The international new ventures: Applicability of the theory on the Slovak innovative start-Ups

Abstract

The international new ventures literature focuses on the phenomenon of rapid internationalization of firms. Unlike the traditional theories focusing on MNCs, the new international ventures literature emphasizes the growing occurrence of firms becoming internationally active already from their inception. The fundamental focus of this concept lies within the firm’s age, not the size when examining its ability to internationalize. Special attention is also paid to the aspect of entrepreneurial behavior and constantly changing international environment, including recent technological advances, increasing mobility of human capital, higher availability of financing options, and a growing number of internationally experienced staff. There is not enough literature on the internationalization of the start-ups from Central and Eastern Europe and therefore we try to test the applicability of this theory on the case of selected Slovak IT firms.