Geographic, Network, and Competitor Social Cues: Evidence from US Venture Capitalists Internationalization Decisions

摘要

Research summaryWe examine how social cues drive strategic decision making under uncertainty, specifically in the context of U.S. VC firms' first internationalization decisions. We compare the relative impacts of cues from: (a) geographically proximal firms, (b) syndicate partners, and (c) VCs investing in the same industries as the focal firm. Over the 23-year period from 1990 to 2012, we find that cues from geographically proximal peers are important, while syndicate partner actions play a significant but smaller role in driving focal firm internationalization decisions. Analogous, firm-specific experience in the form of nonlocal (but domestic) investing attenuates the effect of geographically proximal peers. Our findings have important implications on how the nature of information from social cues affects imitation decisions.