INTER-FUNCTIONAL COORDINATION AND MARKETING EFFECTIVENESS OF SMALL AND MEDIUM SCALE ENTERPRISES (SMEs) IN RIVERS STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study was conceived to analyze the relationships between inter-functional coordination (IFC) components and marketing effectiveness of SMEs in Rivers State and to determine which of these components are most likely to predict marketing effectiveness in the study area. The target population for the study comprise of managers of all registered SMEs in Rivers State, Nigeria. The study adopted a cross-sectional survey design. Data for the study were obtained through questionnaire administered on 254 SMEs which were selected through a simple random sampling based on Krejcie and Morgan (1970) table for determining sample size for a finite population. Descriptive statistics, Pearson product moment correlation and multiple regression analysis were adopted as the analytical tools for the study.  The findings showed that, leadership style, company culture and organizational structure have significant and positive relationship with SMEs marketing effectiveness in the study area. The three components of IFC (leadership style, company culture and organizational structure) were also found to have exerted a great influence in the causal explanation of the marketing effectiveness of SMEs in the study area. Thus, the results highlight amongst others the importance of harmonization of communication and sharing of strategic information and resources along with coordination and integration of the efforts of different business units to create value for customers. Therefore, it is very important to foster these IFC dimensions within the SMEs in the study area