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The aim of this study is to examine how knowledge-intensive born global firms operating in international markets develop and maintain long-term relationships with their customers that insure their continued growth beyond the initial stage of internationalization. The study adopts a case study approach, focusing on two Indian born global firms operating with the knowledge-based services sector. The study shows that getting to know the customer intimately helps firms to retain customers over long periods of time. Customer-relationship management strategy is in line with the entrepreneurial orientation of the firms under consideration.

The aim of this paper to examine the mechanism through which the capabilities related to internationalisation emerge and are acquired as firms internationalise.

This study draws on existing literature on born global firms and dynamic capabilities to develop a tentative framework and then use that to examine a longitudinal case study of an Indian firm operating within knowledge-intensive services industry. The role played by these capabilities in the survival and sustained international growth of born global firms has been probed.

The study establishes a link between firm’s ability to develop such capabilities for global service delivery and its growth and survival. It is suggested that dynamic capabilities emerge as the result of a mix of experiential and deliberate learning processes, being in a constant change in rhythm with changes in domestic and in international business environments.

This study is based on a single case study from knowledge-intensive service industry in India with its own particular characteristics. Thus, the findings of this study may not be generalised across other emerging markets or industry.

Entrepreneurs and managers of new ventures can benefit from this study, as this study helps them develop a deeper understanding of the different capability requirements for successful internationalisation.

This study contributed to the existing literature on capability evolution in born global firms.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the patterns of location of key activities for break-out in corporate competitiveness. The key objective is to identify linkages that may exist among the location of corporate center activities, innovation capabilities and the break-out.

Patterns of location of corporate center across the world have been explored first, using sample data from Global 500. For the context of innovation and India, two polar locations were selected. The patterns in the growth of focal firms from the locations were evaluated using select competitiveness criteria such as revenues, profits and assets, based on data of a larger sample from Global 2000.

Findings support the view on “role of location with innovation clusters” such as Bangalore, particularly for competitiveness of born global firms. Surprisingly, Mumbai has increased its percentage share of contributions in terms of revenues and profits, indicating sustenance of cluster, entrepreneurial and other advantages.

Considering the enormous scope for enhancing contributions of emerging-country multinational enterprises to the world economy, decisions related to break-out in competitiveness are critical. Depending on strategic intent and the role of innovation and internationalization, firms can take better decisions related to the location of specific corporate activities to foster multinational enterprise (MNE) competitiveness.

The findings may inspire key stakeholders to take decisions that enhance sustainability of city clusters and communities.

Analyzing the role of location of key corporate activities, for the phenomenon “break-out to higher stages of competitiveness”, is a unique contribution. These concepts and findings can be of high value to firms and MNEs thinking long term about location or relocation of corporate center activities, particularly for innovation.

The study this chapter reports focuses on how network theory contributes to the understanding of the internationalization process of SMEs and measures the effect of network capability on performance in international trade and has three research objectives.

The first objective of the study relates to providing new insights into the international market development activities through the application of a network perspective. The chapter reviews the international business literature to ascertain the development of thought, the research gaps, and the shortcomings. This review shows that the network perspective is a useful and popular theoretical domain that researchers can use to understand international activities, particularly of small, high technology, resource-constrained firms.

The second research objective is to gain a deeper understanding of network capability. This chapter presents a model for the impact of network capability on international performance by building on the emerging literature on the dynamic capabilities view of the firm. The model conceptualizes network capability in terms of network characteristics, network operation, and network resources. Network characteristics comprise strong and weak ties (operationalized as foreign-market entry modes), relational capability, and the level of trust between partners. Network operation focuses on network initiation, network coordination, and network learning capabilities. Network resources comprise network human-capital resources, synergy-sensitive resources (resource combinations within the network), and information sharing within the network.

The third research objective is to determine the impact of networking capability on the international performance of SMEs. The study analyzes 11 hypotheses through structural equations modeling using LISREL. The hypotheses relate to strong and weak ties, the relative strength of strong ties over weak ties, and each of the eight remaining constructs of networking capability in the study. The research conducts a cross-sectional study by using a sample of SMEs drawn from the telecommunications industry in Ireland.

The study supports the hypothesis that strong ties are more influential on international performance than weak ties. Similarly, network coordination and human-capital resources have a positive and significant association with international performance. Strong ties, weak ties, trust, network initiation, synergy-sensitive resources, relational capability, network learning, and information sharing do not have a significant association with international performance. The results of this study are strong (R2=0.63 for performance as the outcome) and provide a number of interesting insights into the relations between collaboration or networking capability and performance.

This study provides managers and policy makers with an improved understanding of the contingent effects of networks to highlight situations where networks might have limited, zero, or even negative effects on business outcomes. The study cautions against the tendency to interpret networks as universally beneficial to business development and performance outcomes.

Extant literature suggests that post-entry internationalization strategies and performance implications of born globals are an under-researched area. This paper aims to examine the internationalization strategies of born global service firms (BGSFs) and performance implications thereof through strategic group analysis of hand-collected data from Indian information technology (IT) firms.

Strategic group analysis has been used to examine if there are any differences in the strategic decisions across firms and if there are any implications of these strategies on the performance of firms. The strategic group approach helps understand not only the antecedents but also the strategic trade-offs that different groups of BGSFs face after internationalization. The study uses Indian IT industry as the context for analysis of BGSFs, as studies have found that the Indian IT industry to have significant presence of born globals.

Four distinct strategic paths were found to be followed by BGSFs. In addition, the nature of services and ways of mobilization or deployment of resources explain the different internationalization paths and consequently performance. The performance differences primarily stem from the choice of degree of commitment and scope of internationalization.

This study provides distinct insights to practice by charting internationalization paths for an emerging born global.

This paper contributes to the theory on born globals by using strategic lens to explain the internationalization paths and their performance implications.

Nobody concerned with political economy can neglect the history of economic doctrines. Structural changes in the economy and society influence economic thinking and, conversely, innovative thought structures and attitudes have almost always forced economic institutions and modes of behaviour to adjust. We learn from the history of economic doctrines how a particular theory emerged and whether, and in which environment, it could take root. We can see how a school evolves out of a common methodological perception and similar techniques of analysis, and how it has to establish itself. The interaction between unresolved problems on the one hand, and the search for better solutions or explanations on the other, leads to a change in paradigma and to the formation of new lines of reasoning. As long as the real world is subject to progress and change scientific search for explanation must out of necessity continue.

The purpose of this paper is to respond to the call of international marketing professionals for more studies on strategies that firms use in response to the complexities of interacting with other institutions in the emerging markets (EMs) of sub-Saharan Africa. The key research question investigated by employing the exploratory qualitative data gathered is: What strategies and global alliances do small local firms (SLFs) in Nigeria adopt to succeed under complex market conditions?

The methodology employed is exploratory qualitative research. The authors conducted extended interviews to generate rich case study data from the top management of the selected SLFs in Nigeria. The interview data were assessed using open, axial and selective coding to uncover macro-narratives that guide SLFs’ strategies and global alliances.

The macro-narratives derived from the qualitative case analysis reveal a theoretical framework centered on three major elements of competitive strategies in Nigeria: build global capacity and strategic alliances from the get-go; develop local strategic alliances; master matching alliance partners’ needs to create innovative payment plans and, when necessary, shift the transaction cost burden to alliance partners. Matching theory rather than traditional network theories is better at explicating SLFs’ alliances in Nigeria. Implementation of these strategies requires flexible strategic initiatives.

The study adapts institutional interaction theory, network theory, matching alliance perspective, trade credit theories and the literature on small firms’ strategies in EMs to explicate successful small local firm strategies and global alliances under complex market conditions in Nigeria. The recognition that SLFs regularly migrate and shift the burden of transactions’ cost to multiple stakeholders in the supply network by matching customers and supplier needs is important. The discovery of matching theory in explicating SLFs’ global alliances in Nigeria is unique to this study.

Looks at the 2000 Employment Research Unit Annual Conference held at the University of Cardiff in Wales on 6/7 September 2000. Spotlights the 76 or so presentations within and shows that these are in many, differing, areas across management research from: retail finance; precarious jobs and decisions; methodological lessons from feminism; call centre experience and disability discrimination. These and all points east and west are covered and laid out in a simple, abstract style, including, where applicable, references, endnotes and bibliography in an easy‐to‐follow manner. Summarizes each paper and also gives conclusions where needed, in a comfortable modern format.