Effectuation and internationalisation: a review and agenda for future research

Effectuation theory has been increasingly applied in research examining the internationalisation of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This study systematically reviews the SME internationalisation literature to clarify the ways effectuation theory helps international entrepreneurship (IE) scholarship respond to key questions of how international opportunities are developed. The review identified central topics of limited resources, networking, and an unplanned approach, which connect effectuation with extant internationalisation research. In so doing, the study offers two contributions. The first is an articulation of effectual mechanisms at work in IE opportunity development. The second offers insights back to effectuation theory regarding the context of IE and potential areas for improving the application of effectuation to IE research. We close with implications and an agenda for future research.