GOVERNMENTAL SUPPORT FOR COMPANIES ORIGINATING FROM SMOPEC REPRESENTING DIFFERENT FOREIGN EXPANSION TYPES
Sillanpää, Sara (2012)
Sillanpää, Sara
2012
Kuvaus
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Tiivistelmä
The main objective for this study was to examine how the government supports Finnish companies with limited resources that are representing different foreign expansion types. The theoretical part of the study focuses on different internationalization theories along with governmental supporting system. Based on the theoretical background, the theoretical framework was created, where three main factors are indicated to be affecting the governmental support companies receive; the foreign expansion type, growth stage and critical decision points, the internal capabilities including financial resources, knowledge as well as past and current international experience. Lastly the company’s growth, performance and perceived effectiveness of the governmental support were evaluated. The theoretical framework was empirically tested with multiple case study by face-to-face interviews with companies from each foreign expansion category; Traditional Internationalizer, Globalizing International, Born Global and Born Again Global firm.
The theoretical and empirical findings support each other quite extensively and it can be concluded, that foreign expansion type creates different needs among companies for the governmental support, which is why the differences related to internationalization habits must be acknowledged. The growth stage of the company is not as strong influencing factor as the foreign expansion type, because of the differences among internationalization paths and company’s special characteristics. The most variation among the companies is when it comes to their internal capabilities, because the less company has internal capabilities the more it needs governmental support. The government is seen as an enabler for company’s growth, but not as a condition to it, which is why the support is seen as effective as company’s perspective, although the effectiveness of the governmental supporting programmes in societal scale is controversial.
The theoretical and empirical findings support each other quite extensively and it can be concluded, that foreign expansion type creates different needs among companies for the governmental support, which is why the differences related to internationalization habits must be acknowledged. The growth stage of the company is not as strong influencing factor as the foreign expansion type, because of the differences among internationalization paths and company’s special characteristics. The most variation among the companies is when it comes to their internal capabilities, because the less company has internal capabilities the more it needs governmental support. The government is seen as an enabler for company’s growth, but not as a condition to it, which is why the support is seen as effective as company’s perspective, although the effectiveness of the governmental supporting programmes in societal scale is controversial.