Making sense of customers: an evaluation of the role of the customer in the subjective strategies of senior managers

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Abstract
Many management commentators emphasize the importance of keeping the customer as a central basis for determining and implementing strategy. However, there is little empirical evidence to suggest that this happens in practice. There is also a lack of evidence to demonstrate whether or not this is positively related to the performance of the organization. This study considers the subjective strategies of thirty senior managers as a basis for understanding the way customers are considered in the context of strategy. These subjective strategies are represented by causal maps elicited through primary interviews and an independent coding process. The study finds that the incidence of customer concepts in subjective strategy does not discriminate between high and low performing businesses. However, a further inductive analysis indicates that high performers may locate customers as a central element linking strategic actions with performance outcomes. The study concludes that further understanding of the way in which senior managers incorporate the customer in strategic thinking may give new insights into the customer orientation-performance relationship and also provide a basis for understanding a firm's marketing capabilities.

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