Strategic Marketing Management (328251-M-6)
Spring 2021 Summary
Course taught by Dr. Rob Smith and Drs. Hendrik de With.
Includes materials of lectures and weblectures.
Examples are given in italics.
,Lecture 1 - Management Decision Making
Marketing strategy
→ A thoughtful plan by a company to produce desired outcomes in the marketplace vis-a-vis customers,
channel members and competitors
→ An organization’s integrated pattern of decisions that specify its crucial choices concerning products,
markets, marketing activities and marketing resources in the creation, communication, and/or delivery of
products that offer value to customers in exchanges with the organization and thereby enables the
organization to achieve specific objectives
Marketing strategy: to create a sustainable competitive advantage
Unique vs Set of (uncoordinated) tactics
Distinctive vs Similar characteristics or decisions as competing firms
Coherent vs Poor implementation of activities
Dynamic
Strategic marketing decisions: long-term holistic decisions concerning the future directions for the
organizations
→ Entail major resources commitments spread over long periods
→ Impact over longer time periods
→ Result in a distinguishable competitive advantage
→ Irreversible or difficult to reverse
→ Entails tradeoffs (if strategy A -> strategy B & C foregone)
→ Made in the context of other strategic decisions (interdependencies)
→ Made at a higher level of the organization
Strategic marketing decisions: launching a new product, rebranding (changing your brand’s
position), entering a new product-market combination, induce a loyalty program, catering to new
market segments, developing product leadership, promotional policy changes, rationalizing a
product line, expanding distribution coverage, initiating a major advertising campaign,
divesting/withdrawing from the market, install a social media campaign, establishing a supplier
partnership
Tactical marketing decisions: (execution) short term (annual or quarterly) decisions to execute the
strategic directions within the firm; filling in the marketing mix of the individual product or brand to
realize the company strategic goals (brand price level, advertising by brand, sales force allocation)
,Lecture 2 - Management Decision Making
Organizational Learning and Knowledge Management
Organizational learning: process of improving organizational actions through better knowledge and
understanding or as the outcome of such a process
→ Hospital surgery team learning to use a new technology to increase operation efficiency and
effectiveness; the ability to learn faster than your competitors may be the only sustainable competitive
advantage
Key concepts of organizational learning:
1. Individual learning vs Organizational learning
2. Explicit knowledge vs Tacit knowledge
3. Single-loop learning vs Double-loop learning
Individual Learning vs Organizational Learning
Organizational knowledge: accumulation of the knowledge bases of all the individuals within an
organization and the social knowledge embedded in the relationships between those individuals
Organizational learning assumes individual learning, but individual learning is an insufficient
condition for organizational learning; without sharing or transferring the knowledge, the
organization will not learn. It is more than the sum of the parts; it is also about exchanging and
sharing individual assumptions, models, knowledge across the organization at various levels
(individual > group > organization > inter-organizational).
Explicit Knowledge vs Tacit Knowledge
Firms formalize their explicit/tangible knowledge through representations like manuals, minutes,
operating procedures, administrative forms, work routines.
Tacit knowledge:
1. Low codifiability: to what extent is it possible for the organization to structure knowledge
into a set of identifiable rules and relationships that can easily be communicated
2. Know-how, how things get done
3. Often high complexity (science-based)
Transfer of tacit knowledge requires frequent social interaction, education, and training. It is
difficult to transfer, but therefore also difficult to imitate. Which type of knowledge is more
common? Which type of knowledge is more important to share?
Single-Loop Learning vs Double-Loop Learning
Single-loop learning (adaptive learning): occurs within a set of recognized and unrecognized
constraints (learning boundary) that reflect the organization’s assumptions about its environment
and itself
→ Solves problems, but ignores the question of why the problem arose in the first place
Double-loop learning (generative learning): occurs when the organization is willing to question
long-held assumptions about its mission, customers, capabilities, or strategy
→ Uses feedback from past actions to question assumptions underlying current views
, Organizational Learning Process:
1. Information acquisition: from experience, from others, formal market research,
competitive intelligence, informal collection of information, experiments, satisfaction
surveys
→ Exploitation: learning from internal experience
→ Exploration: learning from external
2. Information dissemination: formal (cross-functional teams, trainings, presentations)
or informal (social interaction)
→ Informal best for uncertain problems/opportunities
3. Information shared interpretation: need agreement on meaning
→ Conflict resolution and information exchange by organizing formal meetings, discussing
alternative options
4. Information utilization: behavioral change
→ Action-oriented: direct application of knowledge to solve problems
→ Knowledge-enhancing: influences managerial perspectives on problems
→ Affective use: increases satisfaction with a change
Culture: deeply rooted values and beliefs that provide norms
→ Necessary foundation for organizational learning
Climate: structure and processes that facilitate achievement of desired behaviors
Culture and climate need to be complementary.
Skill development toward organizational learning (managers should develop these skills in
themselves and employees):
1. Individual learning effectiveness
→ Learning: acquiring, storing, and remembering information
→ Learning and teaching techniques; learning through elaboration works better than rehearsal
→ Relate the incoming information to information that already exists in your long-term
memory
→ Make vivid, creative examples
→ Illustrations of elaboration learning
→ Baker Paradox
→ Lance Armstrong
→ Roman method/Loci method
2. Social interaction and communication skills
→ Companies that foster social interaction enhance organizational learning and success
→ Informal, unstructured interaction is often best for tacit knowledge and creativity
→ Cross-functional teams, open office plans, cafeterias, encourage socializing
→ Individuals that are skilled at social interaction are more successful, more happy and healthy
→ Loneliness is as unhealthy as smoking, even more unhealthy than obesity
3. Conflict resolution
→ Conflict is inevitable and positive, if managed correctly
→ Organizational learning requires skillful conflict resolution
→ What happens when two people disagree?
→ Argumentation: trying to change others’ beliefs and values
→ Even the best arguments lead to the other person being even more confident
Spring 2021 Summary
Course taught by Dr. Rob Smith and Drs. Hendrik de With.
Includes materials of lectures and weblectures.
Examples are given in italics.
,Lecture 1 - Management Decision Making
Marketing strategy
→ A thoughtful plan by a company to produce desired outcomes in the marketplace vis-a-vis customers,
channel members and competitors
→ An organization’s integrated pattern of decisions that specify its crucial choices concerning products,
markets, marketing activities and marketing resources in the creation, communication, and/or delivery of
products that offer value to customers in exchanges with the organization and thereby enables the
organization to achieve specific objectives
Marketing strategy: to create a sustainable competitive advantage
Unique vs Set of (uncoordinated) tactics
Distinctive vs Similar characteristics or decisions as competing firms
Coherent vs Poor implementation of activities
Dynamic
Strategic marketing decisions: long-term holistic decisions concerning the future directions for the
organizations
→ Entail major resources commitments spread over long periods
→ Impact over longer time periods
→ Result in a distinguishable competitive advantage
→ Irreversible or difficult to reverse
→ Entails tradeoffs (if strategy A -> strategy B & C foregone)
→ Made in the context of other strategic decisions (interdependencies)
→ Made at a higher level of the organization
Strategic marketing decisions: launching a new product, rebranding (changing your brand’s
position), entering a new product-market combination, induce a loyalty program, catering to new
market segments, developing product leadership, promotional policy changes, rationalizing a
product line, expanding distribution coverage, initiating a major advertising campaign,
divesting/withdrawing from the market, install a social media campaign, establishing a supplier
partnership
Tactical marketing decisions: (execution) short term (annual or quarterly) decisions to execute the
strategic directions within the firm; filling in the marketing mix of the individual product or brand to
realize the company strategic goals (brand price level, advertising by brand, sales force allocation)
,Lecture 2 - Management Decision Making
Organizational Learning and Knowledge Management
Organizational learning: process of improving organizational actions through better knowledge and
understanding or as the outcome of such a process
→ Hospital surgery team learning to use a new technology to increase operation efficiency and
effectiveness; the ability to learn faster than your competitors may be the only sustainable competitive
advantage
Key concepts of organizational learning:
1. Individual learning vs Organizational learning
2. Explicit knowledge vs Tacit knowledge
3. Single-loop learning vs Double-loop learning
Individual Learning vs Organizational Learning
Organizational knowledge: accumulation of the knowledge bases of all the individuals within an
organization and the social knowledge embedded in the relationships between those individuals
Organizational learning assumes individual learning, but individual learning is an insufficient
condition for organizational learning; without sharing or transferring the knowledge, the
organization will not learn. It is more than the sum of the parts; it is also about exchanging and
sharing individual assumptions, models, knowledge across the organization at various levels
(individual > group > organization > inter-organizational).
Explicit Knowledge vs Tacit Knowledge
Firms formalize their explicit/tangible knowledge through representations like manuals, minutes,
operating procedures, administrative forms, work routines.
Tacit knowledge:
1. Low codifiability: to what extent is it possible for the organization to structure knowledge
into a set of identifiable rules and relationships that can easily be communicated
2. Know-how, how things get done
3. Often high complexity (science-based)
Transfer of tacit knowledge requires frequent social interaction, education, and training. It is
difficult to transfer, but therefore also difficult to imitate. Which type of knowledge is more
common? Which type of knowledge is more important to share?
Single-Loop Learning vs Double-Loop Learning
Single-loop learning (adaptive learning): occurs within a set of recognized and unrecognized
constraints (learning boundary) that reflect the organization’s assumptions about its environment
and itself
→ Solves problems, but ignores the question of why the problem arose in the first place
Double-loop learning (generative learning): occurs when the organization is willing to question
long-held assumptions about its mission, customers, capabilities, or strategy
→ Uses feedback from past actions to question assumptions underlying current views
, Organizational Learning Process:
1. Information acquisition: from experience, from others, formal market research,
competitive intelligence, informal collection of information, experiments, satisfaction
surveys
→ Exploitation: learning from internal experience
→ Exploration: learning from external
2. Information dissemination: formal (cross-functional teams, trainings, presentations)
or informal (social interaction)
→ Informal best for uncertain problems/opportunities
3. Information shared interpretation: need agreement on meaning
→ Conflict resolution and information exchange by organizing formal meetings, discussing
alternative options
4. Information utilization: behavioral change
→ Action-oriented: direct application of knowledge to solve problems
→ Knowledge-enhancing: influences managerial perspectives on problems
→ Affective use: increases satisfaction with a change
Culture: deeply rooted values and beliefs that provide norms
→ Necessary foundation for organizational learning
Climate: structure and processes that facilitate achievement of desired behaviors
Culture and climate need to be complementary.
Skill development toward organizational learning (managers should develop these skills in
themselves and employees):
1. Individual learning effectiveness
→ Learning: acquiring, storing, and remembering information
→ Learning and teaching techniques; learning through elaboration works better than rehearsal
→ Relate the incoming information to information that already exists in your long-term
memory
→ Make vivid, creative examples
→ Illustrations of elaboration learning
→ Baker Paradox
→ Lance Armstrong
→ Roman method/Loci method
2. Social interaction and communication skills
→ Companies that foster social interaction enhance organizational learning and success
→ Informal, unstructured interaction is often best for tacit knowledge and creativity
→ Cross-functional teams, open office plans, cafeterias, encourage socializing
→ Individuals that are skilled at social interaction are more successful, more happy and healthy
→ Loneliness is as unhealthy as smoking, even more unhealthy than obesity
3. Conflict resolution
→ Conflict is inevitable and positive, if managed correctly
→ Organizational learning requires skillful conflict resolution
→ What happens when two people disagree?
→ Argumentation: trying to change others’ beliefs and values
→ Even the best arguments lead to the other person being even more confident
