An Exploration of Key Connections Within Sales-Marketing Interface

Purpose – The paucity of empirical research on the sales-marketing interface necessitates a detailed exploration of linkages that can forge stronger connection between these two functions. This paper aims to explicate the boundary conditions that may affect the role played by structure, language and process linkages in forging sales-marketing connections, and to identify additional linkages that may play an important role in this interface. Design/methodology/approach – A total of 47 sales and marketing professionals across different organizations in diverse industries were interviewed. Findings – The research finds that certain boundary conditions (e.g. organizational hierarchy, time horizon) may influence how structure, language and process linkages may operate in this interface. It also extends linkage repertoire by identifying two critical linkages: social and philosophical. Its managerial contribution lies in stressing the importance of: vertical and horizontal communication bridges; marketing’s flexibility; interpersonal relationships; and the philosophical bond between the two functions, in forging stronger connections. Originality/value – This is one of the few qualitative empirical investigations of the sales-marketing interface. It broadens one’s understanding of sales-marketing linkages, adds to linkage repertoire, and extends the interface literature

How marketing and sales use digital tools for innovation ideation

With the widespread practice of using digital tools to work from home (WFH), it is not clear how this impacts innovation. While some scholars argue that digital tools limit the spontaneous conversations that are essential for innovation, others consider them the solution for innovation in a hybrid work environment. We suggest that the current confusion about the impact of digital tools on innovation is due to researchers (a) treating innovation as a homogeneous activity, rather than focusing on specific innovation activities, and (b) ignoring the nature of specific jobs of employees participating in this process. This study explores how marketing and sales professionals use digital tools during innovation ideation. The findings show that various digital tools are used for idea generation, assessment, and development. During each of these stages, marketing and sales personnel use a different mix of digital tools – serving different purposes – and face different challenges. Study findings contribute to our understanding of how digital tools impact innovation and help managers to improve innovation ideation in hybrid work environments.</p

The Marketing–Sales Interface at the Interface: Creating Market-Based Capabilities through Organizational Synergy

The firm’s quest to create customer value is dependent on the synergistic coordination of many parts of the organization, wherein internal resources and capabilities are effectively harnessed to create a competitive advantage. The often suboptimal relationship between marketing and sales acts as an inhibitor to success in this regard and has been the subject of much attention in both the academic literature and popular press. The authors offer new insights into this issue by examining how the marketing–sales interface affects, and is affected by, other functional areas in the development of key organizational capabilities. They introduce a holistic framework that identifies key levers that must be integrated through cross-functional coordination and cooperation to achieve superior market-based capabilities that in turn enable the firm to create lasting customer value. Propositions linking the levers to market-based capabilities are offered to shape new research opportunities in the domain of the marketing and sales interface

The Impact of Deceitful Tendencies, Relativism and Opportunism on the Negotiation Tactics: A Comparative Study of U.S. and Belgian Managers

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to compare the antecedents of opportunism and its effect on unethical negotiation tactics among US and Belgian managers. Design/methodology/approach – Samples of managers in both countries are surveyed and cross-country analysis using multi-group structural equation modeling is conducted. Findings – Across both countries, deceitful tendencies and relativism are found to be significant predictors of opportunism, which in turn predicts receptiveness to unethical negotiating tactics; however, Belgian managers were found to have higher levels of these constructs, possibly indicating a greater propensity to engage in unethical behaviors than US managers. Research limitations/implications – The current research is limited by the relatively small size of the Belgian sample, differences in data collection method, and the lack of additional contextual measures, which may influence the managers\u27 responses. Practical implications – The finding that the same structural relationships hold across the US and Belgium samples provides insights for both groups of managers engaged in negotiations. Originality/value – The paper offers a comparative perspective on US and Belgian managers and establishes the validity and applicability of frequently used ethics scales in Belgium, a country infrequently studied in this context

Exploration of Sales-Marketing Interface Nuances in Saudi Arabia

Extant research on sales–marketing interface has ignored emerging markets as research contexts. This study uses grounded theory methodology and depth-interview data from 37 sales and marketing professionals in Saudi Arabia to explicate how firm contexts that are influenced by Islamic values may shape intraorganizational mechanisms between firm leadership and sales and marketing departments, moderate their roles in marketing strategy activities, and affect interface dynamics. Specifically, appreciation of high power distance and traditional authority allow top leadership to be extensively involved in firm\u27s everyday operations and there is a conspicuous absence of two-way dialog between top leadership and interface personnel. As a result, marketing strategy making authority is rarely transferred to sales and marketing. The context thus creates a chain of command with top leadership holding central authority, marketers preparing action plans and salespeople implementing those plans. Overall, this context brings forth certain hitherto unexplored perspectives on this interface

Should I Stay or Should I Go? Identity and Well-being in Sensemaking About Retention and Turnover.

Explanations of turnover from extant management research focus on the what (content) and how (process) of turnover. This study engages a sensemaking framework to explore the why (meaning) for employees of quitting or staying at an employing organization, in order to add a new layer to our understanding of retention and turnover. Analysis of data from in-depth interviews with leavers and stayers, both post hoc and in situ, using grounded theory methods, reveals identity and well-being assessment sensemaking cycles, which occur periodically or when threat to core elements of identity and well-being across life domains is perceived. Core elements of identity and well-being include purpose, trajectory, relatedness, expression, acceptance, and differentiation. Perceived threat to identity and well-being across life domains leads to varying levels of psychophysiological strain, coping with threat and strain, and reassessment, often in escalating cycles resulting in turnover and continuing into new jobs. Lack of threat to, or facilitation of, identity and well-being, and successful coping result in retention. Overall, these findings suggest that from the perspective of the actors “being retained” or “turning over,” these phenomena are part of a deeply felt quest for positive, congruent identity and psychological well-being across life domains. Along with other research, these findings suggest that when people consider leaving jobs, it may invoke a liminal identity stage, which makes family and other life domains salient to turnover decisions. Implications for research on retention, turnover, identity, well-being, work life, and psychophysiological health in organizations, as well as practical implications, are discussed

Exploration of sales-marketing interface nuances in Saudi Arabia ☆

a b s t r a c t a r t i c l e i n f o Extant research on sales-marketing interface has ignored emerging markets as research contexts. This study uses grounded theory methodology and depth-interview data from 37 sales and marketing professionals in Saudi Arabia to explicate how firm contexts that are influenced by Islamic values may shape intraorganizational mechanisms between firm leadership and sales and marketing departments, moderate their roles in marketing strategy activities, and affect interface dynamics. Specifically, appreciation of high power distance and traditional authority allow top leadership to be extensively involved in firm&apos;s everyday operations and there is a conspicuous absence of two-way dialog between top leadership and interface personnel. As a result, marketing strategy making authority is rarely transferred to sales and marketing. The context thus creates a chain of command with top leadership holding central authority, marketers preparing action plans and salespeople implementing those plans. Overall, this context brings forth certain hitherto unexplored perspectives on this interface

Sales profession and professionals in the age of digitization and artificial intelligence technologies: concepts, priorities, and questions

Recognizing the rapid advances in sales digitization and artificial intelligence technologies, we develop concepts, priorities, and questions to help guide future research and practice in the field of personal selling and sales management. Our analysis reveals that the influence of sales digitalization technologies, which include digitization and artificial intelligence, is likely to be more significant and more far reaching than previous sales technologies. To organize our analysis of this influence, we discuss the opportunities and threats that sales digitalization technologies pose for (a) the sales profession in terms of its contribution to creating value for customers, organizations, and society and (b) sales professionals, in terms of both employees in organizations and individuals as self, seeking growth, fulfillment, and status in the functions they serve and roles they live. We summarize our discussion by detailing specific research priorities and questions that warrant further study and development by researchers and practitioners alike

Toast to fear: Marketplace paranoia and its impact on firm\u27s strategic outcomes

The focus of this dissertation was to (1) conceptualize the notion of marketplace paranoia and understand its antecedents, (2) investigate (a) whether and (b) through which alternate mechanisms paranoia can differentially affect firm\u27s strategic outcomes and what those outcomes are, and (3) understand whether firm\u27s mindfulness, transformational leadership and interdepartmental connectedness can regulate (moderate) the effects of paranoia within the firm. We used a discovery oriented approach. The data came from interviews with 23 managers from diverse industries and a national mail survey of top marketing executives from manufacturing firms, who were prescreened to insure their knowledgeability and involvement. The unit of analysis was the firm. The results validate our conceptualization of paranoia, which affirms that firms operate with suspicious vigilance and guardedness (paranoia) in the market. Paranoia was also shown to be empirically distinct from market orientation. We also found that firms\u27 strategic intent, previous traumatic challenge, and competitive intensity in the market can trigger marketplace paranoia. Marketplace paranoia enhanced firm\u27s Absorptive capacity and also gave rise to cognitive rigidity within the firm. It suggests that paranoia is a very potent tool and that the paranoid organizations, in addition to its beneficial effects need to be aware of its potential downside. We did not find support for the moderating effects. Hence no conjecture can be made about which factors can regulate the effects of paranoia within firm. However, we found that highly connected firms may not benefit from high levels of paranoia as much as those firms that have low connectedness. Evidence suggested that firm\u27s mindfulness and transformational leadership could supplement marketplace paranoia in enhancing the firm\u27s ACAP and alleviate its negative effects by reducing the firm\u27s cognitive rigidity. We found that firms with superior ACAP were better able to (1) conceptualize the future needs of their customers (2) capitalize on future market opportunities, (3) perform better, (4) be strategically adaptive, (5) innovate, and (6) be customer oriented. Cognitive rigidity negatively affected the first three outcomes only