Interfunctional Coordination of Service Offering Provided by Manufacturers

Abstract

Interfunctional coordination (IFC) aims to develop cooperation between the different departments of a company. Services offered by companies increase customer orientation of a company and help satisfy its customers. IFC and cus-tomer orientation are the main parts of market orientation. Market orientation is one of many possible ways how to in-crease business performance and competitiveness of companies. The aim of the paper is to describe main findings of the research, which was focused on relationship between IFC and the extension of service offering provided by the manufac-turers. Among the participants of the research were manufacturers of electronic components and electric equipment based in the Czech Republic. These two industries are extremely important for the Czech economy nowadays, especially as many companies become subcontractors for the car industry and mechanical engineering. A Likert scale questionnaire was prepared to gather information about IFC and services. The respondents were usually directors or managers, i.e. employees with high-level competencies and knowledge of IFC and services in this particular market. A total of 60 SMEs were included in the survey. The data were collected from February to November 2014. The Spearman’s rank correlation test was performed to verify the relation between IFC and services. The main findings show the following: (1) There is a significant relationship between IFC and the development of new products and services according to customer needs; (2) There is a partly significant relationship between IFC and the quality of the products and services provided in manufacturing; (3) No significant relationship exists between IFC and special services offered to VIP customers.Interfunctional coordination (IFC) aims to develop cooperation between the different departments of a company. Services offered by companies increase customer orientation of a company and help satisfy its customers. IFC and cus-tomer orientation are the main parts of market orientation. Market orientation is one of many possible ways how to in-crease business performance and competitiveness of companies. The aim of the paper is to describe main findings of the research, which was focused on relationship between IFC and the extension of service offering provided by the manufac-turers. Among the participants of the research were manufacturers of electronic components and electric equipment based in the Czech Republic. These two industries are extremely important for the Czech economy nowadays, especially as many companies become subcontractors for the car industry and mechanical engineering. A Likert scale questionnaire was prepared to gather information about IFC and services. The respondents were usually directors or managers, i.e. employees with high-level competencies and knowledge of IFC and services in this particular market. A total of 60 SMEs were included in the survey. The data were collected from February to November 2014. The Spearman’s rank correlation test was performed to verify the relation between IFC and services. The main findings show the following: (1) There is a significant relationship between IFC and the development of new products and services according to customer needs; (2) There is a partly significant relationship between IFC and the quality of the products and services provided in manufacturing; (3) No significant relationship exists between IFC and special services offered to VIP customers.