Partnerships between SMEs and MNEs on Foreign Industrial Markets: A Strategy to Reduce the Liability of Foreignness

Abstract

By using the example of piggyback arrangements, we focus on the strategic issues of partnerships between exporting innovative SMEs and MNEs on foreign industrial markets. This research looks at two types of managerial contributions. On the one hand, it highlights co-marketing practices for an accelerated penetration and learning of a new foreign market for the SME. On the other hand, it stresses the importance of developing a sustainable management of partnership resources for the MNE in order to rapidly cover new market needs thanks to complementary products from small innovative firms.