Influence of Self-Efficacy and Emotional Intelligence on The Performance of Sales Managers: A Case of a FMCG in Nairobi, Kenya

Abstract

The relationship between Sales Performance and Emotional intelligence has been a thoroughly researched construct. This study was undertaken to examine the influence of emotional intelligence and self-efficacy on the performance of sales leaders of a FMCG in Nairobi, Kenya. The independent constructs were Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Self-efficacy, and the dependent construct was Sales Performance. The research was a qualitative survey with data collected from sales managers of a bottling company in the non-alcoholic-ready-to-drink (NARTD) industry. Purposive sampling was used to select five Area Sales Managers from the five regional markets which formed the company’s total universe. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews with the five selected managers. The study found that emotional intelligence and self-efficacy indeed influenced the level of sales performance among the sales leaders of the company. It concluded that sales leaders with a higher EI and self-efficacy demonstrated good leadership traits and consequently exhibited high sales performance. The study, therefore, advocates for the development of emotional intelligence and self-efficacy in sales leaders as key enablers to sales excellence.