REGIONAL INFLUENCES ON FOREIGN-MARKET DEVELOPMENT BY BUSINESS SERVICECOMPANIES - ELEMENTS OF A STRATEGIC CONTEXT EXPLANATION

The internationalization literature both of manufacturing and services - has concentrated upon the issue of entry, and largely ignored post- entry behaviour and market development. A major aim of this paper, the refore, is to present evidence on foreign market development by busine ss service firms in two UK regions, Scotland and the South East of Eng land, and the Amsterdam urban region of the Netherlands. Following a r eview of the relevance of the internalization approach, the developmen t stages paradigm, network analysis and a strategic choice framework t o internationalization by business services, empirical findings are pr esented from the three regions on trajectories of foreign market devel opment, modal shifts, the incidence of proactive market strategies and the characteristics of major clients. A behavioural framework is prop osed for decision making by business service firms developing foreign markets, identifying the elements of a strategic context explanation.