In a survey, 76% of responding companies claim to have participated in internationalization activities in the last five years

Feevale Techpark companies are moving towards internationalization. This is what a survey carried out between November 2023 and January 2024 shows, with 73 companies of different levels of maturity installed at Feevale University technology park. Of these, around 76% said they had been involved in internationalization activities in the last five years, through joining projects and programs to get closer to the innovation environment abroad (28%); business mission abroad (28%); international fairs and events taking place in Brazilian territory (32%); and workshops, courses and other qualification events in the international area (28%).

Forty companies consider that they have some level of internationalization, either by selling to new customers abroad or to units abroad of customers already served in the Brazilian market. This also includes keeping partnerships for technological development abroad and/or offering products and services suitable for international target markets, which are the United States, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Colombia, Mexico, Italy and Portugal. As for the motivation for companies' interest in internationalization, the expansion of the market stands out.

Feevale's Director of Innovation, Daiana de Leonço Monzon, emphasizes that, based on this monitoring, it is possible to state that 48% of companies in Feevale Techpark are internationalized. “This data will enable us to think about actions to serve those companies in the park that are already internationalized and in those with the intention of internationalizing. We can also create joint initiatives, so that enterprises that already have experience in the international market can help those that are in this internationalization process”, she points out. In the questionnaire, 20 companies stated that they intended to internationalize in the next five years.

Feevale Techpark coordinator, Manuela Bruxel, states that, based on the data obtained by the research, some actions will be reinforced, and others will be developed.

Thinking about a structured process for the internationalization of the park, the incubator and our companies is part of the maturity brought by the Cerne 4 certification”, she assesses.

Awarded this year to the Feevale Technological Incubator, by the National Association of Entities Promoting Innovative Enterprises (Anprotec), in partnership with the Micro and Small Business Support Service (Sebrae), the Cerne 4 certification recognizes that the environment is mature enough to position yourself globally.

Ecosystem support for internationalization

When asked about how Feevale Techpark can help them in the internationalization process, companies reported being interested, respectively, in face-to-face meetings with potential international partners who are visiting Brazil; online business rounds with companies from innovation ecosystems in other countries; online meetings with potential international partners of Feevale Techpark; international business missions for immersion in international markets; support for holding meetings with potential business partners at the mission destination; and workshop on market trends.

Professor Moema Pereira Nunes, advisor for the Market axis of Feevale technology park, conducted the research with the enterprises, and points out that companies in the innovation ecosystem are seeking the international market as an opportunity to expand their business, despite many of them still be young. “Internationalization is a challenge for companies, and an innovation ecosystem can support them in this stage. The research made it possible to identify the demands of companies in terms of activities that Feevale Techpark can offer to help them enter and consolidate themselves in the foreign market”, explains Moema. The research was applied to 53 resident companies, 15 incubated, four installed in batch mode and one pre-incubated.