Keys to internationalisation

Over the last few decades there have been many changes that have affected our socio-economic environment. Technological advances, changes in communication processes, easy access to information, the explosion of transport techniques and the development of logistics along with the deregulation and progressive growth of free circulation of merchandise have given rise to new relationships in socio-political, technical-economic and commercial fields. The result is: a dynamic increase in world-wide global economy, internationalisation of the competition and interconnection of markets.

Galician companies cannot ignore this reality. The globalisation of production processes is a fact that directly affects us, whether or not we wish to have a presence in foreign markets.

Galicia has sufficient potential to offer goods, services and ideas with a high added value. Therefore we must transform this potential into an increase in the international competitiveness of our companies. Aware of this reality, the Foreign Trade and Industrial Promotion want to help you do this.

• First: analyse your company
  To achieve a consolidated presence in foreign markets implies change and the company as a whole needs to adapt. It is not as simple as setting up a Foreign Trade Department and contracting an Administrator who  speaks English. We ask you to analyse your company in detail before taking any steps into the foreign market.

• Next: know your environment
  Diagnosing your environment is essential to drawing-up your international strategy. This will help you know if you are prepared to go into this market.

• Lastly: plan your strategy
  After internal and external analysis, you can identify your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Identify these factors and evaluate them. You can use a table similar to this one:

The Valuation section can use a numeric scale. If a points system of 1 to 7, for example, is used, 7 is given to the most positive elements of your company and for which you stand out from the competition. For those areas that are extremely negative and really require improvement a 1 can be given. Those elements that are given a valuation lower than 4 are considered to be threats or weaknesses. Those elements that are given a higher valuation are classified as being strengths or opportunities. Before points are assigned, it is recommended that you think of the relevance of the factors for the company. You can classify them as being high, low, or average.

Once all the important factors of your company have been identified, evaluated, and classified, conclusions can now be made. The importance of doing an analysis of this type is not to identify the factors that influence the internationalisation of your company and leave them as a list. You need to compare the negative factors with the positive factors and the conclusions you obtain help you draw-up your strategic approach. The factors that are considered to be the most important for the company are those that should influence the preparation of your strategic approach. If the elements classified as important are weaknesses or threats you should correct them at all costs. If, on the contrary, they are classified as opportunities or strengths you should look for ways of optimising them and using them to competitive advantage.

• Analyse your company
• Know the environment