The development and impact of marketing capabilities in central Europe

The industrial organisation and evolutionary economics traditions in international business and the resource-based view of the firm in strategic management provide a rich and related set of perspectives on the question of performance in an international environment. This paper draws on these perspectives to examine the nature of marketing capabilities across a range of firm types in Hungary, Poland and Slovenia. A number of key strategic capabilities are examined including market orientation, the time horizon of strategic decision making and positioning capability. The study finds that firms with foreign participation have been able to develop a sophisticated level of marketing capability with a resulting positive impact on financial and market performance. Wholly-owned subsidiaries and international joint ventures emerge as equally effective mechanisms for the transfer of marketing capability. Conclusions are drawn and implications from the research are outlined.