AIB 2012 Conference Proceedings - Academy of International ...

MONDAY
A Cognitive-based View of the Impacts of Cultural Distance on New Product Development Performance in
International Supply Chain Innovation Alliances
Robin N. Pesch, University of Bayreuth
Torben Bruder, University of Bayreuth
Ricarda B. Bouncken, University of Bayreuth
Being better and faster than competitors are major challenges in new product development. To meet these
challenges, firms extensively use supply chain innovation alliances to gain access to complementary knowledge
even beyond national borders. Such international innovation alliances are characterized by cultural distance.
Concomitant with cultural distance, cognitive impacts such as divergent cognitive processes and mental models
of alliance partners have so far been neglected in the academic literature about international supply chain
innovation alliances. The aim of this study is therefore to provide insights on the impact of cultural distance on
new product development performance from a cognitive-based view. In this context, we will particularly
consider how alliance intensity and alliance duration influence the cognitive effects. The results of this study –
based on a survey of 397 companies operating in engineering or medical technology – shows that cultural
distance improves firms' performances in terms of new product superiority. Concerning speed to market, the
results indicate a significantly positive relationship between cultural distance and speed to market only in the
medical technology industry. Our findings further expose that the combination of complementary knowledge
mediates the relationship between cultural distance and new product superiority. Interestingly, this mediation is
moderated by alliance intensity. (For more information, please contact: Robin N. Pesch, University of Bayreuth,
Germany: robin.pesch@uni-bayreuth.de)
Session: 2.1.9 - Competitive
Track: 11 - SMEs and Entrepreneurship
The Role of Learning and Knowledge in Entrepreneurial Firms
Presented On: July 2, 2012 - 09:00-10:15
Chair: Patricia Mcdougall , Indiana University
Go Out There and Learn! The Mediating Effects of International Business Competence on the Relationship
between Internationalization and Firm Performance
Dinora Eliete Floriani, University of Vale do Itajaí
Maria Tereza Fleury, Fundação Getúlio Vargas
Afonso Carlos Correa Fleury, University of São Paulo
Rodrigo Bandeira-de-Mello, Fundação Getúlio Vargas
Existing literature on internationalization of Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) suggest that international
business competences lead to superior international performance. We tested the hypothesis that the higher the
degree of internationalization the higher the level of international competence development. We developed
several models using structured equation modeling and, using a sample of 114 Brazilian SMEs, found strong
support for the hypothesis. Therefore, international competences mediate the relationship between the degree
of internationalization and firm performance. SMEs need to go abroad in order to develop capabilities, and not
the other way around. (For more information, please contact: Dinora Eliete Floriani, University of Vale do Itajaí,
Brazil: dinora@univali.br)
Small Firm Internationalisation Competence: An Owner-Manager Perspective
Peter William Lamb, La Trobe University
Jörgen Sandberg, University of Queensland
AIB 2012 Conference Proceedings
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