International knowledge plays a crucial role or rms willing to internationalize. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) oten try to grat it rom external sources, such as advisers, consultants, etc. Among them, Temporary Export Managers (TEMs) are becoming a viable solution among SMEs to access readily available international experience at a relatively low cost. However, it is unclear how SMEs grat knowledge rom TEMs and how SME-TEM interactions translate into impacts on the rm’s internationalization strategy. To address this gap, we examined 20 cases o the TEM-SME collaboration, conducting 48 semi-structured interviews in Italy. The results show that three main knowledge mechanisms are activated through TEM-SME interactions: mobilization, integration, and recombination. A grounded interpretative ramework is proposed to show how these mechanisms afect strategic international knowledge, encompassing diferentiated-to-diferentiated, diferentiated-to-integrated, and integrated-tointegrated knowledge trajectories. The study ofers insights to both TEMs and SMEs to enhance knowledge grating processes to impact SMEs’ international development.

SMEs internationalization by grafting knowledge. Unveiling the enabling mechanisms of strategic knowledge management

Maria Vincenza Ciasullo
;
Miriana Ferrara;
2024-01-01

Abstract

International knowledge plays a crucial role or rms willing to internationalize. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) oten try to grat it rom external sources, such as advisers, consultants, etc. Among them, Temporary Export Managers (TEMs) are becoming a viable solution among SMEs to access readily available international experience at a relatively low cost. However, it is unclear how SMEs grat knowledge rom TEMs and how SME-TEM interactions translate into impacts on the rm’s internationalization strategy. To address this gap, we examined 20 cases o the TEM-SME collaboration, conducting 48 semi-structured interviews in Italy. The results show that three main knowledge mechanisms are activated through TEM-SME interactions: mobilization, integration, and recombination. A grounded interpretative ramework is proposed to show how these mechanisms afect strategic international knowledge, encompassing diferentiated-to-diferentiated, diferentiated-to-integrated, and integrated-tointegrated knowledge trajectories. The study ofers insights to both TEMs and SMEs to enhance knowledge grating processes to impact SMEs’ international development.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11386/4895182
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