The role of trust and contracts in the internationalization of technology-intensive Born Globals Kirsimarja Blomqvist a , Pia Hurmelinna-Laukkanen a, * , Niina Nummela b , Sami Saarenketo a a Lappeenranta University of Technology, Finland b Turku School of Economics, Finland Available online 14 March 2008 Abstract The purpose of this paper is to study the roles of trust and contracts in technology-intensive Born-Global firms (BGs). By definition these firms compete in the area of knowledge and cutting-edge innovation, use external resources, and internationalize at inception or soon thereafter. For entering global markets successfully, these firms typically need partners. However, attracting them requires disclosing critical knowledge, and thus BGs encounter the risk of losing their potential competitive advantage. Their global business environment is very competitive and dynamic, therefore traditional ways of operating may be too time-consuming to manage these risks. Consequently, we argue that for technology-based BGs, the role of trust and contracts are closely intertwined. The paper puts forward three propositions that highlight the roles of trust and contracting for technology-intensive BGs. # 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. JEL classification: L14; L25; M13 Keywords: Technology; Disclosure problem; Rapid internationalization; Born Globals; Contracting; Trust; Fast trust 1. Introduction The competitive environment of technology-intensive small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has changed dramatically during the last decade. Convergence, de-regulation and the blurring of industrial boundaries are subjecting various industries to major transformation. Technological trends are uncertain, as potentially disruptive technologies may drastically change www.elsevier.com/locate/jengtecman Available online at www.sciencedirect.com J. Eng. Technol. Manage. 25 (2008) 123–135 * Corresponding author at: School of Business, Lappeenranta University of Technology, P.O. Box 20, FI-53851, Finland. Tel.: +358 5 621 7211; fax: +358 5 621 7299. Oulu School of Business, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 4600, FI- 90014 University of Oulu, Finland. Tel.: +358 8 553 3900. E-mail addresses: pia.hurmelinna@lut.fi, pia.hurmelinna@oulu.fi (P. Hurmelinna-Laukkanen). 0923-4748/$ – see front matter # 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.jengtecman.2008.01.006