Research

The latest research from sales leaders working in global companies comes together with studies from academic institutions and top consultancies to enhance our understanding of professional sales. Here you’ll also find the Journal’s own cutting-edge research designed by leading academics to help keep you one step ahead.

The SAP Masters alumni community: An ongoing transformational journey

February 14th, 2023 by

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…. 


What does it take to transform?

February 14th, 2023 by

Tackling obstacles to transformational leadership in corporations. What does it mean to transform and how will you know when it is time? It is likely that we have seen, heard, or felt transformation at some point in our lives. If we were to go around the room and provide descriptions, there is a good chance our definitions will be different…. 


Ethical principles in AI-guided selling

February 13th, 2023 by

As AI-guided selling takes hold, ethics remains an important foundational principle. Abstract Recent advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI) research, development, and application have sparked a broad debate about the ethics of AI systems. As a result, several ethical frameworks have been published in recent years. These guidelines include normative concepts and recommendations aimed at assisting organisations in capitalising on the… 


Talent to thrive: inspiring cultural change

February 13th, 2023 by

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.  … 


TOTAL Coaching

January 10th, 2022 by

Developing and implementing a coaching culture within a sales environment to effect real transformation in coaching across your organisation. Abstract Within sales organisations the value and importance of coaching is acknowledged as a key element to the continuing success of the business, including the development and retention of employees in the organisation. In recent years, the importance of this aspect,… 


Character to lead

January 10th, 2022 by

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… 


The Trust Dividend

September 28th, 2021 by

The strategic implications of trust building in B2B client relationships and the way towards enhancing them to create mutual economic value. Abstract There is a noticeable lack of clarity around the construct of trust in the business to business (B2B) context. The thesis on which this article is based considers how trust building antecedents operate dynamically within a B2B relationship,… 


GADs: mindsets, methods and models

September 28th, 2021 by

What makes a great global account director? Introduction I began my Global Account Director journey five years ago, following my successful completion of SAP’s Sales Academy Programme. I started out working as an Account Manager alongside the Global Account Director (GAD) in developing new sales opportunities for one of SAP’s most important banking customers and subsequently have taken ownership of… 


Avoid the parity trap

September 28th, 2021 by

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… 


Agile leadership

July 27th, 2021 by

How applicable is agile leadership within a traditional organisational structure? Introduction “Just because you fail once doesn’t mean you are going to fail at everything.” – Marilyn Monroe History has shown through all endeavours, be it in business, sport or academics, that those who are able to adapt to change and remain open to new ideas are the most likely… 


The Emerging Importance of Ethical Leadership

July 26th, 2021 by

A modern-day Odyssey in search of ethics and purpose in leadership. Background I have observed increasing concerns about the potentially unfortunate fate of organisations and society in the event of ethics and purpose not playing an important role in leadership, human relationship and our behaviour. Therefore, I strongly believe that it is the responsibility of today’s leaders to communicate to… 


Psychological contract

July 26th, 2021 by

Introducing the psychological contract into sales education Introduction This paper discusses the relevance of the “psychological contract” to the sales process and its potential contribution to the field of sales education. This viewpoint has emerged through the author’s 40 years etic and emic perspectives of direct observation of sales executives, five years involvement in national and international university sales competitions,… 


Past, present and future of sales enablement

July 26th, 2021 by

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… 


Cultural and emotional barriers which cause resistance to change

April 26th, 2021 by

In the current ever-changing corporate world perennial adaptability is the key to sustainability and culture has become the conceptual foundation which should embrace ambiguity, uncertainty and complexity to ensure organisational success. Culture is not just mandated but it should be shaped at every level of the organisation and “even without a direct mandate from the top, people with passion, persistence… 


Do millennials have a chance?

April 26th, 2021 by

“When we listen and celebrate what is both common and different, we become a wiser and more inclusive and a better organisation” – Pat Wadors, head of HR at LinkedIn. At SAP, we have set ourselves a target of achieving 10% of young talent in our workforce in South East Asia (SEA) by 2023. This is a two-fold increase from… 


WORKING-FROM-HOME BURNOUT

April 23rd, 2021 by

FOR SALESPEOPLE, THE DEMANDS OF THE CONNECTED… 


Improved leadership communication

November 9th, 2020 by

How storytelling can help bridge the gap between management and teams. “1In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.2The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep.3And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.4And God saw that the light was good.”Genesis, First Book of Moses Day 1 Since… 


Leadership in the digital future

November 9th, 2020 by

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? Why is the concept of “digital” so important for us today? Technologies are changing the way customers conduct business. Communication has found new ways that I would have never… 


A (Virtual) Reality Check: Mastering remote selling

May 28th, 2020 by

How to make virtual sales presentations more engaging, more memorable and more effective. In an instant, the number of salespeople delivering remote presentations has reached 100%. But how do they feel about virtual sales calls, versus in-person meetings? Not good, according to our recent industry survey of over 500 B2B salespeople. Over 70% of salespeople believe that remote selling is… 


Decision contentment or buyer’s remorse?

May 26th, 2020 by

Identifying a B2B buyer’s post-decision “cognitive states” – consonance and dissonance – and how to accommodate them. Cognitive dissonance is experienced when a person suffers from the unpleasant and conflicted state of being “in two minds about something” – in other words, concurrently holding two or more contradictory cognitions (ie, perceptions, attitudes or beliefs). The concept became popularised among marketers…