How emerging market firms go abroad? Internationalization strategies
The main findings suggest that emerging markets multinationals follow a particular path of internationalization that can be partly explained by predictions of existing theories.
Vanessa Pilla Galetti Bretas
PhD Candidate
The disputation will be held digitally, because of the Corona covid-19-situation. Spectators may follow the disputation digitally – link is available below.
Vanessa Pilla Galetti Bretas of the School of Business and Law at the University of Agder has submitted her thesis entitled «International Franchising Governance Modes: An Emerging Market Perspective» and will defend the thesis for the PhD-degree Tuesday 11 May 2021.
She has followed the PhD-programme at theSchool of Business and Law at the University of Agder, and is a cotutelle candidate from UiA and Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing (ESPM) in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The doctoral work is funded by Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) Brazil.
Summary of the thesis by Vanessa Bretas:
How emerging market firms go abroad? Internationalization strategies
This dissertation focuses on the internationalization decisions of emerging market companies.
Four studies were developed to understand which aspects influence the Brazilian franchisors' international expansion choices.
Emerging market specificities
There is an ongoing debate whether emerging market firms follow the same international expansion strategies as developed country firms or possess unique characteristics.
Both host country conditions and the specificities in the home country of emerging market firms might affect their internationalization choices.
Relevant factors
The main findings suggest that emerging markets multinationals follow a particular path of internationalization that can be partly explained by predictions of existing theories.
Like the advanced economy firms, Brazilian franchisors' decisions are influenced by traditional factors, as the host market uncertainty and the company's financial capacity.
In contrast, due to home context-specific aspects, Brazilian franchisors develop different capabilities that allow them to deal better with weak contractual protections, having more tolerance in assessing the trade-offs among market potential, investment, and risks.
Stakeholders role
Additional to context and financial-related factors, the stakeholders also play a role in understanding the internationalization strategies of emerging market firms. Being part of business groups and the support of government agencies influence their decisions.
Disputation facts:
The trial lecture and the public defence will take place online, via the Zoom conferencing app (link below)
Dean Kristin Wallevik, School of Business and Law, UiA, will chair the disputation.
The trial lecture at 13:00 hours
Public defence at 14:00 hours
Given topic for trial lecture: «Which factors can explain the differences and similarities between emerging market firms’ use of franchising versus that of developed market firms?»
Thesis Title: «International Franchising Governance Modes: An Emerging Market Perspective»
Search for the thesis in AURA - Agder University Research Archive, a digital archive of scientific papers, theses and dissertations from the academic staff and students at the University of Agder.
The thesis is available here:
https://hdl.handle.net/11250/2740165
(One paper - IV - in the thesis is not available i the UiA Archive yet. This is because it has not been published yet. A full thesis can be obtained from the School of Business and Law.)
The Candidate: Vanessa Pilla Galetti Bretas (1988, Brazil) BA in International Relations - Catholic University of São Paulo - PUC-SP, MA in Business Administration – (ESPM) Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing (ESPM), Sao Paolo, Brazil. She has worked at several sector associations on applied research projects, including the American Chamber of Commerce for Brazil and the Brazilian Franchising Association.
Opponents:
First opponent: Professor Mario Henrique Ogasavara, Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing (ESPM), Brazil
Second opponent: Professor Desislava Dikova, Institute for International Business, WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business), Austria
Professor Trond Randøy, Department of Management, University of Agder, is appointed as the administrator for the assessment commitee.
Supervisors were Professor Professor Ilan Alon, UiA and Professor Thelma Valéria Rocha (se also biography at ESPM - Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing (ESPM), Brazil
What to do as an audience member:
The disputation is open to the public, but to follow the trial lecture and the public defence, which is transmitted via the Zoom conferencing app, you have to register as an audience member.
We ask audience members to join the virtual trial lecture at 08:50 at the earliest and the public defense at 09:50 at the earliest. After these times, you can leave and rejoin the meeting at any time. Further, we ask audience members to turn off their microphone and camera and keep them turned off throughout the event. You do this at the bottom left of the image when in Zoom. We recommend you use ‘Speaker view’. You select that at the top right corner of the video window when in Zoom.
Opponent ex auditorio:
The chair invites members of the public to pose questions ex auditorio in the introduction to the public defense, with deadlines. It is a prerequisite that the opponent has read the thesis. Questions can be submitted to the chair Kristin Wallevik at e-mail kristin.wallevik@uia.no