Servant Leadership Effects on Salesperson Self-Efficacy, Performance, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover Intentions

IF 2 4区 管理学 Q3 BUSINESS
K. Westbrook, R. M. Peterson
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Second, the intent is to test whether servant leadership indirectly affects turnover intentions through self-efficacy, job satisfaction and performance as single and serial mediated paths. Finally, the study tests whether gender, firm size and job demands as challenge and hindrance stressors serve to moderate these hypothesized paths. Method Data was gathered over a 10-day period using an online survey from a survey panel of U.S. sales professionals who sell products and services to businesses within their sales role. The data was approximately evenly split between females and males and between smaller firms (less than 250 employees) and larger companies (more than 250 employees). The authors used Hayes Process Model 4 to test the hypothesized relationships. Findings Key results in this study suggest that servant leadership has a direct impact on salesperson job satisfaction (positive), self-efficacy (positive), and turnover intentions (negative), but fails to influence salesperson performance directly. Further, salesperson job satisfaction directly decreases turnover intentions; performance directly increases turnover intentions; but self-efficacy fails to have a direct impact on turnover intentions. Servant leadership has a direct impact on turnover intentions and indirect influence through job satisfaction (single mediator) and through self-efficacy, job satisfaction, and performance as serially mediated paths (Self-Efficacy → Job Satisfaction and Self-Efficacy → Performance). One significant finding is that servant leadership fails to directly influence salesperson performance suggesting that self-efficacy may exhibit suppressing the effects on Servant Leadership → Salesperson Performance path. Finally, the results indicate that gender (binary) and firm size (< 250 employees and > 250 employees) fail to serve as moderators on the proposed paths. However, servant leadership behaviors buffer the effects of challenge and hindrance stressors at low and moderate levels, but fail to have a buffering effect at high levels of challenge and hindrance stressors. Implications This study confirms that sales managers should consider adopting servant leadership to raise salesperson job satisfaction to aid in retaining sales talent (lower turnover intentions). Furthermore, sales managers who adopt servant leadership behaviors raise salesperson self-efficacy, which is a new finding that has not been tested to date in the marketing literature. Further, self-efficacy seems to suppress the direct link between servant leadership and salesperson performance indicating that servant leadership positively influences salesperson self-efficacy leading to higher salesperson performance as a mediated path. Also, salespeople who are high performers experience higher turnover intentions, possibly suggesting that high sales producers may perceive they should leave for better compensation or growth opportunities elsewhere. These relationships seem to hold regardless of gender and firm size. Finally, servant leadership seems to buffer the effects of low and moderate levels of challenge and hindrance stressors on job satisfaction, performance and turnover intentions. Originality This study provides further clarity as to whether servant leadership has a direct, partially mediated, or fully mediated influence on salesperson job satisfaction, performance and turnover intentions. The results support that servant leadership fails to directly influence salesperson performance; however, servant leadership increases self-efficacy, which in turn increases salesperson performance. This is a new finding within a business-to-business sales context. 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引用次数: 5

Abstract

ABSTRACT Purpose Servant leadership has been tested as having a positive impact on employee self-efficacy which has been tested in the marketing literature within a service-delivery context. To date, there are no studies testing the Servant Leadership → Self-Efficacy path leading to salesperson job satisfaction, sales performance, and turnover intentions within a B2B context. The purpose of this study is to assess whether servant leadership has a direct relationship on salesperson self-efficacy (positive), job satisfaction (positive), performance (positive) and turnover intentions (negative). Second, the intent is to test whether servant leadership indirectly affects turnover intentions through self-efficacy, job satisfaction and performance as single and serial mediated paths. Finally, the study tests whether gender, firm size and job demands as challenge and hindrance stressors serve to moderate these hypothesized paths. Method Data was gathered over a 10-day period using an online survey from a survey panel of U.S. sales professionals who sell products and services to businesses within their sales role. The data was approximately evenly split between females and males and between smaller firms (less than 250 employees) and larger companies (more than 250 employees). The authors used Hayes Process Model 4 to test the hypothesized relationships. Findings Key results in this study suggest that servant leadership has a direct impact on salesperson job satisfaction (positive), self-efficacy (positive), and turnover intentions (negative), but fails to influence salesperson performance directly. Further, salesperson job satisfaction directly decreases turnover intentions; performance directly increases turnover intentions; but self-efficacy fails to have a direct impact on turnover intentions. Servant leadership has a direct impact on turnover intentions and indirect influence through job satisfaction (single mediator) and through self-efficacy, job satisfaction, and performance as serially mediated paths (Self-Efficacy → Job Satisfaction and Self-Efficacy → Performance). One significant finding is that servant leadership fails to directly influence salesperson performance suggesting that self-efficacy may exhibit suppressing the effects on Servant Leadership → Salesperson Performance path. Finally, the results indicate that gender (binary) and firm size (< 250 employees and > 250 employees) fail to serve as moderators on the proposed paths. However, servant leadership behaviors buffer the effects of challenge and hindrance stressors at low and moderate levels, but fail to have a buffering effect at high levels of challenge and hindrance stressors. Implications This study confirms that sales managers should consider adopting servant leadership to raise salesperson job satisfaction to aid in retaining sales talent (lower turnover intentions). Furthermore, sales managers who adopt servant leadership behaviors raise salesperson self-efficacy, which is a new finding that has not been tested to date in the marketing literature. Further, self-efficacy seems to suppress the direct link between servant leadership and salesperson performance indicating that servant leadership positively influences salesperson self-efficacy leading to higher salesperson performance as a mediated path. Also, salespeople who are high performers experience higher turnover intentions, possibly suggesting that high sales producers may perceive they should leave for better compensation or growth opportunities elsewhere. These relationships seem to hold regardless of gender and firm size. Finally, servant leadership seems to buffer the effects of low and moderate levels of challenge and hindrance stressors on job satisfaction, performance and turnover intentions. Originality This study provides further clarity as to whether servant leadership has a direct, partially mediated, or fully mediated influence on salesperson job satisfaction, performance and turnover intentions. The results support that servant leadership fails to directly influence salesperson performance; however, servant leadership increases self-efficacy, which in turn increases salesperson performance. This is a new finding within a business-to-business sales context. Another contribution to the nomological net is that servant leadership indirectly lowers salesperson turnover intentions through serial mediated paths consisting of self-efficacy, job satisfaction and performance as mediators.
仆人领导对销售人员自我效能感、绩效、工作满意度和离职意向的影响
摘要目的公务员领导力已被测试为对员工自我效能感有积极影响,这已在服务提供背景下的营销文献中进行了测试。到目前为止,还没有测试仆人领导力的研究→ B2B环境下销售人员工作满意度、销售业绩和离职意向的自我效能路径。本研究的目的是评估仆人领导是否与销售人员自我效能感(正)、工作满意度(正),绩效(正)和离职意向(负)有直接关系。其次,目的是检验仆人领导是否通过自我效能感、工作满意度和绩效作为单一和串行中介路径间接影响离职意愿。最后,该研究测试了性别、公司规模和工作需求作为挑战和阻碍压力源是否有助于调节这些假设的路径。方法使用一个由美国销售专业人员组成的调查小组的在线调查,在10天内收集数据,这些销售专业人员在其销售职责范围内向企业销售产品和服务。数据在女性和男性之间以及在小公司(员工少于250人)和大公司(员工多于250人)之间大致平均分布。作者使用Hayes过程模型4来测试假设的关系。研究结果本研究的关键结果表明,仆人领导对销售人员的工作满意度(正)、自我效能感(正)和离职意向(负)有直接影响,但没有直接影响销售人员的绩效。此外,销售人员的工作满意度直接降低了离职意愿;业绩直接提高了离职意愿;但自我效能感对离职意向没有直接影响。仆人领导对离职意向有直接影响,并通过工作满意度(单一中介)和自我效能感、工作满意度和绩效作为串联中介路径(自我效能感→ 工作满意度与自我效能感→ 性能)。一个重要的发现是,仆人领导不能直接影响销售人员的绩效,这表明自我效能感可能对仆人领导表现出抑制作用→ 销售人员绩效路径。最后,结果表明,性别(二元)和公司规模(<250名员工和>250名员工)未能在所提出的路径上起到调节作用。然而,仆人领导行为在低水平和中等水平上缓冲了挑战和阻碍压力源的影响,但在高水平的挑战和妨碍压力源上没有缓冲作用。启示这项研究证实,销售经理应该考虑采用仆人式领导来提高销售人员的工作满意度,以帮助留住销售人才(降低离职意愿)。此外,采用仆人式领导行为的销售经理提高了销售人员的自我效能,这是一个迄今为止尚未在营销文献中得到检验的新发现。此外,自我效能感似乎抑制了仆人领导与销售人员绩效之间的直接联系,这表明仆人领导对销售人员自我效能感有积极影响,从而作为一种中介途径提高销售人员绩效。此外,表现出色的销售人员的离职意愿更高,这可能表明高销售额的生产商可能认为他们应该离开,去其他地方获得更好的薪酬或增长机会。这些关系似乎与性别和公司规模无关。最后,仆人式领导似乎可以缓冲中低水平的挑战和阻碍压力对工作满意度、绩效和离职意向的影响。独创性本研究进一步明确了仆人领导对销售人员工作满意度、绩效和离职意向是否有直接、部分中介或完全中介的影响。研究结果支持仆人式领导未能直接影响销售人员绩效;然而,仆人式领导提高了自我效能,进而提高了销售人员的绩效。这是企业对企业销售环境中的一个新发现。对法治网的另一个贡献是,仆人领导通过一系列中介路径间接降低了销售人员的离职意愿,这些中介路径包括自我效能感、工作满意度和作为中介的绩效。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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来源期刊
CiteScore
2.20
自引率
35.70%
发文量
22
期刊介绍: The Journal of Business-to-Business Marketing® encourages diversity in approaches to business marketing theory development, research methods, and managerial problem solving. An editorial board comprised of outstanding, internationally recognized scholars and practitioners ensures that the journal maintains impeccable standards of relevance and rigorous scholarship. The Journal of Business-to-Business Marketing features: •basic and applied research that reflects current business marketing theory, methodology, and practice •articles from leading researchers covering topics of mutual interest for the business and academic communities
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