Managing an entrepreneurial marketing orientation in turbulent competitive business environments

Mixed prior findings exist concerning the relationship between an entrepreneurial marketing orientation (EMO) and small-to-medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs’) performance. This is a problem, since the performance-enhancing circumstances remain unclear concerning the utility of decision-makers employing EMO behaviours. This study unpacks the relationship between an EMO and SMEs’ performance under the moderating role of market dynamism. Survey responses were collected from 916 SMEs in Malaysia, and all major robustness checks were addressed. The findings showed that consistent with much of the existing research, an EMO drove SMEs’ performance. In contrast, this link was positively moderated by market dynamism (a counter-intuitive result). Consequently, this investigation offers unique insights regarding the circumstances where effectively managing an EMO is likely to assist SMEs to yield enhanced performance across dynamic markets. Furthermore, improved evidence is provided about the outside-the-firm perspective of resource-based theory, as a lens to conceptualise the nuances of EMO practices in turbulent environments.