Salesperson’s Customer Orientation: A Reconceptualization and a New Definition

This study critically examines the existing domains, conceptualizations and operationalizations of the salesperson’s customer orientation constructs present in the literature. The widely used Salesperson orientation-Customer orientation (SOCO) construct (its domain, definition and scale) is examined in detail, and several inconsistencies were found. We also examine other individual-level and organizational-level orientation constructs, including market orientation, in order to appropriately delineate the boundaries of the salesperson’s customer orientation construct. Based on a comprehensive review of literature on the marketing concept, and related literatures on several other relevant orientation constructs, we suggest a new definition of this mid-level construct. Not only is our new definition more encompassing (to include all activities of the salesperson related to customers, and not just their interactions with the customers) but is also more forward-looking (salesperson’s enhanced role not just as need-fulfiller, but more as customers’ value co-creator). We sincerely hope that the new definition suggested by us would encourage scale development efforts from researchers, that would aid in further reducing (if not removing)the several inconsistencies present in the literature related to salespersons’ customer orientation, and its effect on their performance and effectiveness.

Decision Taking for Selling Thread Startup

Decision Taking is discussed in the context of the role it may play for a selling agent in a search market, in particular for agents involved in the sale of valuable and relatively unique items, such as a dwelling, a second hand car, or a second hand recreational vessel. Detailed connections are made between the architecture of decision making processes and a sample of software technology based concepts including instruction sequences, multi-threading, and thread algebra. Ample attention is paid to the initialization or startup of a thread dedicated to achieving a given objective, and to corresponding decision taking. As an application, the selling of an item is taken as an objective to be achieved by running a thread that was designed for that purpose

Just -in -time selling: Relation to market orientation, organizational structure and organizational performance

The purpose of this dissertation is to answer the following research questions related to the efficacy of a Just-in-Time (JIT) selling strategy: (1) What is the nature of the relationships among market orientation, JIT selling, organizational structure, and organizational performance constructs? (2) Does JIT selling mediate and/or moderate the relationships among market orientation and organizational structure and organizational performance? The market orientation model theorized by Kohli and Jaworski (1990) and the JIT selling model theorized and tested by Germain, Dröge and Daugherty (1994) and Claycomb, Dröge and Germain (1999) are combined to facilitate investigation of the link between market orientation and JIT selling. Generally, the combined model incorporates market orientation as an antecedent to JIT selling and organizational structure and performance as consequences. Data relating to all constructs were collected from 177 marketing oriented representatives from manufacturing firms using a combined Internet survey and traditional mailing methodology. A multiple regression and structural equation modeling approach returned results indicating that market orientation and JIT selling are positively linked, that market orientation and JIT selling are positively associated with organizational performance and with the integration, formalization and specialization components of organizational structure but not with the decentralization component. JIT selling partially mediates the relationship between market orientation and organizational performance but neither mediates nor moderates the relations among market orientation and integration, formalization and specialization. Managers implementing a JIT selling strategy within the context of an organization exhibiting a high market orientation may expect improvements in organizational performance. A JIT selling strategy requires development of long-term, single-source relationships with buyers and efforts by the organization\u27s sales representatives to build value during the selling process based on established organizational abilities to deliver zero-defect products precisely on-time and in the precise quantities desired by customers while minimizing total waste and total cost throughout the supply chain

The Successful Imitation of the Japanese Lean Production System by American Firms: Impact on American Economic Growth

This paper provides some quantitative evidence about the strong links between the Lean Production System (LPS) or equivalently the holistic Just-in-Time/Quality Control (JIT/QC) system and sectoral (micro) economic growth. This evidence is supported by qualitative arguments that present the LPS or the JIT/QC philosophy as a major and fundamental organizational feature of modern economies. Though the implementation of such a system originated in Japan, the USA have been in the process of catching up in the last fifteen years. Subsequently, recently published American sectoral data (for the period between 1958 and 1996) are used to provide ample quantitative evidence of the role the JIT/QC organizational philosophy played in shaping and leading the American macro and sectoral economies in the last 40 years. The implications for the theory of economic growth and economic policy are also briefly stated.Lean Production, Just -in-Time, Quality Control, organization, American, Japanese, transaction costs, sectors, regression, error correction model, stationarity, total factor productivity, labor productivity, economic growth.

Boosting Total Relationship Marketing

This paper explores the track of marketing, by referring to the literature, through the advancements in digitalized technological systems particularly Information Technologies (IT), the emergence of a more broadly educated and more discerning consumer with increasing discretionary spending and purchasing power, the adoption of Total Quality Management (TQM) as the biggest competitive issue of 1990s, the growth of the service economy, the increase of competitive intensity and its impact on customer retention, and finally from a production-oriented definition of marketing to customer-oriented one(transaction to relationships). Actually all these variables are considered to be the main drivers of Relationship Marketing (RM) that led the pathway to Total Relationship Marketing (TRM).Relationship Marketing; Marketing; Total Quality Management; Total Relationship Marketing

Managerial Use of Broad Scope MAS Information – A Function of JIT and ICT: An Exploratory Study

Is managerial use of the broad scope MAS (management accounting systems) information a function of JIT implementation and ICT? This study attempts to address the above question. The research propositions are developed following the relevant literature on MAS information, ICT and JIT. Seventy-six general managers, each in charge of one strategic business unit (SBU) within their respective organizations, participated in the study. Data was collected from the SBU general managers using a survey questionnaire. The results reveal that just-in-time manufacturing (JIT) implementation and managers’ use of information and communication technology (ICT) are determinants of their use of the broad scope MAS information

A Comparative Analysis of Management Accounting Systems on Lean Implementation

The adoption of lean principles and practices has become widespread in many industries since the early 1990’s. Companies are now beginning to realize that traditional costing and accounting methods may conflict with lean initiatives they are implementing. Consequently, important research questions are being raised. Which cost management and accounting approach required for companies that adopt lean principles and practices? The primary objective of this research is to asses the impact of different management accounting systems on lean manufacturing as measured by performance metrics and to investigate the development of management accounting strategy which will support lean operations and will help to monitor the lean progress. Three management accounting alternatives investigated in this study are traditional management accounting, activity based costing and value stream costing. This study evaluates the overhead principles associated with management accounting alternatives to identify real product cost that will drive many business decisions. The financial measures commonly used are short-term and long-term profitability

Accounting for competitive advantage: The resource-based view of the firm and the labour theory of value

This article uses accounting concepts to assist the field of strategic management in its search for a theory of value, competitive advantage and superior profitability. Specifically, it argues that the resource-based view of the firm requires a labour theory of value creation. Using the circuit of capital as an organizing framework this article integrates RBV and Marx's value theory, by introducing the notion of value as socially necessary labour time, into the analysis of resource-based advantage. This enables us to identify the impact of particular sources of competitive advantage as they become diffused through an industry. Some resource-based advantages, when eventually imitated lead to an overall reduction in industry profitability, and other advantages lead to increases in industry average profitability

"Predictors of Trust in Buyer-Supplier Relations: A Contextual and Cultural Comparison of Japan and Turkey"

Trust is a dimension of buyer-supplier relations being researched widely, but studies have generally focused on developed economies. Developing countries, however, have contextual and cultural factors that may differentiate them from developed countries. This study attempts to apply a theoretical model developed for the US, Japan, and Korea to a developing country context, namely Turkey. While Turkey has cultural similarities to Japan in terms of collectivism and risk aversion, the results of the theoretical model show that is does not fit the Turkish case. Suggestions are made to extend the model theoretically and measurement-wise to help explain trust building factors in developing countries.