Customer Enquiry Management in a Global Competitive Context: A Comparative Multi-Case Study Analysis.
Business-to-Business (B2B) relationships, such as between a manufacturer and a customer,are increasingly important during the Customer Enquiry Management (CEM) process,particularly so for non-Make-To-Stock (non-MTS) companies operating in industrial markets.Few empirical studies have explored the CEM practices adopted by firms in practice. A studyof the Italian capital goods sector by Zorzini et al. (2007) is a recent exception. Moreover,most studies have approached CEM from a cross-department integrated perspective but in thedigital economy, and with globalization, outsourcing and extended supply chains, CEM needsto be approached from a broader supply chain-oriented perspective, incorporating B2Bexchanges. This paper builds on the study by Zorzini et al. (2007) by conducting multi-casestudy research with seven UK-based companies in the capital goods sector, including threesales and support companies with offshore manufacturing. By adopting a cross-nationalresearch perspective, it assesses whether the proposed theory applies to other capital goodsfirms outside Italy. By also adopting a supply chain perspective of CEM it investigatescurrent industry practice in B2B markets and explores whether cross-functional coordinationand formalization issues can be extended into a global context. Evidence from the UKgenerally supports prior theory, confirming links between high levels of coordination,formalization of the CEM process and improved performance. Some refinements areproposed, for example, in order to make the theory suitable for a global context. Thecharacteristics of a supply chain are important factors that affect CEM. This research hasmanagerial implications for improving the CEM process in non-Make-To-Stock (non-MTS)capital goods companies from both an intra and an inter-organisational (B2B) perspective.Coordination with partners along the supply chain is needed at the enquiry stage andconstraints linked to global customers should be considered when structuring the C
Year of publication: |
2008
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Authors: | Zorzini, M ; Stevenson, M ; Hendry, L |
Publisher: |
The Department of Management Science |
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