Organizational Search and Market Orientation

Abstract

Market orientation has evolved into a key construct in the marketing and strategy literature. While much progress has been made in empirical research, the concept lacks a coherent theoretical foundation. Essentially, much prior research has pointed to the role of market-sensing capabilities to explain performance differentials among firms (Day, 1994). We open up the black box of market-sensing capabilities by treating the issue of choosing marketing attributes of products as a problem of organizational search. Despite much robust research on organizational search in the strategy and organization literature (Cyert & March, 1963; Nelson & Winter, 1982; March, 1988; Levinthal, 1997; Sorenson, 2002), the organizational search processes underlying market orientation has received little, if any, attention in marketing research. Our research thus contributes to the growing body of marketing research drawing on the behavioral theory of the firm.