The STEP Scale: A Cross-National Scale for Short-Term Export Performance Improvement

This paper is a direct response to a recent observation in the literature that managers appear to be short-term oriented when they assess the performance of an export venture (Madsen 1998). Based on a survey of Portuguese and British exporters, this paper presents a three-dimensional scale for assessing managerial judgment of Short-Term Export Performance (the STEP scale). The three dimensions are: 1) satisfaction with short-term performance improvement; 2) short-term exporting intensity improvement; and 3) expected short-term performance improvement. The findings are used to generate implications for public policy making and managerial practice as well as directions for future research.