Σκοπός της διπλωματικής εργασίας είναι η περιγραφή και η ανάλυση των ευκαιριών που προκύπτουν κατά την είσοδο των επιχειρήσεων στις αναδυόμενες αγορές της Νοτιοανατολικής Ευρώπης. Αρχικά επιδιώχθηκε μια θεωρητική προσέγγιση του θέματος περιγράφοντας τις θεωρίες διεθνοποίησης. Οι θεωρητικές προσεγγίσεις όλων των γνωστών επιστημόνων στο χώρο της διοίκησης και όχι μόνο, εμπλούτισαν τις γνώσεις μας και οριοθέτησαν το περιεχόμενο της παρούσας εργασίας. Στη συνέχεια καθορίστηκαν οι λόγοι για τους οποίους μια επιχείρηση επιθυμεί να διεθνοποιηθεί. Δίπλα στους λόγους δεν μπορούσαν να απουσιάζουν τα προβλήματα που αντιμετωπίζει μια επιχείρηση κατά την διεθνοποίηση της καθώς και οι τρόποι εισόδου. Έγινε προσπάθεια να καταγραφούν και συστηματοποιηθούν όλες οι δυνατές μορφές εισόδου σε μια αγορά του εξωτερικού. Βέβαια η παρούσα διπλωματική εργασία επικεντρώνεται στην Νοτιοανατολική Ευρώπη. Κρίθηκε συνεπώς απαραίτητο να αναφερθούν και οι αιτίες οι οποίες καθοδηγούν την απόφαση των Ελλήνων επιχειρηματιών να χαράξουν νέες διαδρομές σε καινούργιες αγορές. Στο σημείο αυτό η εργασία αλλάζει μορφή και περνάει στο δεύτερο μέρος, το πρακτικό. Η συμβολή του εν λόγω τμήματος ήταν σημαντική διότι συνέδεσε την θεωρία με αυτό που συμβαίνει στην ελληνική πραγματικότητα. Αναλυτικότερα, για την έκφραση των προφίλ των Ελλήνων επιχειρηματιών χρησιμοποιήθηκε το ερωτηματολόγιο και μέσα από μια σειρά παραμέτρων οδηγηθήκαμε σε δεδομένα τα οποία μπορούμε να θεωρήσουμε γενικεύσιμα. Προτιμήθηκε η χρήση της ποιοτικής μεθόδου για την διατύπωση αποτελεσμάτων σχετικά με την είσοδο μιας ελληνικής επιχείρησης στο εξωτερικό προκειμένου τα δεδομένα να αποφευχθούν να είναι ευάλωτα σε στερεοτυπίες. Με τη μέθοδο των συνεντεύξεων συλλέξουμε σημαντικά ευρήματα αναφορικά πάντα με τις αναδυόμενες αγορές, τις στρατηγικές που ακολουθήθηκαν και τα εμπόδια που αντιμετώπισαν. Τα συμπεράσματα που προέκυψαν μέσα από τη διαδικασία των συνεντεύξεων μελετήθηκαν και παρατίθενται αναλυτικά στο πρακτικό μέρος. / -

Η βιωσιμότητα έχει έρθει να αντιπροσωπεύσει την περιβαλλοντική επιστήμη στην οικονομική ανάπτυξη. Η "οικολογική βιωσιμότητα" αναφέρεται τόσο στην κοινωνική όσο και στην περιβαλλοντική ευθύνη και κυμαίνεται ανάμεσα στα ζητήματα των ανθρώπινων δικαιωμάτων και τη βιωσιμότητα των τοπικών κοινοτήτων με απώτερο στόχο τη συντήρηση των φυσικών πόρων. Σε αυτό το επίπεδο οι επιχειρήσεις προσπαθούν να ανταποκριθούν στην αυξανόμενη περιβαλλοντική ανησυχία των καταναλωτών με την εισαγωγή μιας ποικιλίας πράσινων προϊόντων και πολιτικών. / Sustainability has come to represent everything from economic decelopment to environmental science.In the present argument, 'ecological sustainability' refers to both social and environmental responsibility, ranging from issues to human rights to viability of local communities and conservation of natural resources. Firms have attempted to respond to the growing environmental concern of consumers with the introduction of a variety of green products.

Η παρούσα εργασία πραγματεύεται τόσο από θεωρητικής πλευράς το φαινόμενο της διεθνοποίησης και των εταιρικών στρατηγικών διεθνοποίησης, αλλά και πως αυτές εφαρμόζονται στην περίπτωση του Ομίλου ΤΙΤΑΝ. ‘Ετσι εξετάζουμε εκτενώς τις εταιρικές στρατηγικές διεθνούς επέκτασης του Ομίλου, ώστε αφ’ ενός να θεμελιώσει ένα γνωστικό υπόβαθρο στη μελέτη οργανισμών υπό το πρίσμα της διεθνοποίησης και αφ’ετέρου να εξακριβώσει την ύπαρξη συσχέτισης μεταξύ των θεωρητικών προσεγγίσεων και των ρεαλιστικών πρακτικών. Ο Όμιλος επιλέχθηκε για την μελέτη διεθνοποίησης και στρατηγικών ανάπτυξης μιας εταιρίας στο διεθνές περιβάλλον, λόγω της διαχρονικής εστίασης του σαν εταιρία σε διεθνοποίηση των δραστηριοτήτων του και στην γεωγραφική διαφοροποίησης του στις δραστηριότητες του. Επιπρόσθετα, ο ΤΙΤΑΝΑΣ αποτελεί την παλαιότερη τσιμεντοβιομηχανία της Ελλάδας και μια πολύ ισχυρή δύναμη στον κλάδο των δομικών υλικών τόσο στην εγχώρια όσο και στην παγκόσμια αγορά. Η έρευνα και η μελέτη της εργασίας μας βασίστηκε σε διάφορες πηγές πληροφοριών όπως το διαδίκτυο, τα πανεπιστημιακά βιβλία, σχετικά οικονομικά άρθρα καθώς και από συνεντεύξεις από στελέχη της εταιρίας ΤΙΤΑΝ και από τα οποία καταφέραμε να συγκεντρώσουμε αρκετά στοιχεία για την στρατηγική διεθνοποίησης που ακολουθεί η εταιρία ΤΙΤΑΝ. / -

Submitted by Aelson Maciera (aelsoncm@terra.com.br) on 2017-08-01T18:55:28Z No. of bitstreams: 1 DissABLF.pdf: 854920 bytes, checksum: 29219ca5ce87de11f89e1e54bb40f66b (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Ronildo Prado (ronisp@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-08T14:01:58Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 DissABLF.pdf: 854920 bytes, checksum: 29219ca5ce87de11f89e1e54bb40f66b (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Ronildo Prado (ronisp@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-08T14:02:05Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 DissABLF.pdf: 854920 bytes, checksum: 29219ca5ce87de11f89e1e54bb40f66b (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-08-08T14:07:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DissABLF.pdf: 854920 bytes, checksum: 29219ca5ce87de11f89e1e54bb40f66b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-04-10 / Não recebi financiamento / When it comes to internalization of companies, there are several factors that drive companies to venture into new markets, such as the increasement of the competition and the facilities of trade and production in other countries. However it is indispensable that the company knows the market in which it will operate. And one of the ways is to establish new relationships with agents in the new country, and so acquire new knowledge that will contribute to the evolution of the internationalization’s process of the company in the new country. This research refers, then to the understanding of how occurs the generation and dissemination of knowledge that is acquired from the relationship inter and intra-organizational level which changes the operation’s mode of the multinational company by the time, within its internationalization process. Through the behavioral theories such as the model of Uppsala, the literature of subsidiaries’ development and relational model, it was possible to analyze the relationships that were articulate by the company and analyze the knowledge for it acquired and disseminated. To conduct the research, a unique case study of qualitative nature was developed, under a longitudinal perspective, which involved a Brazilian subsidiary called Chery Brazil Manufacture Importation and Distribution Ltda., which the head office is a Chinese origin. This present research showed that it is evident that in its internationalization path, the relationships inter and intra-organizational were fundamental to Cherry Brazil, regarding the generation and dissemination of different type of knowledge and these were decisive for the modification of its mode of operation, which secured their stay in the country. / Em se tratando de internacionalização de empresas, são diversos os fatores que impulsionam as empresas a se aventurarem em novos mercados, como o aumento da concorrência e as facilidades comerciais e de produção em outros países. Porém é imprescindível que a empresa conheça o mercado em que irá operar. Uma das maneiras é estabelecer novos relacionamentos com agentes no novo país e assim adquirir novos conhecimentos que contribuam para a evolução do processo de internacionalização da empresa no novo país. Esta pesquisa refere-se, então, ao entendimento de como ocorre a geração e a difusão do conhecimento que é adquirido a partir dos relacionamentos inter e intraorganizacional que modificam o modo de operação da empresa multinacional ao longo do tempo, dentro de seu processo de internacionalização. Através das teorias comportamentais como o modelo de Uppsala, a literatura de desenvolvimento de subsidiárias e o modelo relacional, foi possível analisar os relacionamentos que foram articulados pela empresa e analisar os conhecimentos por ela adquiridos e difundidos. Para que esta pesquisa fosse realizada, foi desenvolvido um estudo de caso único, de natureza qualitativa, sob uma perspectiva longitudinal, que envolveu uma subsidiária brasileira denominada Chery Brasil Fabricação Importação e Distribuição de Veículos Ltda., cuja sua matriz é de origem chinesa. A presente pesquisa deixou evidente que em sua trajetória de internacionalização, os relacionamentos inter e intraorganizacionais foram fundamentais para a Chery Brasil, quanto à geração e a difusão dos diferentes tipos de conhecimentos, e que estes foram determinantes para as modificações de seu modo de operação, o que garantiu sua permanência no país.

Depuis le 20 janvier 2002, la République du Congo s'est dotée d'une nouvelle Constitution. Ce quatrième texte fondamental depuis l'avènement de la démocratie en 1990 avait un double objectif : rompre avec le modèle constitutionnel français consacré par la Constitution de mars 1992 qui instaurait un régime semi-présidentiel et restaurer l'autorité de l'Etat affaiblie par les années de guerre civile. C’est donc finalement un régime de type présidentiel qui est mis en place. À cet égard, l'article 114 de la Constitution de 2002 déclare : « le Président de la République ne peut dissoudre l'Assemblée nationale. L’Assemblée nationale ne peut démettre le Président de la République ». Mais la comparaison avec le régime américain s'arrête là. Car le Président, au Congo, dispose d'une suprématie non conforme au principe d'équilibre des pouvoirs connu aux Etats-Unis et, surtout, n'encourt aucun risque de destitution. En définitive, le dispositif mis en place est plus proche d'une architecture des pouvoirs issue de la Constitution russe de 1993 et au présidentialisme latino-américain. Trois facteurs expliquent cette convergence : d'abord, l’objectif du texte fondamental adopté en 2002 était bien la consécration constitutionnelle de la victoire militaire de 1997. Cette réalité rapproche la Constitution congolaise de la Constitution russe adoptée à la suite de la « décommunisation » lors de la chute du Mur de Berlin. Ensuite, les constituants entendaient reproduire la culture bantoue dans le marbre juridique, en consacrant la suprématie du chef. Une telle approche est similaire à l’influence culturelle bolivar dans le présidentialisme latino-américain. Enfin, la nécessité de contenter la communauté internationale a conduit à l’adoption d’un texte fondamentalement libéral avec une pratique foncièrement autoritaire. Finalement, seule une instrumentalisation de la Communauté internationale peut expliquer le paradoxe du régime constitutionnel congolais. / Since the 20th of January 2002, the Republic of Congo has adopted a new constitution. This fourth fundamental text since the advent of democracy in 1990 has two objectives : to depart from the French constitutional model enshrined in the constitution of March 1992 which established a semi- presidential system and to restore the authority of the state that had be shaken and weakened by years of civil war. The new constitution opted for a presidential system. In this regard , Article 114 of the 2002 constitution states that " the President of the Republic may dissolve the National Assembly. The National Assembly cannot impeach the President of the Republic. " This is the only commun feature the system has with that of the United States. In the Republic of Congo, the President is not subject to the principle of checks and balances as in the case of United States and, especially, runs no risk of impeachment. In the end, the system in place is closer to the Russian architecture of powers and the Latin American presidentialism. Three factors explain this convergence : firstly, the fundamental objective of the text adopted in 2002 was indeed the constitutional enshrinement of the military victory of 1997. This reality takes the Congolese Constitution a step towards the Russian Constitution adopted after the " decommunisation " following the fall of the Berlin Wall. Then, the constituent Assembly had the intention to reproduce the Bantu culture in the legal marble, establishing the supremacy of the leader. Such an approach is similar to the bolivian cultural influence in the Latin American presidentialism. Secondly, the need to satisfy the international community led to the adoption of a fundamentally liberal text with inherent authoritarian practice. Finally, manipulation by the international community is the only plausible explanation to the paradox of the Congolese constitutional regime.

The purpose of this thesis is to provide an understanding of how Swedish SMEs internationalize towards Russia and the barriers, challenges, and opportunities they encounter. In order to conduct this research, relevant aspects regarding the theme have been identified and analyzed. By conducting a qualitative research method a deeper understanding of the issue of how Swedish firms internationalize towards Russia can be provided. The thesis follows an abductive approach, mostly because of that the subject is quite unexplored and therefore a theory will arise, as our understanding of the subject will increase.   The literature review that has been recognized in this thesis includes theories that are related to internationalization, networks, barriers, culture, and sanctions. The literature review developed the conceptual framework. The framework works as a map that describes how the different theories are related to each other. The conceptual framework later served a purpose to analyze the obtained empirical data that was extracted from multiple case organizations. The following chapter consists of the empirical findings and what could be extracted from the interviews. The analysis chapter includes a discussion where the empirical findings are put against the theories in order to identify relations and similarities. The analysis chapter is structured in the same way as the conceptual framework. The final chapter will provide a conclusion that has been concluded from the analysis, empirical findings and it also contains an answer to the research question, theoretical implications, practical implications & recommendations, limitations and suggestions for future research.   The theoretical implications that the thesis resulted in includes fillings the research gap as well as identifying how Swedish SMEs internationalize towards Russia and the barriers, challenges, and opportunities they face. The main practical implication is that an understanding of these aspects is highly recommended for Swedish SMEs or organizations in general that wishes to penetrate the Russian market.   As the theme of this thesis is rather unexplored we find it of high relevance and that it could be of high value for Swedish SMEs or organizations in general that wishes to enter the Russian market.

The idea behind this thesis was born from the success of the so-called unicorn companies originating from Stockholm. Unicorn companies are highly successful tech-startups which reached an evaluation of 1 billion USD while remaining private companies. This has created international attention to Stockholm, and the number of tech startups in the city has increased dramatically. The purpose of this thesis is to achieve a deeper understanding of how tech-startups in Stockholm design their internationalization strategy. To do this, comprehensive information regarding the background of this situation was given, which was then used to form the research questions. To answer them, research regarding internationalization, entrepreneurial strategies and business networks and relations were collected. The theories were then formulated into a conceptual synthesis. To answer our research questions, qualitative data was gathered through four semi-structured interviews with tech-startups operating in Stockholm. The abductive research approach was found to be the most useful approach for our research design. The analysis chapter was built upon the structure of our theories and analyzed through the lens of our conceptual synthesis. Formulating a discussion on the similarities between the theories and the empirical findings as well as unforeseen differences.   Concluding our analysis of the gathered empirical data, we found an implication that there was a connection between the environment, the company and the strategy that they choose in order to internationalize, and that all factors impact each other. Following the analysis, the theoretical synthesis was adjusted based on the gathered data and restructured into a conceptual framework. This thesis stresses the importance of networks in entrepreneurial businesses and showcases why this is. It is of interest to entrepreneurs wishing to establish their own companies in Stockholm, but can also be of interest to entrepreneurs at large concerning their presence in tech-hubs.

The purpose of this thesis is to provide the reader with a deeper understanding of what impact external factors could have on international active Swedish SME’s. Since these factors influence the firm throughout the internationalization process we will investigate how firms mitigates the impact of external factors at later stages in the internationalization process. Furthermore, we will investigate how companies prepare themselves when it comes to external factors. To conduct this research, we have decided to use a qualitative research approach so that we as researcher can receive a deeper understanding of the international business environment. The thesis will use the abductive research approach since we match the theory regarding external factors with the empirical findings.   The Literature review has been conducted to conclude theroies regarding external factors, internationalization, export performance and finally a theory regarding divestment. This has resulted in a conceptual framework, which show how the theories are linked to each other. The conceptual framework has later been used to analyze the empirical data. The empirical data has been gathered through four case companies, which has been presented in the chapther empirical findings.   The analysis includes a discussion that compares the differnces and similarities between the theoretical framework and the empirical findings. It also includes the differences and similarities between our respondents and their experience from external factors and its impact. The final chapter concludes the thesis with results from our resource questions and further includes implications, recommendations, limitations and suggestions for further research in this subject. The main theoretical implication is the filling of the research gap regarding external factors and their impatcs for Swedish SMEs. Furthermore, the thesis concluded that it would be beneficial for companies to develop a strategy to overcome the obstacles that come from external factors when a company is internationalized. Our thesis has concluded that it is better to be proactive to external changes rather than be reactive on the international market.

Due to an increase of internationalization Swedish SMEs are faced with more issues regarding ethical dilemmas when entering foreign markets than they have been in the past. The ethical dilemmas, such as bribery and corruption, affect companies’ entry strategies in regards of moral standards and becomes an issue for markets that are characterised as being unstable. A common denominator for unstable markets is political instability which usually leads to an increase of ethical dilemmas. This thesis provides a deeper understanding to how Swedish SMEs enter politically unstable markets and how CSR can be used as a tool to identify and avoid ethical dilemmas. To enable this study a qualitative research was conducted to analyse the process of already established Swedish SMEs in politically unstable markets. By doing so, practical and theoretical implications could be identified, subsequently contributing Swedish SMEs with valuable information on how to enter politically unstable markets.   The outcome of this study suggests ethical dilemmas affect Swedish SMEs’ entry to politically unstable markets. In a market where ethical dilemmas are prominent SMEs ought to do a thorough risk analysis before entering the market and also select the mode of entry. This study concludes a trade based entry mode is most suitable for Swedish SMEs when entering politically unstable markets since local contact is crucial since it reduces the risks of entering the market. Furthermore, during the course of the study it became evident that CSR can be used as a moral framework to identify and avoid ethical dilemmas in politically unstable markets. CSR strategies provide moral and ethical guidelines for Swedish SMEs and thereby affect the selection process of markets and business partners. The findings of this thesis suggest there is a linkage between business ethics, CSR and entry strategies. Therefore, the research is valuable for Swedish SMEs who seek to enter politically unstable markets.

Essa dissertação tem como objetivo analisar como ocorre o desenvolvimento de recursos do cluster para a internacionalização em diferentes estágios do ciclo de vida do cluster. Sendo assim, buscou-se compreender a dinâmica envolvida entre o estágio do ciclo de vida do cluster e os recursos para a internacionalização. Para isso, realizou-se uma pesquisa qualitativa através do método de estudo de caso, realizado em dois clusters da indústria calçadista já consolidados. O cluster de Fermo e Macerata (Itália), que é uma aglomeração calçadista estabelecida no pós-guerra através de políticas italianas de desenvolvimento regional; e o cluster do Vale dos Sinos (Brasil), que se estabeleceu após a chegada dos imigrantes alemães na região, contudo, apenas adquiriu níveis mundiais de qualidade produtiva quando se tornou terceirizado dos EUA. O primeiro se encontra em estágio de adaptação e o último se encontra atualmente em estágio de declínio. Inicialmente, buscou-se a descrição do contexto mundial da indústria calçadista, bem como sua trajetória história. Posteriormente, realizou-se a análise, que levantou dados da trajetória dos clusters e da localidade, desde a emergência dos clusters até o momento atual. Em seguida, os casos foram analisados a partir das dimensões de análise: trajetória de internacionalização do cluster; ciclo de vida do cluster; e recursos para internacionalização em diferentes dos estágios. Por fim, compreendeu-se que o contexto da indústria interfere diretamente no Ciclo de Vida do Cluster nos casos investigados e que os atores institucionais possuem relevante papel na articulação e renovação dos recursos da aglomeração, bem como em seu direcionamento estratégico internacional. Assim, a Resource-Based View (RBV) contribui para o entendimento da trajetória e do atual estágio do Ciclo de Vida do Cluster, contudo, não há como definir um modelo único para o entendimento da trajetória uma vez que cada cluster é único. Constatou-se que há relação entre os recursos do cluster e o estágio do ciclo de vida no qual o cluster se encontra. Contudo, percebeu-se que ao observar o cluster sob a ótica da RBV, a governança dos atores assume um papel crítico na articulação e renovação dos recursos competitivos coletivos, abrindo a perspectiva do cluster para novas oportunidades em um contexto global cuja localidade mantém sua relevância. Evidenciou-se que, apesar de ambos os clusters possuírem alto percentual de firmas internacionalizadas, não há internacionalização em nível de cluster. Abrir-se para a uma estratégia de internacionalização em nível de cluster poderá abrir novas possibilidades para as empresas e para a competitividade da região a qual o cluster está inserido. / This dissertation aims to analyse the development of cluster resources for internationalization at different stages of cluster life cycle. Therefore, it was sought to understand the dynamics involved between the stage of the cluster life cycle and its resources for internationalization. For this, a qualitative research using the case study method was carried out in two already consolidated clusters of the footwear industry. The cluster of Fermo and Macerata (Italy), is a footwear cluster established in the post-war period through Italian regional development policies; and the Sinos Valley cluster (Brazil), which was established after the arrival of German immigrants in the region and yet only acquired world levels of productive quality when it became outsourced in the USA. The first cluster is already in the transformation stage and the latter is currently in a declining stage. Initially, it was sought to describe the global context of the footwear industry as well as its historic trajectory. Subsequently, the analysis was performed, which collected data on the trajectory of clusters and its locality, from the cluster emergence until the present moment. Then, the cases were analysed from the three dimensions of analysis: cluster internationalization trajectory; cluster life cycle; and resources for internationalization in different stages. Finally, it was understood that the cluster life cycle is directly affected by the industry context in the investigated cases and that institutional actors have a relevant role in the articulation and renewal of agglomeration resources, as well as in their international strategic directions. Thereby, the Resource-Based View contributes to the understanding of the trajectory and the current stage of Cluster Life Cycle, however, there is no way to define a single model for the understanding of the trajectory since each cluster is unique. It was verified that there is a relation between the resources of the cluster and the stage in which the cluster is in its life cycle. Nevertheless, it was observed that when looking at the cluster from a Resource-Based View perspective, cluster management plays a critical role in articulating and renewing collective competitive resources, opening to the cluster perspective new opportunities in a global context whose locality maintains its relevance. It became clear that, although both cluster have a very high percentage of internationalized companies, there is no internationalization at the cluster level. Opening to an internationalization strategy at the cluster level may create new possibilities for companies and for the region to which the cluster is inserted.