Research in the areas of both manufacturing and marketing/sales have advocated the integration of several important interrelated decisions between the two functions (i.e. product development, process development, marketing/sales planning, and manufacturing planning decisions). The process of managing the strategic alignment between a firm's business strategy, external environment, and the integration of manufacturing and marketing/sales decisions is very complex phenomenon that requires a level of analysis that has not occurred previously. This study examined the moderating effects of business strategy and demand uncertainty on the relationship between the integration of manufacturing and marketing/sales-based decisions and organizational performance. The study found general support for the proposed model, suggesting that the impact of the integration of manufacturing and marketing/sales decision on organizational performance is moderated by a firm's business strategy and demand uncertainty.

If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation.Improving the quality of an organization's products and services is fundamental to business success. The once-held view that product or service specification is static and readily achievable is gone. Managers in world-class companies realize that customer wants and desires are changing, that customers' expectations must be clearly understood, and that their firm must conform to customer wishes. This customer focus requires continual quality improvement, creating a dynamic business situation.If customers are demanding improved quality, then what quality improvement approach leads to the best organization performance? What managerial actions encourage the highest quality and financial performance? Further, is the quality improvement approach that works best in one nation or region the best in other parts of the world? This study is directed to these Each of these principles is implemented through a set of practices, which are simply activities such as collecting customer information or analyzing processes. The practices are, in turn, supported by a wide array of techniques (i.e. specific step-by-step methods intended to make the practice effective) (p. 394).

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