ANALYSIS OF THE STRATEGIES EMPLOYED BY GHANAIAN LOCAL SERVICE COMPANIES TO ENTER AND SURVIVE INTERNATIONAL MARKET COMPETITION

This paper investigates the internationalization strategies of Ghanaian service companies within the global market. The topic is necessitated by the increasing interest in the study of internationalization processes of local firms in this era of globalisation, which hitherto was the preserve of multinational enterprises from the developed world. There is very little research on internationalization processes of firms within the developing economy context as most of the existing literature is biased towards the developed economy context especial in the UK and USA. This paper examines the internationalization strategies of Ghanaian service companies within the international market in order to determine the key strategies adopted by Ghanaian service companies when expanding their operations abroad and the problems they face in the international market competition. The research is based on strategies of service-oriented firms in Ghana using semi-structured interviews, Documentary-written materials or non-written (media-based) materials, Key strategies such as mode of entry of the companies in the three service sector data analysis and interpretation processes. The results of this study validates previous studies, models and approaches such as Efficiency Approach and Systematic Planning Model: The resource based view which suggests that companies often expand their operations internationally based on the available resources in the market, Uppsala Model, contingency approach and the Stakeholder Approach. Implications are also drawn for service companies, policy makers and researchers.