The managerial relevance of marketing science: Properties and genesis

Abstract

Part of marketing academia’s mandate is to generate findings that improve management practice. Managerial relevance plays a key role in this mandate as it describes a research project’s potential to influence managerial decision-making and thinking. Therefore, it is crucial to understand what makes research managerially relevant and to uncover success factors in the genesis of such research. This study addresses these issues through a qualitative analysis of 65 depth interviews with senior editors of business transfer journals, marketing managers, and academic researchers. The authors carve out distinct, multidimensional properties that determine managerial relevance. From specific configurations of these properties, four archetypical relevance types emerge: (1) problem-solving, (2) explicating, (3) consolidating, and (4) forward-thinking relevance. Finally, the authors develop a unifying framework and identify success factors for generating highly relevant research. Based on these insights, they suggest concrete courses of action for academics who seek to increase the managerial relevance of their research.