Evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of marketing using a value-chain analysis – a survey of 35 Norwegian firms

It is an exciting time to be in the international marketing area, as major changes are occurring in markets and the business environment of the 1990s. This paper reports on how 35 Norwegian companies evaluate their marketing function against other functions in the value-chain. The concept of the value-chain was used as the framework for the analysis. This study is appropriate for two reasons: (1) very little has been done on the Norwegian scene with an aggregate firm analysis of this type, and (2) it comes at a time when Norwegian firms are coping with the new opportunities afforded by Europe 1992 as well as the triad of trade opportunities between Japan, the USA and Europe. Europe has jumped in with both feet, coming up with the legislation to promote research and get it to market in timely fashion. Is the firm of the future an organization with a production orientation or a technology function, or will marketing continue to dominate as it has in the past? What are they key internal linkages between the various generic activities that make up a firm's behavior? What are the strategic alliances with the world outside? This study attempts to answer some of the above questions through a summary of the results from a qualitative action research study done on 35 Norwegian firms during the period 1990–1991. The study suggests that the use of the value-chain as a theoretical framework for evaluating the marketing activity, as well as the qualititative triangulation methodology, is appropriate for future comparative studies of this type.