G. Tomas M. Hult, S. Tamer Cavusgil, Seyda Deligonul, Tunga Kiyak, and Katarina Lagerström
Executive Summary
Hult and colleagues discuss global marketing organizations (GMOs) as contemporary ventures that seek rationalization and scale economies through strategies of worldwide integration and coordination in response to the globalization of markets. A study of internationalizing firms in Norway, Sweden, and the United States suggests that many relationships appear to be consistent across these countries while some are uniquely tied to the home-country markets.
The rapid globalization of markets, along with ever-increasing dynamic developments, places new demands on marketing managers of globally focused organizations. What, then, are the underlying dimensions of the GMO, and how closely are they related to firm performance?
Hult and colleagues find that the key dimensions of a GMO include global strategy, structure, leadership, processes, and culture. These organizational attributes influence company performance. The development of leadership, strategy, and culture precedes the structural considerations of GMOs. Thus, it would be prudent for the senior leadership of a GMO to formulate a global strategy and to build an organizational culture, which should then pave the way for tackling structural issues and organizational routines.
Hult and colleagues find a positive relationship between successful implementation of organizational processes and both marketing and financial performance. This confirms marketing’s role as an intermediate outcome in GMOs’ drive for superior “bottom-line” (financial) performance. Accordingly, GMOs should focus on “intermediate outcomes” as early indicators of global success when assessing internationalization efforts. In parallel, they should target superior financial performance as a (long-term) measure of overall business success.
Given the monumental nature of organizational change required to accommodate globalization drivers, managers are advised to develop a timetable for implementation. It would also be advisable to prioritize the changes; managers should start by tackling first those that are relatively easy to implement and are prone to minimum resistance.
Biography
G. Tomas M. Hult (PhD, University of Memphis, 1995) is Professor of Marketing and International Business and Director of the International Business Center (IBC) in the Eli Broad Graduate School of Management at Michigan State University. IBC is the developer of globalEDGE, the world’s leading online source for international business information (based on a ranking by Google.com in December 2006 when using the search term “international business”). Hult serves as executive director of the Academy of International Business and deputy editor-in-chief of Journal of International Business Studies. He is associate editor of Decision Sciences Journal and Journal of Operations Management. Together with David Ketchen, he formed Hult Ketchen International Group LLC, a firm that focuses on strategic supply chain management, global strategy planning and implementation, and marketing strategy (see www.hultketchen.com). Hult has published in Journal of Marketing, Academy of Management Journal, Strategic Management Journal, Journal of Operations Management, and Decision Sciences, among others.
S. Tamer Cavusgil is University Distinguished Faculty and John W. Byington Endowed Chair in Global Marketing at Michigan State University. He also serves as the Executive Director of MSU-CIBER. Professor Cavusgil specializes in international marketing strategy, early internationalization, and emerging markets. He is the author of several books and more than 100 peer-reviewed articles. Doing Business in Emerging Markets (Sage Publications, 2002) is his most recent contribution. He is also the author of several computer-aided diagnostic tools for managers, including CORE V and COmpany Readiness to Export. Cavusgil edits the Elsevier book series, Advances in International Marketing.
Seyda Z. Deligonul is a professor in the Bittner School of Business at St. John Fisher College. His area of marketing expertise and interest focuses on international marketing and strategy. He has had work experience in both retail and manufacturing. In addition to Journal of International Marketing, he has recently published in Advances in International Marketing and Journal of Business Research. He is currently exploring internationalization, strategy, performance, value creation, partner relationships, governance issues in channels, and theory development.
Tunga Kiyak is Visiting Assistant Professor of Marketing and International Business in the Eli Broad Graduate School of Management at Michigan State University. He also serves as the Managing Director for the Academy of International Business. He holds a PhD and MBA from Michigan State University and a BS-EE from Bogazici University, Istanbul, Turkey. In addition to Journal of International Marketing, he has also published in Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of American Academy of Business, Journal of Marketing Channels, and International Journal of Industrial Organization.
Katarina Lagerström is Assistant Professor of International Business in the Department of Business Administration at the School of Business, Economics and Law at Göteborg University, Sweden. She received her PhD in International Business from the Department of Business Studies at Uppsala University, Sweden. Her current research interests include international management and organization, knowledge management, corporate entrepreneurship, and international new ventures. Her work on these issues has yielded papers in International Business Research, Journal of World Business, and Journal of International Entrepreneurship.
Journal of International Marketing, Vol. 15, No. 2, June 2007
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