دانلود رایگان مقاله کسب دانش، یادگیری، و روند اولیه بین المللی سازی

ABSTRACT

We analyze how knowledge, learning, and strategic intent shape export intensity during the period surrounding the initiation of export activities in small, independent firms. Our research is conducted on a sample of small firms started in Andalusia, a region characterized by a lower proportion of exporting firms. By examining the interplay among different forms of knowledge and learning we extend stage and international entrepreneurship models of the internationalization process. We find that in addition to the expected direct effects of learning, different forms of knowledge and learning interact to shape the pace of internationalization. Additionally, we find that pre-existing foreign knowledge influences export intensity in younger firms, but not in older ones; and, that the effects of vicarious learning and experiential learning on export intensity are conditioned by firms’ strategic intentions. We discuss the meaning of our results and suggest avenues for future study.

6. Conclusion

We sought to broaden the understanding of how knowledge and learning in the period surrounding initial exporting affect the pace of internationalization. We adapted Huber’s (1991) knowledge acquisition typology to conceptualize components of a firm’s foreign knowledge stock and its foreign learning activities. Among other things, we found that search for foreign objective knowledge had much less importance to export intensity when the firm was engaging in high levels of experiential learning; interestingly, we also found that vicarious learning was much more strongly associated with export intensity when experiential learning was high. We also examined how organizational age and organizational intentions served as moderators to the effects of learning, finding that (1) although pre-existing (congenital) knowledge of the firm’s founders does influence the pace of internationalization for firms that start young, such effects do not appear to exist for firms starting export much later in their histories; and (2) the effects of learning activities on export intensity are conditioned by the strategic intentions of the firm. Specifically, higher levels of vicarious and experiential foreign learning are associated with a dramatic increase in export intensity when strategic interest in exporting is high; however, when high levels of vicarious and experiential foreign learning are accompanied by low levels of interest in exporting, the result is actually a decrease in export intensity.