نوع مقاله : مقاله علمی پژوهشی
نویسندگان
1 دانشجو دکتری، رشته خط مشی گذاری عمومی، دانشکده مدیریت و اقتصاد، دانشگاه تربیت مدرس
2 استاد تمام ، گروه مدیریت دولتی، دانشکده مدیریت و اقتصاد، دانشگاه تربیت مدرس، تهران، ایران
3 استادیار، گروه بازرگانی بینالملل، دانشکده تجارت و بازرگانی، دانشکدگان مدیریت، دانشگاه تهران، تهران، ایران
چکیده
کلیدواژهها
موضوعات
عنوان مقاله [English]
نویسندگان [English]
Abstract
Purpose:
This study aims to examine the institutional challenges confronting Export Management Companies (EMCs) in Iran. These entities, inherently positioned as potential intermediaries between small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and global markets, have become entangled in institutional ambiguity, structural instability, and weak coordination among governing bodies. By analyzing the interweaving of institutional, organizational, and cognitive factors, the paper develops an analytical framework to redesign the internationalization mechanism of SMEs and empower EMCs through an integrative model combining North–Scott’s institutional theory and the Uppsala learning model within a network-based approach.
Methodology:
Conducted through an interpretive–constructivist paradigm and employing a qualitative thematic analysis, data were collected from fourteen semi structured interviews with EMC executives, association members, and government officials. Purposeful and snowball sampling continued until theoretical saturation was achieved. Data were analyzed via MAXQDA in three stages—open, axial, and selective coding. Data validity was ensured by member checking, peer review, and audit-trail verification. The process yielded 379 concepts, 63 basic themes, 12 core themes, and 3 institutional clusters reflecting the bureaucratic, cognitive, and cultural layers of the national trade governance system.
Findings:
The results reveal that the limitations facing EMCs stem from the uneven and inter causal interaction of three institutional clusters regulative, cognitive, and normative. Within the regulative cluster, instability of trade rules and overlapping organizational authorities have weakened institutional trust and undermined network cooperation among export actors. The cognitive cluster is characterized by misalignment between policymaking logic and the practical experience of EMCs, compounded by technological deficiencies that obstruct learning flows and knowledge sharing across export networks. The normative cluster exhibits fragmented state interventions, weak professional associations, and disconnections between commercial and diplomatic bodies, all of which disrupt trust norms and long term cooperative ties. In the integrative perspective of institutional, Uppsala, and network theories, these clusters jointly form a cycle of institutional lock in, wherein legal instability hinders collective learning processes and normative fragility obstructs the reconstruction of trust and institutional commitment.
Conclusion and Implications:
Conclusion and Implications: Based on the three cluster analysis, reforming the institutional structure of EMCs requires coordinated action across three complementary levels. First, the establishment of an official system for recognition and accreditation of companies will stabilize their legal standing and reduce overlapping jurisdictions, thereby restoring institutional trust and regulatory coherence. Second, governmental support should shift from short term financial incentives toward investment in intangible assets such as data driven intelligence, shared branding, and technological innovation to close the cognitive gap and reinforce organizational learning capacity. Third, a clear delineation of mandates among the Trade Promotion Organization, the Small Industries Organization, and professional associations can ameliorate normative inconsistency and institutionalize a sustainable framework for dialogue and coordination among the actors of export governance.
کلیدواژهها [English]
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