آیا رفتار سازمانی می تواند هدف صادرات شرکت ها را توضیح بدهد؟ اثر فرهنگ سازمانی و نوع مالکیت

The research objective of this paper is to examine the export intention of firms from the standpoint of organizational behavior. A model is designed to study the effects of two organizational behavior dimensions, namely organizational culture and ownership type, on the export intention of American firms. The findings indicate that adaptable cultures increase and internally oriented cultures decrease the likelihood of a firm's intention to export. Data analysis further indicates a strong association between ownership type and the export intention of firms. Externally controlled firms have the highest level of export intention followed by manager-controlled and owner-controlled firms. Implications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed in the paper.

The investigation of major variables that are critical to firms' export decision has been the main research endeavor over the past two decades (Aaby & Slater, 1989; Katsikeas & Piercy, 1993; Rynning & Andersen, 1994). Some of the studies in the export marketing literature attempted to capture the major differences between exporting and non-exporting firms with respect to attitudes, perceptions, and resource-based capabilities (e.g. Cavusgil, Bilkey & Tesar, 1979; Cavusgil & Naor, 1987; Wiedersheim-Paul, Olson & Welch, 1978). More recently, studies have concentrated mainly on the variables that improve the export performance of firms (Zou & Stan, 1998). Interestingly, policy makers focused their attention more on the problems of exporting firms and advocated for their greater involvement with foreign trade (Morgan & Katsikeas, 1997). Although empirical inquiry into the area of export performance is flourishing, the main research question as to what motivates firms to initiate their export activities still remains unanswered. In the US, for example, only 6% of manufactures and 5% of intermediary firms engage in exporting activities (US Department of Commerce, 1997). There still remains a clear research need to underlie the reasons behind the reluctance of firms to export. The present paper offers an alternative research agenda to supplement previous research by exploring the possible impacts of organizational culture and ownership type on firms' export intention. Although the effects of organizational culture and ownership type on firms' strategic goals and orientation are well established, the framework in the context of export decisions has not been developed despite a possible link. This link may arise due to organizational processes and their effectiveness on achieving organizational goals (Baron, 1986; Frederiksen, 1982). This exploratory research attempts to determine whether the export intention of firms (as one of the organizational processes) can be explained by the nature of their organizational behavior measured by organizational culture and ownership structure. Such study makes two significant contributions; (1) at the firm level, organizations can identify the extent to which their organizational culture and the strategic orientation of owners is suitable for international expansion, and (2) at the policy level, public institutions can allocate their funding more effectively by determining the specific needs of non-exporting firms and support the most appropriate export promotion programs.

Although there is substantial evidence that the export decisions of firms are, in part, due to behavioral dimensions, studies appear to focus only on managerial rather than organizational behavior. The results of this study suggest that a firm's organizational behavior as measured by organizational culture and ownership type is the indicative of its export decisions. The paper demonstrates that the adhocracy culture leads to favorable export decisions. Firms with such organizational culture may have the highest potential to become regular exporters due to their external orientation. Since these firms may undertake some exploration of export activities, they may be in a great need to obtain information on how and where to start exporting business. Government agencies may play a key role in providing market information and buyer contacts to these firms (Czinkota & Ronkainen, 1998). The results further indicate that internally oriented firms (i.e. clan culture) are less likely to choose export markets as an alternative expansion mode. Therefore, export support programs alone may not be enough to motivate these firms to export in the short run. As Tesar and Moini (1998) suggest, internally oriented non-exporters need a long-term education and a strong change agent to develop global perspectives. The solution appears to be in the hands of federal and state government agencies that can solicit a targeted export support program that is in line with the specific needs of interested non-exporting firms. The support may entail simple communication on the value of exporting for their future survival and growth. This “customer-oriented” promotional tool may be more desirable and more effective than the “one size fits all” programs. The analysis with regard to ownership indicates that externally controlled firms exhibit more willingness to engage in export activities than manager-controlled firms do. In addition, owner-controlled firms have the least possibility to engage in export activities. Managers in both externally and manager-controlled firms appear to perceive exporting as an attractive strategy to assume more aggressive position in their markets and to achieve sustainable growth and profitability. Policy implication of the finding suggests policy makers employ a simple and low-cost targeted direct-marketing technique to turn these organizations into exporting firms. For manager-controlled firms export-support programs should help them to obtain export information and foreign contacts. For owner-controlled firms motivational programs should focus on the economic and strategic impact of exporting on the firm's future. Several limitations of this paper need to be addressed. First, industry characteristics may be a strong determinant of organizational behavior. As Gordon (1991) suggests, organizations are founded based on broad industry assumptions. The degree of volatility or stability in a given sector may be the source of variations in organizational behavior. For instance, firms that compete in industries with high-tech intensity and high growth rate share a similar culture that is characterized by high level of innovation and flexibility (Chatman & Jehn, 1994). Therefore, it would be useful to study the effects of industry conditions on the firm's behavior. Second, all non-exporters in this paper are treated equally, ignoring possible differences between “interested” and “uninterested” non-exporting groups. In the future, a classification of non-exporting firms based on their export interest level may eliminate such biases and reveal the best possible candidates for export promotion programs. Third, the top decision-maker was used as the key informant in answering export-related questions. However, research indicates that export decisions are often made by a group of managers (Reuber & Fischer, 1997). This might raise a concern for possible respondent bias for the present study. Moreover, data collection from a variety of decision markers may be a superior design for a future study. Fourth, the study is a cross-sectional research that omits time-lag effects in explanatory variables. As Leonidou and Katsikeas (1996) and Tesar and Moini (1998) assert, cross-sectional studies have a static merit in explaining dynamic export decisions. Longitudinal studies are recommended to examine the changing nature of the export intention of firms. Finally, it is imperative to note that the results of this study may not be typical for companies that operate in export-oriented countries. In nations with the high export to GDP ratio (for example, Norway and the Netherlands), economic and social realities may be more potent in affecting managers' decision to export. Exporting firms may have the entrepreneurial and competitive characteristics that force them to involve in international business even though bureaucratic or consensual organizational culture dominates their organization. Therefore, a comparative study is needed to address the effects of national differences on firms' export decisions.