JSBE subscribers and CCSBE-CCPME members can view and download full articles (PDF format) in the online Article Library or use the link at the bottom of the abstract to view the specific article (must be logged in).  Subscription Options.

Thomas Hutzschenreuter, Dietmar Hopp Endowed Chair of Corporate Strategy and Electronic Media Management, WHU Otto Beisheim Graduate School of Management
Fabian Guenther, Dietmar Hopp Endowed Chair of Corporate Strategy and Electronic Media Management, WHU Otto Beisheim Graduate School of Management
Bernd Oehring, JP Morgan, Sydney, Australia

ABSTRACT. This study investigates which organisational mechanisms young, fast-growing companies choose at the onset of their internationalisation and which factors influence these choices. Existing research on the internationalisation of established companies suggests that the need for efficiency, the need for local adaptation, environmental complexity, and local resource levels are relevant factors; however, this research indicates that these factors may not be sufficient to explain the organizational design of young, fast-growing companies during their internationalisation. Case study research was undertaken on six German companies, which use the internet as the basis of their business models. The research takes into account the additional factor of resources available at corporate headquarters, particularly management capacities, as this appears to have an influence on the organisational design chosen by such companies. Furthermore, this study finds that the sooner young, fast-growing companies become international, the more they need to decentralise international headquarters-subsidiaries relationships and to use high degrees of informal coordination.

SOMMAIRE. La présente étude explore les mécanismes d'organisation que les jeunes entreprises en pleine croissance choisissent au début de leur internationalisation, ainsi que les facteurs qui guident ce choix. La recherche actuelle sur l'internationalisation d'entreprises établies suggère comme facteurs pertinents le besoin d'efficacité et d'adaptation locale, la complexité environnementale, et les niveaux de ressources locaux; ces facteurs ne semblent cependant pas suffire à expliquer la structuration de l'organisation des compagnies en pleine croissance et en cours d'internationalisation. Notre étude de cas porte sur six entreprises allemandes qui prennent l'internet pour base de leur modalisation commerciale. Cette recherche tient compte également des ressources disponibles au siège social général, et plus particulièrement les capacités de gestion, car ceci semble avoir une influence sur la structuration choisie par ces entreprises. De plus, il ressort de cette étude que plus vite ces entreprises en pleine croissance deviennent internationales, plus elles ont besoin de décentraliser les relations internationals entre siège social et filiales, et d'utiliser un niveau élevé de coordination informelle.

 Internationalisation of Young, Fast-Growing Companies: An Exploratory Study of the Organisational Design of Headquarters-Subsidiary Relationships