MODELLING INTERNATIONALIZATION OF HIGH GROWTH FIRMS: MICRO LEVEL APPROACH

The role of owners/professional managers has been recognized as a vital in the development processes of high growth firms (HGFs), contributing to countries’ productivity and competitiveness. The purpose of the paper is to identify and analyse some of the most significant factors, impacting internationalization of HGFs by investigating the attitudes of owners and professional managers. Theoretical discussion, related to international entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial traits and entrepreneurial perceptions, has led to the development of the research instrument. The analysis is based on a quantitative approach: the survey focuses on Lithuanian HGFs. The sample comprises 353 firms, included in the annual Gazelle list. The study does not reveal the difference between the attitudes of owners and professional managers. The results corroborate previous investigations disclosing that the traits of entrepreneurs and managers, matching entrepreneurial tasks, are good predictor of HGFs internationalization. The importance of external incentives, perceived by the owners and managers, are decreasing while HGFs internationalization is increasing. The joint effect of entrepreneurial traits and perceptions of internal and external barriers are good predictors of HGFs internationalization. The findings of the study are useful for the policy makers in the financial support decision making process and in the development of additional training programs. The implications for the managers of HGFs lie in the possibility to assess their personality traits and conclude about their suitability to that task. The research fills the gap in the extant knowledge by investigating micro-level factors and provides valuable findings on HGFs in Eastern European country.