Abstract:

Context:
For internationalisation projects in the furniture industry to be successful, it is essential to manage resources effectively and encourage collaboration between the various stakeholders involved. One way to achieve this is by developing a specialized training program tailored to micro-SMEs aiming to expand globally.
This course is aimed at professionals, including entrepreneurs, small business owners, freelancers, and employees in internationalisation departments, in the furniture sector in Europe and Türkiye, with a particular focus on micro-SMEs. This work is carried out within the scope of the Erasmus+ Int4Furn project.
This type of program would give micro-SMEs the opportunity to acquire the necessary expertise to meet the challenges of overseas markets. Moreover, by engaging stakeholders in the planning phase, the program will gain insights and suggestions from different perspectives, ensuring its suitability and efficiency in addressing the needs of micro-SMEs in the furniture sector.

Objectives:
This study aims to present the methodology used in the first phase of the development of an internationalisation course for micro-SMEs in the furniture sector, using a multi-stakeholder approach.

Methodology:
The development of the course followed a mixed methods approach in two stages. The 1st stage was a qualitative benchmark analysis of existing courses in the field, carried out in six countries: Portugal, Greece, the Netherlands, Spain, Estonia, and Türkiye. The 2nd stage involved a survey of 120 different stakeholders, including furniture sector professionals, professional associations, educators, prospective students, and internationalisation experts, to identify the training needs for a course in this area, in the same six countries.

Results:
A 7-module course is presented, covering topics such as: starting up an international business, accessing foreign markets, international business knowledge, managing market analytics and information, understanding the customer, marketing to global customers, and green internationalisation and sustainability.
Limitations. The main limitation of this study is that the training course is still under development and has not yet been tested with potential trainees.
Once fully developed, the course will be validated at three levels:
(a) initially with a sample of higher education professors with expertise in business internationalisation;
(b) subsequently with a broad sample of higher education students and professionals from the furniture sector; and
(c) finally with a group of stakeholders representing furniture sector associations or organisations that support the internationalisation of SMEs.

Originality:
The originality of this work lies in the fact that:
(a) the entire training programme is designed to be delivered online, allowing professionals to progress at their own pace, and is tailored to address the most relevant issues in the furniture sector;
(b) the mixed methods approach used not only allowed for a thorough examination of existing practices but also facilitated the transfer of knowledge and expertise between countries, creating a course that is comprehensive and up-to-date;
(c) the multi-stakeholders approach of this research process underlines the importance of international cooperation and exchange in advancing education and training in specialized fields.

Keywords:

Curriculum design, digital course, Erasmus+ Int4Furn, internationalisation, training program.