Abstract
The past decade has witnessed a growing interest in research on the internationalisation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). After two decades of development in international SME literature, both business practitioners and researchers in the field of international business and entrepreneurship are starting to consider whether and how multinationalisation impacts the performance of small and medium-sized firms. Lu and Beamish (2001) state that research in this field should ‘examine the effects of an international aspect of an entrepreneurial strategy’. In this context, internationalisation is a strategic choice and the focus will be on the consequences of such entrepreneurial activity. McDougall and Oviatt (1996) point out that the impact of multina-tionalisation on firm performance is one of the most significant concerns in the field. This topic is critical for both business managers who need to take strategic decisions as to whether or not to go global, and for researchers who are trying to unveil the real effects of internationalisation on firm survival and growth.
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© 2016 Qi Cao, Paola Criscuolo and Erkko Autio
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Cao, Q., Criscuolo, P., Autio, E. (2016). SME Internationalisation and Its Impact on Firm Performance. In: Tüselmann, H., Buzdugan, S., Cao, Q., Freund, D., Golesorkhi, S. (eds) Impact of International Business. The Academy of International Business. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-137-56946-2_13
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