Information Management for Network Transformation in Industrial Enterprises Associations

Abstract

There is no doubt that nowadays internationalization is increasingly attractive for companies that want to become more competitive. However, many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) still are resource-constrained, lacking adequate information and facing problems to establish and manage relationships to operate in a sustainable way in international markets. Despite receiving some support from governments and from other institutional entities, these difficulties faced by SMEs call for a stronger support, which can be played by industrial enterprises associations (IEAs). This chapter brings the perspective of five different companies that are associated with IEAs. The main objective is to have their opinion about the role of IEAs as information managers and promoters of collaborations, mainly for internationalization processes. Another objective is to understand the acceptance by these companies regarding the use of collaborative platforms, managed by IEAs, for supporting their information and collaboration management activities.

From Data Sources to Information Sharing in SME Collaborative Networks Supporting Internationalization: A Socio-Semantic Approach

“…In summary, previous literature shows that business associations and chambers of commerce have the potential to be important information sources to support internationalization processes, mainly for SMEs. However, as stated by Costa et al [6,7], these institutional actors might have a more active role as information managers and in fostering collaboration between associates. The next section starts to contribute to these aspects by identifying and characterizing current internal and external information sources that are used by IBAs to support SME internationalization.…”

“…Looking at the diversity of entities and organizations that act as information sources to support internationalization processes of companies (Table 1), chambers of commerce and IBAs are many times referred as one of those institutional entities of support. These entities represent different firms of a specific industrial sector or act as intermediaries within a multi-sectoral network of companies [7]. Therefore, they are characterized by their collective and member-based nature, where members share a common interest and membership is most of the times voluntary [24,25].…”

“…Gashi et al [27] and Patel-Campillo and DeLessio-Parson [28] suggest a positive influence of membership in business associations to the propensity of SMEs to export. Finally, findings of Costa et al [7] show that, although recognized by some Portuguese companies as a useful source of information, their information management role can be improved to better meet their internationalization needs.…”

“…This support can also be enhanced by improving their information management role to better meet companies' informational needs [8]. Therefore, one important development for the positive impact of IBAs on the internationalization process can be the evolution towards a more collaborative network, fostering flows of information between associates [7]. Consequently, by having in consideration these previous findings, and with the new findings described in this paper, it is a natural conclusion that an effective collaborative network, where one of the main goals is to share information and knowledge about internationalization processes, can be achieved by means of a digital platform which can mediates social relations, levered in data and information management.…”

“…Although existing different opinions about the utility of their services, industrial business associations (IBAs) are institutional actors that provide some support to SME internationalization, who are also identified in previous studies as one source of information about international trade activities [4,5]. Nevertheless, previous research also points that the IBAs' role as information providers and as external support to internationalization may be improved by progressing to a collaborative network, by sharing more organized and valued information, and by promoting flows of information and knowledge, and more collaborations among their associate companies [6][7][8].…”