff

42、oreignness.ThereforeitissuggestedthatfirmsconducttheirearlyinternationalizationeffortsintheirhomeregionstoensurethattheyprofitfromFSAsandCSAs.Thustheregionalperspectivepromotestheborn-regionalinternationalizationstrategy.TheseconceptualdisparitiestranslateintomixedfindingsandconclusionsregardingSMEs

43、urvivalintheinternationalenvironment.Somescholarsarguethatanenhancedinternationalscopeincreasesthechancesofsurvival(Hitt,Hoskisson,&Ireland,1994)byprovidingadditionalaccesstofactorandcustomermarkets(Zahra,Ireland,&Hitt,2000)orbyallowingforthelearningadvantageofnewness(Autioetal.,2000).Otherscholarsf

44、ocusonthenegativeeffectsofearlyforaysandemphasizetheliabilitiesofforeignness.Accordingly,thoseliabilitiesofforeignnessmanifestthemselvesasadditionalcosts(suchascoordination,transaction,labor,start-upandlegalcosts)(Salomon&Wu,2012)thatoriginatefromtheunfamiliaritywiththeforeignenvironment.Theseliabil

45、itiesthusendangerthesurvivalofforeignsubsidiaries(Zaheer&Mosakowski,1997).GiventheseconflictingconclusionsregardingthesurvivalofSMEsintheexportmarket,wenotonlyfocusonifdifferentstrategieshavedifferenteffectsonSMEsurvivalabroad,butwealsofocusontheconditionsunderwhichfirmsshouldpursuespecificstrategie

46、stosustaintheirinternationalization.Wedrawonthestrategic-choicerationale(Child,1972;Reid,1983)andalignresourceswithinternationalizationstrategytodeducethattheinternationalizationstrategyappliedisanimportantboundaryconditionfortheimpactoffirm-specificresourcesonSMEssurvivalabroad.SMEInternationalizat

47、ionasaStrategicChoiceAlthoughthestudiesdiscussedaboveontheinternationalizationofSMEsarriveatdifferentnormativeimplicationsaboutwhichinternationalizationstrategytopursue,theyconcurthatinternationalizationdecisionsrepresentimportantstrategicchoicesthatlargelydeterminefirmperformanceandsurvival(Filatot

48、chev&Piesse,2009).Thestrategic-choiceperspectiveregardsthecreationsofstrategiesasasetoffundamentalchoicesabouttheendsandmeansofabusiness(Child,1972).Thesechoicesarecriticaltofirmsuccess(Boxall,1996;Rumelt,Schendel,&Teece,1994)andarenotrandomlypickedamongthepossiblecontingencies,butaretheresultofcare

49、fullyweighingtheresourcerequirementsandenvironmentalconditionsforeachpossibledecision.Animportantboundaryforthestrategicdecisionthusisafirmsresourceendowment.Afirmsresourcesultimatelydeterminethestrategicflexibilityoffirmsor,putdifferently,thenumberofstrategiesthatarepossible(Filatotchev&Piesse,2009

50、).Forinstance,Andrews(1971)arguesthatstrategyisthematchingprocessbetweentheresourcesoftheorganizationandopportunitiesinthebusinessenvironmentatanacceptablelevelofrisk.Afirmhasanincentivetodiversifyifitpossessesthenecessary,excessresourcestomakediversificationeconomicallyfeasible(Wan,Hoskisson,Short,

51、&Yiu,2011:1338).Assuch,thestrategic-choiceapproachsuggeststhatinternationalizationstrategyisendogenousbecauseitissignificantlyinfluencedbyafirmsresourceendowment(Wanetal.,2011).Ifafirmhasalargerresourceendowment,itisabletopursuestrategiesthatmaybedifficultforitscompetitorstocopy,whichcreatesacompeti

52、tiveadvantage.Theborn-globalstrategyseemstobeonesuchstrategybecauseinternationalizingintomultipleenvironmentswithdifferentculturaland/orinstitutionalbackgroundsdemandsmorehumanandfinancialresources.Undertakingaborn-globalstrategystressestheresourcebaseofafirmbecauseborn-globalswillinevitablyincrease

53、thelevelsofcountryriskassociatedwiththeiroperations(Efrat&Shoham,2012:678)bytargetinggeographicallydistantcountries.Thefurtherafirmextendsitsinternationalizationactivitiesgeographically,themoredifficultitisforthefirmtomanageitsforeignmarketactivities;dealingwithforeigngovernmentofficials,lawsandagen

54、cies,suppliers,andcustomersincreasesthecomplexityofmanagingsuchanenterprise,taxingmanagerialresourcesandexpertise(Brouthers,Nakos,Hadjimarcou,&Brouthers,2009:25).Thusthescopeofinternationalizationstrategiesisinfluencedbyafirmstangibleandintangibleresources(Tan,Plowman,&Hancock,2007).Thisindicatestha

55、tfirmswithstrongerresourceendowmenthavemorestrategicoptionsandarethusmorelikelytopursueaborn-globalstrategy.Becauseitisafirmschoicetorestrictorexpanditsinternationalscope(Rugman&Oh,2012),SMEswillenteraforeignmarketonlywhentheyhavetheresourcesthatarerequiredtodoso.WhenSMEsmakemeaningfulstrategicchoic

56、esandtaketheirindividualresourcelevelintoconsideration,thereshouldnotbesurvivaldifferencesintheexportmarketbetweendifferentstrategicapproachesiftheheterogeneousresource-allocationacrossfirmsandtheendogenousnatureofstrategicchoicesisconsidered.Thistheoreticalargumenthasreceivedempiricalsupport.Mudamb

57、iandZahra(2007)showthatborn-globalfirmshavesimilarsurvivalchancesasgradualinternationalizers.Theyarguethatfirmsself-selectintotheappropriateinternationalizationstrategythatisbasedontheirresourceendowment.Carretal.(2010)foundnoeffectofageonthesurvivalofinternationalizedfirms.Insummary,basedontherelev

58、anttheoryandpreviousempiricalevidence,wesuggestthefollowinghypothesis:Hypothesis1:Aftertheendogeneityoffirmsinternationalizationstrategiesisconsidered,born-globalfirmsandborn-regionalfirmswilldisplayaprobabilityofexitfromexportingthatisnogreaterthanthatoffirmsthatgraduallyinternationalize.Moderating

59、theImpactofInternationalizationStrategyontheEffectofFirmResourcesThestrategicmanagementliteraturehaslongarguedthatafirmsresourcesmightaffectthesuccessofstrategicchoices(Chang&Rhee,2011).Althoughoutcomesofearlyinternationalizationsuchasinternationalgrowth(Autioetal.,2000)andfinancialperformance(Blood

60、goodetal.,1996)havebeenintensivelyresearched,wehaveonlyanarrowunderstandingabouttheviabilityofborn-globalfirmsintheexportmarket.EfratandShoham(2012)employasurveyfrom103Israelifirmstoshowthatborn-globalfirmsaremorelikelytosurviveiftheyhavedistinctcapabilities,suchastechnologicalskills.AlthoughEfratan

61、dShoham(2012)stresstheimportanceoffirmresourcesforinternationalizationstrategychoiceandsurvivalabroad,theyfocusonlyonthedirecteffectsofresourcesonthestrategicchoiceandfirmsurvivalabroad.Weadvancethisperspectivebyshowingthatthesurvivaleffectsoffirmsresourcesarefurthermoderatedbytheinternationalizatio

62、nstrategythatispursued.Internationaloperationsnotonlytriggeropportunities(Sapienzaetal.,2006)butalsomustaddresstherisksandliabilitiesofforeignness(Hymer,1976).Theliabilitiesofforeignnessrefertotheincreasedcostsofoperatingabusinessinaforeigndomain.Thesourcesoftheseenhancedcostsmaybeinsufficientmarket

63、knowledge,anegativecountry-of-originimage,andculturalandinstitutionaldifferencesofthehomecountry,tonameafew(Cuervo-Cazurra,Maloney,&Manrakhan,2007;Santangelo&Meyer,2011).Theseenhancedcostscanbesignificantandenduring.Tosurvive,exportersmustaddresstheseliabilitiesandovercometheassociatedincreasedresou

64、rcedemandofdoingbusinessabroad.Previousresearchhasshownthattheliabilitiesofforeignnessattachparticularlystronglywheninternationalizationevolvesquickly(i.e.,inborn-regionalandborn-globalfirms)andwhenmarketsoutsidethehomeregionarepenetrated,whichresultsinanincreasedenvironmentalturbulenceandhostility(

65、Zahra&Bogner,1999).Thusinadditiontotheopportunities,theliabilitiesofforeignnessandtheresultingturbulencevaryamongthedifferentinternationalizationstrategies.Afirmsresourcebasehelpsaddresstheliabilitiesofforeignnessandimprovethechancesofsurvival.Anabundantresourceendowmentactsasorganizationalslackandm

66、akesinternationaloperationsfeasibleandlessrisky(Chang&Rhee,2011).Suchslackresourcesactasabufferagainstbankruptcyandotherdownsiderisksandensuresthesurvivalofthefirm(George,2005;Tan&Peng,2003).Twosuitableindicatorsforslackresourcesinourspecificcontextareafirmssize(Hashai,2011;Sharfman,Wolf,Chase,&Tansik,1988)andproductivity(Mishina,Pollock,&Porac,2004).1Accordingtoorganizationaltheories,slackresourcesaremandatorytoensurea