Post-entry internationalisation speed, managerial cognition, and firm performance : a dynamic capability perspective : a dissertation presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in International Business at Massey University, Albany, Auckland, New Zealand
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Date
2019
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Massey University
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Abstract
Inspired by the deficiency in theoretical advancement in and fragmentation of empirical findings regarding the temporal dimension of firms’ internationalisation, this study examines the interaction effects of both mediation and moderation on the direct relationship between internationalisation speed and firm performance. Departing from prior studies that mainly focus on either the direct speed-performance linkage or the interactive role played by static resources at the firm level, the present study suggests that an important source of performance variations is the idiosyncratic dynamic capabilities both at firm level and individual managerial level. Based on the dynamic capability perspective, this study proposes that both absorptive capacity, which acts as a specific type of dynamic capability in relation to organisational learning, and managerial cognition, which functions as a micro-foundation of dynamic capability, play important roles in explaining the heterogeneity in the direct internationalisation speed-performance relationship. Moreover, the level and development of the firm’s absorptive capacity is the outcome of interactions among firm strategy in terms of internationalisation speed, managerial cognition, and their contingent factors including prior international experience and market dynamism. Using survey data collected from a sample of 343 SMEs operating in Australia and New Zealand, these assumptions are tested and confirmed through structural equation modelling. The findings suggest that absorptive capacity fully mediates the direct speed-performance relationship. Internationalisation speed, interacting with prior international experience, influences the trajectory of absorptive capacity development. In addition, managerial cognitive styles in terms of rational decision-making and heuristic decision-making are found to impose distinct influences on absorptive capacity development under the influence of market dynamism. This study makes a significant contribution to internationalisation theories. First, it reconciles the seeming inconsistency between traditional internationalisation models and international entrepreneurship literature in terms of several key learning-related factors. Moreover, it extends existing internationalisation models by taking time and managerial cognition into consideration.
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International business enterprises, Management, Organizational effectiveness, Organizational learning, Management, Cognition, internationalisation speed, absorptive capacity, international experience, managerial cognition, market dynamism, performance, dynamic capability, organisational routines