The Internationalization of Born Globals: an Evolutionary Process?

Abstract

— Recently, the phenomenon of Born Globals has been highlighted in many articles concerning the internationalization processes of firms. Such firms adopt an international or even global approach right from their birth or very shortly thereafter. Some authors consider this phenomenon as being in strong opposition to the traditional models of internationalization. This is, of course, true if one considers the manifestations of these models, namely the so-called stages model, according to which the firm should internationalize like "rings in the water", i.e. in a slow and gradual manner with respect to geographical markets, market entry mode and product policy. This article contributes to the field in three ways: it summarizes the empirical evidence reported about Born Globals; it interprets the phenomenon at a deeper theoretical level and offers a new conceptionalization of the research issue; and it generates propositions about the antecendents of as well as the necessary and sufficient conditions for the rise of the phenomenon. In doing so, the conclusion is that Born Globals grow in a way which may be in accordance with evolutionary thinking. © 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved