European Journal of Marketing

Purpose – The role of corporate culture in relationship marketing is significantly under-researched, although there is evident consensus in the literature about the importance of this topic. The purpose of this paper is to present a model for the corporate culture of a relationship-marketing-oriented company.

Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative methodology involving 58 in-depth interviews that were analysed and interpreted from a grounded theory standpoint was adopted in order to build a conceptual model.

Findings – The two key shared values required to successfully put relationship marketing into effect are client orientation and a high degree of concern for employees. Furthermore, another six shared values (trust, commitment, teamwork, innovation, flexibility, and results orientation) also seem to facilitate the development of a relationship marketing orientation.

Research limitations/implications – Although the research methodology is qualitative and does not allow statistical generalisation, the study provides valuable insights into the role of corporate culture in relationship marketing.

Practical implications – The paper offers a guide to the values that should be developed in order to be able to put a relationship marketing orientation successfully into effect.

Originality/value – The paper proposes a model for the corporate culture of a relationship- marketing-oriented company.