Conclusions
With respect to this study’s first objective, the evidence shows that among India’s HPMs, many conventional practices are being vigorously embraced, and that they are making a difference. Of the 18 hypotheses tested a total of 10 were either entirely or partially supported in India – spanning variously across all five stages of the normative model of the planning process. Indeed, this compares with only five hypotheses being similarly supported in the United Sates. This is not to say that the practices relating to the balance of the hypotheses in either country were otherwise of little relevance (in fact, the mean scores indicated a reasonably substantial uptake in both countries, especially in the United States); but it does mean that only two specific practices differentiated both sets of higher-performers, namely: collaborating with distributors, and monitoring technological change. Clearly then, these two practices are important for all manufacturers, irrespective of the strategic environment faced (for reasons already discussed). Conversely, however, it also means there are a number of hypotheses supported in India alone, indicating that, at least currently, the following approaches may well be uniquely relevant to HPMs within the context of an emerging market: being more formal marketing planning oriented; conducting a more comprehensive situation analysis; setting longer-term objectives; being more innovative; cultivating greater organisational flexibility; paying more attention to training, and; analysing business performance more closely. Certainly, it has been established that within the Indian manufacturing sector, embracing strategic marketing planning is a worthwhile and potentially beneficial pursuit.
