What drives the export performance of small and medium-sized subcontracting firms? A study of Korean manufacturers

•We develop a model of subcontracting SMEs’ export performance.•We study the export performance of South Korean subcontracting SMEs.•Technological resources and executives’ managerial capabilities enhance exports.•Balanced subcontracting customer networks contribute to export performance.

Building on the resource-based view and network theory, we propose and test a framework of export antecedents of subcontracting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Whereas the internationalization of firms has been extensively studied in general, little is known about what drives the exports of subcontracting SMEs which play a very important role in the manufacturing sectors of East Asian economies. These subcontracting firms operate under very different conditions from other companies, resulting in specific ways they leverage their resources, capabilities and customer networks. An analysis of survey data from 1733 subcontracting SMEs in three South Korean manufacturing industries reveals that the firms’ export orientation and export intensity are related not only to their technological resources and their executives’ managerial capabilities, but also to features of their subcontracting network ties. Our study suggests that due to the specific nature of their business, subcontracting firms’ internationalization antecedents need to be analyzed in the context of their business environment which is strongly shaped by their customer relationships.