Key account selection as a political process: Conceptual foundation and exploratory investigation

Jasmin Feste, Björn Sven Ivens and Catherine Pardo ()
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Jasmin Feste: Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg
Björn Sven Ivens: Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg
Catherine Pardo: EM - EMLyon Business School

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Abstract: Key account management (KAM) is an approach to sales management in which customers with high strategic importance for a company are identified and receive particular management attention. Selecting KAs is one of the most fundamental processes in KAM. This research aims to provide a detailed understanding of the nature of KA selection. Our qualitative study shows that KA selection is not only a technical process, but has political importance for different actors in a company. Drawing on research on organizational politics and the political economy paradigm we discuss the facets of companies' internal and external power-related, political factors as well as economic, ‘rational' elements in KA selection. We close with a discussion of implications and avenues for future research.

Keywords: Key account management; Strategic account management; Key account selection; KAM process; Organizational politics; Political behavior (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020-10-01
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Published in Industrial marketing management, 2020, 90, 417-434 p. ⟨10.1016/j.indmarman.2020.07.024⟩

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02946092

DOI: 10.1016/j.indmarman.2020.07.024

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