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- All HBS Web (253)
- Faculty Publications (208)
Show Results For
- All HBS Web (253)
- Faculty Publications (208)
- 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...
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Cespedes, Frank V., and Yuchun Lee. "Your Sales Training Is Probably Lackluster. Here's How to Fix It." Harvard Business Review (website) (June 12, 2017).
- 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...
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- 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...
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Keywords:
Marketing Strategy;
Salesforce Management;
Performance Improvement;
Financial Services Industry
Bonoma, Thomas V., and Minette E. Drumwright. "IDS Financial Services." Harvard Business School Case 588-044, December 1987. (Revised September 1995.)
- April 2017
- Article
How Sales Can Wield Its Most Effective Weapon: Pricing
This article discusses certain core ways that sales people can use, but sometimes abuse, pricing authority and the implications for effective sales management.
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Cespedes, Frank V. "How Sales Can Wield Its Most Effective Weapon: Pricing." Quotable (April 2017).
- 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...
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Corey, E. Raymond. "Wright Line, Inc. (A)." Harvard Business School Case 585-135, November 1984. (Revised May 1989.)
- 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.
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Keywords:
Marketing Communications;
Salesforce Management;
Decision Making;
Performance Effectiveness;
Management Teams;
Beauty and Cosmetics Industry;
United States
Quelch, John A. "Mary Kay Cosmetics, Inc.: Marketing Communications." Harvard Business School Case 583-068, January 1983. (Revised June 1985.)
- 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...
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- 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.
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Keywords:
Managerial Roles;
Salesforce Management;
Resignation and Termination;
Performance Evaluation
Dolan, Robert J., and Benson P. Shapiro. "Milford Industries (C)." Harvard Business School Supplement 584-014, August 1983. (Revised June 1985.)
- 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
- April 1991 (Revised March 2017)
- Teaching Note
Mary Kay Cosmetics: Sales Force Incentives (A) and (B)
By: Robert Simons
Teaching Note for (9-190-103) and (9-190-122).
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- 2004
- Working Paper
Effort or Timing: The Effect of Lump-Sum Bonuses
This article addresses the question of whether lump-sum bonuses motivate salespeople to work harder to attain incremental orders or whether they induce salespeople to play timing games (behaviors that increase incentive payments without providing incremental benefits...
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Steenburgh, Thomas J. "Effort or Timing: The Effect of Lump-Sum Bonuses." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 05-051, December 2004.
- August 1996 (Revised October 1996)
- Case
Howard, Shea & Chan Asset Management(C): Recruiting and Selecting a Salesperson
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.
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Shapiro, Benson P. "Howard, Shea & Chan Asset Management(C): Recruiting and Selecting a Salesperson." Harvard Business School Case 597-023, August 1996. (Revised October 1996.)
- 09 Jul 2018
- Research & Ideas
Overcoming the Challenges of Selling Brand New Technology (Hey, Need a 3-D Printer?)
“Nothing sells itself,” says Frank Cespedes, senior lecturer in the Entrepreneurial Management Unit at Harvard Business School. “When companies introduce new products, they are offering something that by definition is going to replace...
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- 28 Mar 2016
- Working Paper Summaries
Do Incentive Plans for Exemplary Employees Lead to Productive or Counterproductive Outcomes?
- 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...
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Keywords:
Sales Force Compensation;
Field Experiment;
Heterogeneity;
Loss Aversion;
Reciprocity;
Salesforce Management;
Compensation and Benefits
Chung, Doug J., and Das Narayandas. "Incentives versus Reciprocity: Insights from a Field Experiment." Journal of Marketing Research (JMR) 54, no. 4 (August 2017): 511–524. (Lead article.)
- 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.
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Keywords:
Marketing Strategy;
Price;
Salesforce Management;
Consumer Products Industry;
Service Industry;
South Korea
Chun, Samuel S. "S1 Corporation." Harvard Business School Case 597-044, March 1997. (Revised July 1999.)
- 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...
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- February 2020
- Case
Drift: The First Sales Hire
By: Mark Roberge
David Cancel and Elias Torres, the co-founders of Drift, scaled their business to thousands of users and hundreds of thousands in revenue. However, they were falling short of the annual revenue target they communicated to the board of directors. Having scaled the...
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Roberge, Mark. "Drift: The First Sales Hire." Harvard Business School Case 820-103, February 2020.
- 04 Feb 2021
- Research & Ideas
Inside CEOs' Pandemic Worries: Uncertainty, Employees, and Kids
How will my children learn via Zoom? We interviewed 10 CEOs in July about how they are managing the unprecedented stressors of the COVID-19 pandemic, and then checked in with them again at the end of 2020. The interviewees hail from...
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- 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...
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Keywords:
Horizontal Integration;
Salesforce Management;
Transportation;
Compensation and Benefits;
Transportation Industry
Godes, David B. "Sales Force Integration at FedEx (A)." Harvard Business School Case 506-029, October 2005. (Revised February 2008.)