26th International Association for Management of Technology Conference - IAMOT 2017

Innovation and Export are generally considered as two different activities, but being in relation to each other. Indeed, a link between innovation and export was identified both within the scientific literature as with the bodies specialized in the support for companies. The research works studying this link are plentyful and the advantages of a coupling of the support services concerning innovation and export was detected. Yet, although this link is identified in a theoretical way, in practice the support services integrating a joint vision of innovation and export are rare. They represent nevertheless an interesting way to manage the complexity of companies and they take all their importance in the particular context of SMEs, for whom the mobilizable resources are limited. Encouraging SME to consider innovation and export in a joint way allows them to favor actions having a simultaneous impact on these two activities and thus to decrease the effort associated with the improvement of their performance. The objective of this contribution is to propose a support tool for SME putting into practice this joint vision. This tool of diagnosis, called PE2I (Potential Exportation and Innovation Index), relies on a joint methodology of evaluation of the innovation and exportation capability of SME. Thus the main specificity of this tool is that it concentrates on the activities/resources/skills which a SME has to mobilize first and foremost to improve in a simultaneous way its performances concerning innovation and export, while reducing the effort associated with its performance improvement. This index measures the maturity of the joint activities innovation/export realized within companies. It makes it possible to propose a diagnosis of the situation of a company by identifying its strengths and its weak points, and gives an indication to its potential domain of preference (innovation and\or export). The PE2I indeed relies on the principle of "Measuring to better Manage". So as to support SMEs on the long term and in a relevant way, it is so necessary to know the current situation of companies through an evaluation of their potential innovation and exportation capability. Then, from this current situation, it is then possible to propose them customized ways of improvement, adapted to the particular situation of the company, as well as to its strategy of development. The company wishes to favor its development in the foreign markets? The PE2I will identify the main levers so that it reaches this goal. On the contrary, the company wishes to turn more significantly to the innovation? The PE2I will propose then potentially different levers of action. The company wishes to set up a common strategy for innovation and export? Even there, adapted levers of action will be identified. Thus this communication will be structured in the following way. First, the context of innovation and export in SME will be presented, in order to put forward the contributions of a coupling innovation/export for the SMEs’ support. Then, the methodology of conception of the PE2I will be detailed and a case study will be finally proposed.