Internationalization Motivations and Foreign Market Entry Modes <br>http://dx.doi.org/10.5585/riae.v10i1.1719

Manuel Aníbal Silva Portugal Vasconcelos Ferreira; Fernando Ribeiro Serra; Nuno Rosa Reis

doi:10.5585/ijsm.v10i1.1719

Authors

Manuel Aníbal Silva Portugal Vasconcelos Ferreira globADVANTAGE - Center of Research on International Business & Strategy - Instituto Politécnico de Leiria - Portugal
Fernando Ribeiro Serra Unisul Business School
Nuno Rosa Reis globADVANTAGE – Center of Research on International Business & Strategy

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5585/ijsm.v10i1.1719

Keywords:

Internationalization Motivations, Strategic Asset Seeking, Market Seeking, Foreign Market Entry Modes, Market Selection.

Abstract

The motivations for the internationalization of firms influence the selection of foreign entry modes. In this article we use John Dunning’s (1993) classification, which distinguishes four primary motives to invest overseas – market seeking, resource seeking, strategic asset seeking and efficiency seeking –, conceptually discussing the impact of the selected foreign entry modes. The methods and strategies of multinational corporations (MNCs) are chosen in a broader framework, where internationalization motivations converge with the exploitation, or exploration, of firm-specific advantages. Our analysis is supported by a set of theoretical propositions. The results demonstrate that MNCs must develop the best possible combination of strategy-structure for their international operations, and yet conceive a casuistic analysis of each individual operation. We have therefore contributed to a better understanding of the selection of foreign market entry modes as a reflection of strategic choices or motivations.