scholarly journals Engaging a product-focused sales force in solution selling: interplay of individual- and organizational-level conditions

2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 139-163 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Salonen ◽  
Harri Terho ◽  
Eva Böhm ◽  
Ari Virtanen ◽  
Risto Rajala
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
Sales Force ◽  
Organizational Level ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Sales Managers ◽  
Organizational Conditions ◽  
Sales Organization ◽  
Configurational Theory ◽  
Global Supplier

AbstractThis study explains how manufacturers tackle the critical managerial challenge of transforming a product-focused sales force to undertake solution selling. Through an application of configurational theory, the authors explain how individual and organizational conditions combine to determine salespeople’s engagement in solution selling. Multilevel, multisource data from the sales organization of a global supplier of building solutions represent input from salespeople (N = 184), solution champions (N = 23), and sales managers (N = 26). A fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis reveals no single, optimal way to overcome transformation challenges. Rather, consistent with prior research, solution selling requires certain types of salespeople, because value-based selling is a necessary condition for successful engagement. Beyond this foundational condition, a heterogeneous sales force can be engaged, as long as the organization provides appropriate support that is tailored to individual salespersons’ needs. The findings affirm that this viable support can come from either sales managers or solution champions.

scholarly journals Research on the Relationship between Shared Leadership and Individual Creativity-Qualitative Comparative Analysis on the Basis of Clear Set

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 5445
Author(s):  
Muyun Sun ◽  
Jigan Wang ◽  
Ting Wen
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Shared Leadership ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Sufficient And Necessary Condition

Creativity is the key to obtaining and maintaining competitiveness of modern organizations, and it has attracted much attention from academic circles and management practices. Shared leadership is believed to effectively influence team output. However, research on the impact of individual creativity is still in its infancy. This study adopts the qualitative comparative analysis method, taking 1584 individuals as the research objects, underpinned by a questionnaire-based survey. It investigates the influence of the team’s shared leadership network elements and organizational environmental factors on the individual creativity. We have found that there are six combination of conditions of shared leadership and organizational environmental factors constituting sufficient combination of conditions to increase or decrease individual creativity. Moreover, we have noticed that the low network density of shared leadership is a sufficient and necessary condition of reducing individual creativity. Our results also provide management suggestions for practical activities during the team management.

Factors affecting transaction costs in megaprojects: a qualitative comparative analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dedong Wang ◽  
Hui Li ◽  
Yongqiang Lu
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Transaction Costs ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
Asset Specificity ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Relational Contract ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Project Costs

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the factors influencing the transaction costs (TCs) in megaprojects to provide a basis for controlling project costs.Design/methodology/approachThis study selects six factors influencing the TCs in megaprojects from the perspective of TC theory and relational contract theory (RCT) through literature review. On the basis of crisp-set qualitative comparative analysis (QCA), this study tests combined factors influencing the TCs and the interaction between them.FindingsResults show that in megaprojects, TCs are affected by combination factors. The combination of asset specificity, uncertainty, transaction frequency and trust and the combination of asset specificity, reputation and trust will control TCs in certain situations. In the configuration leading to high project TCs, the combination of environmental and behavioral uncertainties is a necessary condition.Originality/valueThis paper fills up the research gap in the field of megaproject TCs, and researchers can focus on this field in the future.

scholarly journals Individual and Organizational Conditions Leading to Quality of Care in Healthcare: A Fuzzy-Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis

Merits ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-86
Author(s):  
Tiago Gonçalves ◽  
Carla Curado
Keyword(s):  
Knowledge Management ◽  
Quality Of Care ◽  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Ethical Leadership ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
University Hospital ◽  
Organizational Level ◽  
Management Systems ◽  
Individual Level

Quality of care is a complex performance measure of healthcare performance that considers the influence of several contributors. This study enlarges our understanding of how such influences occur. We analyze individual and organizational level characteristics that have a complex relationship with quality of care. We examine specific patterns that lead to both the presence and absence of quality of care using a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis. Our data comes from an online survey of healthcare professionals from a Portuguese university hospital, namely nursing and medical professionals. Our results reveal that combinations of individual-level characteristics, such as the quality of social support among professional peers and the perceived robustness of social networks, contribute to perceptions of quality of care. In addition, the results indicate that combinations of organizational-level characteristics, such as the presence of ethical leadership and the awareness of knowledge management systems, also lead to perceptions of quality of care. The solutions leading to the presence and absence of quality of care are discussed. We conclude that managerial practices in the university hospital should foster informal communication and peer support, given how pervasive their influence is on quality of care, even in circumstances where ethical leadership and awareness of knowledge management systems are absent from the configurations. Additionally, we reveal combinations of both individual-level and organizational-level characteristics that generate the absence of such quality of care, and thus we alert managers for the need to fight such situations.

scholarly journals Configurations of Essential Factors Promoting China’s Commercial Health Insurance: A Qualitative Comparative Analysis Based on Technology-Organization-Environment Framework

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiuquan Huang ◽  
Xiaocang Xu ◽  
Tao Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Health Insurance ◽  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Social Insurance ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
Robustness Analysis ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
Commercial Health Insurance

Abstract Background With the improvement in the living standards, China’s health insurance under the social security system cannot satisfy people's diversified and high-level demands. Therefore, it is necessary to promote commercial health insurance (CHI). This study identifies driving paths of CHI in China from configuration perspective. Methods This study innovatively constructs an analysis framework based on the Technology-Organization-Environment theory to investigate the driving path of China's commercial health insurance. Using the data of 31 provincial regions of China in 2018, the fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) is employed for configuration analysis. For the robustness analysis of necessary condition, we also adopt the Necessary Condition Analysis. Results Three main findings are discovered. First, there is no necessary relationship between any condition and high or not-high performance of CHI and any condition. Nevertheless, there are three sufficient configurations, TOE strategy, GA-EA-CD strategy, and dual EA-CD strategy, to achieve high performance, and another three, TMC-EA-CD strategy, TI-EA strategy, and TI-TMC-EA strategy, to reach not-high performance. Second, technological conditions (TI and TMC) and EA are relatively more important than other conditions. Third, it is confirmed that the financial expenditure of government departments has a negative effect on the development of commercial health insurance. Conclusion There are configurations or pathways to achieve high or not-high performance of promoting CHI and key factors are identified successfully. Each region should choose the driving path suitable for itself, instead of making homogenization policies and replicating policies of regions with high performance. Besides, TC and EA as key factors should be overcome. Finally, the governments should formulate policies to systematically evaluate social insurance and CHI simultaneously and promote their coordinated development.

scholarly journals SURVIVAL CAUSAL PATTERNS OF SOCIAL AND COMMERCIAL ENTREPRENEURIAL INITIATIVES IN SPAIN

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 1047-1067
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Revuelto-Taboada ◽  
Ana Redondo-Cano ◽  
Francisco Balbastre-Benavent
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Fuzzy Set ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Configurational Analysis ◽  
Chambers Of Commerce ◽  
Assistance Programme ◽  
Causal Patterns ◽  
Young Entrepreneurs

This research aims at analysing the influence of a holistic configuration of factors related to industry and the characteristics of the entrepreneur and the business, on the survival of social and commercial entrepreneurial initiatives in both, new and consolidated companies. The sample ranges from 2,851 to 2,109 firms, according to the period considered, and has been obtained from the reports of the projects submitted to the Assistance Programme to Young Entrepreneurs, promoted by the Valencian Institute of Youth. Other sources of information have been the Institute’s own reports and the Chambers of Commerce. A configurational analysis is performed using the Fuzzy-Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis. The results obtained show that there is no necessary condition by itself and that there are several sufficient solutions that explain a considerable percentage of survival cases. They also show how the solutions vary significantly and, consequently, the relevance of the different causal antecedents, when the company acquires greater maturity.

Going Alone or Together? A Configurational Analysis of Solo Founding vs. Cofounding

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Travis Howell ◽  
Christopher Bingham ◽  
Bradley Hendricks
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
Entrepreneurial Ventures ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Configurational Analysis ◽  
Configurational Theory ◽  
Primary Contribution

Research and practice suggest that cofounded ventures outperform solo-founded ventures. Yet, little work has explored the conditions under which solo founding might be preferable to cofounding. Combining an inductive case-oriented analysis with a Qualitative Comparative Analysis of 70 new entrepreneurial ventures, we examine why and how solo founders can be as successful as their peers in cofounded ventures. We find that successful solo founders strategically use a set of cocreators rather than cofounders to overcome liabilities, retain control, and mobilize resources in unique and unexpected ways. A primary contribution of this paper is an emergent configurational theory of entrepreneurial organizing. Overall, we reveal the broader significance and theoretical importance of adopting a configurational lens for both practitioners and scholars of entrepreneurship.

Getting stellar sales performance: why sales managers’ mentoring, coaching and technology capabilities make the difference

2014 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 13-16
Author(s):  
Komal Khandelwal Das ◽  
Ashwani Kumar Upadhyay ◽  
Subrata Das
Keyword(s):  
Sales Force ◽  
Organizational Sustainability ◽  
Role Clarity ◽  
Sales Managers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sales Training ◽  
Sales Organization ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Strategic Relationships ◽  
And Performance

Purpose – The aim of this viewpoint is to distinguish the importance of sales managers’ attitude and role clarity in the context of mentoring, coaching and technology capabilities to achieve stellar sales force operations and performance. Design/methodology/approach – This report reviews the sales training literature to highlight how managerial interventions enhance competencies, behaviours and advanced level of selling orientation by mentoring and coaching construct. The concept of manager’s creativity and imagination is brought out to explain why it should be adapted and carried out in an era of vibrant and dynamic selling paradigm. Findings – Adapting and implementing the concept of mentoring and coaching in a personal or industrial selling context may provide sales organization and academicians a better reason of how leadership and personality traits of manager enhance learning transfer. Practical implications – Sales managers could develop appropriate new metrics based on market orientation for building strategic relationships, thereby eliminates ambiguity in sales-force function. Social implications – Increased sales result in sales force retention, organizational sustainability and economic growth. Originality/value – This paper introduces the concept of mentoring and coaching touch as improvement tactics to transform average salespeople into exceptional performers in contemporary selling to surpass productivity records.

Pathways to Conflict Using Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA)

2019 ◽  
pp. 41-68
Author(s):  
Marinko Bobić
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
Process Tracing ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Window Of Opportunity ◽  
Post Cold War ◽  
Stable Regime ◽  
Interstate Disputes ◽  
Necessary And Sufficient ◽  
Empirical Record

Chapter three provides a medium-N, Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) analysis of the empirical record, assessing the outcomes of all 20 militarised interstate disputes that have taken place in the post-Cold War era. QCA is the most proper method given that the focus of this study is on several conditions and their complex relationship. QCA results show that 9 of the 20 cases of asymmetric militarised disputes resulted in war, confirming the importance of this phenomena. Moreover, the analysis reveals that not a single condition is both necessary and sufficient to explain the minor power's choice to go to war. However, the domestic crisis seems to be of particular importance, as it is a necessary condition for the outcome to occur. While this is somewhat expected, more surprising results indicate that domestic crisis is only sufficient when occurring together with a stable regime and either foreign support or window of opportunity. Likewise, regimes with anomalous beliefs tend to ignore the importance of conditions such as foreign support or window of opportunity. Given the limited number of cases, these results can be further strengthened through case studies, that is, process tracing and counterfactual assessment.

scholarly journals Analyzing Relationships of Necessity Not Just in Kind But Also in Degree

2016 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 872-899 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Vis ◽  
Jan Dul
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Fuzzy Set ◽  
Applied Research ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Specific Level ◽  
Limited Ability ◽  
The Social ◽  
Research Questions

Analyzing relationships of necessity is important for both scholarly and applied research questions in the social sciences. An often-used technique for identifying such relationships— fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA)—has limited ability to make the most out of the data used. The set-theoretical technique fsQCA makes statements in kind (e.g., “a condition or configuration is necessary or not for an outcome”), thereby ignoring the variation in degree. We propose to apply a recently developed technique for identifying relationships of necessity that can make both statements in kind and in degree, thus making full use of variation in the data: Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA). With its ability to also make statements in degree (“a specific level of a condition is necessary or not for a specific level of the outcome”), NCA can complement the in kind analysis of necessity with fsQCA.

scholarly journals Exploring Explanations for Local Reductions in Teenage Pregnancy Rates in England: An Approach Using Qualitative Comparative Analysis

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim Blackman
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Teenage Pregnancy ◽  
Local Population ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
Pregnancy Rates ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Minority Ethnic Groups ◽  
High Deprivation ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Minority Ethnic

Teenage pregnancy rates in the UK are high compared with many other countries but there is marked variation across local areas, including those with high deprivation. This study uses the method of Qualitative Comparative Analysis to identify conditions associated with the presence or absence of a narrowing gap in teenage pregnancy rates as measured by the differences between deprived local authority areas and the national average. A higher proportion of black and minority ethnic groups in the local population is found to be a sufficient although not necessary condition for narrowing to have occurred. Surprisingly, a good assessment of commissioning practice – combined with other conditions – was associated with areas where the gap has not been narrowing.

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