تاثیر چالش های سازمانی و بازار بر تصمیم گیری استراتژی بازاریابی : تحقیق کیفی در بخش تجارت b2b

Technological advances, global competition, re-alignment of organisational processes with the markets they serve, new rules of corporate strategy and outsourcing to access or to extend organisational capabilities are influencing the nature of the client/organisational interface and are changing the nature of competition in today's market place. This research describes how marketing strategy is evolving within the context of this new competitive and organisational environment. Specifically, it explains how those responsible for marketing activities in the firm view marketing strategy and how they approach strategy development.

The generic marketing strategy options of low cost, differentiation, and focus (Porter, 1985) remain the dominant influencing strategy decision models presented in a range of frameworks for guiding strategy decisions (e.g., Aaker, 1995 and Day, 1990). More recently, Sudharshan (1995) defines marketing strategy as a function of an organisation's marketing relationships (with particular emphasis on customers and channel members), the nature of the product offer, the timing of the offer to the market and the resources that will be provided to effect market delivery. Others (e.g., Day and Wensley, 1988, Kohli and Jaworski, 1990, Narver and Slater, 1990, Bharadwaj et al., 1993, Jaworski and Kohli, 1993, Jaworski and Kohli, 1996 and Slater and Narver, 1994) have directed marketing strategy decision-makers to adopt a ‘competitive advantage’, organisational ‘market-orientation’ foundation to developing marketing strategy, supporting marketing strategy decisions based on information management and dissemination, organisational skills and resources, and current competitive comparisons. It is postulated that a focus on existing value created through current business partnerships and client relationships, and current competitive strengths is likely to place an organisation at a disadvantage in a future competitive environment for three important reasons. 1. The exponential changes in information technology (IT) is revolutionising the nature of business performance both within organisations and between organisations and their various stakeholder groups. The competitive advantages of today will become the barriers for entry, with new sources of advantage to be identified and developed. 2. The ability of global players to rapidly enter markets and emergence of network organisations ‘consisting of large numbers of functionally specialised firms tied together in co-operative exchange relationships’ (Achrol, 1991, p. 56), bring to life in a devastating way Michael Porter's (1980) model of the five forces of competition through the consequences of new competitive entry. 3. The recent history of downsizing and a more flexible approach to structural reconfiguring can create an environment that facilitates competitive re-positioning. No research to date has investigated how those responsible for marketing are coping with marketing strategy development within this new environment. This study explains how those responsible for marketing activities in the firm view marketing strategy and how they approach strategy development. It describes the role that emerging market and organisational challenges play in shaping marketing strategic decision-making and identifies methods that those responsible for marketing adopt to incorporate those challenges in their decision-making process. Data are collected from persons responsible for marketing strategy decisions in 48 organisations (cases) falling into four broad categories within the business-to-business market sector.

Changes in marketing practice within organisations competing in the business-to-business market sector is reflected through a decrease in functional emphasis and an increasing focus towards project management across functional boundaries. Past struggles to delineate marketing from a sales orientation, and the underpinning of marketing with consumer behaviour theory has moved the emphasis in marketing from tactics to strategy. This research has identified a change in emphasis for marketing, with the marketer of the future being involved in the management of relationships that underpin customer value creation, and directly involved in the strategic processes that create key capabilities underpinning competitive advantage. This change in emphasis is driven by the acceleration in marketplace change and the need by all those within the organisation to be better equipped to merge across previous functional barriers and to assume responsibility for the strategic and process development necessary to forge new competitive space. This need to forge competitive space has taken marketing from a functional activity — carried out by marketing personnel within a marketing department — to activities guiding cross-organisational processes. This notion of a marketing emphasis across the organisation has developed through a need to engage all those involved in the customer interface, or managing activities that support the delivery of business activities, to adopt a customer focus and is highlighted through the body of knowledge on relationship marketing. These relationships will evolve through technological advances and information exchanges, and will develop a range of joint capabilities. Through its innovation and technology capabilities, an organisation can develop and deliver new sources of value to client organisations. By linking with a client organisation's innovation capability, it can build new value for the client organisation's customers, opening new business opportunities for the client. Licensing agreements with major international suppliers and competitors facilitate the exchange of information — building a global competitive position through adopting global best practice. As client organisations develop a global platform, they are exposed to new options in supply. Organisations not currently competing outside national boundaries will need to build their capability to demonstrate global best practice to retain those client groups. Products and services are delivered to the market through a range of organisational capabilities that build competitive advantage. According to Karimi et al. (1996, p. 55) “new competitive strategies will be increasingly technology-based, global initiatives that are affected by the firm's IT maturity”. Technology was identified through this study as driving relationship change through creating new windows of opportunity for adding value to current offerings, and facilitating information exchange and access, strengthening relationship commitment. IT systems linking supply chain networks create major opportunities for scheduling and planning improvements and cost saving that will be rewarded right throughout the supply chain system, moving client relationships towards a new dimension. The development of integrated supply systems moves competition into a new phase, with systems competing against systems to create efficiency and client value at each point within the system. Commitment to technology to improve a company's ability to streamline its manufacturing and administrative systems, improve information access and dissemination, and build innovation capability, will provide multi-point value creation potential for client organisations. Given the importance of technology in building organisational competencies and capabilities, technology planning will become part of the critical issues planning process for many organisations. Evidence of corporations driving to develop a cohesive approach to the market and gain competitive advantage through horizontal strategy and a unified culture, supports the proposition that strategic business unit formation to create flexibility in large corporations and make them more responsive to their markets has, in some cases, reduced their capability to compete, particularly against multi-point and new global competitors. The major assets of these companies are their size, market position, and ability to deliver customer value across multiple markets and industries. Strategic Business Unit structures have weakened rather than strengthened some companies. The competitive advantage that could be generated through their collective knowledge and key capabilities is not being realised. A review of Strategic Business Unit performance on innovation, sales growth and return on investment contained in Walker and Ruekert (1987) described inconsistency across a number of studies, with some supporting the proposition that a centralised focus supports a higher level of innovation, and others identifying the dominant sales performance of autonomous units in dynamic environments, yet lower return on investment performance under specific strategies. The nature of a ‘marketing perspective’ depends on the organisational level to which it is applied. Marketing theory and principles are being adopted by senior staff in the management of stakeholder groups (shareholders, customers, employees, and lateral and vertical alliance partners involved in the value creation process of the organisation as well as other stakeholder groups that influence the nature of the organisation's operations). At other levels within the organisation, marketing theory contributes to value adding aspects of competitive strategy, and relationship development and management with alliance partners and customers: The marketing concept (customer-oriented), and the concept of a market-oriented firm (focusing on gathering and synthesising information on current and potential customers and competitors, and communicating information across the organisation) place a duel focus on customers and competitors. Marketing has become an integral component of management decisions, as the importance of evolving relationships to create new value both within and outside the organisations becomes a key component of an organisation's success. Managing relationships outside the organisation as they evolve and change, and managing cross functional, cross-organisational processes have gained importance within the organisation, and moved marketing into the general management domain. Marketers, responsible for the financial performance of market related activities, now should apply their skills to other stakeholder exchanges.