Managing the interplay between cooperation and competition in rivalrous export markets

This seminar has been organised by the Strategy, International Business and Society research community.

About the speaker

Our guest speaker is Dr James M. Crick.

Dr Crick is an Associate Professor of Marketing and Entrepreneurship at the University of Leicester (United Kingdom) and an Adjunct Professor of Entrepreneurial Marketing at the University of Ottawa (Canada). His research interests lie at the intersection of marketing and entrepreneurship, often referred to as entrepreneurial marketing. This domain encompasses a range of topics including:

• Internationalisation activities
• Cooperative strategies (e.g., coopetition and value co creation)
• Dynamic and evolving business models
• Strategic orientations

Dr. Crick has published over 50 peer reviewed journal articles across various prestigious outlets, such as:

• International Marketing Review
• Industrial Marketing Management
• International Small Business Journal
• Journal of International Marketing
• Journal of Business Research
• Journal of Rural Studies
• Entrepreneurship & Regional Development
• European Business Review
• Journal of Strategic Marketing
• Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing
• International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research

Additionally, Dr. Crick serves as an Associate Editor of the Journal of Strategic Marketing and is an active editorial board member (and an ad hoc reviewer) for various outlets.

Research title

 "Managing the interplay between cooperation and competition in rivalrous export markets"

Abstract

Relatively little is known about how exporters can manage coopetition (cooperation among competitors). Therefore, we used resource-based theory to examine the nuances of the relationship between export coopetition activities and export performance.

Using survey data (and associated archival information) from 2,012 organizations across seventeen countries, we found that export coopetition activities boost export performance, with this link being negatively moderated by export competitive intensity.

Further, we discovered that a positive three-way interaction effect occurs between export coopetition activities, export competitive intensity, and export experience on export performance. Yet, the equivalent support was not found for industry experience.

Collectively, we offer improved knowledge pertaining to the internationalization of the coopetition construct, in terms of the factors that help or hinder export performance. Our findings signify that decision-makers must carefully harness their export-specific knowledge to withstand volatile competitive business environments – and minimize the harmful consequences of these strategies.

Moreover, we provide stronger insights into how the resource-based view serves as a useful theory for explaining the management of the interplay between cooperation and competition in export markets.

We anticipate that our paper will lead to various future research directions surrounding coopetition in international (as opposed to domestic) arenas.