Research Roundtable

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~Sample Paper~

Building a Competency Model for Business-to-Business Front-Line

Sales Managers in For-Profit Organizations

Tina K. Busch and Larry M. Dooley

Please refer to the research and
theory full manuscript sample
Texas A&M University
paper for more information, as all
the guidelines are the same except
Keywords: competency, competency model, sales managers
for the title page. This type of
manuscript does not require a title
According to Gary Becker’s classic human capital theory study (1993), investing in a
page.
person’s knowledge and skills is similar to business investments in equipment. There are

economic effects of investment in competence, providing incentive to both the individual and

organization. An increasing number of organizations are realizing the role that the knowledge

residing in their human capital plays in creating economic power and value. As HRD

professionals sit at the intersection between the organization’s strategic goals and the capabilities

of its workforce, we are in a unique position to identify and develop human competence,

leveraging intellectual capital to drive growth and spur innovation (Cardy & Selvarajan, 2006;

McLagan, 1997; Prokopeak, 2008). Since the 1980s, McLagan has challenged the field to

identify clear competency criteria to help select, manage, train, and plan for the careers of

individuals engaged in driving the outputs of an organization. While some fields, such as

finance, marketing, and training and development have risen to the competency challenge set

forth by McLagan, the sales profession has not kept pace with other occupations’ advancement

in human resource development (Lambert, 2009).

According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (2010), there are

close to 14 million people working in sales, or about 11 percent of the United States workforce.

The sales generated by this labor pool are the revenue engine in for-profit organizations, which

powers the economy of the country (United Professional Sales Association, 2002). The sales

Copyright © 2010 Tina K. Busch & Larry M. Dooley

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landscape has changed dramatically in the last thirty years and is evolving rapidly in response to

a changing marketplace. The rate of technology transfer is increasing and the number of

competitors has grown considerably due to globalization of markets. A Harvard Business

Review survey of Chief Sales Officers (CSOs) concluded that eighty-five percent of companies

report increases in their product-line breadth, product complexity, and participation in new

markets (Trailer & Dickie, 2006). With new models of selling evolving to respond to the

marketplace, new kinds of sales professionals, sales managers, and sales leaders are emerging.

Innovations in how suppliers and customers interact have necessitated changes in the way sales

forces are structured, compensated, developed and evaluated in order to sustain a high-

performance sales culture capable of achieving success in today’s highly competitive and global

business economy (Cron & DeCarlo, 2009; Sujan & Sujan, 1988).

Practice in the sales profession and current research on competencies indicate that

indentifying and institutionalizing sales person competencies are key to organizational

competitive advantage. Salespeople play a critical role in business-to-business organizations in

delivering customer value, and the way they fulfill this role is directly influenced by sales

managers, the most critical element in a productive salesforce. (Guest & Meric, 1989; Piercy,

Cravens, & Lane, 2009). However, despite the potential for sales managers to influence

salesperson performance in the evolving sales model given visibility into their employees’ daily

workflow, research focusing on sales manager selection and performance is limited.

Increasingly manager competence proves challenging because companies tend to promote

salespeople to first-line manager positions based on strong performance in the individual

contributor role. In fact though, the skills inherent to and displayed by effective managers differ

from those of high-performing salespeople given the role is multi-faceted with unique needs that
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require aligning competencies (Deeter-Schmelz, Goebel, & Kennedy, 2001; Dubinsky & Ingram,

1983; Sujan & Sujan, 1988, Zallocco, Pullins, & Mallin, 2009).

Sales management has always played a critical role in organizations. Managers lead a

team, respond to customers, continually improve products and services, and turn policies into

action. The impact of high performing managers on revenues and profits is well-documented.

Hence, competent sales managers are one of the key assets needed to outperform competitors

(Cron & DeCarlo, 2009; Wickramasinghe & Nimali, 2009). Given this importance, there are

numerous studies cited in the literature on manager competence, and while there is an

assumption of similar competencies in management functions across organizations and levels of

management, it has been determined that not all competency items or behaviors are equally

useful for all jobs, job levels, business segments or regions (Schippmann et al., 2000).

Significance of the Study

New models of selling demand new skills sets. There is a disproportionate amount of

published research available to assist organizations in the identification of competencies to drive

sales effectiveness. The limited research available concentrates on broad traits or characteristics

related to sales manager selection from the perspective of sales executives or general managers.

However, to accept these general competencies as significant for the role of sales managers, one

must infer that the prominent characteristics of sales executives or general managers are similar

to the characteristics of front-line sales managers, which is not supported with empirical

evidence (Dubinsky & Ingram, 1983). This research aims to partially fill the gap in literature,

contributing to the understanding of effective HRD strategies to address competency needs of

front-line sales managers, providing employees, managers and leaders with a competency model

that assists in informing HR programs to increased levels of salesforce effectiveness.

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Review of Literature

Prahalad and Hamel (1990) stated the success of executives would no longer be judged

on the ability to “restructure, declutter, and delayer” their organizations but would be judged

instead on their ability to “identify, cultivate, and exploit the core competencies” that make

growth and prevailing in global competition possible” (p. 79). The numerous published

definitions of the term ‘competency’ or plural ‘competencies,’ makes it is difficult to identify a

standard definition. The lack of consensus is not surprising, given the prevalence of the term

across multiple domains (Markus, Cooper-Thomas, & Allpress, 2005). There is significant

diversity in the scope of competency studies, yet few empirical competency studies have been

conducted and even fewer have developed competencies that match job requirements to inform

HRD strategies (Barber and Tietje, 2004; Rothwell & Lindholm, 1999). Further, there is little

research investigating managerial competency needs and even fewer studies in the sales context.

According to Cron and DeCarlo (2009), sales management competencies are defined as “sets of

knowledge, skills, behaviors, and attitudes that a person needs to be effective in a wide range of

industries and various types of organizations” (p.12).

The history of competency modeling has taken a circular path similar to competencies

given the multiple domains that have contributed to the evolution of the practice. When

McLagan (1980) developed the concept of competency models, she defined them as “decision

tools which describe the key capabilities required to perform a job” (p. 23). These decision tools

are correlated to a specific group of activities describing key knowledge, skills, and abilities for

performing those activities (Dooley, Lindner, Dooley, & Alagaraja, 2004). Competency models

help align the HR system vertically with the organization’s strategic objectives and horizontally

with other HR functions, providing a platform of information that can be used to support a broad
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range of applications from recruitment and selection; assessment; training and development; and

career or succession planning. The importance given to competencies in the organizational

context is continually increasing driven by business and human resources agendas to deliver

organization performance by improving the performance of individual managers (McLagan,

1980; Schippmann et al., 2000; Wickramasinghe & Nimali, 2009).

Research Questions

This study seeks to answer the following research questions:

1. What competencies of business-to-business front-line sales managers in for-profit

organizations are perceived to be important by front-line sales managers and CSOs?

2. What are the perceived levels of competence of business-to-business front-line sales

managers in for-profit organizations by front-line sales managers and CSOs?

3. What relationships exist (if any) between front-line sales managers and CSOs regarding

competencies believed to be important for business-to-business front-line sales managers

in for-profit organizations?

4. What relationships exist (if any) between front-line sales managers and CSOs regarding

perceived levels of competence for business-to-business front-line sales managers in for-

profit organizations?

Method

Method Selection

In selecting the methodology for the study, several factors were considered. First, current

research on the topic is limited, yet the demand for informed practice is great. Second,

individuals most knowledgeable about the subject are widely dispersed across organizations and

geography. Consequently, a systematic approach to inquiry is needed that can collect informed
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opinions in a timely manner, transcend organization and geographic boundaries in a cost-

effective manner, and examine the data in a pragmatic manner. The Delphi technique is selected

as the preferred method for this study, considering it is a flexible approach commonly used

within the health and social sciences fields and has been used by ASTD to create competency

models for learning and sales professionals, combining a quantitative design with the use of

descriptive statistics (McLagan, 1980; Rothwell, 1996).

Participants

Panel selection for the Delphi study is the most important step in the process, as it

directly relates to the quality of the results generated (Hsu & Sandford, 2007). Based on review

of the literature, a range of 10-15 expert panel members representing front-line sales managers

and a range of 10-15 expert panel members representing Chief Sales Officers will be targeted for

this study. The criteria used to guide the selection of Delphi subjects are individuals who have

related backgrounds and experiences concerning the target issue, are capable of contributing

helpful inputs, and are willing to revise their initial or previous judgments for the purpose of

reaching or attaining consensus (Hsu & Sandford, 2007).

Procedure

The technique is a multistage group facilitation process designed to collect and synthesize

data confidentially through a series of questionnaires, resulting in a consensus that reflects the

group’s expert opinion and personal experience on important issues and evolving trends (Hasson,

Keeney, & Mckenna, 2000; Lambrecht 2007). The first series of rounds will establish what

competencies of business-to-business front-line sales managers in for-profit organizations are

perceived to be important by front-line sales managers and CSOs. An online survey instrument

will be developed based on review of the literature providing the expert panel with a series of
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competencies to prioritize based on perceived importance to the role of front-line sales managers.

If the results of perceived competencies for front-line sales managers are the same by front-line

sales managers and CSOs, the two panels will be combined into one. If the results of perceived

competencies for front-line sales managers are different by front-line sales managers and CSOs,

the panels will remain separate.

Using the competencies identified in the first phase, the second series of rounds will

identify perceived levels of competence of business-to-business front-line sales managers in for-

profit organizations by front-line sales managers and CSOs.

Data Analysis

The opinions of the experts who make up the panel will be summarized through

descriptive statistics, identifying (1) consensus of perceived competencies, (2) consensus of

perceived levels of competence and (3) existing relationships (if any) between front-line sales

managers and CSOs regarding competencies and perceived levels of competence for business-to-

business front-line sales managers in for-profit organizations.

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References

Barber, C. S., & Tietje, B. C. (2004). Competency requirements for managerial development in

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Becker, G. (1993). Human capital: A theoretical and empirical analysis with special

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Cardy, R. L., & Selvarajan, T. T. (2006). Competencies: Alternative frameworks for competitive

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Cron, W. L., & DeCarlo, T. E. (2009). Dalrymple’s sales management. (10th ed.). Danvers, MA:

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