An expert system for systematic international market selection

Abstract

We tested and examined the use of systematic international market selection (IMS) in the case of a library software/automation provider in a Nordic country. The purpose of our study was to investigate how the case company defined the most suitable markets for entry, using a multi-criteria fuzzy expert decision support system. The study contributes to the IMS literature by highlighting the key issues that define the right market for entry. The study also shows how managers can supplement experiential knowledge with a systematic rational decision-making process in international market expansion. A fuzzy expert approach was used to test the data collected from the case company, a Nordic MNC, anonymised using the name International Library Systems. Qualitative data were collected from semi-structured interviews with key informants in the case company. The quantitative data used, were secondary data drawn from various statistical sources. The top two countries chosen by the system, confirmed the company's initial choice. The findings indicated the ability of the proposed rule-based expert system to maintain a consistent logic for the managers, allowing them to follow a more formal procedure than one based solely on intuition, when selecting new markets to enter.