Seizing Born Global Potential : A Resource-Based Comparative Study on the Impact of Incubators on Born Global Internationalization

Sammanfattning: The Scandinavian country of Sweden is a huge facilitator of startups through its’ large network of incubators where Born Global residents are becoming a more frequent sight. The Born Global firm is a novel type of company that contradicts the traditional means of internationalization. In order to realize startup potential, the obtainment of resources of varying amounts and scope is essential. But for a Born Global startup, achievement of its internationalization prospects requires making use of a unique set of resources that facilitate and enables the fulfillment of such global capabilities. The purpose of this paper is to identify the resources that are crucial for a Born Global in an internationalization context and whether or not Swedish incubators can provide these crucial resources to Born Globals. The analysis is based on the findings from semi-structured interviews with members from 3 Incubators and 4 Born Global companies in the incubation process within their respective incubators. Using a comparative study, alignments and gaps have been identified between what incubators have provided and what Born Globals consider crucial for internationalization. The conclusion of this study leads to an addition to the theory of the Incubator Best Practice Model, elaborated by Bergek and Norrman where the facilitation of the unique resources required by Born Global companies is emphasized. Additionally, the authors provide suggestions on managerial implementations for Born Global managers. These suggestions concern thorough assessments of their individual resource needs, and policy recommendations to incubators about the facilitation of the specific resources required for a Born Global and its effort to internationalize.