Simulation of cross-border business activity : a case study of the EU eastern border

Abstract

PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify the forms and stimulants of Polish enterprises' crossborder activity near the EU eastern border.

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: A qualitative and quantitative analysis of the empirical material gathered was required to accomplish the research objective. The study was based mainly on a preliminary study conducted on a sample of 244 enterprises located in the border zone of Poland, neighboring former USSR republics which are not parts of the EU, i.e., Russian, Ukraine, and Belarus. The gathered data were analyzed with structure indices, the importance index, and the Mann-Whitney U test.

FINDINGS: The hypothesis that an enterprise's location in the border zone has a beneficial impact on its activity in the neighboring market was rejected due to the study. Moreover, the study has shown that entrepreneurs' expectations regarding potential support for their activity differed depending on their presence in foreign markets. This, in turn, confirmed the hypothesis that various groups of factors stimulate individual forms of enterprise activity in the neighboring national market.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The study has shown that the supportive measures for the cross-border activity of enterprises should consider the extent of their involvement in relations of this type and the form of such activity on the neighboring market.

ORIGINALITY/VALUE: Despite many studies of enterprise expansion outside the country, they were found to focus on support measures for enterprises entering international markets, trends in international enterprise expansion, or concerned individual borders. It was necessary to take up empirical studies concerning motives for businesses to undertake activity in cross-border markets in regions threatened with marginalization and the area close to the eastern EU border. Therefore, this study fills the gap in the literature of the subject concerning the forms of cross-border enterprise activity and the extent of their involvement in border areas.