The shift in sales organizations in business‐to‐business services markets

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to examine shifts in sales organizations utilized to sell services to business‐to‐business customers. The paper also examines the changes expected in personal selling and sales management. Design/methodology/approach – Extant academic literature and emerging practices are examined to determine trends. Findings – The paper suggests that the traditional service‐focused sales organization is evolving in two distinct directions. First, enhanced sales automation is resulting in a reduction in salespeople's contact with customers. Second, an enhancement in the level of customer contact is leading to a growth of customer‐focused sales organizations and an increase in global account management teams. Research limitations/implications – Additional research is needed in this area. Practical implications – Changes are required in the manner in which personal selling and sales management is practiced in organizations. Firms need to make these changes or their sales forces will be less efficient and less effective. Originality/value – This important area is very infrequently examined in literature. This is the first attempt to examine this area.