Norwegian firms going abroad rely on networks of relationships rather than traditional entry strategies. Export performance depends on relationship quality which is influenced by uncertainty, trust, cultural distance and relationship investments. Successful exporters have networking capabilities to generate and manage relationships as well as firm-specific capabilities like market orientation. When facing new challenges, Norwegian seafood exporters in Japan redefined roles, found new importers, and challenged existing distribution structures using their market power while maintaining traditional network links and creating new ties to retailers and restaurants. Network strategies include confronting or conforming, creating or consolidating relationships, and coercing or conceding. Firms must effectively handle their relationships and network rather than simply having them.

1. Networks: What do we know about
Norwegian firms going abroad?
Morten H. Abrahamsen,
Associate Professor

2. Networks: What do we know about
Norwegian firms going abroad?
some
Morten H. Abrahamsen,
Associate Professor

3. Starting point
• International marketing research
traditionally focuses on entry strategies:
– Agent, distributor, intermediary, sales office,
domestic or local production?
• Export performance is related to
relationship quality with these actors
• Governance mechanisms

4. Traditional value chain
(Solberg and Nes, 2002)

5. Relationship quality dependent on
• Uncertainty and complexity
• Trust and commitment
• Cultural disctance/closeness
• Adaption and relationship investment
• Cooperation and conflict

6. But what if it looks like this?
’No business is an island’

7. Networks and export performance
• ”Firms success in entering international
markets is more dependent on its
position in a network than cultural
characteristics”
(Johanson and Mattson, 1988)
• ”Using existing relationships as bridges to
other networks”
(Kenny and Fahy, 2011)

8. • ”Roles performed in a network rather
than functions in a distribution or value
chain may explain export performance”
(Abrahamsen et al., 2012)

9. Levels of export capabilities
Networking
capabilities
Relational
capabilities
Relationa
Firm-
specific
capabilities
Based on Grant (1995)

10. Firm-specific capabilities
• Attitudes
• Expectations
• Knowledge Networking
capabilities
• Motivation
Relational
capabilities
Relationa
Firm-
specific
capabilities

11. Characteristics of successful
exporters
• Attitudes • Organisational skills
– Risk asessment – Organisational backing
– Market orientation – Top management and
– Cultural sensitivity board support
• Competence
– Pricing policy
– Sales skills
– Ability to cooperate with
partners (Solberg, 2009)

12. Relational capabilies
• Adaptation required
• Interdependence between companies
• Exporting is a learning process Networking
capabilities
• Other:
Relational
– The resource-based view capabilities
Relationa
– Knowledge theory Firm-
specific
capabilities
– Oranisational learning theory

13. Key questions
• How to evaluate future value—customer
lifetime value of a relationship?
• How to create, manage and conclude
relationships efficiently—from
organizational and analytical
perspectives?
• How to manage relational episodes
efficiently? (Halinen and Möller, 2008)

14. Complexity and distance
• Complex products require high relationship
investment in the relationship, ie. need for
close cooperation
• Low complexity requires low investment, ie.
need for ”door-openers”
• High cultural distance requires strong
presence and close supervision

15. (Solberg, 2008)

16. But what if it looks like this?
Network = Interconnected relationships

17. Network capabilities
• “The resources and activities
of a company to generate,
develop, and manage
networks in order to take
Networking
capabilities
advantage of single Relational
capabilities
relationships and the Relationa
network as a whole” Firm-
specific
capabilities
(Gemünden and Ritter, 1997)

18. What is a Business Network?
• A business network consists of two
”building blocks”:
– companies and business relationships
• The companies and business relationships
are interconnected, and together form a
complex, web-like structure.

19. Questions for exporters
• What is my relevant network?
• What is the network that I want
to be a part of? ?
• Who can give me information
about new possibilities?

20. • What role should I play?
• What resources can I offer?
• What actvities can I perform?
• How can the network be strenghtened
by my participation?

21. • What will happen to the network if
strengthen my ties?
• What ties will be weakened?

22. • If you want to take up new functions, this
may imply replacing someone else. What
will they do? Counteract you?

23. Exporters facing new challenges

24. A seafood export network
Norwegian seafood exporters facing new
challenges in a changing Japanese market..

25. What did they do?
• Redefining roles of existing importers
• Finding new importers sharing their
perspective
• Challenge existing distribution stucturing
using market power
• Maintaining links with traditional network
• Creating new ties to retailers and
restaurants

26. Network strategies
• Confront or Conform?
• Create or Consolidate?
• Coerce or Concede?
(Ford, 2011)

27. Conclusion
• The question is not to have relationships
or not, but how to handle them!
• The question is not to network or not, but
how to network!

28. Basic business
assumptions:
-Jungle?

29. Basic business
assumptions:
-Jungle?
-or rainforest?

30. Want to know more?
www.networksinbusiness.wordpress.com

31. Takk for oppmerksomheten!
Obrigado por sua atenção!