The Role Of Ambidexterity In Marketing

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BuR - Business Research Official Open Access Journal of VHB Verband der Hochschullehrer für Betriebswirtschaft e.V. Volume 2 | Issue 2 | December 2009 | 215-240 The Role of Ambidexterity in Marketing Strategy Implementation: Resolving the Exploration-Exploitation Dilemma Christiane Prange, EM Lyon Business School, France, E-Mail: prange@em-lyon.com Bodo B. Schlegelmilch, WU Wien, Austria, and Leeds University Business School, UK, E-Mail: bodo.schlegelmilch@wu-wien.ac.at Abstract Formulating consistent marketing strategies is a difficult task, but successfully implementing them is even more challenging. This is even more pertinent as marketing strategies quite often incorporate inherent conflicts between major breakthroughs and consolidation. Consequently, marketers need to balance exploratory and exploitative strategies. However, the literature lacks concrete insights for marketing managers as to how exploratory and exploitative strategies can be best combined. This paper addresses this issue by introducing a framework of multiple types of ambidexterity. Based on qualitative research, tools and procedures are identified to overcome marketing dilemmas and support strategy implementation by drawing on ambidextrous designs. Keywords: marketing dilemmas, marketing strategy implementation, exploration, exploitation, ambidexterity Manuscript received November 19, 2008, accepted by Adamantios Diamantopoulos (Marketing), November 11, 2009. 1 Introduction Marketers are faced with a dilemma: they are expected to consolidate their existing business while simultaneously finding new opportunities. They are torn between exploitation and exploration, or between alignment and innovation. Thus, implementing the right strategy is often difficult. Business development may be eager to sell new products that have not yet completed the research process. R&D may develop new

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