THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF INCUBATED ENTERPRISES

摘要

This study aims to examine, from the point of view of the managers of incubators, the waysrnin which Brazilian technological/technology incubators contribute to the internationalizationrnof companies. To meet this aim, we developed a model that, in addition to supportingrnresearch, can be used to provide a basis for studies of internationalization in smallrntechnology-based companies and incubators and to assist their managers. The model wasrndeveloped from the literature on two areas of interest work. On one hand, references havernbeen addressed in the internationalization of companies, doing a survey on the factorsrninfluencing the internationalization of enterprises, especially micro and small technologybasedrncompanies, and other hand, aspects of the process of incubation of technologyrnventures, as well as the actions and services provided by incubators. The model was dividedrninto four categories. The Entrepreneur category is related to the characteristics andrnexperiences of entrepreneurs. The Organizational Characteristics category is related to therninternal capacity of the incubated companies that are important for theirrninternationalization. The Network category includes the networks of business relationships,rnboth national and international, of the enterprises and the incubator that influence therninternationalization of incubated enterprises. The External Market category considers thernfeatures of the global environment including the global integration of the industry and thernspecific characteristics of each foreign market in which the company is likely to enter. Arndescriptive study was conducted in 40 technology incubators in Brazil (50% of thernpopulation) and who met the following criteria: be in effective operation for a period longerrnthan two years and at least one graduate company. Forty percent (40%) of the incubators inrnthe sample were found to have a formal program focused on the internationalization ofrnincubated enterprises however 60% of the incubators include organizations that have startedrnthe process of internationalization. The survey data indicate 24 actions and services that werernmost relevant to the internationalization of companies. These services and actions identifiedrnin this study may help in the definition of strategies as to what can be provided to new firms,rnencouraging their entry into international markets. They also serve as a recommendation forrntechnology incubators and government programs that aim at contributing to therninternationalization of incubated and graduated enterprises. The proposed model provedrnuseful in identifying the actions and services of the incubators that contribute to therninternationalization of enterprises. The division into categories was important, both forrnoperational data collection, and to provide better visualization of the theory and the pointsrnwhere incubators can play a more effective role in the internationalization of enterprises.