Eric M. Olson

Organizing for effective new product development: The moderating role of product innovativeness

Marketing and sales personnel are frequently called on to work with—and sometimes to lead—specialists from other functional areas in the development of new products and services. Such cross-functio...

The Performance Implications of Fit Among Business Strategy, Marketing Organization Structure, and Strategic Behavior

Adopting a contingency perspective, the authors present and test a fit-as-moderation model that posits that overall firm performance is influenced by how well the marketing organizations structural characteristics (i.e., formalization, centralization, and specialization) and strategic behavioral emphases (i.e., customer, competitor, innovation, and cost control) complement alternative business strategies (i.e., prospector, analyzer, low-cost defender, and differentiated defender). Responses from 228 senior marketing managers provide support for the model and demonstrate that each strategy type requires different combinations of marketing organization structures and strategic behaviors for success.

Patterns of cooperation during new product development among marketing, operations and R&D: Implications for project performance

Successful new product development is fundamentally a multidisciplinary process. While this view has helped lead management to the wide-spread adoption of cross-functional new product development teams, in this study we question whether simply increasing the level of functional integration is truly a guarantee for enhancing the performance of new products. To assess this we examined patterns of cooperation between marketing, R&D, and operations at both early and late stages of the new product development process for 34 recently developed products whose level of innovativeness ranged from high to low. A unique feature of this study is that data were collected from four sources for each project. This included personal interviews with a project leader and written surveys from marketing, operations, and R&D personnel on each project. Findings from this study reveal that: (1) functional cooperation typically increases as the process moves from early to late stages; (2) cooperation between marketing and RD (3) higher project performance — irrespective of the level of project innovation — is demonstrated when cooperation between marketing and RD (4) late stage cooperation between marketing and operations, and RD (5) that early stage cooperation between marketing and operations is associated with superior performance for low innovation projects but is also associated with poor performance for innovative projects. Findings from this study demonstrate that the importance of cooperation between specific functional dyads (i.e., marketing — RD RD operations - marketing) indeed varies by time (i.e., early vs. late stages), and by the level of innovativeness (i.e., new-to-the-world vs. modifications) associated with the new product being developed.

Strategy type and performance: the influence of sales force management

The basic premise of the strategy implementation literature is that different business strategies require different configurations of organizational practices to achieve optimal performance. Sales force management is a key functional activity and should contribute to the successful implementation of business strategy. In this study, we examine the relationship between multiple sales force management practices and performance within each of Miles and Snows (1978) strategy types. The explanatory power of the eight models tested is quite high (incremental adjusted R2 ≥ 0.25 for six of the eight models). Thus, we find substantial support for the general proposition that the different strategy types require individualized profiles of sales force management practices for optimal effectiveness and that sales force management is important to the successful implementation of business strategy. Copyright

The balanced scorecard, competitive strategy, and performance

least five related elements. The starting point is developing a mission that guides all subsequent efforts of the business. This leads to an analysis of the firm’s situation, and on to the formation of a competitive strategy. That strategy is subsequently implemented and— at least in theory—performance is monitored with an eye toward fine-tuning the strategy and/or its implementation. Of these five elements, the one that has received the least amount of attention is the last one: the management control system.

A fresh look at industry and market analysis

Abstract Todays strange, new business world needs an augmented model of industry and market analysis that reflects recent developments in industry dynamics, such as globalization, entrepreneurship, technological advances, and the Internet. Here we present such an updated model, built on and expanding the basic premises that underlie Porters Five Competitive Forces Model. And we offer suggestions for how managers can position their businesses for success in the current competitive environment.

Creating and exploiting market knowledge assets

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the components of a knowledge management system that contribute to superior new product program performance.Design/methodology/approach – An extensive review of the academic and managerial literatures that deal with knowledge managements contribution to superior performance was first undertaken. After identifying gaps in the literature, a comprehensive model of a knowledge management system was developed. Where possible, existing measures of the constructs in this model were utilized. A questionnaire was developed, a commercial mailing list purchased, and a two wave mailing which produced a 15.8 percent response rate conducted.Findings – The paper finds that customer intelligence generation, competitor intelligence generation, technological intelligence generation, and intelligence dissemination all contribute to the stock of knowledge assets (p<0.05). It was also found that, after controlling for influences on new product performance, a knowledge‐based ...

Strategy, structure, and culture within the English Premier League: An examination of large clubs

Purpose – Prior research has argued that business practices within English football clubs are amateurish and outdated due to the comparatively small size of clubs and the restrictive nature of the cartel-like industry they compete in. But is this true for large EPL clubs (i.e. those with high market valuation and large number of employees)? Do these clubs have the ability to pursue alternative business strategies, and if so, do their organizational structures, cultures, and behavioral norms support the strategic directions they have chosen to pursue? The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – This paper evaluates survey responses from 35 executives and business managers within three large EPL clubs. The study utilizes previously validated scales to examine issues of organizational structure, culture, and behavioral norms. Findings – Despite operating within a closed industry, large EPL clubs are not all pursuing identical business strategies. Consistent with contingency theory, ...

Adaptive Strategies of Tobacco Firms Subsequent to the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement: An Examination of Emergent Tobacco Promotional Mix Efforts:

This article uses the promotional mix framework to examine tobacco promotional efforts in five distinct categories: advertising, sales promotion, direct marketing, personal selling, and public relations. We specifically explore how tobacco companies are adapting their promotional efforts in each category subsequent to the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) among the five largest tobacco companies and 46 states. We utilize primarily marketing popular press literature and a comparison between 1998 and 1999 tobacco promotional expenditures to provide a comprehensive picture of emergent tobacco promotional efforts in response to the new restrictions. Numerous adaptations within each category are examined. In particular, substantial new expenditures in the areas of trade-oriented sales promotions, direct marketing, and public relations activities are revealed. Specific tactics being used in each of the five promotional mix categories are discussed.