| The rapid development of mobile Internet and the popularity of smart devices make consumers have more requirements on the multichannels provided by enterprises,that is,they want enterprises to integrate multiple channels such as online stores,mobile apps,physical stores,and vending machines to provide consumers with a seamless consumption experience.Integration quality,or effectively coordinating service elements across channels,is the key to achieving a seamless service experience.Existing research has proved channel integration quality can improve customer purchase intention,increase firm sales,improve customer retention rate,etc.Therefore,more and more companies have begun to take channel integration strategies.As COVID-19 spreads around the world,maintaining social distancing has become the norm.Integrating multiple marketing channels,using high quality of channel integration to attract and retain consumers,improve enterprise performance,and maintain the sustainable survival and development of enterprises has become a top priority for many SMEs.However,at present,scholars mainly focus on the channel integration of large enterprises.There is still a lack of in-depth discussion on whether the channel integration of small and medium-sized enterprises is the same as that of large enterprises,and what factors will affect the quality of channel integration? how does the quality of channel integration affect firm performance? In the context of small and medium-sized enterprises widely adopt multichannel strategy,the factors affecting channel integration quality,as well as the role of channel integration quality will provide beneficial references for multichannel operation management of enterprises.Based on this,this paper proposes the following research issues:(1)How do organizational learning capabilities and information technology(IT)use affect channel integration quality?(2)How does channel integration quality affect firm performance?(3)What impact on the quality of channel integration that environmental uncertainty have?In order to answer these questions,this paper,based on literature review,uses the theory of dynamic capabilities to identify the factors that affect the quality of channel integration,such as organizational learning capability and the use mode of IT.In order to verify the validity of the above theoretical model,this paper adopted the method of questionnaire survey to conduct a large-scale survey on enterprises that have carried out channel integration in Beijing,Shanghai,Lanzhou and other places and collect extensive data.On the basis of a wide range of data collection and analysis,test,verification and revision of the statistical analysis and structure equation and verified and revised the theoretical model.The study findings as follow.(1)There is a significant positive correlation between the capability of knowledge search and recognition and the capability of knowledge integration and the quality of channel integration.But there is no significant correlation between knowledge transfer capability and channel integration quality.With the use of online channels,the direct impact of IS routine use and IS innovative use on the quality of channel integration is gradually increasing.The effect of IS routine use on the relationship between organizational learning ability and channel integration quality is most significant in companies that have used online channels for 1-3 years,and no significant effect in companies that have used online channels for less than 1 year and more than 3 years.The use of IS innovation will promote the relationship between knowledge transfer ability and channel integration quality for companies that have used online channels for 1-3 years,and hinder the relationship of knowledge search and identification capabilities and channel integration quality for companies that have used online channels for more than 3 years.It has no effect on the relationship between organizational learning ability and channel integration quality of companies that use online channels for less than one year..(2)Channel integration quality has a positive significant effect on strategic agility,operational agility and customer agility.This shows that the higher level of the channel integration quality,the stronger the company’s response to market demand changes,the more timely adjust its strategy,business process and the customer’s response according to market demand.(3)Operating agility partial intermediary channel integration quality and market effect,customer satisfaction and financial performance relationship.It indicates that the quality of channel integration can not only directly improve enterprise performance,but also improve enterprise performance by enhancing enterprise operational agility.Customer agility partial intermediary channel integration quality and market effects and customer satisfaction relationship,complete intermediary channel integration quality and financial performance.This shows that channel integration quality will have a directly positive impact on the market effect and customer satisfaction,and also improve them by improving the customer agility,but the promoting effect on financial performance is completely achieved by improving the customer agility.Strategic agility complete intermediary channel integration quality and customer satisfaction,partial intermediary channel integration quality and market effect and financial performance.It shows that the promotion of channel integration quality to customer satisfaction is completely realized by enhancing strategic agility.The improvement of market effect and financial performance can either be directly generated or through the improvement of strategic agility to implement.(4)Environmental dynamics and environmental complexity will have a negative weakening effect on the relationship between channel integration quality and tissue agility.That is,the higher the environmental dynamics,the stronger the complexity,the less the promotion of channel integration quality on organizational agility.The theoretical contributions of this paper as follow:(1)Based on the ability of organization theory to build the factors influencing the quality of channel integration model.The model organized learning capabilities as an important factor in channel integration quality,and considering the impact of different IT use methods for channel integration quality.Broaden the scope of research and ideas for channel integration quality.(2)The mechanism model of the channel integration quality function on firm performance is built based on dynamic capacity theory.This model will organizational agility as a intermediary mechanism for channel integration quality to improve firm performance,and effectively explain the process of channel integration quality to improve firm performance,undo the conduction mechanism of channel integration quality to corporate performance.(3)The mechanism model clarifies the impact of environmental uncertainty on channel integration quality.The environmental uncertainty is divided into two aspects of environmental dynamics and environmental complexity,and the effects of environmental dynamics and environmental complexity on channel integration quality and organizational agility are discussed,which is clarified the action principle of channel integration quality under different environment dynamics and complexity.(4)Broaden the scope of research on the channel integration quality of SMEs.The existing research on channel integration is mainly concentrated on the research of large enterprises,such as Wal-Mart and Suning.The research on small and medium-sized enterprises is still relatively small.The main research object of this paper is positioned on small and medium-sized enterprises,which is of great significance to understand the channel integration of small and medium-sized enterprises.The practical values of this article as follow:(1)Small and medium-sized enterprises should strengthen their own organizational learning capabilities’ s training and promotion.This paper found that organizational learning capabilities,especially knowledge search and identification capabilities and integrated application capabilities,have an important impact on the quality of channel integration.If small and medium-sized enterprises want to improve the quality of channel integration to better adapt to the demand of omnichannel retail,they need to strengthen the cultivation and improvement of their internal learning capabilities.(2)In practice,SMEs should not only improve the routine application of IT technology,but also enhance the innovative use of IT technology.This paper found that the routine use of IT technology can enhance the relationship between knowledge search and identification capability and channel integration quality,and weaken the relationship between knowledge integration application ability and channel integration quality.The innovative use of IT technology will strengthen the positive correlation between knowledge search and identification capabilities,knowledge transfer capabilities,and channel integration quality.This proves that the routine use of IT technology can help companies search for and identify opportunities in the market and the needs of customers,but for the timely transformation of customer needs into new products or services,the routine use of IT technology is incapable and even would lead to the negative effect.The innovative use of IT technology can not only accelerate the company’s search and identification of market opportunities to improve the quality of channel integration,but also help enhance the transfer of knowledge within the company and transform market demand into new products or services in a timely manner.(3)Enterprises should focus on improving the quality of channel integration.The higher the quality of channel integration,the stronger the company’s ability to respond to changes in market demand,and the more timely it can adjust its strategy,business processes,and customer response to market demand in a timely manner,thereby promoting the improvement of corporate performance.Therefore,companies should improve the quality of channel integration as much as possible to enhance firm value.(4)The dynamic and complex environment is not conducive to the improvement of the quality of channel integration.According to the findings of this paper,in an environment with high dynamics and complexity,the positive effect of channel integration quality on organizational agility will be weakened.This finding shows that in an environment with high environmental dynamics and complexity,only improving the quality of channel integration cannot significantly promote organizational agility.Enterprises also need to use other strategic measures or resources to respond to the rapid changes in the market environment and demand.In response,in such an environment,firms often do not have the competence to invest resources in improving the quality of channel integration,but will quickly adopt a less integrated channel integration state to respond to the rapidly changing needs of the market.In conclusion,this article mainly focuses on and discusses the impact of organizational learning capabilities and IT usage on channel integration quality,the mechanism of channel integration quality improving organizational agility and further improve firm performance,and the effect of channel integration quality under environmental uncertainty.These research findings have important theoretical significance and practical value for broadening the research on channel integration quality of small and medium-sized enterprises and for in-depth understanding of the formation process and value generation mechanism of channel integration quality.However,since this article only uses cross-sectional data to verify the research model from the perspective of firm capabilities,there are still certain limitations and deficiencies in research perspectives and data collection.In the future,different research perspectives should be combined,collected data through multichannels,and integrated long-term and vertical data to further verify and expand relevant research on the quality of channel integration. |
