Industrial Marketing Management最新文献

This article investigates data-related tensions and their corresponding coping strategies arising from inter-firm collaboration in digital servitization ecosystems. We conducted a systematic literature review based on thematic and network analyses, covering a sample of 191 articles on digital servitization. The findings offer a set of 11 tensions organized into six dimensions: (i) data strategy, (ii) data partnership governance, (iii) data reliability, (iv) data security and privacy, (v) data interoperability, and (vi) data lifecycle. Additionally, we identify seven coping strategies to address these tensions, which we categorized into three approaches: (i) governance, (ii) technology, and (iii) organization. These tensions and their corresponding coping strategies are arranged and presented in a conceptual framework, leading into five propositions. We also provide a research agenda outlining future research opportunities to expand knowledge on the tensions arising from inter-organizational relationships when creating and providing data-driven services. For practitioners, we offer insights into how to manage ecosystem relationships by suggesting strategies to cope with these tensions, and for policy makers we shed light on crucial matters for future data governance policies and laws.

Firms regularly seek to exert influence over their operating environments through market-shaping strategies. Such market-shaping strategies view markets as endogenously enacted environments and thus broaden firms' strategic repertoire from merely adapting to the changes in the operating environment to also proactively seeking to induce changes in relevant markets. Past research has delineated the market-shaping concept and identified various shaping activities that may induce market change. However, there is limited understanding of how these individual shaping activities are combined to form effective market-shaping strategies. Against this backdrop, focusing on the contents of market-shaping strategies, the authors put forward six elements of what is being shaped: Changes in offering, pricing, customer-side features, supply-side features, representations, and norms. The findings from a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis of 21 case firms reveal how these elements combine into six distinct configurations. These findings contribute to the nascent research on categorizations of market-shaping strategies and research on market formation. For managers, the authors provide normative and nuanced advice on which elements to include in market-shaping strategies, depending on the overall strategic intent.

Distributors' opportunistic behaviors damage the manufacturer–distributor relationships and harm the manufacturer's performance. Thus, manufacturers must curb distributors' opportunism. Influence strategies, categorized as coercive and non-coercive, affect channel members' opportunism. Although previous studies identify the boundary conditions of coercive and non-coercive influence strategies, they focus on channel relationship characteristics as boundary conditions, ignoring channel structure, such as dual distribution channels. Accordingly, we examine whether dual channel system (vs. independent channel system) moderates the relationship between coercive/non-coercive influence strategies and distributor opportunism. Moreover, we investigate whether distributor dependence enhances the dual-channel moderating role. To test our hypotheses, primary data were collected from Japanese CEOs engaged in distribution firms. The results indicate that the dual channel system enhances the facilitating effect of coercive influence strategy on opportunism, whereas the suppressive effect of non-coercive influence strategy on opportunism works only in a dual-channel and high distributor dependence situation. This study contributes to a better understanding of marketing channels and provides novel insights for business managers.

The concept of Multi-Sided Platforms (MSPs) has significantly impacted the management field by facilitating interactions between distinct, interdependent groups, revolutionizing numerous industries. While extensive research has examined platform models, further exploration of MSPs in Business-to-Business (B2B) settings, particularly at the supply chain level, remains necessary. This paper critically examines the role of technology-enabled MSPs within B2B environments, highlighting their distinct challenges and opportunities for supply chain ecosystems. We review existing literature on B2B platforms, classifying studies according to the main platform typologies: transactional, innovation, and orthogonal. We identify three key roles these platforms play in supply chain management: enabling information sharing and collaboration, enhancing existing processes, and supporting transformation. Additionally, we investigate five central themes in B2B relationships: power dynamics and governance, resource allocation and optimization, communication dynamics, competence development and learning, and resilience and adaptability. The findings underscore the transformative potential of MSPs in B2B contexts, particularly in driving innovation, improving operational efficiencies, and creating new forms of value. These insights also serve to introduce the eight papers in this special issue and frame three propositions for future research.

Endogeneity due to omitted variable bias presents a significant challenge in empirical marketing research. The instrumental variable (IV) estimation is a prevalent technique to identify this bias, but its correct application can be complex and demanding. This study presents the impact threshold of a confounding variable (ITCV) as a valuable tool for assessing the likelihood of omitted variable bias. Instead of replacing IV estimations, we propose that the ITCV should precede such advanced techniques, as the IV approach may be unnecessary if the ITCV suggests no significant concern for omitted variable bias. This study contributes to the field of empirical marketing research by (1) detailing the theoretical foundations and practical applications of the ITCV, making it accessible to all researchers, regardless of their statistical expertise; (2) comparing the ITCV directly with IV estimation techniques across key metrics; (3) providing an interdisciplinary guide with step-by-step instructions on how to implement the ITCV using Stata and R; (4) demonstrating the ITCV's effectiveness through empirical evidence using a hypothetical research model, thus underscoring its practical utility and promoting its wider adoption; and (5) offering comprehensive reporting guidelines for the ITCV, complete with graphical illustrations, tables, and references to relevant studies.

Digital servitization is the process by which manufacturing firms transition from offering products to offering solutions that integrate products with services and digital technologies. Although previous studies have looked into the capabilities necessary for this transition, several topics need further exploration to advance the research field. The central issue is how digital servitization capabilities create value for the firm, followed by the need for a comprehensive and updated perspective on digital servitization capabilities to properly explain this relationship. Moreover, the effectiveness of different service delivery capabilities, the role of manufacturing capabilities in the offering of digital services, and how digital servitization capabilities evolve are topics that also need to be clarified. To address these issues, the present study developed a theoretical framework comprising four digital servitization capabilities (Integration, Provision, Orchestration, and Manufacturing) and conducted a multiple case study involving 24 Brazilian manufacturing firms. Employing a configurational approach, fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) was used to analyze the data. The findings reveal that two configurations of digital servitization capabilities enable value creation: Integration, Provision, and Manufacturing or; Integration, Orchestration, and Manufacturing. The study demonstrates that each configuration represents a different way of operationalizing the same digital servitization strategy, advancing the knowledge on the relationship between digital servitization and value creation.

In recent years, several organizations have implemented customer success (CS) management to maximize customers' value in use. Despite the acknowledged benefits of CS management, challenges persist, particularly in understanding the involvement of CS managers in sales. Drawing from qualitative interviews with CS managers, this study reveals variability in CS managers' involvement in presales activities and responsibility for up- and cross-selling. These insights have led to the development of a taxonomy outlining different types of CS manager involvement in sales. This taxonomy provides more nuance to the analysis of CS managers' involvement in sales than previously assumed in the literature. Additionally, this research uncovers three CS manager-perceived sources of friction: short-term sales focus, conflicts over customer ownership, and poor handovers. These insights contribute to understanding the complexities of CS managers' involvement in sales and offer practical implications for improving alignment between both functions.