Internationalisation in the Cloud. An explorative case study into the foreign market expansion of SaaS providers

Master's Thesis , 2016 , 108 Pages , Grade: 1,0

Business economics - Business Management, Corporate Governance

This thesis investigates the internationalisation complexities of cloud technology vendors. To enhance the understanding of foreign market expansion of cloud providers, this study sought to answer the overarching research questions: how do cloud providers internationalise and is available literature to date still relevant for cloud technology vendors? The researchers utilised a single case study of NN, an expanding Danish cloud SME, to provide indepth insights for the business literature realm which has so far attracted scarce research. Literature has focused almost exclusively on SMEs, MNCs and born globals, but cloud providers were mostly ignored. To date, little systematic investigations have considered that the dynamics and processes of internationalisation significantly change in a cloud context.

The most important contribution is a research model encompassing twelve moderator variables impacting the performance of cloud firms. Their suggested influence was drawn from a thorough theoretical analysis of contemporary internationalisation literature from the 1950s to the present day. Thereby both versions of the Uppsala Model of Internationalisation by Johanson and Vahlne (1977, 2009) were selected as suitable to provide structure for the research model, namely the process model and the network model. Complementing the four categories of the Uppsala Model, the research model was enhanced with two additional categories so as to examine cloud vendor internationalisation.

Using a sample of five employees who are directly responsible for internationalisation activities of the case company NN, this thesis offers interesting insights into the complexities of cloud internationalisation. The findings illustrate that internationalisation literature to date is still useful for examining internationalisation performance, and in particular the network model. However, since cloud vendors mainly operate virtually, this brings forth many advantages and disadvantages which have previously not been considered. Theoretical contributions and implications for future research are discussed. This thesis provides support for ten out of twelve items and offers various compelling areas for future research.

Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)

• Acknowledgements
• Abstract
• Table of Contents
• List of Abbreviations
• List of Figures and Tables
• 1 Introduction
• 1.1 Problem Definition and Objective
• 1.2 Course of Investigation
• 2 Literature Review
• 2.1 Conceptualisation of Cloud Technology
• 2.2 Theories of Internationalisation & The Uppsala Model
• 2.2.1 The Economic Perspective
• 2.2.2 The Behavioural Perspective
• 2.2.3 The Relational Perspective
• 2.2.4 The Entrepreneurial Perspective
• 2.2.5 The Uppsala Model: The Process Model of 1977
• 2.2.6 The Uppsala Model: The Network Model of 2009
• 2.3 Knowledge & Networks in Internationalisation Literature
• 2.3.1 The Process Model and Knowledge
• 2.3.2 The Network Model and Knowledge
• 2.3.3 Experiential Knowledge
• 2.3.4 Other Types of Knowledge
• 2.3.5 Individual Characteristics
• 2.3.6 Learning and Knowledge Absorption
• 2.3.7 Relationships and Network Positioning
• 2.4 Effects of Cloud Technology on Internationalisation
• 3 Case Company Overview
• 4 Methodology
• 4.1 Research Model
• 4.2 Data Collection
• 4.2.1 Qualitative Interview Structure
• 4.2.2 Participants
• 4.3 Data Analysis
• 4.4 Deductive Category Assignment
• 4.4.1 Definition of the Category System from Theory
• 5 Results
• 5.1 Market Knowledge / Knowledge Opportunities
• 5.1.1 Entrepreneurial Dispositions (H1+)
• 5.1.2 Network Opportunities (H8+)
• 5.2 Market Commitment / Network Position
• 5.2.1 Network Opaqueness (H3-)
• 5.2.2 Varied Portfolio (H6+)
• 5.2.3 Network Composition and Dependency (H7a-, H7b+)
• 5.3 Commitment Decisions / Relationship Commitment Decisions
• 5.3.1 International Employee (H9+)
• 5.4 Current Activities / Learning, Creating, Trust-Building
• 5.4.1 Learning (H2+)
• 5.4.2 Virtuality Trap (H11-)
• 5.5 Cloud-Specific Product Attributes
• 5.5.1 Relationship Service (H5+)
• 5.5.2 Information Good (H10+)
• 5.6 Cloud-Specific Market / Customer-Related Factors

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)

This thesis explores the complexities of internationalization within the context of cloud technology vendors. It aims to understand how cloud providers expand into foreign markets and determine if existing internationalization literature remains relevant to these businesses. Through a case study of NN, an expanding Danish cloud SME, the study seeks to fill the gap in the business literature, which has largely neglected cloud providers.

• Internationalization strategies of cloud providers
• Relevance of existing internationalization literature to cloud technology vendors
• The influence of cloud technology on internationalization dynamics
• Development of a research model incorporating moderator variables impacting cloud firm performance
• Analysis of the Uppsala Model of Internationalization in the cloud context

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)

Chapter 1 introduces the research problem and objectives, outlining the specific questions the study aims to answer. Chapter 2 presents a comprehensive review of relevant literature, encompassing conceptualizations of cloud technology and theories of internationalization, including the Uppsala Model. Chapter 3 provides an overview of the case company, NN, highlighting its role in the cloud technology sector. Chapter 4 details the methodology used in the study, including the research model, data collection methods, and data analysis techniques. Chapter 5 presents the results of the study, examining the impact of various factors on cloud provider internationalization performance.

Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)

Cloud technology, internationalization, SaaS providers, cloud vendor internationalization, Uppsala Model, network model, process model, knowledge, networks, SME, business literature, moderator variables, cloud-specific factors.

• College: Copenhagen Business School (Department of Intercultural Communication and Management)
• Grade: 1,0
• Author: Christina Küppers (Author)
• Publication Year: 2016
• Pages: 108
• Catalog Number: V369378
• ISBN (eBook): 9783668485563
• ISBN (Book): 9783668485570
• Language: English
• Tags: Cloud technology, Internationalization, Market entry, Strategy