Improving export performance of contractors from China

Purpose – Construction firms in the People's Republic of China (PRC) have been exporting their services to foreign countries. The aim of this research is to study how PRC contractors can improve their export performance. The specific objectives are to: ascertain the performance outcomes of projects undertaken by PRC contractors; identify strategies that PRC firms adopt to enable them to export effectively; and recommend areas in which PRC firms can improve their export performance.Design/methodology/approach – The research design is a multi‐pronged approach, comprising industry‐wide postal/e‐mail survey using a structured questionnaire, in‐depth face‐to‐face interviews with PRC firms operating in Singapore and Singaporean firms that had worked with PRC firms in Singapore. Open‐ended questions were administered for the interviews.Findings – The results show that PRC firms adopt cost leadership, diversification and networking strategies effectively. They generally have strong financial capacity and receive ...

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