Strategy
No internationalisation strategy, or one copied from the home market and never tested against European reality.
Internationalisation consultancy · Vietnam → Europe
Vietnamese technology. European markets. One bridge from strategy to execution.
Vietnam builds world-class software. Europe buys differently. Beyond Borders closes the gap between a European ambition and a European business that actually sells, delivers and grows.
60 yrscombined international strategy & sales execution
2 homesnative in Vietnam and in Europe
200%+Nordic revenue growth delivered for FPT
1 frameworkACE: Align · Close the gaps · Execute
The problem
Vietnamese firms rarely lose Europe on technology. They lose it in the strategy–execution gap.
The distance between what the vision promises and what the organisation can deliver in a foreign market. It shows up in four places, and it is almost never budgeted for.
Market fit
Offer, pricing and messaging tuned for other buyers. No answer yet to GDPR, procurement rules or the need for local references.
Capability
Legal entity, local talent, partner network, compliance and local-language support: the pieces nobody planned for.
Execution
A plan exists but has no owner, no governance and no feedback loop. It drifts, then quietly stops.
Our framework
The ACE framework: Align, Close the gaps, Execute.
One coherent journey in three steps. Every gap we find traces back to a strategic choice; every stalled action traces back to a gap left open. That is why the three belong together, and why each one also works on its own.
Your visionary goal is yours. It is your company’s DNA, and we will never write it for you. Everything that turns it into results, we do with you.
A
Align
Is the strategy right?
- Formulate a strategy to reach your visionary goal, or validate the one you have
- Challenge goals and objectives against the current delivery plan
- Propose and justify alternative strategies; redefine where needed
You getA European strategy with measurable objectives, target markets and entry mode.
C
Close the gaps
Can the firm deliver it?
- Map the resources and capabilities delivery requires: network, compliance, local resources, knowledge, talent, legal entities
- Score the current state against the requirement and size each gap
- Build the business set-up checklist with cost and timing
You getA gap report and a set-up blueprint you can fund and schedule.
E
Execute
Is it happening?
- Turn objectives into a roll-out plan with owners, milestones and budget
- Run or co-run the business in market: partners, first customers, local presence
- Install a governance framework that monitors execution month by month
You getA running European operation with a dashboard leadership trusts.
Services
Start with a clear first step. Buy the next one on results.
Whether you have no European strategy yet, or one that is not delivering, there is a defined entry point. Every step can be bought on its own.
Entry point · 2 weeks
Europe Readiness Scan
Founder interviews and desk review. You get a readiness score, your top five gaps and the recommended ACE step to start with.
Fixed fee
A Align · 4–6 weeks
Strategy Sprint
Workshops in Vietnam and remotely. A strategy document with target markets, objectives and entry mode your board can sign off.
Fixed fee
C Close the gaps · 3–4 weeks
Gap & Set-up Blueprint
Gap report, business set-up checklist (entity, tax, GDPR, contracts, hiring, partners), budget and timeline.
Fixed fee
E Execute · 6–12 months
Execution Partnership
We lead or co-lead the roll-out in market: partner and customer introductions, local presence, hiring and go-to-market.
Retainer + success fee
E Execute · Ongoing
Governance Board Seat
Monthly strategy review, KPI dashboard and board-level advice so the plan keeps running after launch.
Monthly fee
Case studies
We have done this before.
Market entries, new verticals and turnarounds across Europe and beyond, led by the people you will work with.
Cracking the Nordic market after years of trying
FPT Read the storyFrom chasing tenders to creating demand
US IT Provider Read the storyBuilding a Nordic business from zero
Indian IT Provider Read the storyWhy Beyond Borders
Native on both sides of the bridge.
Sixty years of combined experience running the plan, not just writing it. We call it dual embeddedness: we read the Vietnamese boardroom and the European buyer without translation, and we have carried quota and opened markets in both.
Dual embeddedness
Knowledge grounded natively in both home and host countries. We know which Vietnamese habits win in Europe, and which quietly lose deals.
A 60-year combined execution record
International strategy delivered through real sales results, market expansion and global presence. Our plans are built to be run.
Strategy and business development in one team
The people who set the objectives are the people who go and win the first European customers with you.
Peter
Co-founder · Europe
Thirty years in IT services sales, market entry and outsourcing advisory with global IT and professional services firms, building their European and global businesses from zero. Most recently, Peter led FPT’s expansion into the Nordics, Benelux and Poland.
Yen
Co-founder · Vietnam
With thirty years of experience, Yen brings the Vietnamese side of our dual embeddedness and leads the strategy work: turning a company’s visionary goal into a coherent strategy, objectives and delivery plan that hold up in European markets.
Who we work with
Vietnamese IT firms with the ambition to grow in Europe. Any size. Any scope.
You have no European strategy yet
Inbound interest from Europe, a founder’s ambition or a board mandate, but no tested plan. We start with Align and build the whole path from there.
You have one, and it is not delivering
Europe is on the roadmap, a few deals or a local hire exist, but results are below expectation. We validate the strategy and close the gaps that hold it back.
- Software outsourcing & engineering
- SaaS & vertical software
- Fintech & payments
- AI & data services
- Digital transformation partners
FAQ
Questions we often hear.
What does Beyond Borders do?
Beyond Borders is an internationalisation consultancy. We help Vietnamese IT product and service companies enter, grow and succeed in European markets, from setting the strategy to winning the first customers and running the operation.
Who do you work with?
Vietnamese IT firms of any size with the ambition to grow in Europe: software outsourcing and engineering companies, SaaS and vertical software vendors, fintech and payments, AI and data services, and digital transformation partners. Some have no European strategy yet; others have one that is not delivering.
What is the ACE framework?
ACE is our three-step internationalisation framework. Align: build or validate the strategy that reaches your visionary goal. Close the gaps: map what delivery really requires (entity, compliance, talent, partners) and close what is missing. Execute: roll the plan out in market and govern it month by month.
Can we buy just one step of ACE?
Yes. Each step is a defined engagement with its own deliverable. Many clients start with a two-week Readiness Scan, then choose the step that fits; others buy only a strategy validation or only a gap review.
What is the Europe Readiness Scan?
A fixed-fee, two-week entry point. Through founder interviews and a desk review, we give you a readiness score, your top five gaps for Europe and a recommendation for which ACE step to start with.
Why not use a large consulting firm?
We are native on both sides: Vietnamese and European. And between us we have 60 years of carrying sales targets and opening markets, not just writing strategies. The people who set the objectives are the people who go and win the first European customers with you.
Which European markets do you cover?
Our deepest experience is in the Nordics, Benelux, Poland and the DACH region, and we help clients choose the right first markets across Europe based on their offer, references and capacity.
Readiness Scan
Find out how ready you are for Europe, in two weeks.
Tell us about your firm and your European ambition. We reply within two working days with next steps and a proposal for the Scan.
Or write to us at contact@beyond-borders.ai