Effects of industry forces, market orientation, and marketing capabilities on business performance: An empirical analysis of Japanese manufacturers from 2009 to 2011

This study examines the stability and relative importance of the effects of industry forces, market orientation, and marketing capabilities on business performance through partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis of survey data (n = 568) from Japanese manufacturers over the course of three years (2009-2011). The findings indicate that the direct effect of marketing capabilities on performance is stable over the three years investigated. The results also suggest that marketing capabilities are the most important driver of performance, followed by industry forces, specifically, competitive rivalry and power of suppliers, and market orientation. Furthermore, market orientation has an indirect effect on performance through marketing capabilities. Marketing capabilities have a stronger effect on performance in cases of high competitive rivalry compared with those of low competitive rivalry. Within the different marketing capabilities, new product development and pricing are the primary factors. Channel management is more important in cases of high competitive rivalry.