Alliance management capability and SMEs’ international expansion: The role of innovation pathways
研究了联盟管理能力如何通过促进激进式和渐进式协同创新，帮助英国制造业中小企业实现国际扩张，并发现联盟伙伴多样性调节了这种关系。
Although alliance management capability (AMC) has been widely investigated as a firm-level performance driver, it is still unclear whether and how this distinctive type of relational capability can enhance small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) internationalization activity. By integrating the alliance capability literature and resource-based view (RBV), as well as using data collected from a sample comprising 248 SMEs in UK manufacturing industries, we address this gap by examining the mechanisms through which SMEs can expand their internationalization via collaboration. We found support for our contention that AMC enhances radical and incremental co-innovation in SMEs, culminating in the international expansion of these firms. Additionally, we reveal the moderating effects of alliance partner diversity on the AMC and co-innovation relationship. The results offer both theoretical and managerial insights, contributing to a better understanding of how SMEs can leverage AMC to drive their global expansion strategies.