Changes to sales force control systems in times of crisis : what do salespeople feel ? How do they respond ? A structured abstract

Laure Lavorata (1) , Madeleine Besson (2, 3)

1 IRG - Institut de Recherche en Gestion
2 IMT-BS - MMS - Département Management, Marketing et Stratégie
3 LITEM - Laboratoire en Innovation, Technologies, Economie et Management (EA 7363)

The succession of events referred to in the media as the financial crisis (2008), the economic crisis (2009), and the sovereign debt crisis (2011) has produced an environment which is manifestly uncertain. Characterized by periods of economic recession, this uncertain environment has in recent times presented management with new challenges, with the potential to cause major organizational problems. In the light of this, we thought it would be of interest to analyze the management of an operational unit at a time when "the organization has to deal with a new situation" (Weick 2001, p. 27). Our research relates more specifically to the way in which companies modify their control systems in response to a crisis, and to the strategies that salespeople adopt in response to any changes. As a result, it aims to answer the following questions about what happens during a crisis: Do firms or their management modify existing sales force control systems? What is the effect of any changes on the salespeople? In the front line with clients, what do salespeople feel, and how do they respond? Is there any sign of a fall in ethical standards?

Mots clés: Crisis management; Control systems; Sales management; Salespeople

Domaines: Gestion et management

Laure Lavorata, Madeleine Besson. Changes to sales force control systems in times of crisis : what do salespeople feel ? How do they respond ? A structured abstract. Rediscovering the essentiality of marketing : proceedings of the 2015 Academy of Marketing Science (AMS) World Marketing Congress, Part XVIII, Springer International Publishing, pp.781 - 786, 2016, Developments in marketing science : proceedings of the Academy of Marketing Science, 978-3-319-29876-4. ⟨10.1007/978-3-319-29877-1_149⟩. ⟨hal-01385295⟩