Entrepreneurial Leadership as a Determining Factor in the Internationalisation of Technology Driven Knowledge Intensive Services within Spanish SMEs

Abstract

The aim of this research project is to generate a general framework to evaluate entrepreneurial leadership as a driving influence in the internationalisation process of a Knowledge Intensive SME and to understand behavioural patterns of entrepreneurial leadership which might influence its internationalization.The study uses a sample of 892 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the technology based knowledge intensive sectors from the Spanish Technological and Innovation Panel (PITEC) to analyse the impact of three dimension of entrepreneurial leadership -entrepreneurial and managerial elements; absorptive capacity and networks elements and strategic and innovative elements- upon exports as one of those preferred vehicles for SME internationalisation. The research uses linear and logistic regressions to examine the links of the different components of entrepreneurial leadership and shows the extent of a positive relationship between the proposed constructs of entrepreneurial leadership with the internationalisation of knowledge intensive SME in Spain.An additional value of the research is to provide a better understanding of the future of new enabling technologies for SMEs and their possible impact in any international endeavour where entrepreneurial leadership plays a critical function.