Top executives’ military experience and the firm internationalisation process: the moderating role of managerial discretion

Purpose This paper aims to examine the impact of top executives’ military experience on the internationalisation process of firms, as well as the boundary conditions of this impact. Design/methodology/approach The hypotheses are tested using 8,759 imbalanced panel samples in 1,718 China’s A-share listed firms. Findings The findings show that the military experience of top executives has a positive impact on the internationalisation process (scope, speed and rhythm) of firms. The managerial discretion strengthens the influence of top executives’ military experience on the internationalisation scope and speed but weakens its influence on the internationalisation rhythm. Originality/value The study contributes to the literature by testing the relationships that among military experience of top executives, firm internationalisation process and managerial discretion. The authors also help practitioners to become aware of the importance that the military experience of top executives have on firm internationalisation process, and managerial discretion can exert contingent influence on this relationship.