Dynamic marketing capability – refining the concept and applying it to company innovations

Abstract

PurposeThis paper aims to introduce dynamic marketing capability (DMC) as a construct relevant for business research and business practice, and to test its validity in relation to company product innovations and company agility.Design/methodology/approachThis study tests a hypothesized model using partial least squares structural equation modeling on data from a survey conducted with 155 companies based in Poland.FindingsThis study provides evidence that DMC facilitates company innovations in terms of their speed and market success. Thus, DMC complements other organizational capabilities that were previously found effective for new product development (NPD) with regard to intra- and inter-organizational processes. However, the influence of DMC on company innovation success is stronger in the case of companies that operate without the pressure to customize. Thus, this approach is more relevant for companies that provide standardized offerings and which target various customer segments, rather than companies that operate in customer niches or when their NPD processes are strongly orchestrated by their customers, e.g. in B2B sales within hierarchical supply chains.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is limited by the cross-sectional empirical setting in that one country is used to test the research hypotheses. Further studies may focus on the combined effects of DMC and other important organizational capabilities, for example, flexible manufacturing, and may provide a detailed picture of DMC development by applying a longitudinal approach and case studies.Practical implicationsGenerally, managers can use this research to rethink their corporate strategies. The study proposes a specific strategic approach to corporate innovativeness: companies may acquire meaningful market benefits through systematic reconfiguration of their marketing assets, combined with the introduction of new products. However, managers should analyze their business model and industrial setting to verify to what extent their companies operate in a context relevant for reconfiguring marketing resources. If the pressure for strong customization is high in the existing customer base, investing in DMC may not be relevant, as new offerings are rather customer tailored, i.e. designed by “big fish” buyers. On the other hand, many companies may leverage their innovations with DMC in both B2B and B2C settings, as long as they can provide standard solutions as their market offerings.Originality/valueThe study contributes to marketing theory in three ways. Firstly, the study conceptualizes DMC as a distinct dynamic capability aligned with dynamic capabilities view (from which DMC logically originates), and proposes how DMC is linked nomologically with company innovativeness and agility. Secondly, a measurement instrument for DMC and an empirical test for the model are both provided. Thirdly, the paper presents evidence that the link between DMC and product innovations becomes restricted in the presence of certain contingencies, specifically with regard to the so-called customization norm.