FACTORS INFLUENCING FAMILY FIRM INTERNATIONALIZATION

Kleinknecht, Luis

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FACTORS INFLUENCING FAMILY FIRM INTERNATIONALIZATION

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The internationalization of firms is a complex phenomenon (Fernández & Nieto, 2005), and it is just as important for family firms to achieve growth and long-term survival (Alayo et al., 2020). Internationalizing a family firm can be regarded as a form of corporate entrepreneurship (Birkinshaw, 1997; Dess et al., 2003; Keupp & Gassmann, 2009; McDougall & Oviatt, 2000; Yiu et al., 2007; Zahra & George, 2002; Zahra et al., 2000; Zahra et al., 1999). This qualitative study examines Mexican small and medium (SME) family firms with two generations working in the operations and have more than four top management team (TMT) members. The TMT members intend to internationalize their operations or have international operations already. The study analyzes the external and internal factors that motivate the internationalization of Mexican family firms. It also analyzes how family members influence the decision-making process to internationalize through the TMT members and act upon opportunities recognized beyond their national borders. TMT members are chosen as the key informants of the study because of their knowledge of the history, operations, and decision-making process of their respective family firms. The study presents findings using grounded theory as the methodology in the context of several industries in different companies in Mexico. A theoretical model is presented where external and internal factors influence the motivation to internationalize the family firm. This motivation impacts the family firm's internationalization, and external obstacles and internal limitations moderate this relationship. The following dissertation is structured as follows. Chapter 1 presents the study's introduction, briefly describing what we know so far, the gaps in the knowledge on the topic, and how these gaps are filled. Chapter 2 is the literature review that presents the definitions of the basic constructs and the scope of the dissertation. Chapter 3 explains the methodology followed in the study. Chapter 4 describes the analysis techniques and how the trustworthiness of the analysis is achieved. Chapter 5 presents the findings of the study and introduces the theoretical model. Finally, Chapter 6 presents the discussion of the findings, theoretical and practical implications are drawn, directions for future research are presented, and a conclusion is made.

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