Topic: Transitioning to Hybrid Sales Structures: Effects on Customer and Firm Performance

Date & Time: 13:30-15:00, July 18^th, 2018

Venue: Room 2101, Tongji Building A

Language: English

Speaker:

Robert W. Palmatier, PhD

SAMS Institute-Global Research Director

Professor of Marketing,

Foster School of Business at University of Washington

ABSTRACT

Business-to-business sales organizations are experiencing a paradigm shift. While traditionally relying on outside (field) sales structures, sellers are increasingly transitioning to hybrid sales structures, in which inside and outside salespeople call on the same customers. The performance ramifications of this shift are unclear; the authors propose effects on seller performance that move through two competing mechanisms: enhanced exchange efficiency and suppressed relational benefits. Randomized field experiments with 3,300 customers of a Fortune 500 company reveal the effects of its transition to a hybrid sales structure on the seller’s customer-level financial outcomes (Study 1). In addition, this research includes an investigation of hybrid sales structures at the firm level through an event study of 170 announcements by publicly traded sellers that addresses both firm- and industry-level moderators (Study 2). In both studies, the findings indicate that hybrid sales structures perform better when exchange efficiency is important to customers but worse when they value relational benefits. These findings lead to several guidelines for managers seeking to design effective sales organizations.

All the faculties and graduate students are welcome to attend this lecture!