Abstract
The influence of firms' dynamic capabilities on performance has been well articulated in the strategy literature. Yet conceptualization and operationalization of dynamic capabilities in marketing function have not been attempted, and empirical evidence substantiating the effect of dynamic capabilities is scarce. This research develops a conceptualization of marketing dynamic capabilities (MDCs), investigates their development in international joint ventures (IJVs), and explores their effect on IJVs' performance and competitive advantage. Using a dyadic dataset collected from top managers of IJVs in China, as well as objective performance data collected separately, the study found empirical support for the effect of MDCs on IJVs' competitive advantage and performance. In addition, MDCs are found to be influenced by IJV resource magnitude, resource complementarity, organizational culture, and organizational structure. The theoretical implications of our findings and future research directions are also discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aiken, L., & West, S. 1991. Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
Amit, R., & Livnat, J. 1988. Diversification strategies, business cycles and economic performance. Strategic Management Journal, 9 (2): 99–110.
Amit, R., & Schoemaker, P. 1993. Strategic assets and organizational rent. Strategic Management Journal, 14 (1): 33–46.
Anand, B., & Khanna, T. 2000. Do firms learn to create value? The case of alliances. Strategic Management Journal, 21 (3): 295–315.
Anderson, J., & Gerbing, D. 1988. Structural equation modeling in practice: A review and recommended two-step approach. Psychological Bulletin, 103 (3): 411–423.
Ayers, D., Dahlstrom, R., & Skinner, S. 1997. An exploratory investigation of organizational antecedents to new product success. Journal of Marketing Research, 34 (1): 107–116.
Baird, I., & Thomas, H. 1985. Toward a contingency model of strategic risk taking. Academy of Management Review, 10 (2): 230–243.
Barney, J. 1986. Strategic factor markets: expectations, luck, and business strategy. Management Science, 32 (10): 1231–1241.
Barney, J. 1991. Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage. Journal of Management, 17 (1): 99–120.
Baron, R., & Kenny, D. 1986. The moderator–mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51 (6): 1173–1182.
Beamish, P., & Banks, J. 1987. Equity joint ventures and theory of the multinational enterprise. Journal of International Business Studies, 18 (2): 1–16.
Bourgeois, L. 1981. On the measurement of organizational slack. Academy of Management Review, 6 (1): 29–39.
Boyer, K., & Verma, R. 2000. Multiple raters in survey-based operations management research: A review and tutorial. Production and Operations Management, 9 (2): 128–140.
Bromiley, P. 1991. Paradox or at least variance found: A comment on “Mean-variance approaches to risk-return relationships in strategy: Paradox lost”. Management Science, 37 (9): 1206–1210.
Caves, R., & Porter, M. 1980. The dynamics of changing seller concentration. Journal of Industrial Economics, 29 (1): 1–15.
Cheng, J., & Kesner, I. 1997. Organizational slack and response to environmental shifts: The impact of resource allocation patterns. Journal of Management, 23 (1): 1–18.
Cohen, W., & Levinthal, D. 1990. Absorptive capacity: A new perspective on learning and innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly, 35 (1): 128–152.
Collis, D., & Montgomery, C. 1998. Creating corporate advantage. Harvard Business Review, 76 (3): 70–83.
Cyert, R., & March, J. 1963. A behavioral theory of the firm. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Day, G. 1994. The capabilities of market-driven organizations. Journal of Marketing, 58 (4): 37–52.
Demsetz, H. 1988. The theory of the firm revisited. Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, 4 (1): 141–161.
Ebben, J., & Johnson, A. 2005. Efficiency, flexibility, or both? Evidence linking strategy to performance in small firms. Strategic Management Journal, 26 (10): 1249–1259.
Eisenhardt, K., & Brown, S. 1999. Patching: Restitching business portfolios in dynamic markets. Harvard Business Review, 77 (3): 72–82.
Eisenhardt, K., & Martin, J. 2000. Dynamic capabilities: What are they? Strategic Management Journal, 21 (10–11): 1105–1121.
Emerson, R. 1962. Power-dependence relations. American Sociological Review, 27 (1): 31–41.
Galbraith, J. 1973. Designing complex organizations. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
Gibbons, R. 1992. Game theory for applied economists. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Grant, R. 1996a. Toward a knowledge-based theory of the firm. Strategic Management Journal, 17 (Winter Special Issue): 109–122.
Grant, R. 1996b. Prospering in dynamically-competitive environments: Organizational capability as knowledge integration. Organization Science, 7 (4): 375–387.
Griffin, A., & Hauser, J. 1993. The voice of the customer. Marketing Science, 12 (1): 1–25.
Griffith, D., Noble, S., & Chen, Q. 2006. The performance implications of entrepreneurial proclivity: A dynamic capabilities approach. Journal of Retailing, 82 (1): 51–62.
Gulati, R., & Singh, H. 1998. The architecture of cooperation: Managing coordination costs and appropriation concerns in strategic alliances. Administrative Science Quarterly, 43 (4): 781–814.
Henderson, R., & Cockburn, I. 1994. Measuring competence? Exploring firm effects in pharmaceutical research. Strategic Management Journal, 15 (Winter Special Issue): 63–84.
Hill, R., & Hellriegel, D. 1994. Critical contingencies in joint venture management. Organization Science, 5 (4): 594–607.
Hitt, M., Dacin, M., Levitas, E., Arregle, J., & Borza, A. 2000. Partner selection in emerging and developed market contexts: Resource based and organizational learning perspectives. Academy of Management Journal, 43 (2): 345–364.
Hofstede, G. 2001. Culture's consequences: Comparing values, behaviors, institutions, and organizations across nations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Huber, G. 1991. Organizational learning: The contributing processes and the literatures. Organization Science, 2 (1): 88–115.
Hult, T., Ketchen, D., & Slater, S. 2005. Market orientation and performance: An integration of disparate approaches. Strategic Management Journal, 26 (2): 1173–1181.
Hutchins, E. 1991. Organizing work by adaptation. Organization Science, 2 (1): 14–38.
Jaworski, B., & Kohli, A. 1993. Market orientation: Antecedents and consequences. Journal of Marketing, 57 (3): 53–70.
Kogut, B. 1988. Joint ventures: Theoretical and empirical perspectives. Strategic Management Journal, 9 (4): 319–333.
Kogut, B., & Singh, H. 1988. The effect of national culture on the choice of entry mode. Journal of International Business Studies, 19 (3): 411–432.
Kogut, B., & Zander, U. 1992. Knowledge of the firm, combinative capabilities, and the replication of technology. Organization Science, 3 (3): 383–397.
Lane, P., & Lubatkin, M. 1998. Relative absorptive capacity and interorganizational learning. Strategic Management Journal, 19 (5): 461–477.
Li, H., & Atuahene-Gima, K. 2001. Product innovation strategy and the performance of new technology ventures in China. Academy of Management Journal, 44 (5): 1123–1134.
Luo, Y. 2000. Multinational corporations in China. Copenhagen: Copenhagen Business School Press.
Luo, Y. 2002. Product diversification in international joint ventures: Performance implications in an emerging market. Strategic Management Journal, 23 (1): 1–20.
Luo, Y. 2005. How important are shared perceptions of procedural justice in cooperative alliances? Academy of Management Journal, 48 (4): 695–710.
Mahoney, J., & Pandian, J. 1992. The resource-based view within the conversation of strategic management. Strategic Management Journal, 13 (5): 363–380.
Makadok, R. 2001. Toward a synthesis of the resource-based and dynamic-capability views of rent creation. Strategic Management Journal, 22 (5): 387–401.
Mentzer, J., DeWitt, W., Keebler, J., Min, S., Nix, N., Smith, C., & Zacharia, Z. 2001. Defining supply chain management. Journal of Business Logistics, 22 (2): 130–165.
Miller, D. 1987. The structural and environmental correlates of business strategy. Strategic Management Journal, 8 (1): 55–76.
Mintzberg, H. 1979. The structuring of organizations: A synthesis of the research. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Narver, J., & Slater, S. 1990. The effect of a market orientation on business profitability. Journal of Marketing, 54 (4): 20–35.
Oxley, J., & Sampson, R. 2004. The scope and governance of international R&D alliances. Strategic Management Journal, 25 (8–9): 723–749.
Park, S., Chen, R., & Gallagher, S. 2002. Firm resources as moderators of the relationship between market growth and strategic alliances in semiconductor start-ups. Academy of Management Journal, 45 (3): 527–545.
Payne, A., & Frow, P. 2005. A strategic framework for customer relationship management. Journal of Marketing, 69 (4): 167–176.
Penrose, E. 1959. The theory of growth of the firm. New York: Oxford University Press.
Pfeffer, J., & Salancik, G. 1978. The external control of organizations. New York: Harper & Row.
Prahalad, C., & Hamel, G. 1990. The core competency of the corporation. Harvard Business Review, 68 (3): 79–91.
Provan, K., & Skinner, S. 1989. Interorganizational dependence and control as predictors of opportunism in dealer-supplier relations. Academy of Management Journal, 32 (2): 202–212.
Ray, G., Barney, J., & Muhanna, W. 2004. Capabilities, business processes, and competitive advantage: Choosing the dependent variables in empirical tests of the resource-based view. Strategic Management Journal, 25 (1): 23–37.
Roy, A., Walters, P., & Luk, S. 2001. Chinese puzzles and paradoxes: Conducting business research in China. Journal of Business Research, 52 (2): 203–210.
Sarkar, M., Echambadi, R., Cavusgil, S., & Aulakh, P. 2001. The influence of complementarity, compatibility, and relationship capital on alliance performance. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 29 (4): 358–373.
Sinkula, J., Baker, W., & Noordewier, T. 1997. A framework for market-based organizational learning: Linking values, knowledge, and behavior. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 25 (4): 305–318.
Slater, S., & Narver, J. 1995. Market orientation and the learning organization. Journal of Marketing, 59 (3): 63–74.
Slotegraaf, R., Moorman, C., & Inman, J. 2003. The role of firm resources in returns to market deployment. Journal of Marketing Research, 40 (3): 295–309.
Sobrero, M., & Roberts, E. 2001. The trade-off between efficiency and learning in interorganizational relationships for product development. Management Science, 47 (4): 493–511.
Srivastava, R., Shervani, T., & Fahey, L. 1999. Marketing, business processes, and shareholder value: An organizationally embedded view of marketing activities and the discipline of marketing. Journal of Marketing, 63 (Special Issue): 168–179.
Teece, D., Pisano, G., & Shuen, A. 1997. Dynamic capabilities and strategic management. Strategic Management Journal, 18 (7): 509–533.
Van Bruggen, G., Lilien, G., & Kacker, M. 2002. Informants in organizational marketing research: Why use multiple informants and how to aggregate responses. Journal of Marketing Research, 39 (4): 469–478.
Wernerfelt, B. 1984. A resource-based view of the firm. Strategic Management Journal, 5 (2): 171–180.
Winter, S. 2003. Understanding dynamic capabilities. Strategic Management Journal, 24 (10): 991–995.
Woodruff, R. 1997. Customer value: The next source for competitive advantage. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 25 (2): 139–153.
Yan, A., & Gray, B. 1994. Bargaining power, management control and performance in United States–China joint ventures: A comparative case study. Academy of Management Journal, 37 (6): 1478–1517.
Zaltman, G., Duncan, R., & Holbeck, J. 1973. Innovations and organizations. New York: Wiley.
Zott, C. 2003. Dynamic capabilities and the emergence of intra-industry differential firm performance: Insights from a simulation study. Strategic Management Journal, 24 (11): 97–125.
Acknowledgements
We gratefully thank the two anonymous reviewers and Departmental Editor David Tse for their constructive comments.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Accepted by David Tse, Departmental Editor, 29 February 2008. This paper has been with the authors for two revisions.
APPENDIX
APPENDIX
See Table A1.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Fang, E., Zou, S. Antecedents and consequences of marketing dynamic capabilities in international joint ventures. J Int Bus Stud 40, 742–761 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1057/jibs.2008.96
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/jibs.2008.96