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This study aims to examine the multidimensional nature of institutional distance as a driver of acquisition decisions in emerging markets. Then, this study aims to offer a nuanced perspective on the role of its various formal and informal dimensions by taking into account the potential contingency role played by a firm’s context experience.

Building on institutional economics and organizational institutionalism, this study explores the heterogeneity of institutional distance and its effects on the decision to enter emerging versus advanced markets through cross-border acquisitions. Thus, institutional distance is disentangled into its formal and informal dimensions, the former being captured by regulatory efficiency, country governance and financial development. Furthermore, our framework examines the moderating effect of an acquiring firm’s experience in institutionally similar environments, defined as context experience. The hypotheses are analyzed on a sample of 496 cross-border acquisitions by Italian companies in 41 countries from 2008 to 2018.

Findings indicate that at an increasing distance in terms of regulatory efficiency and financial development, acquiring firms are less likely to enter emerging markets, while informal institutional distance is positively associated with such acquisitions. Context experience mitigates the negative effect of formal distance and enhances the positive effect of informal distance.

This study contributes to institutional distance literature in multiple ways. First, by bridging institutional economics and organizational institutionalism and second, by examining the heterogeneity of formal and informal dimensions of distance, this study offers a finer-grained perspective on how institutional distance affects acquisition decisions. Finally, it offers a contingency perspective on the role of context experience.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze corporate scope decisions in acquisitions with a focus on the relationship between target country unfamiliarity and acquirer-to-target relatedness and on the moderating effects played by product diversification and international experience.

Using a dataset of 689 acquisitions completed in the period 2007-2013 by acquirers located in 60 countries, this paper utilizes an ordered logistic regression analysis.

With greater target country unfamiliarity, acquirers are encouraged to pursue greater acquirer-to-target relatedness. This finding suggests that acquirers tend to seek a balance between product and international diversification to reduce the sources of uncertainty in their acquisition moves. While past international experience strengthens this relationship, diversification experience has a negative moderating effect and hence encourages acquirers to reduce relatedness at increasing market unfamiliarity.

The originality of this paper is twofold. First, the authors extend the traditional internationalization-diversification framework to an unfamiliarity-relatedness relationship in the context of acquisitions. Second, the authors propose a construct of target country unfamiliarity in acquisitions that goes beyond the traditional domestic vs cross-border dichotomy by including previous experience in the target country.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of export consortia in developing countries as a means to develop intangible resources that enhance SMEs' competitiveness.

The paper presents a framework for the analysis of the processes through which intangible resources are developed within export consortia. The methodology employed involves in‐depth case studies of nine export consortia supported by UNIDO in Morocco, Peru, Tunisia, and Uruguay, during the period 2004‐2007.

The participation in export consortia is very important not only to develop intangible resources that increase competitiveness abroad, but also for becoming more competitive at domestic level. This is particularly relevant for SMEs from developing countries.

The findings are based on nine case studies of export consortia in developing countries. All these consortia are rather young and developed with the support of UNIDO. Future studies should explore the issues addressed in the paper through the analysis of consortia of different size and age as well as different countries.

The findings and the framework proposed can be used by SMEs, consultants and agencies that support export consortia in the formulation of the consortium strategy and by policy‐makers to identify conditions for successful cooperation among SMEs.

The research is among the few that analyze export consortia and the first to offer a conceptual framework and empirical evidence linking intangible resources, export consortia, SMEs and developing countries.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of the organizational slack and acquisition experience on acquisition behavior across varying environmental conditions. Drawing from behavioral theory and the threat-rigidity hypothesis, the paper explores firm acquisition behavior, in terms of type of acquisitions, before and during the recent economic downturn.

Using data on 385 acquisitions in Italy in the period 2007-2010, the paper tests hypotheses on how organizational slack and acquisition experience influence the likelihood of cross-border and diversifying acquisitions relative to domestic, non-diversifying acquisitions prior to and during the economic downturn.

Results suggest that the availability of financial resources and acquisition experience both have an important influence on acquisition behavior. Firms with greater slack and acquisition experience were more likely to make diversifying and/or cross-border acquisitions, compared to domestic non-diversifying acquisitions, particularly during an economic downturn, than firms with lower levels of slack and acquisition experience.

The paper extends behavioral theory and threat-rigidity hypothesis, highlighting their applicability to acquisition behavior across varying economic conditions. Slack resources and acquisition experience appear to be particularly salient during challenging economic times.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for positioning the research contributions on the analysis of firm‐level international competitiveness and addressing the key issues on this topic.

Linking the concepts of internationalization, performance, and firm‐level competitiveness, the paper proposes a framework for identifying the different dimensions of international competitiveness. Literature on each dimension is reviewed and the linkages between them are discussed.

The paper unbundles the construct of international competitiveness into three dimensions: “ex ante” competitiveness, relating to firm‐ and location‐specific advantages as drivers of competitiveness; firm internationalization profile, resulting from the qualitative and quantitative characteristics of a firm's presence abroad; “ex post” competitiveness, relating to market, financial and nonfinancial performance of a firm in foreign markets.

Although the analysis of international competitiveness benefits from contributions from different research streams such as international business, marketing, and strategic management, the lack of an organizing framework makes it difficult to “handle” within a potentially huge body of literature. This paper contributes to fill this gap. In addition, it provides the basis for a new research agenda about the analysis of the internationalization‐performance relationship.