A cross-national investigation of incentive sales compensation

Michael Segalla (), Dominique Rouzies (), Madeleine Besson () and Barton A. Weitz
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Michael Segalla: GREGH - Groupement de Recherche et d'Etudes en Gestion à HEC - HEC Paris - Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Dominique Rouzies: GREGH - Groupement de Recherche et d'Etudes en Gestion à HEC - HEC Paris - Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Madeleine Besson: IMT-BS - MMS - Département Management, Marketing et Stratégie - TEM - Télécom Ecole de Management - IMT - Institut Mines-Télécom [Paris] - IMT-BS - Institut Mines-Télécom Business School - IMT - Institut Mines-Télécom [Paris]
Barton A. Weitz: Warrington College of Business Administration - UF - University of Florida [Gainesville]

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Abstract: Why do managers choose one sales compensation form rather than another? Theoretical answers typically focus on the type of plans managers should design, not on the factors that managers actually consider. Managers from various national origins pursue and weigh objectives through experience in a way that theoretical models may not capture. Incorporating conceptualizations from a wide range of disciplines, we specify a model examining the influence of cultural factors on sales compensation decisions of managers (incentive vs. fixed pay and parity vs. equity allocation). The model, tested with data collected from bank managers across six European countries, illustrates the importance of considering national culture when designing sales force compensation policies applied across multiple countries. We also find evidence that most European bank managers accept incentive pay to motivate salespeople but, perhaps paradoxically, overwhelmingly reject equity allocations to achieve control and parity. We discuss the implications of our findings for research on international governance systems and the diffusion of sales force management practices.

Keywords: Distributive justice; Compensation; Performance pay; Sales force management; National culture (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2006-12
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

Published in International Journal of Research in Marketing, 2006, 23 (4), pp.419-433. ⟨10.1016/j.ijresmar.2006.10.003⟩

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:halshs-00119579

DOI: 10.1016/j.ijresmar.2006.10.003

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