Norliza Hamir Basah1, Ng Siew Imm2, Ho Jo Ann3 Raja Nerina Raja Yusof4
1Department of International Business, Universiti Utara Malaysia (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) 2Department of Management and Marketing, Universiti Putra Malaysia (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) 3Department of Management and Marketing, Universiti Putra Malaysia (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) 4Department of Management and Marketing, Universiti Putra Malaysia (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study is to investigate the antecedents that influence the relationship between Malaysian SME exporters and foreign intermediaries which could potentially lead to exporters’ performance. Previous studies have reported inconsistent findings for these critical factors (cultural similarity and relationship quality). Hence, this study examined the mechanism by which cultural similarity can led to export performance by focusing on three antecedents and one mediating factor (trust). This study applied the Internationalisation Process (IP) theory and the Relational Exchange Theory (RET) as the underpinnings theories. A quantitative method was implemented in this current study whereby primary data was derived from 203 SME manufacturing exporting firms in Malaysia. Structural Equation Modelling using SmartPLS technique was used for the data analysis. The results indicated that all the antecedents proposed in this study have a positively significant influence relationship. The findings also showed the relevance of the integrating theories to explain the export performance of Malaysian SMEs which use foreign intermediaries.
Keywords: SME, export performance, intermediary, relationship quality