Since the opening of formerly closed markets in Eastern Europe and China in the early 1990s, numerous firms have sought to capture the growth opportunities prevailing in the virgin but institutionally distant business networks in these countries. I claim that the entry process into an institutionally distant business network has been realised when the entering firm has reached an insidership position in the network. To advance this idea, the thesis introduces the overlooked medium-sized multinational exporter (MME) and answers the following overarching research questions: (I) how do MMEs establish insidership positions in institutionally distant business networks, and (II) what critical abilities are developed by MMEs in the process of entering an institutionally distant business network? To answer these questions, qualitative and quantitative methods have sequentially been mixed to first give an in-depth understanding of the empirical field, and second to verify and generalise some of the most central tentative findings. Empirically, the study reports from a case study of eight firms in the Baltic Sea Region and from an on-site survey of 203 Swedish firms with experience of entries in Eastern Europe and/or China. Five individual essays are presented—all designed to reflect different aspects of the institutionally distant network entry process. The findings are condensed in the cover of the thesis, where it is claimed that an insidership position is reached through three main phases: the Scouting phase, the Qualifying phase and the Shielding phase. Furthermore, it is found that that the most critical abilities developed through the institutionally distant network entry process is local experience-based knowledge of high specificity. It is shown that previous experiences, generated in different business networks in mature markets, are not useful in the network entry process in immature markets. As a consequence, there is reason to believe that the entering firm needs to develop unlearning abilities to replace obsolete or misleading experience.

Cette recherche doctorale a pour objectif d'étudier le rôle des entreprises dans la réussite duprocessus d'entrée organisationnelle des nouveaux embauchés (évaluée au regard d'indicateurstels que le bien-être, la socialisation organisationnelle, l'intention de rester dans l'entreprise,etc.).Trois études ont été réalisées à partir d'une méthodologie qualitative (étude 1) et quantitative(étude 1, 2 et 3). Les principaux résultats obtenus dans la première étude (N1 = 21 recruteurset N2 = 77 nouveaux embauchés) mettent l'accent sur l'importance d'apporter des informationsclaires durant le recrutement et permettent de dégager les pratiques d'intégration et leursstratégies de mise en oeuvre les plus efficaces (eg. visites des sites de l'entreprise informelle,formations collectives, etc.). L'étude 2 consistait à identifier, à partir d'une revue de lalittérature, les composants de la qualité de vie au travail et d'en proposer uneopérationnalisation. Ainsi, une démarche de validation a été réalisée auprès de 277 salariés.L'étude 3 avait pour objectif de mettre à l'épreuve plusieurs modèles multifactoriels prédisantl'intention de rester dans l'entreprise (N = 359). Les résultats nous permettent de confirmer lerôle déterminant des entreprises dans la réussite de l'entrée organisationnelle à travers lespratiques de recrutement et d'intégration et la qualité de vie au travail.La conclusion générale de cette étude nous amène à : 1) proposer un modèle théoriqueexplicatif et multifactoriel de la réussite de l'entrée organisationnelle qui conviendrait de testerdans des recherches futures et 2) envisager des perspectives appliquées concernant laformation des recruteurs et des acteurs de l'entreprise (à leurs différents niveauxhiérarchiques) sur les éléments fondamentaux relatifs à l'entrée organisationnelle desnouveaux embauchés. / This doctoral research was aimed at examining the role of companies in the success ofnewcomers' entry process into the organization (estimated through indicators such as wellbeing,organizational socialization, intent to stay in the company, etc.).Three studies were realized using a qualitative (study 1) and quantitative methodology (study1, 2 and 3). The main results of study 1 (N1 = 21 recruiters and N2 = 77 newcomers) revealedthe importance to provide clear information during the recruitment and shed in lightintegration practices and their most efficient strategies of implementation (eg. informal visitsof the sites'company, collective trainings, etc.). Study 2 was aimed at identifying, based on aliterature review, the components of the quality of work life and proposing anoperationalisation. Thus, a validation was realized on 277 employees. Study 3 was aimed totest several multifactorial models predicting the intention to stay in the company (N = 359).The results confirmed the role of companies in the success of newcomers' entry process intothe organization through the recruitment and integration practices and the quality of work life.In conclusion, this research led to 1) propose an explanatory and multifactorial theoreticalmodel of the success of organizational entry which could be tested in future researches and 2)consider applied perspectives in recruiters and companies actors (various hierarchical levels)training on fundamental elements of newcomers' organizational entry.