The Magic of The Metrics: Multiple case studies on the utilization of business performance metrics in channel integration development and implementation

Abstract: Nowadays, retailers, especially in the FMCG sector, are applying multi- and omni- channel retailing to satisfy customers' dynamic needs, which requires them to address channel integration (CI) 's organizational challenges. The literature identifies a strong linkage between business performance metrics (BPM) and CI organizational challenges. Therefore, this study aims to gain an in-depth understanding of BPM utilization in CI development and implementation to tackle CI organizational challenges. This study uses the multiple case study methodology with polar sampling and replication logic to analyze qualitative data inductively. Then, we draw relationships between the data structure's components using a conceptual framework adapted from Martin & Eisenhardt (2010) and various BPM literature. Our findings show that four types of BPM are used in establishing CI, identifying CI mechanisms, evaluating CI performance, and improving CI mechanisms. These metrics are chosen based on eight company- and channel-related dimensions. Furthermore, this study's final framework depicts a processual view of CI development and implementation. These findings contribute to CI and BPM literature by introducing CI as an intra- organizational activity, providing empirics of utilizing different types of metrics within an organization, demonstrating metrics as a linkage between strategy and operations, and establishing a path to connect CI literature with BPM literature. Finally, this study provides a guideline for retailers to embed metrics in their CI development and implementation.