Opportunity Identification and Creation as Factors of Firm Internationalisation

Abstract

Objective: This paper aims to establish if, why and how, in given institutional and industry contexts, the identification and/or creation and exploitation of opportunity may result in a higher intensity of internationalisation processes in firms.

Research Design & Methods: The study is based on literature review. It synthesizes fragmented pieces of research on international entrepreneurship, mainstream entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial learning theory. In-depth comparative literature studies focus on sources, forms and features of opportunities, as well as the role of both Schumpeterian and Kirznerian opportunities in internationalisation activities of firms.

Findings: Findings bring together state-of-the-art research and extends it by providing a deeper understanding of the feed-back effect of entrepreneurial learning as well as highlighting the progressive nature of opportunity space in the proposed model.

Implications & Recommendations: Expanding firm’s operations can be a first step towards a self-reinforcing loop relationship, tying prior experience to future behaviour and moving the entrepreneur to higher levels of international awareness and accuracy in opportunity identification.

Contribution & Value Added: The article presents an integrated process-based view of opportunity antecedents and concludes with a dynamic cyclical path-dependent model of opportunity-based view of firm internationalisation. Hopefully, the proposed model can serve as a useful lens for hypotheses formulation and testing within the research on firm internationalisation determinants.

Keywords

opportunity identification, opportunity recognition, opportunity creation, international entrepreneurship, internationalisation

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