Leaders, governments and religions throughout
history have attempted to find ways to influence societies, and sway the
needs and desires of individuals. Yet, as national politicians and
diplomats find it increasingly difficult to govern through explicit directives
or find common ground for compromise, the economic forces of globalization
that have been evidenced since the introduction of supra-national organizations
appears to continue virtually unabated. The environmental forces
of globalization have provided means for the fittest of MNC’s to thrive
in a new world where suppliers, competitors and customers are no longer
bound by the nation-state, or even region. It seems that free trade
and business acumen have found a way to achieve what none has been able
to before: a convergence in consumer attitudes and behaviors, which
can only be satisfied by organizations that operate beyond traditional
geographic and cultural boundaries. The actual key to power in this
age comes from the forces that create common desires, and as written by
Josef Joffe, editor of Die Zeit, the true challenge is “getting others
to want what you want” (Nye, 2002).
Therein lies the importance of understanding
the marketing processes in the global company, and determining means for
appropriate valuation of these activities. While there is an emergence
of the recognition of the need to understand the value of marketing to
the firm’s performance (Srivastava et al., 1998), there is a distinct
gap in the literature which integrates the value added of the marketing
functions, as a whole, particularly from a global perspective. Thus,
an emergent school of thought in international business recognizes the
value generated for the global firm by marketing activities (Cavusgil,
2002).
Marketing is a complex set of functions which
involve tactics, or the act of demand stimulation and selling; culture,
which provides a means for implementing a customer orientation; and
strategy, which translates the marketing concept into actions that create
competitive advantage (Webster, 2002). These paths have particular
significance in the context of the global firm, with the argument being
that marketing-related strategies, processes, and structures produce measurable
intermediate outcomes for the enterprise. Typically, these outcomes
or performance metrics revolve around customers, channels, branding, and
innovation (Cavusgil, 2002). The fundamental importance is recognized
by the concept that intermediate marketing program outcomes directly influence
more traditional, financial performance indicators; thus, validating the
need for academic study to provide a greater understanding of the factors
that engender positive returns.
For instance, successful global brands, are
an embodiment of the inherent value of the consolidation and integration
of previously disparate international marketing operations. The challenge
for practitioners and academics alike, is capturing and understanding this
value. Although, there has been considerable exploration of the strategy
(Yip, 2003) and structure (Bartlett and Ghoshal, 1989) of the organization
of the MNC, with scholars making a substantial contribution to our knowledge,
there has been limited investigation of the actual functions which create
value. As academics continue to explore the nature of the transition
of firms, a deeper understanding of specific aspects of the relative contribution
of explicit activities becomes necessary. Whether achieved through
the need for economies or the drive for expansion, or more likely a combination
of the two, and regardless of organizational structure, marketing function
outcomes, like brand equity, customer relationships, and innovative capacity
are phenomena that have yet to be explored fully in the international marketing
literature (Cavusgil, 2002).
The rise of technology and the increase in
velocity of interaction between individuals and organizations has facilitated
major changes in the way organizations conduct business, as well as influencing
consumers’ expectations. For the first time in history, companies
now have the means to efficiently connect worldwide operations. Call
an airline based in London, England and end up talking to an operator in
Bangalore, India. Such are the realities of modern life, and marketing
in a new era of information enlightenment. Firms must learn to create
relationships with their core customers, in order to engender loyalty which
is difficult for competitors to either imitate, or breach. Strategic
management of global marketing is the key to these relationships.
Indeed, for MNCs, it is imperative to closely
assimilate home-office and distant country operations in order to respond
effectively to growing competitive intensity and industry consolidation,
as well as external environmental events. The recent boycotts against
“Western” brands in the Middle East are a case in point; although responsible
for a significant amount of direct investment and the creation of many
thousands of needed jobs (Economist, November 2, 2002), firms have not
been able to effectively bridge divides with local constituencies.
This brings a fresh, more ubiquitous perspective to the old issue of standardization
or adaptation: it begs an answer to the question of whether firms can truly
operationalize the notion of thinking globally while acting locally (Ohmae,
1989).
International managers, who are able to raise
the image of the business to a universal level of awareness by relying
on the principles of global marketing, will gain recognition within the
firm. Correspondingly, future research questions need to explore
a number of topics related to the globalization of marketing within the
firm. Most obvious among these topics are the drivers, activities
and marketing based outcomes of the primary marketing functions like global
branding, global innovation management, global channel management, and
global customer relationship management including business to business
based global account management (Cavusgil, 2002). Identifying and
exploring these intermediate metrics will provide a valuable base for future
study. Hence, it is appropriate for both practitioners and academics
alike to develop a clear understanding of the antecedents and consequences
of the value-added equity outcomes related to marketing program activities:
customers, brands, channel relationships, and innovation.
It is with this perspective in mind that a
research agenda has recently been initiated by the International Marketing
faculty, along with an enthusiastic group of doctoral candidates at Michigan
State University. Subsequent to an exploratory study of the
marketing based assets of the global company undertaken as part of a series
of doctoral seminars, this group of scholars is in the process of developing
a stream of research to specifically address the issues discussed here.
The results and findings of this research program will be presented to
the academic community in the coming years. |
References
Bartlett,
Christopher A. and Sumantra Ghoshal (1989), Managing Across Borders:
The Transnational Solution. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Cavusgil,
S. Tamer (2002), "Knowledge Development in International Marketing:
A Critical Assessment and a Look Forward," Paper presented at the IU-IB
Conference. Indiana University.
Nye, Joseph
(2002), "The New Rome Meets the New Barbarians," The Economist, 23-25.
Ohmae, Kenichi
(1989), "Managing in a Borderless World," Harvard Business Review, 67 (May-June),
152-61.
Srivastava,
Rajendra K., Tasadduq A. Shervani, and Liam Fahey (1998), "Market Based
Assets and Shareholder Value: A Framework for Analysis," Journal
of Marketing, 62 (January), 2-18.
Webster,
Frederick E. (2002), "Marketing Management in Changing Times," Marketing
Management (January/February), 18-23.
Yip, George
S. (2003), Total Global Strategy II. Upper Saddel River, N.J.: Prentice
Hall.
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