PhD Research Student

Rob Mitchell

Title of Research: Investigation of the potential for strategic benefits from the integration of the Market Orientation with Sustainable Development principles in corporate marketing management.

Degrees: Master of Arts, Master of Commerce, Graduate Diploma of Management, Graduate Diploma of Teaching

Email: rob.mitchell@otago.ac.nz

Area of PhD Research: Tourism marketing management

Start of PhD: March 2006

Supervisors: Dr Ben Wooliscroft and Professor James Higham (Department of Tourism)

Short description of research topic:

Market orientation has been a cornerstone for corporate marketing strategy since the middle of the 20th century. However, its concentration on internal economic efficiency has been a significant weakness. Stakeholder, corporate strategy, and marketing literature indicate that long run corporate performance may be handicapped by inadequate recognition of social and environmental considerations. Incorporation of the sustainable management paradigm offers a more comprehensive approach to corporate marketing strategy and a means to overcome this imbalance.

Rob Mitchell has reconceptualised market orientation to incorporate sustainable management principles. His PhD research involves the development of a model for Sustainable Market Orientation and an empirical investigation of its potential value in managing corporate strategy. The context for the first phase of Rob’s research is one of New Zealand ‘s most economically important sectors, tourism.

Publications

Mitchell, R. W., Wooliscroft, B., Higham, J. (2010). Sustainable market orientation: A new approach to managing marketing strategy. Journal of Macromarketing, 30(2), 160-170. doi:10.1177/0276146710361928