Success factors of

internationalization
Taking startups global is a trending topic around the world. Yet there is
very little publicly available literature on structuring the phases of taking
a business overseas. This White Paper discusses through a framework
approach - what successful internationalization typically requires from the
team, product, business processes, positioning, and customer engagement.

WHITE PAPER 1/2016

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 1

Table of Contents
Introduction

The Takeoff Success Factors matrix

1. People: From entrepreneurs to an empowered

global organization

2. Solution: 5 steps to take a B2B software

product or service global

3. Scalability: How to avoid chaos while growing?

4. Positioning: How to grow into a global thought

leader?

5. Traction: Creating customer experiences that

translate into business growth

10

The Blancco growth story

12

The GIA growth story

14

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 2

Introduction
Theres a lot of talk these days about businesses being born global. Startup
companies are being founded and financed with the idea that their market potential
isnt limited to country borders, and that much of the marketing, sales, and even
delivery work can be done over the internet.
And its true the world does become smaller when youre online. Targeted
inbound marketing may attract potential buyers anywhere where theres an internet
connection. Through a web shop, a company can theoretically sell to anyone
online. Thats a big step forward from the times when the only realistic market entry
model was to physically enter a country overseas, either by setting up an own local
operation or through a channel partner.

Differences between countries

still require local adjustments to
business approaches

Yet the language and cultural barriers never dissapeared. Differences

between countries still require local adjustments to the approaches
that businesses take in their market entry strategies. Languages
vary. Habits and traditions vary. Legislation varies. Time zones are
here to stay. Finally, the more complex product one sells, the more
it typically requires localized assistance already in the presales stages.

Growth is rarely an accident but a result of systematic work

Takeoff Partners grew from the desire of seasoned entrepreneurs, growth advisors
and private investors putting their own experiences to work for other aspiring
entrepreneurs. Specifically, our area of focus is on internationalizing B2B software
and service businesses.
Through our own companies Blancco and GIA, the short case stories of which are
included in this White Paper, we have learned a number of best practices in taking a
business overseas. We are now seeing, in the role of investors and growth advisors,
how similar challenges companies are facing that we used to face when growing our
own companies. Hence we decided to put our thinking into a framework that we
hope can help others structure and manage their efforts in taking businesses beyond
home base.
Its not that any particular aspect covered in our framework would be completely
new or unheard of in the domain of startup growth and investing. The global startup
scene today is red hot, and many experienced business angels and advisors share
their experiences through blogs, speaking engagements and of course by working
hands on with startup entrepreneurs.
Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 3

Theres surprisingly little

existing literature on managing
internationalisation

Yet we were quite surprised to find that theres very little existing
literature on structuring the phases of taking a business overseas.
In other words, theres lots of insight and experience available
but very little of it is both structured and publicly available. Our
framework is an attempt to address this gap, and while it has so far
received quite a lot of positive feedback, were also happy to hear
critique or improvement ideas on it.

Have a plan that adjusts to changing realities, timeframe included

Were not trying to over-theorize growth and internationalization with our
framework. It would be naive to even think everything always follows a neatly staged
plan, or that the original schedules will hold. (They never do.) As a rule, plans will
change many times over as growth happens.

As a rule, plans will change many

times over as growth happens

However, we have also seen many aspiring growth companies

where the original plan was weakly prepared on some fronts, or
it was poorly executed, or in the worst case, there was no plan at
all. The result is often a chaotic organization that wastes investors
money, definitely does not reach its goals on growing abroad, and
as a side effect raises employees that are painfully aware of how
not to lead a growth company.

We hope that our framework for structuring international growth will support
ambitious entrepreneurs in planning their efforts a few steps ahead, and being
prepared when growth actually takes place. Eventually we hope the framework will
help entrepreneurs in turning great ideas into healthy and prosperous businesses globally.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 4

The Takeoff Success Factors matrix

No two companies are the same but most of them will face very similar challenges
while growing. The Takeoff Success Factors framework summarizes the best practices
we have discovered when internationalizing B2B software and service businesses.
Taking a business beyond its home turf is a matter of team, timing, product-market
fit, financial resources, and luck. But its also a matter of systematic leadership and
management work: Coping with the increasing complexity and evolving challenges
that growth and internationalization inevitably will bring.
We have identified five key topic areas that successful growth entrepreneurs will
need to put their efforts in:

From entrepreneurs to an empowered organization

Filling a global need, step by step

Delivering on the promise of scalable business

Earning a thought leaders position

People

Solution

Scalability

Positioning

Traction
Winning trust that translates into numbers

What exactly leadership needs to spend their time on will depend on the stage of
growth of the company. We have hence divided the growth path into five stages:
1) Getting started, 2) Getting ready, 3) International market entry, 4) International
growth facilitation, and 5) Running a global business.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 5

The Takeoff Success Factors framework that combines five success factors on rows
and five stages of internalization in columns briefly describes what should happen
with each success factor at each stage of growth. The descriptions, just like any best
practices, are indicative rather than black-and-white truths carved in stone.

1.
Getting
started

2.
Getting ready

3.
International
market entry

4.
International
growth
facilitation

5.
Running a
global
business

People

Core team has

ambitions, an
international
mindset
and relevant
experience. Early
business relies
on stretched
performance of the
core team.

Internationalization
capabilities
strengthened by
carefully selected
employees and
advisors. High quality
leadership and
appropriate incentive
schemes play a key
role.

Local staff are

hired with the right
competencies and
attitude. Leadership
focus remains on very
careful recruitment. A
global management
system is built.

Leadership works to
ensure a shared vision
among staff around
the world. Topic area
specialists and global
support roles emerge.

HR development
and talent
management
programs are
established to
ensure rewarding
career paths and
the right mix of
competencies.

Solution

The solution
responds to a
universal customer
need. Minimum
Viable Product
(MVP) is developed
with the first
customers.

The MVP is further

developed into
a product that
takes into account
international
requirements such as
taxes, languages, and
legislation.

The product is
introduced to new
markets overseas
with the minimum
necessary amount of
localization.

The product is
developed in
response to customer
needs and feedback,
while keeping
tight control of the
products core.

New releases
of the product
are developed
proactively. New
features reflect
best practices
discovered by
self or brought
from other service
environments.

Scalability

Focus is on
developing
repeatable
core processes
with a mindset
of continuous
learning and
improvement.

The core business

concept is
documented.
Handbooks and other
tools for knowledge
transfer are created.

The product is
introduced to new
markets overseas
with the minimum
necessary amount of
localization.

Focus shifts
towards continuous
improvement and an
increasingly efficient
work through learning
and e.g. offshoring.

The company
strives to maximize
the potential of its
business through
leveraging the
economies of scale.

Positioning Global market

Learning from the

first customers leads
to formulating and
documenting best
practices. They will
give the company
an own voice and
unique perspectives
in its marketing.

A thought leadership
marketing program
emerges, including
community building.
The company starts
to contribute to the
market by sharing
best practices.

A global thought
leadership program
exists with
regular marketing
deliverables. The
companys brand is
well known in the
industry.

The companys
brand is highly
respected in
the industry
and among
the reputable
industry media. A
global customer
community is
maintained and
nurtured.

Traction

Customers with
international
reference value
support sales to
new markets.
Investments in
internationalization
are tracked separately
from business at
home.

Local sales persuades

the first customers
to join on board,
with the help
of appropriate
incentives where
needed. Local
reference rights play
a key role.

Sales continues to
leverage international
reference customers.
Coordinated crossborder sales efforts
are a priority.

A satisfied customer
base from a number
of industry verticals
contributes to
global crossselling. Focus is
on operational
excellence, and
profitability will
reach targets.

understanding
builds on gathering
information,
attending industry
events, and doing
competitive
benchmarking.

Global market
understanding
builds on gathering
information,
attending industry
events, and doing
competitive
benchmarking.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 6

1. People: From entrepreneurs to an

empowered global organization
Lets start with the single most defining success factor, which is you
guessed it People. How does an internationalizing company make
sure it hires the right people and empowers them to turn the vision
into reality?

1) Getting started: Whos on the bus?

International growth takes a vision, and to start up a growth company, there should
be at least one visionary on board in the team, preferably several that can challenge
each others ideas. The vision doesnt need to be about solving world hunger (it
wont hurt though) but the founders need to be able to envision how their solution
will solve a genuine problem not only at home but in the global marketplace. This
will take ambition and a fearless attitude.
Of course, the founding team will need to know the business itself to make their
mark at home and overseas. And not only the business technically, but really the
potential customers and competition: Whom will they be up against? Does the
business idea have truly global potential? The team needs to know the business
landscape they will be entering. Finally, since the team will need to create its own
space in the ecosystem from scratch, the early growth will require multi-skilled
persons with a strong personal stamina and tolerance for long hours at work.

2) Getting ready: Borrowing the brains of the experienced

Getting ready for growing beyond the immediate home turf already puts pressure
on resources. Hiring very carefully is key. While the right advisors and/or recruits
can greatly accelerate the companys development, they may also eat up existing
resources and critically slow down progress, or in the worst case destroy the entire
plan.
Not all team members need to be permanent. Hiring talent through temporary
arrangements such as project contracts or advisor roles may be a great way to tap
into much needed expertise in a flexible fashion. No matter the technicalities of the
deal, incentives must be in line with expectations on both sides. Team leadership
practices also come into play: Working in silos rarely produces the desired results,
and the deliverables and working methods will need to be systematically managed.

3) International market entry: Seeking channels, partners and

local team members
Show time! Entering the selected markets abroad typically involves hiring new
people on the ground. Depending on how much the business model relies on pure
online sales, this phase may come along early on or further down the road.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 7

In any case, typically in a B2B market entry, at least a regional presence will become
necessary.

Not all staff need to be

permanent hires

Again, not all staff will need to be permanent hires. It may be a good
idea to involve consultants and experts on a contract basis to perform
specific tasks or to serve as suppliers. Engaging channel sales partners
may also be a good way of maximizing local sales and at the same time
testing out further cooperation prospects. Whatever the formal role of
the local persons involved, the quality of the recruitment process itself
remains essential.
As the team grows, so do the demands for managing not only payroll and health
benefits, but also the recruitment, target setting, KPIs, team building activities, and
employee satisfaction of personnel. An HR management system emerges.

4) International growth facilitation: Ensuring a shared vision and

culture
As the company adds dots on the map, it also adds to the diversity among the
people involved in the growth story. People management processes and tools will
be needed, and support roles will also emerge. Yet the support structures will never
make up for the increasingly important role of empowering leadership.

Employee groups need to

have a chance to meet each
other to engage in working
together for the vision

In addition to managing people processes, leadership needs to ensure

transparent communication in many ways. As the team is by now
spread across the world, the companys vision and strategy need to be
communicated to everyone. More importantly, they need to be shared
among the employees both at home and overseas. To achieve this,
employee groups will need to have a chance to meet each other at
least occasionally to really engage in working together for the vision.

5) Running a global business: Providing employees with

opportunities to grow
People dont want to be managed, especially not the skilful professionals needed
to run an ambitious company. Instead, they want an engaging vision, and leaders
to show a good example in reaching for the vision. They are also interested in being
recognized for their talent and ambitions. This is where many companies adopt
specific talent management and career development programs.
At this stage, the once small team of entrepreneurs will need to unlearn some of their
earlier hands-on skills and to transform themselves into coaches and leaders that
arrange for the rest of the organization to succeed. Its not rare to find entrepreneurs
doing soul searching: Am I a topic area expert or a people leader? Some may want to
adopt an experts role at this stage, or even launch into an entirely new endeavour.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 8

2. Solution: 5 steps to take a B2B software

product or service global
As discussed in the previous chapter, the team is often so critically
important in growing a startup, that it alone may make or break the
opportunity. But the product too will have to match the requirements
of a global marketplace.

1) Getting started: Solving a universal need

Have a great business idea? If you have the faintest ambition to one day take it
overseas, the first thing to consider is whether the solution truly solves a global need.
Or is it rather tied to a specific market area? This may sound obvious, yet doing ones
homework in researching the business potential in different market areas can take a
lot of time and effort.
If the decision is a go, then the first step is to develop a Minimum Viable Product with
the first customers. What is an MVP? It has just those very core features that allow the
product to be deployed, and no more. The idea is to develop the MVP for a subset of
possible customers that are likely to be early adopters, to give feedback, and to grasp
a vision from an early prototype. With a MVP, the aim is to avoid spending costly
resources on going down the wrong path for too long, and instead learn through
feedback received early on.

2) Getting ready: Making the solution international-proof

Once the solution has been validated with the first customers and they are ready to
endorse it, its time to make sure its adjusted to fit the local market requirements
abroad. Whatever the selected markets, youll need to make sure that local legislation
and taxation will be observed. Naturally, language versions also come into play.

3) International market entry: Maintaining an open mind and

focus in parallel
Now that everythings ready, its time to reach out to prospective customers abroad.
As always with new people exposed to a novel solution, discussions will likely bring
up new development and even localization ideas. Here, product management needs
to keep the reigns tight so as not to go after every wish but to maintain a global
focus. Localizations should be kept at minimum.

4) International growth facilitation: Product development based

on customer needs
With an increasingly diverse international customer base, new ideas are bound to
emerge that should actually be taken into account in product development. Its a
good idea to systematically screen and manage the incoming ideas, and to validate

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 9

them in a product leadership team that may also involve existing customers. The
best ideas will be released in the upcoming product versions globally.

5) Running a global business: So we made it global. Now how to

stay on top?
Customers expect global solution providers to stay on top of best practises in their
own industry but, increasingly, also in adjacent industries. If you have a solution
geared at, say HR, who knows if the perfect next step in product
development will be sparked by a popular feature in a customer
Customers expect global solution
survey application? Staying innovative is about proactively
providers to stay on top of best
looking around and searching for new ideas, while also staying
practises
close with the existing customers and lending a keen ear to their
evolving needs.

3. Scalability: How to avoid chaos while

growing?
Many startups have a great team and a great product. Yet its not rare
to come across a company whose internationalization is hindered
by structures, tools and processes that do not scale. In other words,
the less visible business architecture in the background is not ready
to take on new countries or departments without major reshuffling.
Scalability is about being prepared when the much desired growth
materializes.

1) Getting started: Learning from the very first steps

Starting a new business from scratch comes with uncertainties. Are the first customer
deliveries successful? If yes, why? If not, what should be changed? If we made
mistakes, how do we make sure we learn from them and wont make them again? On
the other hand if we were successful, how do we make sure well copy the elements
of success in future projects?
Thinking of scalability from early on involves recognizing repeatable core processes
and taking continuous learning seriously. In a small team that puts in long hours
just to get things off the ground it may seem like a lot of extra back office work. And
it is extra work - however its exactly the kind of back office work that should make
life easier in the long run: Repeating successes and avoiding failures, and letting the
future team members do the same.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 10

2) Getting ready: Documentation!

No matter how we look at it, transferring knowledge and lessons learned at some
point comes down to documentation. And thats the tough part. Documentation
is always extra. It doesnt feel business-critical at the time, especially not if we need
more sales or theres customer work piling up.

Transferring knowledge and lessons

learned at some point comes down
to documentation. And thats the
tough part.

But again looking at the big picture, how else are we going to
make sure our past lessons learned will be transferable? The
answer is, through handbooks, videos, sales tools, databases,
HR processes, IT systems, coaching and mentoring programs
whatever tools that work best for each company to ensure they
are prepared to make their new employees productive as fast as
possible.

3) International market entry: Time to put the documentation

to work
Now that we have the knowledge transfer tools existing, its time to make them work
for our new employees abroad. Naturally, just reading or watching material will not
take a new employee very far, but it will introduce them to our core thinking: This is
how we do business, and this is how we deliver value to our customers.
On top of materials, tools and processes, new employees will need opportunities to
network with colleagues and to learn from them, both in a structured fashion and
informally.

4) International growth facilitation: Continuous improvement

By the time the company is off the ground and growing in new markets, with
the new employees trained and up to speed, leadership should start focusing
on continuous improvement. Even though materials have been produced and
processes established, they shouldnt be thought as being carved in stone. It sounds
self-evident, yet surprisingly often companies fail to maintain a continuous learning
attitude like there was at the start. How could we do this even more efficiently? What
do we make and what do we buy? Should we consider outsourcing or offshoring?

5) Running a global business: Maximizing the economies of scale

The business has been scaled up, now how do we make the most of it? Whats the
point of scalability anyway if not maximizing the returns (spreading out fixed costs
over more units of output)? Running a global business, the company should be able
to leverage global customer accounts as powerful references and as opportunities
for cross-selling. At the same time, all the tools, processes and systems built along
the way should make internal operations as smooth and cost-effective as possible.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 11

4. Positioning: How to grow into a global

thought leader?
Taking a company global is challenging enough, and positioning
it as a thought leader while doing so sets the bar higher still. Just
plain inbound marketing is not quite enough at times when most
companies already have a blog and publish their thinking in various
ways to increase visibility. Positioning is all about strategy and
consistency in establishing the company as one that will be heard and
respected among its global audiences.

1) Getting started: Understanding the playing field

Positioning by definition means taking a position in relation to someone else. This is
the reason we are not referring directly to marketing or brand building: To position
oneself, one must first understand where the other market players stand: Who
are the potential customers and what are their needs? What does the competitive
situation look like? What are the target market characteristics and how do they differ
from each other?

To position oneself, one must first

understand where the other market
players stand

Typical ways to gather insights on the industry are to search

online, interview experts and potential customers, and visit
industry events. This research exercise should result in a clear
picture of the customer demand and the competitive playing
field and an idea of the position that the company should be
able to claim in the marketplace.

2) Getting ready: Developing an own voice

A thought leading company is one that customers and interest groups want to
follow because the company genuinely adds value to them. The best way to ensure
this is to be unique: Provide something that others (in particular the competitors) do
not. Achieve this, and over time you will most likely be able to price higher than the
competition.
The companys own voice will be developed based on best practices discovered
while working with the first customers. The first successful experiences will prove
the concept, and this proof should be used in starting to market the company, i.e.
starting to go after the desired market position.

3) International market entry: Taking marketing seriously

By now the company has a good idea of its international customers and competition,
a positioning plan, and the first successful customer cases to build on. Its time to
enter the targeted new markets, and marketing needs to be resourced accordingly.
In other words, marketing needs to be built into a professional program with a leader

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 12

that truly understands the heart of the business, a brand and marketing strategy,
KPIs to measure success with, and resources to perform the tasks defined in the
strategy.

Surprisingly many companies

underestimate the amount and
quality of planning and resourcing
that needs to go into marketing

Surprisingly many companies underestimate the amount

and quality of planning and resourcing that needs to go into
marketing in order for the company to reach the ambitious goal
of thought leadership. Yet through community building and
smart marketing the company should rather quickly be able
to have its happy customers sell to each other, which in turn
accelerates growth in sales.

4) International growth facilitation: Leveraging thought

leadership
At this stage the company has proven its worth in the global marketplace and
has earned a thought leaders brand position through sharing best practices and
educating the market. Marketing continues to be a professional program that
produces regular deliverables and continuously seeks fresh perspectives for the
customers and interest groups to benefit from.

5) Running a global business: Nurturing the global followership

A thought leaders market position is not easily obtained but once the company
has such a status, its brand does have a certain tendency to stick. With a globally
recognized and respected brand, the greatest risk is the lack of renewal, however,
and to stay as a leader the company has to continually lend a keen ear to its
customer community.
Also, coming back to where the entire positioning exercise started, the company
should never forget watching the emerging trends and competition in the industry.
Thought leading frontrunners will only stay as that if they remember to always think
ahead and share that thinking proactively among their community. Naturally this
thinking also needs to be reflected in the continuous development of the companys
products and services.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 13

5.Traction: Creating customer experiences

that translate into business growth
If Positioning sounded like strategic marketing, then the fifth success
factor in our framework, Traction, will sound more like sales and
customer experience management. They are related, of course,
however traction is way easier to measure in numbers. Getting traction
is essentially getting paying customers that are happy enough to
recommend you to others, too.

1) Getting started: Verifying customer benefits

When a new business starts, it builds on an idea of providing a solution to a customer
problem that needs one. In line with the popular lean thinking, startups these days
strive to demonstrate customer successes and the viability of their product from
early on; starting with the very first customer cases.
Demonstrating success may happen through customers informally voicing
their support. Yet the best companies make systematic customer experience
management, with KPIs, a priority from the start. This may also be a great way for a
startup to communicate the quality approach of their team to potential investors.

2) Getting ready: Maximizing the international reference value of

early customers
Once the decision has been made to aim for international growth, any existing
customers with reference value in the target market will come in handy. These might
include global brands with a local presence in multiple relevant locations, or for
instance reference customers from the same or adjacent industry.
When setting KPIs, its a good idea to track progress in the home market separately
from the investments in internationalization. This will help maintain a clear
understanding of which results are attributable to which actions.

3) International market entry: Winning the first customers

overseas
The most important thing is to
win the first customers outside the
home base. Equally important is
to make the new customers happy
and keep them that way.

Leveraging the reference value of its existing customers, the

company now manages to engage in its first business deals
abroad. Incentives such as discounts or pilot periods may come
into play; the most important thing is to win the first customers
outside the home base. Equally important is to make the new
customers happy and keep them that way: Each new customer
is a potential reference that helps bring subsequent customers
on board.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 14

4) International growth facilitation: Coordinated cross-border

sales
Scaling up the international sales efforts is essentially about repeating the same
activities as during the first three phases: Approaching new prospects overseas, and
using relevant reference customers in opening doors and provoking meaningful
discussions.
Two things remain key: Systematic planning of the sales efforts, and systematic
management of customer satisfaction in order to ensure the reference base stays
strong. The first one requires efforts in particular from sales leadership; proper
coordination will ensure that local sales people will be able to leverage potentially
valuable reference customers from another region or industry. On the other hand, an
existing customer relationship typically requires continuous maintenance efforts to
stay fresh and current, i.e. referable.

5) Running a global business: Nurturing the global followership

Over time, the most rapid international growth phase evens out and the company
enters a new normal in running a global business. Naturally generating new
business remains a priority, yet the relative focus will now shift towards excellence in
all operations which at the end of the day translate into the customers experience.
One important, even if indirect, part of a great customer experience is the financial
success of partners. During rapid international growth many companies are forced
to burn more cash than they are able to generate through organic growth. Hence
one part of the operational excellence effort is to demonstrate, at latest in this
stage, sustainable profitability another proof for the loyal customers that their
relationship with the company is on a solid foundation.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 15

The Blancco growth story

Blancco is the worlds leading provider of data erasure software. Founded in 1997 by
Kim Visnen, Blancco is headquartered in Finland and operates through a network
of 17 international offices and partners across Europe, North America, the Middle
East, Russia, Asia and Australasia.
Blancco serves enterprise and government organizations worldwide, including
the finance, banking, data center, healthcare, military and IT asset disposal sectors.
Blanccos certified and award winning solutions safeguard data via an integrated
data erasure management solution. This advanced solution facilitates high volume
and live environment erasure for any device or platform.

Global aspirations turned into reality

Since 2014, Blancco is a wholly owned subsidiary of the UK-based Regenersis (LON:
RGS). The growth path that eventually led to the acquisition qualifies as a showcase
of internationalization for any B2B software business. From year 2000 to 2014,
Blancco steadily added users to its software in different parts of the world, reaching 3
million users in 2005 and 50,000 data erasures and 29,000 mobile devices diagnosed
on a daily basis by 2015. Blancco was ranked by Deloitte as one of the fastest
growing technology companies in Finland in 2014.
Blancco grew mostly organically, adding dots on the global map first in Europe since
2002 and thereafter at a steady pace in Australasia (2003), North America (2006),
Japan (2010), and Russia (2012). In 2012 Blancco solidified its position as the global
leader in data erasure by acquiring DBAN disk wiping software from GEEP, a global
e-waste recycling company.

Takeoff Partners Success factors for internationalization 16

Learning from mistakes

Kim Visnen has openly shared some of the harder lessons that Blanccos team
learned over the course of the companys growth path. Having a plan is good and
necessary, however things rarely go exactly as planned, and many times adjustments
follow mistakes that have been made. So what could go wrong?

Picking a wrong business model. This may easily be the most costly mistake
a startup can make. Whether the company chooses to sell through an
international partner network, establish own offices, adopt a franchising model,
or export internally, the selected model is bound to consume a lot of resources
both financially and otherwise. Because of the invested time and energy, it may
prove difficult to let go of a business model that turns out not to deliver the
desired results.

Biting off too much for chewing. Being ambitious and energetic is one thing,
trying to do too many things is another. Everyone has limits, even startup
entrepreneurs. Trying to drive forward too many complex things in parallel will
only result in chaos and paralysis rather than growth.

Cross-compensating for losses. Treating different P&L units unequally may

sometimes seem rational from the HQ perspective but it quickly causes bad
morale among the affected units and stifles growth. France and UK may be
different, yet France should not cover UKs losses or the other way round.

Exclusivity rarely (=never) works. A local reseller would naturally prefer to

see an agreement that grants them exclusive rights to sell a product in the local
market. Yet for the product owner, local exclusivity means a variety of risks: That
the reseller is not successful or even genuinely interested in selling the product.
That the lack of competition among resellers hinders growth. That the product
owners hands are tied even if another, more suitable reseller candidate shows
up. And the list goes on.

Milestones and recognition

Blanccos growth path is scattered with milestones of recognition, both technical and
entrepreneurship-related.
Because approvals and certifications are essential in the data security business,
Blancco worked from early on to pave its way on that front: Approvals by authorities
such as HMG Infosec, CESG, and NATO Information Assurance Catalog were obtained.
In 2015, Blancco 5 was patented for secure erasure of SSD drives.
Blanccos CEO and Co-founder Kim Visnen was recognized, too. Having earned
awards and nominations over the years such as Productive Idea, Commercialized
Innovation, Export Prize, Entrepreneur of the Year, Company of the Year, and The
Finnish Presidents Internationalization Award, Mr. Visnen is a role model for
entrepreneurs with global ambitions.
For more information about Blancco, visit www.blancco.com.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 17

The GIA growth story

Global Intelligence Alliance Group (GIA) introduced the idea of market intelligence
as a service to the corporate world. During 15 years and with the support of
CapMan, 3i Group and private investors, the Finnish startup grew into a globally
recognized thought leader in market intelligence (MI), with an annual revenue of
15MEUR and a healthy EBITDA margin. M-Brain Group acquired GIA in 2014, at a time
when GIA employed 150 professionals around the world.
GIA specialized in Market Intelligence (MI) services and software, helping global
companies organize and operate professional MI programs. Markko Vaarnas, Jouko
Virtanen and Leif Backman were part of the Helsinki-based founding team of the
company in 1999.

Disrupting the MI industry

The Market Intelligence industry in early 2000 provided a lucrative opportunity for
ambitious growth entrepreneurs. The need in global companies to organize their
business information management was universal. However, companies did this in
very traditional ways: They hired analysts, purchased software tools, subscribed to
business information databases, and occasionally hired MI consultants to do some
analysis work. Because of the nature of project work, most of these MI consultancies
had remained small and local.
There was room in the global MI marketplace for another, disruptive business model,
whereby companies would instead rent dedicated analyst capacity, software, and
database subscriptions bundled into a continuous service package. Breaking away
from project business and establishing long term service partnerships with global
customers became the winning formula of GIAs expansion.
Takeoff Partners Success factors for internationalization 18

Finland as a test laboratory

Some say Finland is all Western economies in miniature size, which makes it an ideal
and affordable test bed for ideas. This was certainly true for GIA: The MI partnership
model was well tested in the Finnish market with a number of globally operating
customer companies. Based on the good experiences and customer feedback, the
founders of GIA were convinced of the global applicability of the MI partnership
business model.
Investors, too were convinced, and GIA raised 6 MEUR of venture capital financing in
total. First 3i Group and later on CapMan joined on board to support GIA in seizing
the global opportunity. GIA started its internationalization from North America
because it represented the single largest market potential for MI services. The
growth continued in Europe, Asia and Latin America as a combination of greenfield
operations, partnerships, and acquisitions, depending on what was judged as being
the best local strategy for getting a foothold.

Built to last
One of the defining characteristics of GIA was that it constantly seemed slightly
larger than it was. GIAs marketing messages were aimed at the global arena from
early on. GIA implemented robust leadership development and talent management
programs. GIA developed tools and trainings for knowledge transfer during stages
of growth that would have kept employees busy enough even without any of such
extra work.
Yet it was all a reflection of the ambition level: GIA was determined to build a solid
global business and organization. The processes and tools to support that vision
were built to make sure things would not get out of hand along the way. For GIA,
growth was no accident but it was made, and it was prepared for. Many employees
over the course of the years appreciated the strong global culture that was built as a
result. Indeed one of GIAs great assets continues to be its large and active network of
alumni.

Takeoff Partners, White Paper 1/2016 Success factors for internationalization 19

www.takeoffpartners.com
Takeoff Partners are experienced growth coaches and private
investors. We specialize in internationalizing B2B software and
service businesses.