Title: Internationalisation strategies of African MNEs: a case analysis of Angolan and Mozambican enterprises

Authors: Marcus Goncalves; Erika Cornelius Smith

Addresses: Boston University/MET, 1010 Commonwealth Ave. 4th Floor Boston, MA 02115, USA ' Nichols College, 121 Center Road, Dudley, MA 01571, Massachusetts, USA

Abstract: This study investigates the internationalisation strategies of Lusophone Africa multinational enterprises (LAMNEs) from Angola and Mozambique. While previous scholarship examining the investment decisions and actual investment commitments found that MNEs make choices to internationalise incrementally to reduce uncertainty, this research expands this body of scholarship by identifying Angolan and Mozambican MNEs that were born global or created to become international new ventures (INVs). Key implications of this study suggests that despite several disadvantages faced by entrepreneurs in frontier economies, particularly in Angola and Mozambique LAMNEs relied on external resources to launch themselves into international markets, utilising web-enabled digital and virtual resources, such as the Internet, social media and online professional communities of practice. In addition, most did not enter foreign markets alone and chose to rely on modes of entry that included joint ventures and partnerships, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), e-commerce, and e-business.

Keywords: internationalisation process; born global; international new ventures; INVs; Africa; Angola MNEs; Mozambique MNEs; Uppsala model; CAGE model; OLI eclectic paradigm.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEXPORTM.2019.101809

International Journal of Export Marketing, 2019 Vol.3 No.1, pp.59 - 76

Received: 04 Mar 2019
Accepted: 08 Jun 2019
Published online: 27 Aug 2019 *

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