A sample of 1,000 alumni from two Spanish universities completed a questionnaire designed to assess the effects of brand image, trust, satisfaction, and shared values on loyalty to the institution. Structural equation modeling confirmed all eight hypotheses:(1) graduation satisfaction would have a positive effect on alumni loyalty, (2) trust would have a positive effect on alumni loyalty, (3) graduate satisfaction would have a positive effect on trust, (4) shared values would have a positive effect on student loyalty, (5) shared values would have a positive effect on trust, (6) shared values would have a positive effect on university image, (7) university image would have a positive effect on graduate satisfaction, and (8) university image would have a positive effect on trust. Shared values had a direct effect on alumni loyalty, as well as indirect effects through trust. University image had indirect effects on alumni loyalty through trust and graduate satisfaction. (70 ref)-Marketing
Scholars regard customer knowledge management (CKM) as a strategic resource for businesses to improve innovation, facilitate the detection of new market opportunities, and support long-term customer relationship management. However, literature suffers from a lack of understanding of customer collaboration's role in the innovation process and innovation orientation in CKM. Accordingly, this paper tests a model examining how both variables act as antecedents of CKM. The model also explores CKM and customer collaboration's effect on marketing results. Findings have important academic and managerial implications, and show that collaboration with customers and openness to innovation are key inputs because of their effects on CKM and marketing results.
Managing customer knowledge is a key of source for SMEs. The principal aim of this paper is to provide empirical evidence on the direct effects of two specific strategic resources: customer orientation and customer knowledge management (CKM), on innovation capacity and marketing results in SMEs. The study also examines the role of innovation orientation as a mediator between customer orientation and CKM. For this purpose, a structural model was proposed and tested through an empirical investigation with variance-based structural equation modeling (PLS) using a sample made up of 210 Spanish SMEs. The findings highlight the relevance of CKM and customer orientation as important strategic resources for developing innovation capacity and marketing results, and they confirm the mediation effect of innovation orientation. Empirical evidence supports the importance of customer orientation and CKM in boosting innovation and performance. These findings have important implications for performance in SMEs.
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