Ram Subramanian

The role of organizational competencies in the market‐orientation‐performance relationship: An empirical analysis

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the specific ways in which market orientation of an organization contributes to the creation of organizational competencies that lead to superior performance.Design/methodology/approach – Survey data from 159 acute care hospitals were statistically analyzed to test the research hypotheses.Findings – Market orientation makes a significant contribution to the creation of a number of organizational competencies which, in turn, lead to superior performance in the areas of cost containment, growth in revenue, success in retaining patients, and success of new services.Originality/value – Given the changing competitive landscape in the health care industry, managers of these organizations are increasingly being forced to recognize organizational competencies so that they can leverage them for market success. A set of competencies leads to the organization becoming market orientated. Market orientation, in turn, leads to organizational success in a variety of areas.

Global Auto: The ERP Implementation Project

Abstract If successfully implemented and managed, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems can provide important benefits to organizations. In this case study the implementation of an ERP system at global automotive supplier company (Global Auto) is discussed in detail. After successfully implementing the system at a major factory in the United States, Global Auto now has to decide how to proceed with the implementation in a totally different setting, the plant in Mexico.

ERP implementation by US, Indian and Greek companies: a comparative analysis

Recent years have witnessed a dramatic increase in ERP adoption and diffusion in countries all over the world. However, not all firms have been successful in their ERP implementations. Using a case study methodology grounded in business process change theory, we examine the generic and unique factors (both cultural and non-cultural) that affect ERP implementation success in United States, India and Greece. Understanding such effects will enable managers to be more proactive and better prepared for ERP implementation. Managerial implications of the findings and future research directions are discussed.

Kraft Foods, Inc. in India — The Cadbury Acquisition

When the United States-based Kraft Foods, Inc. (KFI) acquired the United Kingdom-based Cadbury plc, KFI got entry into the Indian market. KFI CEO, Irene Rosenfeld had targeted the developing markets as key for the company to achieve a 5% organic growth rate and the strong position of Cadbury India augured well for expanding KFIs presence in that market. However, after nearly a year since the acquisition, KFI was moving slowly in India and appeared content to consolidate Cadburys market presence. Anand Kripalu, President of KFI South Asia and Indo-China and Managing Director of Cadbury India was to meet his superiors to present his strategic plan for the India operations. He had a critical decision to make regarding whether to continue consolidating the Cadbury brand in India or use Cadburys strong market presence to launch brands from KFIs global portfolio.