International Performance of Small and Medium-Sized Firms: Proactiveness, International Experience and Networks

The objective of this data is to do research and examine the effect of proactive managerial behavior and international business networks on the international performance exhibited by an SME. In addition, we check whether managers with international experience take more proactive stances and use international networks when dealing with foreign markets. The results reveal that the international experience is not related to the use of international networks to deal with foreign markets. Rather, they show proactive stances towards export opportunities, which in turn, positively affects an SME's export intensity. However, and the geographical scope of its export sales and the speed of internationalization of a SME, seem to be unrelated to a manager's level of proactiveness in foreign markets.