An examination of competitive rationality: The interaction of advanced manufacturing technology and marketing strategy.

摘要

Conceptual literature, case studies, and some empirical research in production and operations management literature have argued that the use of Advanced Manufacturing Technology (AMT) will significantly impact the marketing strategy of a firm. However, despite calls for cross-functional research, marketing literature has given relatively little attention to the effect of AMT and its proposed interactions with marketing and marketing strategy. This dissertation first drew upon Dickson's (1992) Theory of Competitive Rationality and manufacturing strategy literature and to develop a conceptual framework linking advanced manufacturing technology, manufacturing strategy, and marketing strategy. Additionally, we developed a new taxonomy of the purported benefits of advanced manufacturing technology as it relates to marketing outcomes. From these two bases, the conceptual frame and the taxonomy of benefits, we derived a set of hypotheses that specified the relationship of the use of AMT to marketing and international market entry strategies, the effect of these relationships on firm performance, and the effects of a number of moderating variables on these relationships. The hypotheses were tested using data obtained from a mailed survey of marketing executives in 552 businesses manufacturing products in SIC 349, 353, 356, and 359. While the analysis confirmed that firms tend to follow dichotomous choices consistent with Porter's generic strategy types, overall, we failed to find the hypothesized significant relationships. Possible reasons for the lack of relationships between manufacturing and marketing strategies are discussed and future avenues for research are outlined.