April 20th, 2023 by Alf Janssen
This paper has been adapted from the author’s Masters project and discusses how leaders can best cultivate “superpowers” that are applicable to multi-generational organisations and teams. When exploring the different generations, I came across many different descriptions and definitions. To avoid confusion, I have decided to use the definition from Purdue University: The aim of my research has been to…
April 20th, 2023 by Kevin Kelly
How can effective coaching support the retention of employees within an organisation? The challenge of employee retention and continued commitment to an organisation has no straightforward documented resolution. A key responsibility of any business is to keep its employees happy and motivated, retain them in the company, but also to ensure they make best use of their individual talents. O’Reilly…
February 14th, 2023 by Brian Kadien
You’ve achieved you Masters, but what next? Can the alumni group help to continue the transformation journey? By November 2019, our SAP Masters cohort was really hitting our stride. Collectively we (and I especially) were seeing success with our papers, we were learning new skills and many of us were seeing growth within our teams as our leadership practices improved….
February 14th, 2023 by Michael Quinlan
Tackling obstacles to transformational leadership in corporations. As middle managers, we sit at the intersection of the executives who have power and the employees who can create momentum. However, corporations are collections of people scattered across multiple departments with many hierarchies. While the organisation may appear to be united in reaching its ultimate objective, behaviour appears to be independent and…
February 13th, 2023 by Lennie A Monteiro
As AI-guided selling takes hold, ethics remains an important foundational principle. Today, AI can do things that humans could never do before like finding the quickest route to a destination; personalising suggestions for books, films, music, and clothes; identifying new chemical compounds and medical treatments; predicting equipment failures and coordinating maintenance across complex supply chains; using quality-assurance data to improve…
February 13th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales Transformation
How can sales leaders inspire cultural change so sales talent can thrive? Participants and speakers from leading organisations such as BT, SAP, Sharp, UCAS and Vodafone came together at the London Stock Exchange on 1 December 2022 for Consalia’s 17th annual Global Sales Transformation event to discuss professional development for sales teams and individuals, as well as the wider sales profession. …
January 10th, 2022 by David Norris
Developing and implementing a coaching culture within a sales environment to effect real transformation in coaching across your organisation. Throughout my career in sales leadership with SKF, the Swedish-based world leader in supply of bearings, seals and rotating equipment solutions, I have considered the importance of continual improvement in individual and team performance to be a fundamental element towards success….
January 10th, 2022 by Nick de Cent
We interviewed Kelly Garramone and Phil Styrlund to understand how character is a key driver of organisational success in sales. They explained how sales organisations can take part in some ground-breaking research that will drive performance. What is character science? Pioneered by Dr Fred Kiel (amongst others), character science is a new field of study that was born out of…
September 28th, 2021 by Mark Hollyoake, Dr Melanie Ashleigh and Professor Malcolm Higgs
The strategic implications of trust building in B2B client relationships and the way towards enhancing them to create mutual economic value. Trust is recognised as a central concept in relationship marketing (Blois 1999) and this may be attributed to the significant impact on many outcomes in this area (Seppanen, Blomquist and Sundquist (2007). This paper considers the strategic implications of…
September 28th, 2021 by Luke P Skinner
What makes a great global account director? What do we mean by great? Across both academia (Yip & Bink, 2007) and industry it is acknowledged that the main task of a GAD is to coordinate the sales and support of a company serving a customer that has negotiated global terms. Therefore, my definition of a great GAD is one who…
September 28th, 2021 by Tim Riesterer
Differentiating your solutions in highly competitive categories. Are you struggling to create a truly unique value proposition that sets you apart from your competition? You’re not alone. In fact, 88 percent of marketers and sellers surveyed by B2B DecisionLabs aren’t confident their buyers understand what makes their solution unique or valuable. In well-defined categories, many companies can solve the same…
July 27th, 2021 by Peter Amor
How applicable is agile leadership within a traditional organisational structure? The focus of my research project will be understanding what makes an agile leader and their ability to create and manage an agile organisation. What are the specific characteristics, cultural traits and mindset that define an agile leader and what makes them different? I investigate whether it is possible for…
July 26th, 2021 by Sakis Tassoudis
Nostos (Ancient Greek: νόστος) is a theme common in Ancient Greek literature. It was brought to life in Homer’s Odyssey. Nostos concerns an epic hero returning home by the sea and retaining both his status and identity. In a metaphorical sense, I planned to use Homer’s Odyssey to draw upon my business life experiences and journey. Little did I know…
July 26th, 2021 by Colin MacKenzie
Introducing the psychological contract into sales education The “psychological contract” approach in organisational terms makes claims for greater mutual commitment and motivation (Rousseau, 1995) and reciprocation (Coyle-Shapriro and Kessler, 2002). Best-practice practitioner sales training promotes trust-based relationship building, in order to overcome price objections and maintain profit margins. However, it does not necessarily explain how this can be achieved in…
July 26th, 2021 by Dustin Deno
Exploring the last decade of sales and sales enablement and what’s in store for the next ten years. There’s no question that B2B sales and the ways in which we sell have rapidly and fundamentally changed during the past year. But how does that compare with the past decade and, more importantly, where is the industry headed next? For many…
April 26th, 2021 by Barbara Crane
Literature review “The true measure of leadership is to confront the anxiety of the people of their time.” This quote by Jacinda Ardern, current Prime Minister of New Zealand, beautifully summarises the essence of leadership and reveals a depth in leadership qualities only acknowledged and explored by a few. Through introspective and autoethnographic work on developing and applying the ability…
April 26th, 2021 by Eileen Chua
The theme of my research is to explore the extent to which companies need to adapt and change to cater to a multi-generational workforce, define what the distinct differences really are using facts data, and in the process also draw out similarities. I will look at how stereotypes and unconscious bias skew realities, responses and attitudes. My research seeks to…
April 23rd, 2021 by Journal Of Sales Transformation
FOR SALESPEOPLE, THE DEMANDS OF THE CONNECTED…
November 9th, 2020 by Waldemar Adams
How storytelling can help bridge the gap between management and teams. Even as we are communicating all the time, even if we are surrounded by communication all day, it is neither easy nor simple: “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place,” according to Whyte (1950). From my experience, I believe he is right….
November 9th, 2020 by Rainer Stern
What are the required leadership behaviours that will help leaders succeed in the digital age, and to what extent do our leaders need to change their leadership behaviour in the future? Over 24 years I have held various sales and sales support roles at SAP. I had the chance to work with the largest customer (Siemens) as a Global Account…