The responses of front-line employees to market-oriented culture change

A theme emerging from research into the determinants, content and consequences of market orientation is that developing a market-oriented culture exerts a profound influence on the organizational culture of a company. Explores and describes the manner and forms of front-line employees’ responses to market-oriented culture change initiatives. The paper begins with a brief overview of existing literature discussing the definition and components of a market orientation. Thereafter, extant research into the consequences of developing a market-oriented culture is reviewed critically. After detailing the research design and methodology adopted in this study, the summary findings of two in-depth case studies are presented. The findings indicate that front-line employees respond differentially to market-oriented culture change programmes. Concludes with a series of implications for both marketing and culture theorists and practitioners