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The aim of this study is to investigate the mediating effect of learning orientation on the market orientation and business performance of industrial Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the metal-mechanic and wine sectors in southern Brazil, an emerging economy country.

Survey data were collected from 309 Brazilian managers of SMEs in the metal-mechanic and wine sectors. The study analyzed overall model fit and causal relationships by confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling.

The survey results show that there is a positive and significant relationship between the variables market orientation, learning orientation and business performance in the investigated sectors. Learning orientation mediates the relationship between market orientation and business performance.

This article provides insight to guide industrial managers of Brazilian SMEs in the metal-mechanic and wine sectors in a prosperous region with a thriving economy. The mediating effect of learning orientation can help managers in their commitment to learning, market vision and open-mindedness in teams that work with multiple orientations.

Few studies focus on analyzing the mediating effect of learning orientation in industrial SMEs in the metal-mechanic and wine sectors. This article differs from others due to the relationships between the constructs, LO mediation over MO and BP, relevance of the investigated sectors for the region and multiple guidelines for managers of the investigated SMEs. Previous studies are scarce on the indirect effect of LO on MO and BP in developing countries.

This paper aims to explore whether the key drivers identified in digitalization policies are being prioritized by practitioners in health and social care and to what degree the goals of the policies are being enacted.

The investigation comprised two stages. First, the key drivers of digitalization in the national policies were identified. Second, a survey was disseminated to practitioners within health and social care, asking them to indicate their stance on each key driver (using Likert scales).

The findings of this paper are twofold. First, they demonstrate that practitioners more readily enact the key drivers centered around their everyday operations, such as improving services and care and increasing efficiency. Second, it shows that key drivers of a more rhetorical nature, such as “becoming the best,” do not yield benefits for practitioners.

This paper shows that for policies to have an effect in practice and to contribute to change, they should be rooted in key drivers centered around practitioners’ everyday operations, promoting specificity over abstraction.

While previous studies have involved policy analysis, few studies investigate the enactment of policies, how they are implemented and whether they contribute to changes in practice.

This paper aims to contribute to the understanding of the relationship between innovation and export performance by examining the effect of different types of innovation on export performance and testing the assumption underlying most studies in the field that competitive advantage mediates this relationship.

From the literature review, this paper proposes a research model that is estimated using a sample of 200 Spanish exporting manufacturing companies. Data for this study were collected with an ad hoc questionnaire, and the partial least squares structural equation modeling technique was chosen to analyze the data.

The results show that there is a positive relationship between product and business process innovation and export performance and that competitive advantage mediates this relationship, but only when it is based on costs, not on differentiation.

This paper provides evidence that product and business process innovation are positively related to export performance and that competitive advantage mediates these relationships, but only when the advantage is low cost. Unexpectedly, this paper finds that differentiation is neither related to export performance nor explains the relationship between innovation and export performance.

As Czech export is widely considered the key to the economic development of Czechia, this chapter explores the relationship between microeconomic profitability among companies in selected TOP10 export industries and the macroeconomic development of the export itself. An investigation was carried out to compare the differences caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the comparison is developed according to the size and concentration of ownership among exporting companies. Annual data are obtained from the Bureau van Dijk Orbis database to analyse profitability among 4,283 companies in 10 NACE industries from 2012 to 2021. We have obtained encouraging results, demonstrating that not only those less profitable companies affected export development. However, in general, our results emphasise the importance of those less profitable medium-sized companies for Czech export, within the manufacture of machinery and equipment, and the manufacture of motor vehicles in particular.

Customer orientation (CO) means meeting customers’ needs better than competitors. Competitor orientation means using and acting upon the knowledge of competitors. Thus, the main aim of this study is to analyze the effects of environmental competitiveness on export performance by examining the moderating roles of these variables.

Based on data from 5,000 firms from a survey run in 2021 in Turkey facilitated by the Chamber of Commerce, the authors tested their hypotheses using partial least squares structural equation modeling and correlation analysis.

The results show that competitor orientation positively affects the relationship between a competitive environment and export performance. However, the authors do not find evidence of a significant effect on CO.

Service sector managers should sacrifice customers to gain export market share in favor of superiority with competitors.

Prior research has yet to emphasize the importance of competition intensity in export performance for service-logistics firms. However, the environmental competitiveness–performance relationship is better explained with the help of these test results and the two additional moderators suggested in this work. Moreover, the export performance indicators were gathered from an independent source.

Drawing on the organizational learning and relational governance literature, this study aims to advance a theoretical model to explain the export performance of emerging market export ventures.

This study selects quantitative methodology because the main objective of this study is to explore the role of export ventures’ performance (past) on guanxi networking, co-creation marketing strategies and present performance.

The empirical evidence suggests that guanxi networking and co-creation strategy can mediate the relationship between export venture performance in the preceding year and export venture performance in the following year. In addition, this study also provides some guidance for emerging market export ventures on how to build a strong guanxi networking and create opportunities for collaboration when the effect of export performance in the preceding year on current performance is absent.

The authors propose the inclusion of strategic guanxi networking-related factors (e.g. top executives’ ties with business-to-business customers, such as distributors in the host market) in the prior performance-current performance paradigm. The outcomes of this study also contribute to extant organizational learning theory research by integrating preceding performance research with the co-creation theory. The study offers new insights into organizational learning and relational governance from the emerging market perspective.

The paper aims at studying the effect of management practices on the extensive and intensive export margins of Egyptian manufacturing firms.

The study relies on the 2020/2021 Egyptian Industrial Firm Behavior Survey (EIFBS) which comprises 2,383 manufacturing firms representing small, medium, and large sized firms located in different regions of Egypt: Urban Governorates, Lower Egypt, and Upper Egypt. It constructs an overall management z score for each firm to estimate its effect on a firm’s probability of exporting and value of exports using Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regressions.

Results indicate that good management is associated with a higher probability of firm exporting as well as higher export revenues conditional on exporting, robust to controlling for the level of domestic sales. These effects do not differ by firm ownership or type of sector, but rather by firm size, with managerial competence raising the probability of exporting more for large-sized firms. Additionally, good management is associated with higher firm productivity, innovation and worker training propensities which gives evidence that it is both an efficiency and a quality enhancer. Moreover, monitoring and targeting practices have significant positive effects on both margins, while incentives are only significant for the extensive margin.

Firms that aim at enhancing their export prospects and revenues should devote resources to review and upgrade their management systems to boost their product quality and production efficiency. Policy-wise, the government should create a competitive market environment that is open to both domestic and foreign firms’ entry to stimulate the adoption of better management practices.

The paper is the first to explore the link between firm management practices and export outcomes for a MENA country (Egypt). It makes use of a recent survey, the 2020/2021 Egyptian Industrial Firm Behavior Survey (EIFBS). The findings shed light on the importance of different management components (monitoring, targeting and incentives) in driving a manufacturing firm’s export performance.

The growing demand for halal products has attracted small and large companies looking to secure their market share in the lucrative global halal market. However, it is difficult for resource-constrained firms, such as small and medium enterprises (SMEs), to compete internationally. Therefore, drawing from a resource-based view, this paper aims to examine how intangible resources affect the export performance of Malaysian SMEs exporting halal food and beverages (F&B) products.

This study used a purposive sampling technique, and respondents were reached out by mail. Out of 517 local SMEs exporting halal-certified F&Bs contacted, 193 firms responded, and only 188 responses were eligible to be used for data analysis. The partial least squares structural equation modelling technique was used to conduct the analysis. The data underwent measurement and structural model evaluation to confirm the hypotheses postulated.

Based on the data analysis conducted, it was discovered that intangible resources, namely, international orientation and marketing capability, significantly influence the export performance of Malaysian SMEs exporting halal F&B. However, the influence of cultural intelligence on export performance could not be demonstrated.

This paper fills the gap of the need for more attention to SMEs in developing countries, especially in the halal industry. This research paper also contributes to international business and halal studies by promoting an understanding of intangible resources as strategic resources for SMEs to create competitive advantages and elevate their export performance in the emerging global halal market.

Social media (SM) networks offer a golden opportunity for firms that particularly engage in international activities to set up sustainable customer relationships and improve competitiveness. The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of SM adoption on the export intensity (EI) of firms listed on Borsa Istanbul (BIST) for the years 2010–2020. The authors use social media index (SMI) to measure SM adoption and firm size (FSize) as a moderator on exploring the interaction of SM and EI.

Using a sample of 150 firms listed on the BIST Industrials Index, this study explores how the adoption of SM affects EI by using panel data analysis over the period of 2010–2020.

The results indicate that the SMI has a positive and significant effect on the EI. FSize positively moderates the interaction of SMI and EI, indicating that large firms benefit more from the SM in increasing export performance. The findings reflect high potential of EI improvement through adopting right SM policies in emerging markets.

The sample covers only public companies listed on the BIST Industrials Index. Future studies may extend the coverage and include multiple emerging markets to draw generalized results for the export-oriented firms. This research also analyzes solely four SM networks, i.e. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. However, there are many other SM networks that firms use in online marketing in foreign markets. Finally, this research did not discuss the potential factors that could influence the use of SM in emerging market firms.

This study denotes the significant role of SM adoption on the EI of firms in an emerging market setting from the perspective of resource-based view. It presents an insightful approach in understanding the mission played by SM networks in enhancing the EI of Turkish firms. Policymakers may use the findings to develop public support programs to promote the adoption and implementation of the SM among exporting firms in emerging markets.

The study provides evidence on the effects of SM adoption on the EI from the perspective of emerging countries. It also helps to gain a deeper understanding of how different SM platforms contribute to the internationalization of firms.

This paper examines the relationship between product innovation (PRODIN), process innovation (PROCIN) and export performance (EXPF) of manufacturing small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Moreover, the paper investigates the moderating effect of marketing innovation (MAKIN) in the relationship between PRODIN, PROCIN and the SMEs' EXPF.

A cross-sectional survey design was used and data were collected through structured questionnaires from 250 manufacturing exporting SMEs in Tanzania. CFA was used to test the measurement model. The hypotheses were empirically tested using PROCESS macro test.

The findings suggest that PRODIN is a significant determinant of EXPF. However, PROCIN was found to have a significant negative effect on EXPF. Additionally, MAKIN was found to be a significant moderator of the relationship between PRODIN, PROCIN and EXPF.

This study covered only manufacturing SMEs. Future studies can include large firms because they may behave differently on innovations due to the resources advantage they have. Also, because only a single country context was used, the findings of this study should be interpreted with caution.

Managers of exporting SMEs should develop and cultivate PRODIN and MAKIN to nurture EXPF of their firms.

The findings of this study extend the application of resource-based view theory in exporting context by unpacking the process through which resources result in successful performance. Also, this study contributes to the debate about the innovation–EXPF relationship by establishing a moderating effect of MAKING in the relationship between PRODIN, PROCIN and EXPF.