Entry mode strategies of Malaysian service firms: A Resource-Based Approach

Abstract

The rapid progress in services has attracted scholars to study the behaviour and decisions of service firms. Firms from Malaysia, as a developing country, with a fast growing economy that increasingly relies on services have shown a remarkable expansion into foreign markets, which has resulted in high foreign direct investment (FDI) outward inflows and increasing exports of services. This paper utilizes the resource-based theory, in which the main determinants of the choice of entry mode are organizational variables compared to environmental factors, to explain the choice of entry strategies made by Malaysian service firms and the motives for it. This study aims to develop a framework for the choice of entry mode strategies that has fewer shortages than others, analyze the determinants of entry mode strategy in order to find the similarities and differences existing between firms in the decision-making process for the choice of entry mode, and consider the role of psychic distance in adopting an appropriate strategy in different markets. Suggestions for future research are also presented.