Title: Strategic use of corporate and scientific boards in the internationalisation of biotech firms

Authors: Sophie Veilleux; Marie-Josée Roy

Addresses: Faculty of Business Administration, Université Laval, Pavillon Palasis-Prince, 2325, rue de la Terrasse, Quebec (Quebec), G1V 0A6, Canada ' Faculty of Business Administration, Université Laval, Pavillon Palasis-Prince, 2325, rue de la Terrasse, Quebec (Quebec), G1V 0A6, Canada

Abstract: Biotech firms are faced with particularly complex decisions early in their development. Because of the specific nature of their products, their growth strategy rapidly entails the internationalisation of their activities, especially through alliances. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) wishing to develop and access complementary skills may use corporate boards and scientific advisory boards. The resource-based view provides a compelling rationale for efficiently using these external sources of knowledge in order to access the key resources SMEs need to improve their performance. This study investigates how corporate and scientific advisory boards are involved in the internationalisation of biotech firms through strategic alliances. Based on semi-structured interviews and secondary data from 22 biotechnology firms, we describe the characteristics of these external sources of strategic advice and explore their impact on the firms' internationalisation. A discussion of the results, along with their implications for future research and managerial practices are also presented.

Keywords: board of directors; scientific advisory boards; internationalisation; biotechnology; strategic alliances; biotech SMEs; small and medium-sized enterprises; knowledge transfer; resource-based view; RBV; strategic management; competencies; governance.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTE.2015.067107

International Journal of Technoentrepreneurship, 2015 Vol.3 No.1, pp.67 - 93

Received: 26 Mar 2014
Accepted: 24 Sep 2014
Published online: 26 Jan 2015 *

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