Finance strategies of rapidly‐growing Finnish SMEs: Born Internationals and Born Globals

Abstract

During the past decade, several studies have explored the characteristics of Born International and Born Global business firms, and the reasons for their increase in size and numbers. The objective of this study is to explore the influence of financing strategies and the commensurate finance management capabilities on the globalization of Finnish Born International and Born Global small and medium size enterprises (SMEs). The resulting knowledge from this study should prove valuable for academic researchers, political decision‐makers and business managers. Interestingly, the results of the study show that Born Globals had greater access to superior financial resources and stronger finance‐related managerial resources right from the start‐up phase than did Born Internationals. An interesting finding also focused on the fact that Born Globals were able to more quickly obtain global management‐related skills and industry‐specific business experience through the use of external business partners and venture capital representatives. These findings may partially explain the Born Globals' rapid expansion into world markets in comparison to Born Internationals, and also the failures of other types of enterprises in these same markets.