Social Networking and Opportunity Recognition: A Focus on Internationalised Firms in South Africa

Abstract

Social networks serve as an important source for new business opportunities in foreign markets and are considered as one of the most significant resources for the internationalising firm in emerging markets. This article empirically examines how internationalised firms in under-researched African context access and use social networks to increase their recognition of opportunities. Hypotheses are formulated based on several social networking principles and are tested statistically. The findings highlight that interacting with international contacts more fre-quently is associated with higher levels of opportunity recognition when compared to firms with fewer interactions. Additionally, internationalised firms tend to spend more time developing and maintaining contacts which are associated with higher levels of opportunity recognition. The article makes a contribution to the international entrepreneurship literature by demonstrating that multiple social networking factors will raise the level of opportunity recognition for internationalised firms in South Africa.