Sandra S. Liu

Integrating customer orientation, corporate entrepreneurship, and learning orientation in organizations-in-transition: an empirical study

The paper addresses the issue of interrelationships between market orientation, corporate entrepreneurship, and learning orientation in the context of emerging economies. These three constructs have drawn an increasing level of interest in both marketing and management fields as organizations face challenges in a volatile environment. With a national sample of state-owned enterprises in China, the present study simultaneously tests potential relations between these structural constructs and their relationships with the organizational outcome that is reflected with marketing program dynamism. The findings of this study indicate that: (1) sampled state-owned enterprises demonstrate a higher level of changes in organizational outcome resulted from a stronger customer orientation, corporate entrepreneurship, or learning orientation; (2) learning orientation fully or partially mediates the impact of customer orientation and corporate entrepreneurship on outcome; (3) state-owned enterprises with foreign partnership have a higher level of customer orientation, entrepreneurship, and learning orientation; and (4) state-owned enterprises in the service sector have a higher level of customer orientation.

Market-oriented organizations in an emerging economy: A study of missing links

Abstract The advantages of market orientation, entrepreneurship, and learning orientation to organizations have been evidently documented in Western economies. However, there has been little research into these practices and their impact on enhancing competitive advantages in emerging economies. This exploratory study, utilizing data from Chinas emerging economy, found that organizations with higher level of market orientation tend to be more learning-oriented, emphasize more on entrepreneurship, and be able to achieve higher level of organizational performance, than those with a lower level of market orientation.

Entrepreneurial firms in the context of China's transition economy: an integrative framework and empirical examination

Abstract Investigating corporate entrepreneurship in an emerging economy of China, this research proposes and substantiates an integrative framework that characterizes determinants for corporate entrepreneurship (institutional, organization-specific, and strategic market factors) and consequences of entrepreneurship (sales growth and market share performance). Our empirical results indicate that internationalization, firm size and age, and market orientation all impact on the practice of corporate entrepreneurship, which in turn contributes to superior performance. Empirically, this paper provides initial evidence demonstrating the multifaceted determinants of corporate entrepreneurship in a transition economy. Our findings suggest that the Chinese firms appear to be integrating institutional changes and market-oriented activities to facilitate organizational growth.

Globalization, Marketing Resources, and Performance: Evidence from China

Two important areas are underexplored in the relationship between marketing resources and performance. First, the subject has been primarily investigated in the context of Western countries, and inadequate attention has been given to emerging economies. Second, despite the recent growth in globalization, the moderating role of globalization on the link between marketing resources and performance has not been investigated. Addressing these important gaps, this article focuses on an emerging economy (China) and explores the moderating effect of globalization on this link. Specifically, the authors develop several hypotheses highlighting the moderating role of globalization activities (global product sourcing, global market seeking, and global partnership) on the link between marketing resources (market orientation, entrepreneurial orientation, and innovative capability) and firm performance. The findings of the moderating role of globalization provide several important implications for marketing theory development and managerial practice.

The Effects of Customer Relationships and Social Capital on Firm Performance: A Chinese Business Illustration

The authors use the resource-based view of the firm to frame the direct, relative, and synergistic effects of three firm relational resources (i.e., customer relationships, business-partner social capital, and governing-agency social capital) on firm performance (strategic and financial) in a sample of 262 businesses that operate in metropolitan Chinese cities. Although the findings indicate that all three relational resources enhance performance, they also indicate that customer relationships are the primary drivers of strategic and financial performance and that business partnerships and governing-agency social capital have a synergistic influence. In addition, the results indicate that the influences of these resources are moderated by domestic or international firm ownership. The authors discuss the implications for academics and practitioners.

Institutional entrepreneurship ‐ A panacea for universities‐in‐transition?

University administrators are facing increasingly difficult times as public funds are contracting and accountability for the use of such moneys is increasing. With these financial exigencies, universities must seek alternative means of generating revenues to support their mission. One such approach involves the use of institutional entrepreneurship. This paper describes how institutional entrepreneurship complements strategic marketing management and strategic management, how it can ultimately generate funds for universities‐in‐transition, and provides a case illustration of how universities have successfully employed entrepreneurial activities to their advantage.

Using data mining to segment healthcare markets from patients' preference perspectives

PURPOSE This paper aims to provide an example of how to use data mining techniques to identify patient segments regarding preferences for healthcare attributes and their demographic characteristics. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH Data were derived from a number of individuals who received in-patient care at a health network in 2006. Data mining and conventional hierarchical clustering with average linkage and Pearson correlation procedures are employed and compared to show how each procedure best determines segmentation variables. FINDINGS Data mining tools identified three differentiable segments by means of cluster analysis. These three clusters have significantly different demographic profiles. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS The study reveals, when compared with traditional statistical methods, that data mining provides an efficient and effective tool for market segmentation. When there are numerous cluster variables involved, researchers and practitioners need to incorporate factor analysis for reducing variables to clearly and meaningfully understand clusters. ORIGINALITY/VALUE Interests and applications in data mining are increasing in many businesses. However, this technology is seldom applied to healthcare customer experience management. The paper shows that efficient and effective application of data mining methods can aid the understanding of patient healthcare preferences.

ED Services: The Impact of Caring Behaviors on Patient Loyalty

INTRODUCTION This article describes an observational study of caring behaviors in the emergency departments of 4 Ascension Health hospitals and the impact of these behaviors on patient loyalty to the associated hospital. These hospitals were diverse in size and geography, representing 3 large urban community hospitals in metropolitan areas and 1 in a midsized city. METHODS Research assistants from Purdue University (West Lafayette, IN) conducted observations at the first study site and validated survey instruments. The Purdue research assistants trained contracted observers at the subsequent study sites. The research assistants conducted observational studies of caregivers in the emergency departments at 4 study sites using convenience sampling of patients. Caring behaviors were rated from 0 (did not occur) to 5 (high intensity). The observation included additional information, for example, caregiver roles, timing, and type of visit. Observed and unobserved patients completed exit surveys that recorded patient responses to the likelihood-to-recommend (loyalty) questions, patient perceptions of care, and demographic information. RESULTS Common themes across all study sites emerged, including (1) the area that patients considered most important to an ED experience (prompt attention to their needs upon arrival to the emergency department); (2) the area that patients rated as least positive in their actual ED experience (prompt attention to their needs upon arrival to the emergency department); (3) caring behaviors that significantly affected patient loyalty (eg, making sure that the patient is aware of care-related details, working with a caring touch, and making the treatment procedure clearly understood by the patient); and (4) the impact of wait time to see a caregiver on patient loyalty. A number of correlations between caring behaviors and patient loyalty were statistically significant (P < .05) at all sites. DISCUSSION The study results raised considerations for ED caregivers, particularly with regard to those caring behaviors that are most closely linked to patient loyalty but that occurred least frequently. The study showed through factor analysis that some caring behaviors tended to occur together, suggesting an underlying, unifying dimension to that factor.

Gender Differences in Attitudes Toward Women as Sales Managers in the People's Republic of China

The present study promulgates a research stream in the area of understanding womens position in the management of the Chinese sales force. The study investigates attitudes toward women as sales managers held by Chinese salespeople. Male salespeople consistently rated the female sales managers lower than did female salespeople on three sets of attitude items. This finding indicates the presence of male resistance to women in sales management positions.

Toward a framework for entering China’s pharmaceutical market

The pharmaceutical industry in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has been highly regulated, particularly ethical products. Promulgation of the socialist market economy and the recent reforms in national healthcare industry have compelled impetuses for change in the distribution systems, forms of investment of multinational pharmaceutical companies, and product/market strategies. The conventional wisdom on pioneer marketing may be challenged by these situations in the PRC. This study examines four markets that encompass both specialty and general pharmaceuticals so as to explore whether there is a product category effect on entry strategies. The findings indicate a possible synergistic effect of product category and order of entry. In addition, product life cycle has a direct impact on order of entry whereas brand position has an effect on product category. Both government policies and corporate strategies have implications on product categories and order of entry. The recent reforms in China have helped to build a foundation for pharmaceutical companies to conduct business in a manner that is similar to that of the developed countries. The entry strategies for pharmaceuticals may therefore involve more complicated considerations in accordance with these new arrangements in the legal and regulatory environments. Further research into relationships among these variables and the mediation effect is therefore indicated.