The effect of market orientation on innovation speed and new product performance

Purpose – It has been argued that innovation speed has been inappropriately absent in models of market orientation. The present study seeks to provide new insights into whether and how market orientation's three main components: intelligence generation, intelligence dissemination, and responsiveness affect innovation speed and new product performance, and about the mediating role of innovation speed. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from a sample of 247 firms in a variety of manufacturing industries. A mail survey was developed to collect the data. Findings – The results indicate that intelligence generation has an indirect positive effect on innovation speed via intelligence dissemination and responsiveness. Intelligence dissemination influences innovation speed positively, both directly and indirectly through responsiveness. Findings report a curvilinear ( J ‐shaped) relationship between responsiveness and innovation speed. With regard to the effect of the market orientation's components on new product performance, the findings indicate a positive relationship between responsiveness and new product performance. The parameter estimates for the direct paths linking intelligence generation and intelligence dissemination with new product performance were found to be not significant. Instead, the findings show that intelligence generation and intelligence dissemination influence new product performance indirectly through responsiveness. Finally, a positive relationship was found between innovation speed and new product performance. Originality/value – The research makes three important contributions to the marketing strategy and new product development literatures. First, by splitting market orientation into the components of intelligence generation, intelligence dissemination and responsiveness, the study provides a closer examination into the effect of market orientation on innovation speed and new product performance. Second, the results indicate that the effects of intelligence generation and intelligence dissemination on innovation speed and new product performance are mediated by responsiveness to market intelligence. Third, findings support the argument that innovation speed partially mediates the effect of market orientation's three main components on new product performance.