Title: International Services Marketing – A case study of Gammaknife surgery in Argentina

Level: Final assignment for Bachelor Degree in Business Administration

Author: Michael Eriksson

Supervisor: Akmal Hyder

Date: 2013 – May

Aim: The aim of this study is to describe the internationalization process of services by looking at a Swedish healthcare service. The study has been performed before in different countries with distant cultures. By examining the service in Argentina it will be the first study of Gammaknife within a Latin-American context.

Method: The author wanted to get a deeper understanding of a contemporary phenomenon with no control over events. Therefore a qualitative case study was conducted. This was believed to be the only way to capture all nuances and get respondents viewpoint of the phenomenon.

Result & Conclusions: The case shows how Elekta has successfully overcome many of the obstacles associated with internationalization of services by working together with INVAP. With that Elekta get access to INVAP’s extensive network and their high credibility in the local market generates trust for Elekta as well. Another main factor for Gammaknife surgery in Argentina is time. The first Gammaknife was installed in 1983 and the treatment is therefore well known by the public.

Suggestions for future research: Similar studies have been conducted of Gammaknife centers throughout the world. Next step in the research process is to compare the results from the different studies. Another topic for future research is a comparison of using a distributor or expand over borders with establishment of an own division

Contribution of the thesis: This study provides insights in the internationalization process of services. It contributes with empirical findings on how issues related to intangibility and heterogeneity in marketing services internationally can be overcome.