Exploring the strategic motivation of internationalisation: Indonesian contractors’ perspectives

Although extensive research has been carried out on international construction, scant study in this domain exists which has paid attention to developing economies. The present study empirically investigates the above context from the perspective of one of the largest developing nations, Indonesia. Focus of this study is Indonesian contractors’ motivations to enter foreign marketplaces. An empirical approach integrating quantitative and qualitative techniques was adopted to address the research question. The primary data were collected through questionnaires distributed to large Indonesian contractors. Descriptive statistical method and relative importance index (RII) were employed for data analysis. In the discussion the survey results were triangulated with the interview findings. The results clarify that the reason to pursue overseas projects was motivated by multiple-motivations rather than a single one. The major motivations were to increase profitability, to benefit competitive advantage, to expand business, to capitalize on globalization/free trade regions, to respond to project sponsor’s invitation and to gaininternational experience. An implication of these findings is that the existing condition of the companies should be taken into consideration when measuring companies’ motivation levels in pursuing overseas projects.