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The role of management skills in exporting: a literature review study
This study analyzes and synthesizes existing scientific documentation on empirical studies related to managerial skills that companies and organizations engaged in or aiming to export expect from their human resources. These skills are essential for their operations in the international arena. The study focuses on literature from 2024, using the PRISMA method (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses). Open-access documents available in the Scopus and Springer databases were considered.
The study reveals that managerial skills are fundamental to the success of exporting companies, highlighting the synergy between innovation, technology, and specific managerial competencies such as strategic planning, multicultural leadership, and change management. The importance of soft skills, such as effective communication, negotiation, and emotional intelligence, is also emphasized for managing diverse teams and multicultural environments.
The research classifies these competencies into two broad categories: skills for business growth, focusing on expansion, innovation, and internationalization; and skills for operational sustainability, centered on logistics, resilience, and sustainability. It underscores the positive impact of strategic collaborations and gender diversity in senior management to promote internationalization, along with the need to integrate sustainable practices to ensure long-term responsible operations.
The study identifies certain gaps, such as the lack of measurement of the impact of managerial skills on export success, the absence of longitudinal studies evaluating their long-term effects, and a limited focus on small businesses and implementation barriers, such as insufficient resources or cultural resistance.
