MARKET ORIENTATION OF COMPANIES WITH THE BRAND €śZNAÄŚKA KVALITY SK”

Abstract

Abstract:Market orientation represents an established concept whose implementation leads to the achievement of superior performance. Specific features of market-oriented companies are the subject of many studies for years. The purpose of this article is to examine the market orientation of two types of companies from foodstuff industry in Slovakia. In this article we compare the market orientation of food producers who are holders of certificate of quality "Značka kvality SK" and those who are not. "Značka kvality SK" is a certificate awarded by Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Slovak Republic. In our research, we would like to find out if the companies which are awarded as leaders in food quality have a predisposition for market-oriented behavior. In our research we used statistical parametric t-test and the non-parametric Mann-Whitney test. The results indicate that there is no significant difference between market orientation of producers who hold the certificate of quality "Značka kvality SK" and those who do not. These findings support the assumption that concept of market orientation is applicable for all kinds of companies. This article presents partly the results of complex research focused on investigating the relationship between market orientation and business performance.