Goksel Yalcinkaya, Roger J. Calantone, and David A. Griffith
Executive Summary
Traditionally, importers have been viewed as fulfilling a key matching and sorting function within the channel. However, as the competitive environment has evolved, allowing for greater interactivity among suppliers and customers, and as innovation and actual production locations are uncoupled, the role of importers has changed. Yalcinkaya, Calantone, and Griffith argue that as a result of this changing role, importers are strategically proactive and are increasingly involved in new product development within the overall value chain. They note that this is a critical limitation because importers functional responsibility within the marketplace has evolved toward the task of introducing new products to market. Thus, the authors work to gain a greater understanding of importer resource conversion into dynamic exploitation and exploration capabilities and the resultant influence on the degree of product innovation and market performance.
The findings of the study reveal that marketing and technological resources have unique influences on an importer’s exploitation and exploration capabilities. Yalcinkaya, Calantone, and Griffith find that the development of exploitation capabilities is primarily derived from a marketing resource base, whereas exploration capabilities are derived primarily from a technological resource base. These findings indicate a unique relationship between each resource and capability, thus suggesting strategic resource investment for managers based on capability desirability. In addition, the findings suggest not only that an importer’s long-term viability is based on its ability to extend its core product/service offering through exploitation but also that the continuous development of its existing product/service offering drives the importer to expand into new areas, thus extending the importer’s overall market position.
Managerially, Yalcinkaya, Calantone, and Griffith argue that importers are challenged to match worldwide product availability to local product demand. They contend that the ability to maintain a competitive position in the marketplace is a function not only of the importer’s resource base but also of an importer’s ability to develop specific capabilities that act as a leveraging mechanism to stimulate market performance. Furthermore, they argue that because the importer’s ability to develop a dynamic exploitation capability is founded on marketing resources, importers may believe that these resources are the sole driver of market performance. The findings also demonstrate not only that the importer’s exploitation capabilities drive the development of exploration capabilities but also that this capability is founded on the importer’s technological resources. This suggests to managers the importance of developing both resource bases for performance enhancement.
Biography
Goksel Yalcinkaya is Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of New Hampshire. He has worked for several years in industry as a marketing research analyst. His research interests are in diffusion of innovation, complex adaptive systems, new product launch, and international development.
Roger J. Calantone is Eli Broad Chaired University Professor of Business in the Department of Marketing and Supply Chain Management at Michigan State University. He is also director of Center for Entrepreneurial Strategy. He received his PhD from the University of Massachusetts (1976) and his MBA and BA from Canisius College, Buffalo (1972 and 1970, respectively). His research interests and areas of expertise are in product design and development processes, decision support and group decision support systems, technology market models, and international development. In addition to Journal of International Marketing, Professor Calantone has also recently published in Journal of Product Innovation Management, Academy of Management Journal, Strategic Management Journal, IEEE Transaction on Engineering Management, Decision Sciences, and Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science.
David A. Griffith is Associate Professor of Marketing in the Department of Marketing and Supply Chain Management at Michigan State University. He received his PhD and MBA from Kent State University and his BS and BA from the University of Akron. His areas of marketing expertise include international marketing strategy and global supply chain management. He has worked in manufacturing, services, and exporting industries. In addition to Journal of International Marketing, Professor Griffith has recently published in Journal of Operations Management, Journal of International Business Studies, and Journal of International Business Studies. David Griffith is editor-elect of Journal of International Marketing.
Journal of International Marketing, Vol. 15, No. 4, December 2007
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