The global marketplace has become highly integrated, and global competition is increasingly intense and dynamic. To be successful in this competitive and hostile environment, international firms must be able to foster and maintain successful cross-border inter-firm relationships. At the same time, service exports have remarkably emerged as a crucial component of international trade, underpinning the future growth and prosperity of national economies worldwide. Yet scholars and business practitioners alike have recognised the significant paucity of research on the performance of service exporters. Similarly, despite the recent growth in research interests in international relationship marketing, theoretical development in this area has failed to keep pace with the increase in both volume and magnitude of inter-organisational transactions across national borders. This study addressed the key research question of “What are the key factors driving the export performance of service firms?”, based on an integrated theoretical foundation comprising the resource-based view of the firm, transaction cost economics, and the relational exchange theory. The study took into account the potential role of: (1) organisational characteristics, (2) market characteristics, and (3) the governance mechanisms deployed by service firms in their management of cross-border relationships with their business clients. A multi-method research design was utilised for this research, including two main studies. An exploratory study was first conducted, involving 10 in-depth interviews with service exporters in South Australia. Drawing from the outcomes of the exploratory study and a review of the international services marketing and international relationship marketing literature, the researcher proposed a conceptual framework and a set of testable hypotheses. These hypotheses were then tested in the second research phase, in which the researcher conducted a self-administered mail survey, utilising both postal and online means. An effective response rate of 32.77%, or 254 usable responses, allowed the researcher to further analyse the data using the principles of structural equation modelling in AMOS. Thereby, the researcher identified 17 pairs of significant relationships between the variables. The research findings show that the performance of an export venture of a service firm is directly influenced by the size of the firm, their export experience, their managerial commitment, and the performance of the relationship with a major overseas client. Such relationship performance is determined by both contractual-based governance, including contractual complexity and contractual explicitness, and relational-based governance, a higher-order factor incorporating relationship trust, relationship commitment, information exchange, relationship flexibility and relationship harmony. In turn, these governance mechanisms are determined by various organisational and market characteristics. Whilst firm size, resource commitment, and assistance programs by home government influence the level of contractual complexity, contractual explicitness is determined by management commitment, competitive intensity, and the favourability of host government policies. Furthermore, relational-based governance is driven by the export experience of the firms, their managerial commitment, and the favourability of host government policies. The study contributes to advancing the scant international services marketing literature and draws further research attention to the international relationship marketing paradigm. With regards to international business practice, the study provides service exporters with an understanding on the potential role of organisational characteristics and market characteristics in their exporting success. Finally, a successful management of cross-border relationship management and governance mechanisms will also lead them to superior export performance. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1379910 / Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, Business School, 2010

<p>In this thesis we examine the issue of growth in emerging markets and in specific how MNCs can achieve growth by understanding the customer and building a solid distributor network on the example of EPLSG in the Russian market. In this context we investigate the correlation of the growth potential with institutional environment, customer behaviour, distributorship and brand equity. But let us briefly examine the structure of the thesis chapter by chapter.</p><p>Chapter one explains the five main themes that structure our thesis from a theoretical and an empirical point of view. Chapter two is an account of the methodology used for the conducting of the empirical research as well as of the whole thesis. Chapter three outlines the theoretical background of the thesis while chapter four is a description of the empirical data found on the field. Chapter five is the analysis of the empirical findings and in chapter six the reader can see the conclusions and recommendations for the case company. Finally, chapter seven gives directions for further research.</p><p>Overall, the authors of this thesis purport that in emerging markets an MNC can grow if it can effectively gather and analyze customer and market data as well as build appropriately a distributor network that can deliver the product to the customer and fully capture the market potential. What differentiates this thesis from other studies is the holistic appreciation of the problems that an MNC faces in an emerging market. The building of theory was based on this perspective as well as the recommendations for the case company. That is why, in chapter seven the recommendations for the case company should be read not as individual ones but as set of interconnected tactics that can allow an MNC to grow.</p>

Aim: This study focuses on the degree to which mobile network operators standardize or adapt their product and pricing strategies amongst their foreign subsidiaries. Method: 10 mobile network operators with large overseas business investments and 70 of their foreign majority-owned subsidiaries are included in this empirical analysis. Variables related to data, SMS, Voice, and other relevant variables, are selected to represent ‘product’ marketing characteristics; and number of plans and specific price points across three ‘price baskets’ to represent ‘price’ marketing. Results &amp; Conclusion: MNOs exhibited a moderate degree of standardization in terms of product design, with a lesser degree of standardization for price. Standardization scores were highly positively correlated to subsidiary operations in markets within the same region and level of economic development as the domestic market. There is also a notable clustering of marketing approaches in the Sub-Saharan African region. Implications: Existing research on standardization is reinforced by these results. Future research on the MNO industry, if global in nature, will need to account for the large degree of differences between markets. If focused on specific regions, studies can proceed on the basis of similarity in marketing strategies. Contribution: This is the most recent quantitative study on standardization in the MNO industry carried out in the last 10 years. Since that time the industry has also undergone significant changes.

A quantitative research in the attitude of European students towards Chinese web shops. The purpose of this research is to determine which factors influence the attitude of European students the most while purchasing from Chinese webshops. The research framework is inspired by the Theory of Planned behaviour. The responses from the questionair were analysed using SPSS and the findings indicated that perceived behaviour control influences the attitude of European students the most, closely followed by website factors and service quality. In contrast, the factors subjective norms, price as well as product variety shows relatively smaller influence. Nevertheless, these factors should not be neglected when targeting European students for online shopping.

Aim: The aim of the study is to examine trust development in international marketing of financial services marketing of the National Investor (TNI) in UAE and Egypt. To achieve this, the researchers adapted Fregidou_Malama and Hyder (2015) framework of international services marketing that explains cultural influences on Adaptation/Standardization, network and trust formation in international services marketing. Method:  A single case study approach is used as the research strategy and qualitative research using semi-structured interviews. The research uses qualitative interviews as the primary source of empirical data. Results and Conclusion: This study indicates that cultural values play a major role on the way people communicate, interact and conduct their businesses within the financial services sector in UAE and Egypt, and that cultural values, origins, policies, rules and regulations are factors that can affect how international companies build trust relationships within local cultures. Our results show that cultural dimensions such as power distance, individualism/collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity/feminity affect trust building, networking and adaptation strategies in international marketing of financial service of the company. Research Contribution: This study contributes and shows the implication of the need for adaptation to satisfy customers’ needs and expectations in international marketing of financial services. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Egypt have almost identical cultural dimensions, in order to build trust, TNI adapts its services to meet up with the Egyptian customers' needs and expectations. In addition, all of the previous studies that were conducted using Fregidou_Malama and Hyder (2015) framework are in the marketing of healthcare services of Elekta AB, Sweden whereas this study focuses on financial services and also conducted and compared two identical national cultures from two different countries and their influence. Suggestions for Future Research: One of the limitations of this research is that it is a case study and doesn’t reflect the overall international financial sector and therefore the results and observations indicated in this research might differ along with the variation of the studied environment.  Therefore, we recommend further study using the same model within the same financial service sector and the same business environment and compare with any European nation that is culturally distant from the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.

O Brasil é o maior exportador de carne bovina do mundo. Suas vendas externas de carne têm grande representatividade ao setor e à economia nacional, tanto pelo faturamento, quanto pela sua importância no escoamento da produção. Entretanto, vários fatores interferem no desempenho das vendas internacionais da carne bovina brasileira. As questões sanitárias estão entre as barreiras mais restritivas, incluindo principalmente, no caso do Brasil, a febre aftosa. Mas outras barreiras técnicas, como rastreabilidade, certificações, entre outras, e também tarifárias impedem ou limitam o acesso da carne brasileira em alguns mercados internacionais. Especialmente quando se trata de carne bovina in natura, aumentam ainda mais as restrições. Para melhorar o entendimento das exportações brasileiras de carne bovina e obter mais informações sobre as possíveis alterações do ambiente de marketing para a carne bovina brasileira no mercado internacional, a proposta do trabalho é descrever os fatores que interferem nas exportações de carne bovina. Tais fatores serão apresentados de maneira geral, os que são aplicáveis a quaisquer mercados e especificamente para a União Européia (UE), Rússia e países da África. Cada mercado foi escolhido por uma série de razões. A União Européia é o principal comprador da carne bovina brasileira e é o mercado que mais exige normas e imposições para a carne bovina. As restrições incluem barreiras tarifárias, barreiras técnicas (sanitárias e relacionadas a normas de produção). A Rússia é um grande mercado para a carne bovina brasileira e exige mais preços do que qualidade na carne comercializada. Já a África é um continente que ainda importa pouca carne bovina mas tem grandes perspectivas de crescimento em função da recuperação da economia de alguns países. Além do mais, para cumprir o objetivo do trabalho, é importante conhecer o sistema agroindustrial (SAG) da carne bovina no Brasil, descrever a evolução das exportações nos últimos anos e analisar os potenciais concorrentes nas exportações mundiais de carne bovina. / Brazil is the most representative exporter in beef market. The external trade of beef helps the national economy because the amount of money that enters in the country and also because it is very important as a production destination. But there are some factors that impact the good results of the brazilian international beef trade. Sanitary aspects are the most restrictive points that the brazilian beef sector has, including, in this case, the foot and mouth disease. Besides the sanitary aspects there are also technical barriers, as traceability, certifications, among others. The tariff barriers also contribute for the brazilian beef trade limitation or prohibition on trade. When the focus is on chilled or frozen beef the limitations on trade become higher. In order to understand the brazilian beef exportation and obtain more information about the international marketing environment, this research aim to describe the factors that are important in brazilian beef exportation. Each item will be presented in a general way, that can be applied in any market and after the description is will be done for specific markets like European Union (EU), Russian and African countries. These markets were chosen for specific reasons. EU is the most important trade partner in the brazilian beef sector and is also the most demanding buyer in terms of patterns and restrictions. These restrictions include tariff barriers, technical barriers (sanitary barriers and certifications). Russian is another great trade partner in the brazilian beef sector. But different from EU, Russian gives more importance for low price than high patterns of quality in beef. African countries still import few amount of beef but they beef consumption may increase in some years because the economic development and the continent possibly will become a beef importer. Besides, to conclude this research is important to describe the beef agribusiness system in Brazil and how the brazilian beef exportation developed in the last few years. Analyzing the most representative countries that can compete with Brazil in the international beef market is also important.

The authors realized the importance of being flexible in cultural values in the current environment of today’s economy. This environment is called ‘globalization’ that has become an interesting topic in the academic world. Beyond the different challenges, the most important challenge regarding to the thesis topic is the cultural challenge. The authors have combined these elements and  wanted to investigate how these factors influence marketing advertising in the Middle East. Hence, the purpose of this thesis is to reach an understanding about how cultural differences in global marketing advertising can be handled by global companies in the Middle East.  The findings of the thesis reflect upon the question of "how global companies can better address cultural differences in marketing advertising in the Middle East" by first understanding and respecting the culture and religion of the region, following the regulations and guidelines for advertising in every specific country, cooperating with local agencies and adapting the marketing advertising strategy with a glocal ‘think global, act local’ approach.

The thesis should serve as a basis for strengthening the marketing mix Molpir, which became the European representative of MSI corporations and acts as an innovator, integrator and distributor of multimedia systems for buses, trains, ships and other mobile vehicles. The company proposes to improve the product, focusing on the user. I hope that my ideas and insights will help the company in its subsequent success in the market and increase the marketability of multimedia devices in the European market.

[pt] A globalização dos mercados transformou o cenário mundial de negócios, levando muitas empresas a ultrapassar as fronteiras geográficas de seus países visando expandir e aumentar a sua competitividade. No Brasil este movimento tem crescido nas últimas décadas, impulsionado por diversos fatores. O presente estudo investigou o processo de internacionalização de uma grande empresa brasileira do setor de moda, a Marisol S.A., posicionada como gestora de marcas. Objetivou-se compreender as suas motivações, o modo como este processo se desenvolveu e os fatores que influenciaram a expansão internacional, sob o enfoque das principais teorias propostas pela literatura. O estudo foi de natureza qualitativa, utilizando-se o método de estudo de caso. Foram realizadas entrevistas com os principais executivos da empresa e levantados dados secundários. Foi possível traçar a evolução do processo de internacionalização da empresa, identificando etapas e eventos importantes, assim como os motivos que determinaram suas principais ações, confrontando-se tais resultados com a literatura sobre o tema. / [en] Market globalization has transformed the global business landscape, leading many firms to go beyond geographical borders of their countries in order to expand and enhance their competitiveness. In Brazil, this movement has grown in recent decades, driven by several factors. The present study investigated the process of internationalization of a large company in the fashion sector, Marisol S.A., positioned as manager of brands. The objective was to understand its motivations, the way this process has evolved and the factors influencing the international expansion, from the standpoint of the main theories proposed in literature. The study was qualitative in nature, using the case study method . Interviews were conducted with key executives and secondary data was collected. It was possible to trace the evolution of the internationalization of the company, identifying milestones and important events, as well as the reasons for its main actions, confronting these results with the literature on the subject

The main aim of this research is to develop a conceptual model that describes the way managers make decisions about internationalizing. It also tries to explain under what conditions managers will be risk-seekers and under what conditions they will be risk-averse, and as a result which groups of strategies and tools they will choose to use when internationalizing. This investigation focuses on the field of behavioural economics in opposition to leading paradigms in the IB field that concentrate on the neoclassical economic theory. This research uses an interdisciplinary approach that combines the behavioural economics approach and theories drawn from the field of entrepreneurship, IB, market relations, industrial organization, RBV and institutional theory, in order to develop a comprehensive theoretical framework that can explain from the senior manager's perspective when and why s/he chooses certain variables and not others. The findings link the manager's perception of his position vis-à-vis his industry reference point (IRP are defined as any variable that highlights a particular objective, seems capable of establishing a reference point, and as a result, creates a framework for organizational/individual decision making) and his decision making in the area of risk management, learning, and product adaption and development. The findings indicate that managers below their IRP display innovation when developing new marketing/distribution channels, and share their knowledge with partners. Nevertheless, they demonstrate low awareness of risk management. In contrast, managers above their IRP focus on the organization's existing technology and marketing and distribution channels and avoid adjusting their products to the market needs and sharing knowledge with distributors. On the other hand, they adopt an active risk management strategy.Additionally we link between the manager's perceptions of his position vis-à-vis his IRP and his choice of entry mode strategy. The findings indicate that a number of differences exist between managers below their IRP and managers above their IRP. Managers below their IRP use positioning strategies but use TCA or institutional strategies very little. In contrast, managers above their IRP use TCA or institutional strategies but will hardly use positioning strategies at all. The two types of managers use network strategy and RBV, but each group uses different factors within the theories. The research makes a number of important contributions to study of the IB sphere, particularly to the fields of research relating to the internationalization of BG companies, which is a relatively new field of knowledge. Today there is no comprehensive theoretical framework explaining the way BG companies internationalize and the reasons they choose one strategy or tool over another when entering foreign markets. The present research attempts to establish a conceptual model that describes the way managers make internationalization decisions. It does so by importing a new discipline from the field of behavioural economics into the IB field, which is deeply wedded to the tradition of neo-classical economics and integrates it with existing strategies in the field to create a conceptual model that mediates between traditional IB research and the BG research stream.