| Economic Capacity (ECAP) |
Total Sales (TOSA) |
It refers to the funds received for the activities developed in compliance with the business mission through the sale of goods or services, in other words, all income that comes from the chief corporate purpose of the company (Plan Único de Cuentas, 2022a). |
According to Milevoj et al., (2021) , a firm's total sales is strongly associated with its internationalization thus, it is a key factor when differentiating internationalized and non-internationalized firms. Moreover, Bruneel et al., (2018) , found out that a local mind-set sustains a negative impact in the growth of a company's international sales. |
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Costs (COST) |
Includes those accounts related to the direct and indirect costs used for the production or provision of goods and services sold by the company (Plan Único de Cuentas, 2022b). |
The competitiveness of a firm possesses a direct influence on its internationalization (Elena-Mădălina et al., 2017), this factor can be strengthened by various strategies, among them it is important to highlight the reduction of costs that is able to stimulate the international involvement of a company (Belniak, 2015). |
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Total Assets (TOAS) |
It groups all the accounts related to the tangible and intangible assets and rights owned by the company. Their sale can produce future benefits for the firm (Plan Único de Cuentas, 2022). |
Kirca et al., (2016) , establish that the utilities and value generated by the assets is positively related to the firm’s size and presence abroad. Furthermore, one of the motives for the internationalization of EMNEs is the acquisition of strategic assets (Ahsan et al., 2020). |
| Sustainability (SUST) |
Emissions tCo2 (EMCO) |
tCO2 is the acronym for the measurement of total carbon dioxide and it refers to the consolidated number of CO2 emissions produced by a firm; thus, it is a principal factor in the mitigation of global warming (Chen, 2022). |
Firstly, Chen (2022) established that internationalization encourages firms to adopt more environmentally beneficial practices. Furthermore, as Perkins, & Neumayer (2008) proposed, international companies sustain more technology transfer, the aforementioned can accelerate the reduction of pollution in their processes trough environmentally sustainable innovations. |
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Gender Equality (GEEQ) |
According to the United Nations (2022), gender equality is a human right and is based on the egalitarianism, therefore, the no discrimination of people based on their sex in any context. |
In the first place, gender social agreements limit business decisions and techniques worldwide, affecting the company's capital, networks, and resources (Pergelova et al., 2018). Moreover, Zimmerman and Brouthers (2012) , discovered that the gender configuration of the senior executives strongly linked to the international diversification of a firm. |
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Investment in Communities (INCO) |
Investment in communities refers to a fraction of corporate social responsibility where the firms commit themselves to support local communities using resources in order to improve their life quality (Commission of the European Communities, 2001). |
Aray et al., (2021) , argue that internationalization possesses various effects in corporate social responsibility, the most enormous is shown in activities that are relevant to the society and community. Moreover, supporting social-related practices is likely to reduce pressure between companies and regulators, the aforesaid, can lower costs and surpass regulatory barriers providing the company more resources to exploit within its internationalization course (Khojastehpour & Saleh, 2019). |
| Technology (TECH) |
Foreign Shareholders (FOSH) |
It refers to the number of foreign investors within a firm, thus, it represents the fraction in which a company's stocks are owned overseas (Tsafack, & Guo, 2021). |
It is significant to measure the degree in which they are owned internationally since the foreign direct investment (FDI) in a company provides technology transfers and most importantly export market access. Moreover, FDI often enhances productivity and reduces the technological gap, those prerogatives can be used to expand to other markets (Singh, 2017). Put differently, is an indicator of integration that demonstrates the links connecting economies. |
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Local Suppliers (LOSU) |
It is a compound word that refers to the number of national companies that provide goods, inputs or deliver services to a firm (Taherdoost & Brard, 2019). |
The number of local suppliers of a firm act as the opposite value of their presence in the global value chains (GVCs). Participation in GVCs measures how many intermediate supplies companies import to produce their goods, showing the integration of a firm in the global economy. Moreover, participation in the GVCs sustains a direct impact in the productivity of a company (DNP, 2021). In this manner, the contrary effect is expected when firms only possess local suppliers and are unintegrated in the GVCs. |
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Remote Work (REWO) |
It is a working method where employees are no longer exercising their activities from the headquarters of the companies but from wherever they choose through the virtual environments and communication technology systems (Allen, Golden, & Shockley, 2015; Ozimek, 2020). |
Global integration allows the companies to carry their operations worldwide, thus, the geographical dispersion of a firm's workers acts as a consequence of the internationalization and the use of communication technology (Mayo et al., 2009) |
| Human Capital (HUCA) |
Foreign Employees (FOEM) |
It represents the number of employees that work outside the firm's host country, Santacreu-Vasut and Teshima (2016) , state that this percentage of workers present an opportunity for technology transfer. |
As companies that operate in sectors with low technological exposure (Gonzalez-Perez & Velez-Ocampo, 2014), Colombian Multilatinas are firms that require physical presence in the various countries where they possess activities, thus, a workforce to operate. The foreign to total employee’s ratio measures the commitment of a firm abroad since it evaluates their capacities as outward investor and not just as a receiver. |
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Employee Satisfaction (EMSA) |
Employee satisfaction represents the degree of contentment of the workers with their jobs within a firm, in other words, how much gratification they feel in the role they perform in the company (Auer and Antoncic, 2011). |
Milovanovic et al., (2022) , state that the success of an internationalization process depends on the capacity of the firm to embrace change from both their internal and external environment. The authors say that change can only be achieved when the employees are involved, ready and open to it, it was shown that job satisfaction has a positive effect in their readiness for change, thus, the psychological barriers are crucial to the internationalization process. |
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Average Training Hours (ATHO) |
The average training hours represents the meantime expended by workers in instruction to develop their skills, according to Dumas and Hanchane (2010) , training should be included as a development strategy for the employees by the human resources department. |
According to DNP (2021), a low level of internationalization is associated with the technological gap in firms. Technology represents a broad concept that covers various topics such as the employees' knowledge. The foregoing is difficult to acquire, and hours of training are essential, thus, it could be asserted that an increase in the training of the employees is associated with a reduction on the technological gap, therefore, an increase in the internationalization of a company. |
The internationalization of Colombian Multilatinas: a composite indicator analysis
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Source:
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Source: Own Elaboration.