O'FARRELL P. N., WOOD P. A. and ZHENG J. (1998) Regional influences on foreign market development by business service companies: elements of a strategic context explanation, Reg. Studies 32 , 31-48. 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, therefore, is to present evidence on foreign market development by business service firms in two UK regions, Scotland and the South East of England, and the Amsterdam urban region of the Netherlands. Following a review of the relevance of the internalization approach, the development stages paradigm, network analysis and a strategic choice framework to internationalization by business services, empirical findings are presented from the three regions on trajectories of foreign market development, modal shifts, the incidence of proactive market strategies and the characteristics of major clients. A behavioural framework is proposed for decision making by business service firms developing foreign markets, identifying the elements of a strategic context explanation. O'FARRELL P. N., WOOD P. A. et ZHENG J. (1998) L'impact regional des societes de services sur l'evolution du marche exterieur: les elements d'une explication portant sur un contexte strategique, Reg. Studies 32 , 31-48. La documentation au sujet de l'internationalisation - et de l'industrie, et des services - s'est concentree sur la question de la penetration et dans une large mesure a ignore le comportement qui s'ensuit et le developpement des marches. Aussi, cet article cherche-t-il principalement a faire des preuves a propos du developpement des marches exterieurs par des societes de service situees dans deux regions au Royaume-Uni, a savoir en Ecosse et dans le Sud-Est, et la conurbation d'Amsterdam aux Pays-Bas. Suite a une critique de l'importance de la facon d'interiorisation, du paradigme des phases de developpement, de l'analyse de reseaux et d'un cadre de choix strategiques relatif a l'internationalisation des societes de service, les preuves empiriques se voient presenter a partir de trois regions quant au developpement des marches exterieurs, aux deplacements modaux, a la frequence des strategies de marchedynamiques et aux caracteristiques des clients importants. Un cadre du comportement se voit proposer pour la prise de decision des societes de service qui developpent des marches exterieurs et identifie les elements d'une explication portant sur un contexte strategique. O'FARRELL P. N., WOOD P. A. und ZHENG J. (1998) Regionale Einflusse auf Entwicklung von Markten im Ausland durch Gesellschaften, die Geschaftsdienstleistungen anbieten: Elemente einer Erklarung strategischer Zusammenhange, Reg. Studies 32 , 31-48. Die Literatur der Internationalisierung - der Produktion wie auch der Dienstleistungen - hat sich auf die Frage des Einstiegs konzentriert, und das Verhalten und Marktenwicklung danach grossenteils vernachlassigt. Es ist deshalb ein ...

O'FARRELL P. N., Wood P. A. and ZHENG J. (1996) Internationalization of business services: an interregional analysis, Reg. Studies 30, 101-118. Internationalization behaviour by business service firms in Scotland and the South East of England is analysed. Evidence is outlined on level of internationalization, time profile of entry into foreign markets, location of foreign markets, mode of entry into first and largest foreign markets, and behavioural aspects of international market selection and entry mode choice. Initial foreign market entries occurred in the early 1960s with South East business service organizations entering foreign markets earlier, while there was a surge in internationalization by Scottish businesses after 1988. Few firms engaged in a process of explicitly choosing a foreign market to enter since the most common entry mechanism was responding to a particular ad hoc order. Similarly almost 70% of firms made the mode choice decision without considering any alternative modes. O'FARRELL P. N., Wood P. A. et ZHENG J. (1996) L'internationalisation des services aux entreprises: une analyse interregionale, Reg. Studies 30, 101-118. On analyse le comportement des societes de services aux entreprises situees en Ecosse et dans le Sud-est de l'Angleterre quant a leur internationalisation. On esquisse des preuves concernant le niveau d'internationalisation, la periodicite de l'entree dans des marches exterieurs, la geographie des marches exterieurs, la methode d'entree dans le premier marche exterieur et le marche exterieur le plus important, et les aspects de comportement relatifs au choix de marche international et de methode d'entree. Les premieres entrees dans les marches exterieurs ont eu lieu au debiut des annees 1960, le moment ou les societes de services aux entreprises du Sud-est de l'Angleterre sont entrees dans les marches exterieurs tandis qu'il y a eu un accroissement de l'internationalisation par les societes ecossaises apres 1988. Rares ont ete les societes qui se sont livrees a un processus consistant a choisir explicitement un marche exterieur a entrer, puisque la methode d'entree la plus utilisee a consiste a repondre a une commande ad hoc. De la meme facon, presque 70% des societes ont fait le choix de methode sans considerer acune des autres methodes. O'FARRELL P. N., Wood P. A. und ZHENG J. (1996) Internationalisierung von Geschaftsdienstleistungen: eine interregionale Analyse, Reg. Studies 30, 101-118. Das Internationalisierungsverhalten von Firmen in Schottland und Sudostengland, die geschaftliche Dienstleistungen anbieten, wird analysiert. Beweise werden umrissweise angefuhrt fur den Umfang der Internationalisierung, fur das Zeitprofil des Einstiegs in Markte im Ausland, den Standort von Auslandsmarkten, die Art und Weise des Einstiegs in den ersten und den grossten Auslandsmarkt, sowie Aspekte des Verhaltens bei der Auswahl internationaler Markte und die Wahl der Methode des Einstiegs. Die ersten Einstiege in auslandische Markte erfolgten Anfang der sechziger Jahre, als im Sudosten...

Since 1980, the UK has experienced a dramatic growth in firms and crnploymcnt in informationintensive business services, such as management consultancy and rriarkct research. Recent expansion of new and small firms operating in these sectors is the focus of a rlnajor ESRCsponsored research project currently under way at Cambridge University Small Rusir~css Research Centre.Small business senrice firms are able to compcte successfully with large firrns due to the imperfect nature of the market which characterizes business serviccs demand and supply, together with specialization of expertise. The success of small business scr.vicc firms depends on informal person-to-person networks, word-of-mouth recommendation and rel:~car business based on successful earlier assignments or pcrsonal contacts acquired, for cx;in~plc, while working in a largc consultancy or market research company. This paper examines the types of rletworks utilized by small business service firms and argues that two distinc~ ~ypcs exist: demand-and supply-rclated networks; the former involves links with clicr~ts, thc l a t~e r links ancl co-operation between co~nplementary small business service firms. ~6 w o r d s :networks; small firms; business services; management consultancy; market research.

It is often assumed that future urban employment will be increasingly dependent on the knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS). This underpins much of the current thinking about the development of the English "core cites." Their example is employed to examine the more general validity of such assumptions, in terms of five critical questions to which research offers only partial and indefinite answers. For any city, how far are these activities really "knowledge intensive"? What markets do they serve? Is their future growth certain? And even when this is the case, how can they make a long-term contribution to local urban economic success? Finally, how far do urban economic institutions and policies need to be adapted to foster knowledge-based activities such as KIBS? It seems that, despite the growth of measured KIBS employment, most of the core cities possess few truly knowledge-intensive KIBS, capable of serving national and international business markets, competitively adapting to future change, and adding to the competitiveness of the wider urban economy. Nationally such activities remain focused into the London region where, if anything, they have increased their concentration is recent years. Copyright 2006 Blackwell Publishing.

This paper addresses three issues in the context of knowledge-intensive service (KIS) development, related to the competitive base of cities and the degree to which they possess distinctive sources of innovativeness. The first is, how may growing KIS, or consultancy, use influence client innovation? Although this is inherently difficult to demonstrate, the expertise and modes of operation of consultancies suggest that they do influence technical and organisational change amongst clients. The second issue is the segmentation of consultancy influence, especially by sector and types of firm. Finally, how far does the urban base of consultancy supply imply local, specifically urban, benefits for client innovation? Consultancy services are often delivered over wide areas from their urban bases, within national and international nexuses of corporate and public-sector service exchange. This question cannot be answered by focusing only on local exchange. Urban client-consultancy interaction needs to be set within a national and even an international context of specialist expertise exchange.