TY - JOUR
T1 - Towards a better understanding of organizational buying behavior across cultures
T2 - empirical evidence from the Arabian Gulf
AU - Bachkirov, Alexandre Anatolievich
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited.
PY - 2019/10/7
Y1 - 2019/10/7
N2 - Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine, through the lens of the buying center concept, a theorized link between organizational buying behavior (OBB) and a national culture of collectivism, large power distance, particularism and a wasta practice. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative methodology was used to gain better understanding of OBB in an under-researched business environment of the Arabian Gulf. The data come from 41 organizational practitioners who reported on the industrial buying processes in their organizations with reference to the buying center framework. Findings: The study developed a model of the buying center for the emerging markets governed by socio-political institutions. Research limitations/implications: The data were obtained only from one culturally specific world region. Practical implications: To attain efficacious results in culturally distant business environments, industrial marketers should complement home country experience with a thorough understanding of how national cultures affect the dynamics of OBB. Originality/value: The study updates the conceptualization of the buying center’s organizational actors (OAs) for business contexts beyond traditional, mature markets. It reveals the typology of decisional influencers, introduces and defines the role of advisers and clarifies the role of the gatekeeping bureaucracy and differing perceptions thereof by OAs.
AB - Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine, through the lens of the buying center concept, a theorized link between organizational buying behavior (OBB) and a national culture of collectivism, large power distance, particularism and a wasta practice. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative methodology was used to gain better understanding of OBB in an under-researched business environment of the Arabian Gulf. The data come from 41 organizational practitioners who reported on the industrial buying processes in their organizations with reference to the buying center framework. Findings: The study developed a model of the buying center for the emerging markets governed by socio-political institutions. Research limitations/implications: The data were obtained only from one culturally specific world region. Practical implications: To attain efficacious results in culturally distant business environments, industrial marketers should complement home country experience with a thorough understanding of how national cultures affect the dynamics of OBB. Originality/value: The study updates the conceptualization of the buying center’s organizational actors (OAs) for business contexts beyond traditional, mature markets. It reveals the typology of decisional influencers, introduces and defines the role of advisers and clarifies the role of the gatekeeping bureaucracy and differing perceptions thereof by OAs.
KW - Collectivism
KW - Organizational buying behavior
KW - Particularism
KW - Power distance
KW - The Arabian Gulf
KW - The buying center
KW - Wasta
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85068805655&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85068805655&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1108/JBIM-12-2017-0323
DO - 10.1108/JBIM-12-2017-0323
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85068805655
SN - 0885-8624
VL - 34
SP - 1521
EP - 1532
JO - Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing
JF - Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing
IS - 7
ER -