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This paper aims to test the relationships between design orientation and its implementation with customer orientation and, consequently, company performance. Research model and hypotheses were tested on the Croatian market. Data were collected using the computer-assisted web interviews on the population of Croatian companies with at least three employees. The hypotheses were tested using the partial least squares-based structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The research results highlight the role of design as one of the important predecessors of customer orientation, and its indirect influence on company performance was confirmed.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between market orientation, innovation resources and companies’ financial performance. Focus is put on the mediator role of proactive market orientation (PMO) in the relationship between reactive market orientation (RMO), innovation resources and financial performance in the context of Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries. Research builds on reliable scales. Four hundred and fifteen usable questionnaires were collected from companies in Slovenia with more than 20 employees. The results show a strong and positive relationship between RMO and PMO. The impact of RMO on innovativeness as an element of organisational culture is both positive and stronger than the impact of PMO. PMO proved to have a significant positive influence on the capacity to innovate. While innovativeness alone does not directly influence financial performance, the results do confirm the positive impact of an organisational capacity to innovate on financial performance. The finding of our paper is that when PMO was included as a mediator between RMO and the capacity to innovate, the result was that this indirect impact proved to be one of the strongest in the model. Also, it proves that in CEE countries, it is important to stress the influence of market and market orientation in building innovation resources and consequently financial performance. The limitation of the current study is that we considered the relationship only among few marketing resources and organisational performance. In future research, additional measures of market performance may be introduced as mediators between innovation resources and financial performance.

While the market orientation of companies has been thoroughly analysed, a review of the marketing literature indicates that there is significantly less research on Design Orientation, and especially on their relationship. This paper analyzes the variables of Design and Market Orientation on the basis of existing models and develops the measurement instrument for future research. The study also investigates the impact of managerial approach on the exploitation of design resources in the company. Two hypotheses are developed: the first on the DO-MO relationship, acknowledging the multiple dimensions of Design Orientation and the second on the difference in managerial approach between more and less design-oriented companies. The first, qualitative stage of the research served to re-examine the research constructs and variables, while an Internet survey was used in the second, quantitative stage, among managers and CEOs from Croatian companies. The design dimensions in our final model represented intermediaries between Market Orientation, managerial approach, and market outcomes. Results confirm that managers in non-design oriented companies differ from those in design-oriented companies by perceived design value. Managers’ and CEOs’ awareness of design, its value and potentials, are of great importance for design implementation and Design Orientation of a company as a whole, especially in SMEs. Managerial approach, according to results, has a direct effect on Design Orientation, but it also influences Market Orientation, both directly and indirectly, as well as business success. Findings of this study can have implications for scholars, as well as for managers in practice, especially in emerging economies, which lack research in Design Orientation. Future research should be expanded to other countries in the region.

Although market orientation has been investigated in numerous studies, its complex relationship with design orientation lacks research attention, especially in countries with transitional economies. Therefore, existing models of market orientation (MO) and design orientation (DO) have been investigated. The research has been executed in several stages, combining qualitative and quantitative methods. In the first, qualitative stage, a series of face-to-face in-depth interviews were conducted. In the second, quantitative stage, an Internet survey was conducted among managers and CEOs from Croatian companies in different industries. Partial Least Square and Structural Equation Modelling analyses were conducted to examine the relationships between variables of MO and DO. Results confirm the positive relationship between design orientation and market orientation. Further, results also confirm sub-hypotheses that customer orientation and strategic marketing are positively related to all dimensions of design orientation. The model could have implications for marketers, designers and managers in practice. Both concepts, MO and DO, are very complex and multidimensional, so it was not possible to investigate all the aspects of the constructs. Another limitation of the study was the sample size, as a result of a low response rate as well as a relatively high drop-out rate. The research contributes to theory highlighting the role of design as an important element of market orientation.