Publications

November 1984
Supplement

Syntex Laboratories (A), Computer Supplement: Sales Force Strategy Model

Keywords: Strategy; Salesforce Management

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November 1984 (Revised May 1989)
Case

Wright Line, Inc. (A)

The Wright Line division of Barry Wright sells accessories used to store, protect, and provide access to computer media such as cards, tapes, and diskettes. With the explosive growth in the business computer market and the pronounced trend toward decentralized use, the... View Details

Keywords: Salesforce Management; Product Marketing; Computer Industry

December 1987 (Revised September 1995)
Case

IDS Financial Services

Scarce managerial talent, sales force turnover, and client attrition were potential problems underlying IDS' disappointing performance at mid-year 1987. The marketing vice president had three potential "fixes": 1) increasing or decreasing the $35 million budget for... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Strategy; Salesforce Management; Performance Improvement; Financial Services Industry

Article

Your Sales Training Is Probably Lackluster. Here's How to Fix It

By: Frank V. Cespedes and Yuchun Lee

U.S. companies spend over $70 billion annually on training and an average of $1,459 per salesperson—almost 20% more than they spend on workers in all other functions. Yet, when it comes to equipping sales teams with relevant knowledge and skills, the ROI of sales... View Details

Keywords: Salesforce Management; Training

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January 1983 (Revised June 1985)
Case

Mary Kay Cosmetics, Inc.: Marketing Communications

By: John A. Quelch

Marketing executives at the company are considering the merits of a variety of communications programs designed to increase the effectiveness of the company's sales force of beauty consultants. View Details

Keywords: Marketing Communications; Salesforce Management; Decision Making; Performance Effectiveness; Management Teams; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; United States

April 2017
Article

How Sales Can Wield Its Most Effective Weapon: Pricing

By: Frank V. Cespedes

This article discusses certain core ways that sales people can use, but sometimes abuse, pricing authority and the implications for effective sales management. View Details

Keywords: Sales; Price; Salesforce Management

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May 2017
Teaching Note

Promontory, Inc. (Brief Case)

By: Frank V. Cespedes and Amy Handlin

Teaching Note for HBS No. 917-535. The Promontory teaching note covers a) how and why buying processes in Promontory’s market generate the array of selling approaches illustrated in the case; b) the impact of incremental sales increases on the firm’s cost structure and... View Details

Keywords: Sales; Salesforce Management; Marketing Strategy

28 Mar 2016
Working Paper Summaries

Do Incentive Plans for Exemplary Employees Lead to Productive or Counterproductive Outcomes?

Keywords: by Carolyn Deller and Tatiana Sandino; Telecommunications

August 2017
Article

Incentives versus Reciprocity: Insights from a Field Experiment

By: Doug J. Chung and Das Narayandas

We conduct a field experiment in which we vary the sales force compensation scheme at an Asian enterprise that sells consumer durable goods. With variation generated by the experimental treatments, we model sales force performance to identify the effectiveness of... View Details

Keywords: Sales Force Compensation; Field Experiment; Heterogeneity; Loss Aversion; Reciprocity; Salesforce Management; Compensation and Benefits

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March 1997 (Revised July 1999)
Case

S1 Corporation

S1 is a fast growing subsidiary of the Samsung Group in South Korea that sells business security products. S1 has implemented a number of marketing initiatives that the company president would like to have evaluated. View Details

Keywords: Marketing Strategy; Price; Salesforce Management; Consumer Products Industry; Service Industry; South Korea

07 Feb 2018
News

Helping Startups Give Back

such as Tmura in Israel and Salesforce 1/1/1 in the US were already finding success with similar models,” says Goldstein, who grew up in Montreal and now lives in Toronto. “With the increasingly vibrant startup scene in Canada, we decided... View Details

August 1983 (Revised June 1985)
Supplement

Milford Industries (C)

By: Robert J. Dolan and Benson P. Shapiro

Supplements the (A) case. A rewritten version of part of an earlier series. View Details

Keywords: Managerial Roles; Salesforce Management; Resignation and Termination; Performance Evaluation

August 1996 (Revised October 1996)
Case

Howard, Shea & Chan Asset Management(C): Recruiting and Selecting a Salesperson

By: Benson P. Shapiro

Goes to the heart of the sales strategy issues by asking discussion participants to: 1) develop a salesperson recruiting process, 2) choose among four resumes, and 3) develop a sales compensation approach. View Details

Keywords: Compensation and Benefits; Recruitment; Salesforce Management; Strategy

30 Jan 2019
What Do You Think?

Who Will Measure up to These Two Remarkable Leaders?

and darmody1 nominated Alan Mulally as a candidate. Mulally completed an undergraduate degree at the University of Kansas and an SM degree from the Sloan Program at MIT. FAQ proposed Marc Benioff of Salesforce and Satya Nadella of... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Air Transportation; Financial Services

25 Jan 2017
Working Paper Summaries

The Effects of Quota Frequency on Sales Force Performance: Evidence from a Field Experiment

Keywords: by Doug J. Chung and Das Narayandas

March 1990 (Revised March 1992)
Supplement

Mary Kay Cosmetics: Sales Force Incentives (B)

By: Robert L. Simons

Details the changes made to the VIP automobile plan. View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Salesforce Management; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

October 2005 (Revised February 2008)
Case

Sales Force Integration at FedEx (A)

By: David B. Godes

Federal Express' (FedEx) recent acquisition of RPS--a ground delivery firm--gave the firm the potential to offer a single source for a client's delivery needs. However, to deliver on this potential, the firm needed to deliver the integrated solution through a single... View Details

Keywords: Horizontal Integration; Salesforce Management; Transportation; Compensation and Benefits; Transportation Industry