Enacting the Marketing Paradox of Value Creation and Value Appropriation: Small Enterprises’ Response to Crises

The study draws on the organizational paradox literature to develop and empirically test a conceptual model that considers marketing paradox enactment a crucial adaptive marketing response for small enterprises facing crises. We hypothesize that marketing paradox enactment positively impacts marketing performance and such effect is moderated by paradoxical leadership and perceived crisis severity. To test our hypotheses, we collected data through online surveys of 443 marketing managers from small businesses across multiple industries during an unprecedented global crisis. The results show that the performance of small enterprises that embrace the value creation–value appropriation paradox is less dampened by crises. Additionally, the paradoxical leadership of marketing executives and the firm’s sensitivity to the crisis are critical organizational levers. This study contributes to the literature on the adaptive role of the marketing function and how small businesses navigate crises.