Determinant Factors in the Internationalization of Knowledge-Intensive Services in a Peripheral Area

Marta Muñoz-Guarasa, Encarnación Moral Pajares

Departamento de Economía, Campus de Las Lagunillas, Universidad de Jaén, Jaén, Spain.

DOI: 10.4236/jssm.2014.72012                

Abstract

The objective of this study is to learn some of the determinant factors in the internationalization of knowledge-intensive services in a peripheral zone in accordance with the Eclectic Paradigm [1] [2]. The study will focus on Andalusia in Southern Spain. In the Andalusian region, there are no official data on internationalized companies. We have therefore conducted a survey of 256 service internationalized companies within the region. The results show that the ownership or specific advantages considered by the businesses themselves is the quality of service, training of employees, leadership and management ability, innovation, technology and the image that customers have of the company. Regarding the advantages of locating abroad that are believed to be the most important, those companies that engage in foreign investment highlight customer’ follow-up and look for new customers. As well, they greatly value those factors related to the destination market: size, growth and access to the market as well as other markets.

Keywords

Services, Exports, Foreign Direct Investment, Ownership Advantages and Location Advantages

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	Dunning, J.H. (1977) Trade, Location of Economic Activity and the MNE: A Search for an Eclectic Approach. In: Ohlin, B., Hesselborn, P. and Wiskman, P., Eds., The International Allocation of Economic Activity, MacMillan, London, 395-419.
[2]	Dunning, J.H. (1993) Multinational Enterprises and the Global Economy. Addison-Wesley, Boston.
[3]	Fisher, M.M., Revilla, J. and Snickars, F. (2001) Metropolitan Innovation Systems. Springer, Berlin. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-04630-2
[4]	Den Hertog, P. (2002) Co-Producers of Innovation: On the Role of Knowledge Intensive Business Services in Innovation. In: Gadrey, J. and Galleouj, F., Eds., Productivity, Innovation and Knowledge in Services, New Economic and Socioeconomic Approaches, Edwar Elgar, Cheltenham. http://dx.doi.org/10.4337/9781781950203.00020
[5]	Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (2012) Contabilidad Regional. INE. http://www.ine.es/jaxi/menu.do?type=pcaxis&path=%2Ft35%2Fp010&file=inebase&L=0
[6]	Ministerio de Economia y competitividad (2012) Estadisticas de inversiones exteriores: DataInvex. Secretaria de Estado de Comercio.
[7]	Ministerio de Economia y competitividad (2012) Estadisticas de Comercio Exterior espanol: DataComex. Secretaria de Estado de Comercio. http://datacomex.comercio.es/principal_comex_es.aspx
[8]	Hymer, S. (1976) The International Operations of National Firms: Study of Operations of National Firms: Study of Direct Foreign Investment. MIT Press, Cambridge.
[9]	Arrow, K.J. (1962) Economics Welfare and the Allocation of Resources for Invention. In: The Rate and Direction on Incentive Activity: Economic and Social Factors, National Bureau of Economic Research, Princeton University Press, Princeton.
[10]	Kindlerberger, C.P. (1969) American Business Abroad: Six Lectures on Direct Investment. Yale University Press, New Haven.
[11]	Johnson, H.G. (1970) The Efficiency and Welfare Implications of the International Corporation. In: Kindlerberger, C.P., Ed., The International Corporations, MIT Press, Cambridge
[12]	Kojima, K. (1978) Direct Foreign Investment: A Japanese Model of Multinational Business Operations. Croom Helm, London.
[13]	Hirch, S. (1974) An International Trade and Investment Theory of the Firm. Discussion Papers in International Investment and Business Studies, 17, University of Reading, Reading.
[14]	Caves, R. (1971) International Corporations: The Industrial Economics of Foreign Investment. Economica, 38, 1-27. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2551748
[15]	Coase, R. (1937) The Nature of the Firm. Economica, 4, 386-405. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0335.1937.tb00002.x
[16]	Buckley, P.J. and Casson, M. (1976) The Future of the MNE. MacMillan, London.
[17]	Casson, M. (1979) Alternatives to MNE. MacMillan, London.
[18]	Casson, M. (1982) Transactions Costs and the Theory of the MNE. In: Rugman, A., Ed., New Theories of the MNE, St. Martins Press, New York.
[19]	Rugman, A. (1981) Inside the Multinationals: The Economics of International Markets. Columbia University Press, New York.
[20]	Rugman, A. (1983) The Comparative Performance of U.S. and European MNE 1970-1979. Management International Review, 23, 4-13.
[21]	Dunning, J.H. (1988) Explaining International Production. Unwin Hyman, London.
[22]	Dunning, J.H. (1988) The Eclectic Paradigm of International Production: A Restatement and Some Possible Extensions. Journal of International Business Studies, 19, 1-31. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8490372
[23]	Teece, D.J. (1981) Multinational Enterprise: Market Failure and Market Power Considerations. Sloan Management Review, 22, 3-17.
[24]	Teece, D.J. (1982) A Transaction Cost Theory of the Multinational Enterprise. University of Reading Discussion Papers in International Investment and Business Studies, 66, University of Reading, Reading.
[25]	Teece, D.J. (1985) Transaction Cost Economies and the Multinational Enterprise: An Assessment. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 7, 21-45. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0167-2681(86)90020-X
[26]	Hennart, J.F. (1982) A Theory of the Multinational Enterprise. University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor.
[27]	Williamson, O. (1975) Markets and Hierarchies: Analysis and Antitrust Implications. Free Press, New York.
[28]	Buckley, P.J. (1988) The Limits of Explanation: Testing the Internalization Theory of the Multinational Enterprise. Journal of International Business Studies, 19, 181-193. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8490382
[29]	Buigues, P. and Jacquemin, A. (1992) Inversion extranjera directa y exportaciones en el Mercado Común: Aspectos teoricos, empiricos y de politica economica. Moneda y Credito, 194, 59-106.
[30]	Knickerbocker, F.T. (1973) Oligopolistic Reaction and Multinational Enterprise. Harvard University Press, Cambridge.
[31]	Graham, E.M. (1978) Trasatlantic Investment by Multinational Firms: A Rivalistic Phenomenon. Journal of Post Keynesian Economics, 1, 82-99.
[32]	Graham, E.M. (1992) Los determinantes de la inversion extranjera directa: Teorias alternativas y evidencia internacional. Moneda y Credito, 194, 13-49.
[33]	Acocella, N. (1991) Strategic Foreign Direct Investment in the E.C. Cidei Working Paper 5, University of Rome, Rome.
[34]	Graham, E. and Krugman, P. (1993) The Surge in Foreign Direct Investment in the 1980s. In: Froot, K.A., Ed., Foreign Direct Investment, National Bureau of Economic Research, The University Chicago Press, Chicago, 13-36.
[35]	Mcculloch, R. (1993) New Perspectives on Foreign Direct Investment. In: Froot, K.A., Ed., Foreign Direct Investment, National Bureau of Economic Research, The University Chicago Press, Chicago, 37-56.
[36]	Porter, M.E. (1991) La ventaja competitiva de las naciones. Plaza & Janes, Barcelona.
[37]	Guerrieri, P. and Meliciani, V. (2007) La produccion e internacionalizacion de los servicios: Determinantes e implicaciones para la innovacion y el crecimiento en Europa. In: Claves de la Economia Mundial, ICEX, Madrid.
[38]	Jenicek, V. (2007) World Trade with Services in Globalization Processes. Agricultural Economics, 53, 55-64.
[39]	Munoz-Guarasa, M. (2007) La deslocalizacion de los servicios: ¿Mito o realidad? Revista de Economia Mundial, 16, 57-78.
[40]	Sanchez-Peinado, E., Pla-Barber, J. and Hebert, L. (2007) Strategic Variables that Influence Entry Mode Choice in Service Firms. Journal of International Marketing, 15, 67-91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1509/jimk.15.1.067
[41]	Kolstad, I. and Villanger, E. (2008) Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment in Services. European Journal of Political Economy, 24, 518-533. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2007.09.001
[42]	Ramasamy, B. and Yeung, M. (2010) The Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment in Services. The World Economy, 33, 573-596. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9701.2009.01256.x
[43]	Boddewyn, J.J., Halbrich, M.B. and Perry, A.C. (1986) Service Multinationals: Conceptualization, Measurement and Theory. Journal of International Business Studies, 17, 41-57. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8490860
[44]	Buckley, P., Pass, C.L. and Prescott, K. (1992) The Internationalization of Services Firms: A Comparison with the Manufacturing Sector. Scandinavian International Business Review, 1, 39-56. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0962-9262(92)90035-5
[45]	Johanson, J. and Vahlne, J.E. (1990) The Mechanism of Internationalization. International Marketing Review, 7, 11-23. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/02651339010137414
[46]	O’Farrel, P.N., Wood, P.A. and Zheng, J. (1996) Internationalization of Business Services: An Interregional Analysis. Regional Studies, 30, 10-118.
[47]	Javalgi, R.G. and Martin, C.L. (2007) Internationalization of Services: Identifying the Building-Blocks for Future Research. Journal of Services Marketing, 21, 391-397. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/08876040710818886
[48]	Johanson, J. and Mattsson, L.G. (1988) Internationalization in Industrial Systems—A Network Approach. In: Hood, N. and Vahlne, J., Eds., Strategies in Global Competition, Croom Helm, New York,.
[49]	Kogut, B. and Zander, U. (1993) Knowledge of the Firm and the Evolutionary Theory of the Multinational Corporation. Journal of International Business Studies, 24, 625-645. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8490248
[50]	Oviatt, B.M. and McDougall, P.P. (1994) Toward a Theory of International New Ventures. Journal of International Business Studies, 25, 45-64. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8490193
[51]	Barney, J. (1991) Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage. Journal of Management, 17, 99-120. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/014920639101700108
[52]	Peteraf, M. (1993) The Cornerstones of Competitive Advantage: A Resource-Based View. Strategic Management Journal, 14, 179-191. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/smj.4250140303
[53]	Conner, K.R. and Prahalad, C.K. (1996) A Resource-Based Theory of the Firm: Knowledge vs. Opportunism. Organization Science, 7, 477-501. http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/orsc.7.5.477
[54]	Rodriguez Marquez, A. (2011) La internacionalizacion de los servicios intensivos en conocimiento: Cooperacion, innovacion e implicaciones del offshoring de I+D. Dissertation, Universidad Carlos III, Madrid.
[55]	Hill, T.P. (1977) On Goods and Services. Review of Income and Wealth, 23, 315-338.
[56]	Sampson, G.P. and Snape, R.H. (1985) Identifying the Issues in Trade in Services. World Economy, 8, 171-182. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9701.1985.tb00421.x
[57]	Grubel, H.G. (1987) All Traded Services Are Embodied in Materials or People. World Economy, 10, 319-330. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9701.1987.tb00103.x
[58]	Bhagwati, J. (1988) Importance du commerce international des services pour le developpement economique. In: L’Europe face a la nouvelle economie de services, 17-48.
[59]	Vandermerwe, S. and Chadwick, M. (1989) The Internationalization of Services. The Service Industries Journal, 9, 79-93. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642068900000005
[60]	Erramilli, M.K. (1990) Entry Mode Choice in Service Industries. International Marketing Review, 7, 50-62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/EUM0000000001535
[61]	Segebarth, K. (1990) Some Aspects of the International Trade in Services: An Empirical Approach. The Service Industries Journal, 10, 266-283. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069000000030
[62]	Edvardsson, B., Edvinsson, L. and Nystrom, H. (1993) Internationalization in Service Companies. The Service Industries Journal, 13, 80-97. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069300000005
[63]	Sapir, A. (1993) Sectorial Dimension. European Economy, 3.
[64]	Sapir, A. (1993) The Structure of Services in Europe: A Conceptual Framework. European Economy, 3, 83-98.
[65]	Roberts, J. (1998) Multinational Business Service Firms. Ashgate, Aldeshot.
[66]	Instituto Espanol de Comercio Exterior (2011) Base de datos de empresas exportadoras. ICEX, Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad.
[67]	Agencia Andaluza de Promocion Exterior (Extenda) (2011) Base de datos de empresas exportadoras. Extenda.
[68]	Camaras de Comercio de Espana (2011) Base de datos de las Camaras de Comercio, Espana, Camaras de Comercio de Espana.
[69]	eInforma (2011) Base de datos de empresas. eInforma.
[70]	Axesor (2011) Base de datos de empresas. Axesor.
[71]	Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (2011) Directorio Central de Empresas (DIRCE) (2010) INE.
[72]	Metcalfe, S. and Potts, J. (2007) La internacionalizacion de los servicios: La perspectiva evolutiva. In: Claves de la Economia Mundial, ICEX, Madrid, 79-87.
[73]	Munoz-Guarasa, M. (1999) La inversion directa extranjera en Espana: Factores determinantes. Civitas, Madrid.
[74]	Dunning, J.H. (1997) Alliance Capitalism and Global Business. Routledge, London and New York.
[75]	Directiva 2006/123/CE del Parlamento Europeo y del Consejo, de 12 de diciembre de 2006, relativa a los servicios en el mercado interior [Diario Oficial L 376 de 27.12.2006].
[76]	Johanson, J. and Vahlne, J.E. (1977) The Internationalization Process of the Firm—A Model of Knowledge Development and Increasing Foreign Market Commitments. Journal of International Business, 8, 23-32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8490676