Market Intelligence Dissemination across Functional Boundaries

Abstract

The authors extend previous research by examining antecedents and consequences of the market intelligence dissemination process across functional boundaries. Their study, involving 788 nonmarketing managers in high-tech equipment manufacturing companies, suggests that both dissemination frequency and formality have nonlinear effects on perceived intelligence quality. In addition, they find evidence of a mere formality effect; that is, intelligence received through formal channels appears to be used more than that obtained through informal channels. The authors also find that the frequency with which market intelligence is disseminated is related to interfunctional distance, joint customer visits, senders’ positional power, a receiver's organizational commitment, and trust in a sender. Additionally they find the formality of the dissemination process is shaped by interfunctional distance, receivers’ trust in senders, and structural flux. Interestingly, the effects of internal environmental volatility (i.e., structural flux) appear to be different from those of external environmental volatility (i.e., market dynamism). For example, structural flux is found to affect dissemination formality, but not frequency, whereas the opposite is true for market dynamism.