Salesperson Job Satisfaction Research Articles

Are performance appraisals a bureaucratic exercise or can they be used to enhance sales‐force satisfaction and commitment?

AbstractIn some sales organizations the performance appraisal is treated as a bureaucratic exercise. As such, sales managers may essentially conduct appraisals in an arbitrary and perfunctory manner. This behavior could be based on the belief that conducting performance appraisals requires considerable amounts of time and effort, generates few rewards, and adds considerably to the manager's level of conflict and stress. The purpose of this research is to examine the relationships existing between performance appraisals, salesperson organizational commitment, and job satisfaction. If various characteristics of performance appraisals that build commitment and satisfaction could be identified, then managers may be more capable of using performance appraisals that yield positive results. A survey of 185 retail salespeople and 58 retail sales managers provided the data required to evaluate the relationship between satisfaction, commitment, and various aspects of performance appraisals. The results of the study indicate that managerially mediated factors may be used to enhance salesperson job satisfaction and organizational commitment. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Testing Competing Models of Sales Force Communication

Based upon findings from the organizational communication, management, and marketing literatures, this study evaluates three competing models describing sales force communication. The results of the analysis suggest that the theorized PEO (Sales Manager Communication Practices⇒ Sales Force Communication Environment⇒ Salesperson Communication and Job Outcomes) Model best accounts for the relations between sales manager communication practices and salesperson communication and job outcomes. Specifically, the PEO Model holds that sales manager communication practices are positively associated with salesperson perceptions of communication quality. Communication quality is positively associated with salesperson satisfaction with communication; salesperson communication satisfaction is positively related to salesperson's job satisfaction and organizational commitment. These results and their implications for developing an effective sales force communication environment are detailed.

A Cross National Example of Supervisory Management Practices in the Sales Force

The present study examines the relationships of perceptual congruence of management behavior and its effects on salesperson job satisfaction and effort. The data for this study was based on sales manager and salesperson evaluations of one another. In addition, we extend this study to a cross-cultural examination of U.S. and Australian sales forces. The survey findings suggest salesperson leadership perceptual congruence is an important antecedent to job satisfaction and effort. The results also indicate significant differences between Australian and U.S. sales personnel. Implications for research and practice are developed which recognize the importance of perceived differences of leadership perceptual congruence on intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction and effort for sales personnel in both countries.

Some Possible Antecedents and Consequences of In-Role and Extra-Role Salesperson Performance

The purpose of this study is to integrate the notion of extra-role performance with the current understanding of the relationships among salesperson job attitudes (job satisfaction and organizational commitment), role perceptions (ambiguity and conflict), in- and extra-role behavior, and turnover. The authors develop and test a theoretical model that specifies the relationships between in- and extra-role performance and salesperson job satisfaction, organizational commitment, role perceptions, and turnover using cross-sectional data from a large sample (N = 672) of commission sales personnel. The results generally indicate that performance and job attitudes mediate the relationships between role perceptions and turnover. However, the most notable aspect of the findings is that they are consistent with the hypothesis that in- and extra-role performance are intertwined, with in-role performance serving as an antecedent of job satisfaction and organizational commitment, and extra-role performance as a consequence of these two variables. The authors discuss the implications of these findings for sales research.

Effects of Organizational Fairness on Japanese Sales Personnel

Research has found that perceptions of equity can affect such critical variables as job satisfaction, withdrawal tendencies, and performance of U.S. workers. Whether similar results would generalize to sales personnel in the equity-oriented Japanese environment is unknown. This article presents the results of a study that examined the influence of organizational fairness (a measure of perceived equity) on Japanese salespeople's job satisfaction, organizational commitment, motivation, and performance. Findings indicate that organizational fairness has an impact on Japanese sales personnel. Implications are also provided.

Antecedents and Consequences of Salesperson Job Satisfaction: Meta-Analysis and Assessment of Causal Effects

A three-phase quantitative investigation of relationships involving salesperson job satisfaction was undertaken. First, the strength, valence, and consistency of pairwise relationships were assesse...

Antecedents and Consequences of Salesperson Job Satisfaction: Meta-Analysis and Assessment of Causal Effects

A three-phase quantitative investigation of relationships involving salesperson job satisfaction was undertaken. First, the strength, valence, and consistency of pairwise relationships were assessed by means of a meta-analysis. Second, methodological characteristics coded as moderator variables were used to account for variability in study effects. Finally, weighted mean correlations resulting from the analysis of pairwise relationships were used to evaluate a causal model of antecedents and consequences of job satisfaction. In general, relationships involving job satisfaction were robust across study contexts. Systematic moderating effects of type of sales-force and operationalization of job satisfaction were found. Several summary conclusions about antecedents and consequences of salesperson job satisfaction are drawn from the analyses.

Leadership substitutes as moderators of sales supervisory behavior

Previous research has found that a sales manager's supervisory behavior can influence salespeople's job attitudes and behaviors. A unique feature of many sales jobs that may reduce the impact sales managers have on sales personnel is that salespeople usually work alone. Researchers in organizational behavior have identified a variety of substitutes for leadership (which are comprised of individual, task, and organizational characteristics) that may serve to moderate the influence of a leader and thus offer guidance and support to subordinates beyond that which their manager can provide. Hierarchical multiple regression revealed that selected characteristics interact with a sales manager's leader behavior in influencing salespeople's job satisfaction.

A comparison of the impact of organizational climate on the job satisfaction of manufacturers’ agents and company salespeople: An exploratory study

AbstractThis study examines the impact of several perceived organizational climate variables on the job satisfaction of manufacturers' agents and internal salespeople. The study analyzes the relationship between each climate variable and each component of job satisfaction for both groups. Climate variables include closeness of supervision, influence over standards, role ambiguity, and role conflict. The study suggests that the organizational climate variables are more important for explaining the variation in total job satisfaction for internal salespeople than is the case for manufacturers' agents. Finally, the study considers the managerial implications of the findings relating to manufacturers' agents and suggests actions for improving their morale.

Sources of Job Related Ambiguity and Their Consequences Upon Salespersons' Job Satisfaction and Performance

This study presents a conceptual model relating four sources of job related ambiguity and two individual difference variables (locus of control and need for clarity) to salesperson job satisfaction and job performance. Previous research related to the model is briefly reviewed. Then, drawing data from a multicompany sample of industrial salespersons and their managers, behavioral research methods are used to clarify the nature and strength of the relationships in the model. The analysis reveals that ambiguity concerning family expectations is positively related to performance, but ambiguity regarding sales manager and customer expectations is negatively related to performance. Lower levels of satisfaction are explained primarly by ambiguous managerial expectations. The individual difference variables are shown to be related to job outcomes even after adjusting for different levels of perceived ambiguity. The individual difference variables, however, do not moderate the relationships between sources of ambiguity and job outcomes.

Measurement of Salespeople's Job Satisfaction: Convergent and Discriminant Validity of Corresponding INDSALES and Job Descriptive Index Scales

Measurement of Salespeople's Job Satisfaction: Convergent and Discriminant Validity of Corresponding INDSALES and Job Descriptive Index Scales

Measurement of Salespeople's Job Satisfaction: Convergent and Discriminant Validity of Corresponding INDSALES and Job Descriptive Index Scales

The satisfaction scales for work, coworkers, supervision, pay, and promotion of the INDSALES and Job Descriptive Index (JDI) were obtained from a national sample of 209 salesmen in the health care industry. Convergent and discriminant validity were examined by using the criteria of Campbell and Fiske.