International trade is an important engine for economies and SMEs to grow and sustain. Despite globalization, regionalization or other processes with a direct impact to international business, SMEs experience a pressure of external and internal factors. External factors can make an impact and initiate a continuous need to enhance productivity and apply innovations to respond to fierce competition. These factors can also be emerging disruptive technologies, barriers to trade, reviewed trade agreements. Internal factors can be capacity building, working culture and motivation, leadership, strategic management, also closely related to decision making processes across different managerial levels and staff generations. Managers variety of attitudes to international trade related elements could cause conflict situations on decision making, damage corporate culture, decrease motivation, slow down international expansion and make a direct impact on diminishing both SMEs productivity and competition.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3846/cbme.2017.035