Title: Small business internationalisation to emerging markets: export training innovation for Swiss SMEs

Authors: Philippe Régnier

Addresses: Schools of Management-Fribourg and Geneva, University of Applied Sciences, Western Switzerland (HES-SO), Switzerland

Abstract: About one third of Swiss SMEs are internationalised, mainly through exports and investments withing the OECD group of industrialised countries. Due to various domestic and external competitiveness factors, a rising number of these SMEs try to diversify their sales to emerging markets, especially to the most attractive and fast-growing ones in the Asia and Pacific region. Compared to other European SMEs, Swiss SMEs are no exception in terms of facing limited internal resources to cope with various barriers and risks to access export opportunities in emerging economies. In this context, an innovative tailored-made coaching and training program has been designed and tested in 2019-2023 to support Swiss SME exports to Asian emerging markets. In a first part, this article reviews various international business management theories dealing with SME internationalisation, and export capacities in particular. Then, internationalisation data is analysed based on Swiss SME tri-annual surveys published in 2016-2023. Finally, the article provides a methodological and analytical review of the 2020-2023 design and testing of an innovative coaching and training program promoting public-private business development services tailored for Swiss SME export needs to explore and reach Asian emerging markets.

Keywords: SME export training; access to distant markets; Asian emerging markets.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEXPORTM.2023.135662

International Journal of Export Marketing, 2023 Vol.6 No.1, pp.4 - 16

Received: 12 Mar 2023
Accepted: 09 Aug 2023
Published online: 20 Dec 2023 *

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