Firm capabilities, use of Internet technologies and export performance: an empirical study of Polish exporters

PurposeThe objective of the paper is to examine the effects of firm capabilities on the use of Internet technologies, as well as the effect of the use of Internet technologies on export performance, by drawing from the resource-based view (RBV) and the information systems literature.Design/methodology/approachThe authors test their propositions by using structural equation modelling (SEM) for 165 Polish exporters from the industrial manufacturing sector.FindingsThe authors’ findings indicate that the use of Internet technologies is positively related to the possessed capabilities of the firms. The use of Internet technologies is in turn positively related to export performance. The authors also find partial evidence for the fact notion that these relationships are moderated by the technology intensity of the sector.Research limitations/implicationsFirms which develop capabilities utilizing Internet technologies are able to enhance both communication and distribution efficiencies which in turn improve the effectiveness of their international operations.Practical implicationsManagers, particularly in sectors with a higher technological intensity, can find these findings useful as the study indicates where they should allocate their efforts to manage various Internet technologies activities for better export performance.Originality/valueExisting literature has focused predominantly on the application of Internet technologies in the area of e-commerce. The authors go a step further in enhancing the understanding of digitalization in the business models of exporting firms by accounting for a broad variety of Internet-based technologies used by exporters.