Explanations from the marketing/human resources dyad for marketing strategy implementation effectiveness in service firms

The marketing strategy literature is often criticized for the dearth of conceptual, theoretical, and empirical studies focusing on antecedents to effective marketing strategy implementation. Despite some related research on the constituency-based theory of the firm, even less is understood concerning the interplay between functional areas on marketing strategy implementation effectiveness. We examine the marketing/human resources (HR) dyad and contribute to this limited platform of knowledge by testing a set of eight hypotheses that forms the basis of the model in which six process-based organization dimensions are considered to be related to the psychosocial outcomes of relationship effectiveness and interfunctional conflict. These, in turn, are hypothesized to impact upon the behavioral outcome of marketing strategy implementation effectiveness. The data that are used to test these relationships are generated from 230 medium and large European service-based firms. While we find that psychosocial outcomes do have important effects on marketing strategy implementation effectiveness, a paradox is observed in the effects of process-based dimensions upon psychosocial outcomes. These findings are interpreted and discussed in the context of existing literature and a number of implications are drawn.