Proceedings of Annual Tokyo Business Research Conference
15 - 16 December 2014, Waseda University, Tokyo, japan, ISBN: 978-1-922069-67-2
Learning Orientation, Entrepreneurship Orientation, and
Relationship Commitment among SME Exporters: The
Moderating Function of Communication
Daud Ismail*
Building partnerships with foreign importers or distributors is critical for small
and medium enterprises with limited resources. Doing so can help them
leverage the resources of their partners and enhance their performance in
foreign markets. Within this context, commitment to the relationship stands as
an important cross-border relationship dimension. In addition, learning
orientation and entrepreneurship orientation have been highlighted in the
literature as important variables to develop relationship commitment. The
literature also demonstrates that effective communication between partners is
the critical function of relationship closeness and strength. This study used the
resource-based view. We collected data from small and medium business
exporters in the manufacturing sector. The sample contained a total of 193
participants. Data were analyzed using hierarchical moderated regression
analysis, and results showed that entrepreneurship orientation is positively
related to relationship commitment. The findings also highlight that the
relationship between learning orientation and commitment was moderated by
communication.
JEL Codes: M10, M16 and M19
*
Md Daud Ismail, School of Management, Faculty of Economic and Management, Universiti Kebangsaan
Malaysia, Malaysia. Email: mddaud@ukm.edu.my