Marketing and technical managers: An inter‐functional exploration of problem perception

Explores inter‐functional differences between marketing and other departments from a decision‐making perspective, with particular emphasis on managers’ perceptions of problems. Problems are differentiated along two main axes: operational‐strategic and structured‐unstructured. The concept of decision‐making context is introduced as the ratio of problem types encountered. To differentiate managers on an individual level, the construct of perception type is examined. Suggests that, by relying on certain psychological functions in preference to others, individuals will attempt to formulate and solve problems in disparate ways. Based on a survey comparing top and middle marketing managers with managers from technical areas, significant differences are found in terms of perceptions of decision‐making context. Perception type is also found to be a significant factor, explaining more variance in decision‐making context than inter‐functional differences. The implications for managerial action are explored both in terms of developing inter‐functional relations and enhancing the effectiveness of inter‐functional teams.