Doctoral dissertation: The success recipes of companies are context-dependent

14.06.2012

[Image:Matti_Jaakkola_pieni.jpg]The doctoral dissertation of Matti Jaakkola, M.Sc. (Tech.), completed at the Aalto University School of Economics identifies several background mechanisms affecting the success of businesses.

According to the study, companies can have very complex recipes for success and a certain result can often be achieved through several different routes. These recipes for success are strongly context-dependent, so what works in one country or market environment may not work in another.

Taking the operating environment and the capabilities of a company into consideration is an essential requirement for success. Otherwise, the plans made based on distorted analyses can weaken the impact of marketing and prevent a company from succeeding.

Capabilities help companies to better benefit from their resources

Unlike previous studies, Jaakkola’s doctoral dissertation answers the question how strategic orientations (e.g. approach towards customers and innovation) and marketing capabilities (e.g. a company’s product development and customer relationship management competence) affect business performance separately and as a combined entity.

According to the results, capabilities, in particular, can help companies to benefit from the value hidden in resources. Even an exemplary understanding of the customers will not improve the performance of a company if this understanding is not used to develop value production processes and business. Strategic orientations, on the other hand, guide the development of capabilities.

Since there are synergistic relationships between orientations and capabilities, together they improve the performance of businesses more than on their own. This is why companies should look at resources and capabilities as a whole affecting their performance.

The study is part of the StratMark project by the Aalto University School of Economics and the Hanken School of Economics.

Public examination of the doctoral dissertation

The doctoral dissertation of Matti Jaakkola, M.Sc. (Tech.), Strategic orientations, market-based capabilities and business performance: The moderating effect of business context in the subject area of marketing will be examined at the Aalto University School of Economics on Tuesday 19 June 2012 at 12 noon (Chydenia, Stora Enso Hall, Runeberginkatu 22-24).

Professor John Cadogan (Loughborough University) and Senior Lecturer John Rudd (Aston Business School) will act as the opponents and Professor Kristian Möller as the custos.

Representatives of the media may request free copies of the dissertation from the Aalto University School of Economics Communications Unit, viestinta-econ(at)aalto.fi or tel. +358 50 566 5673. The dissertation can be ordered by email from: toolo(at)ayy.fi.

Further information: Matti Jaakkola, tel. +358 40 353 8300, matti.jaakkola(at)aalto.fi

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