Social influence on salespeople’s adoption of sales technology: a multilevel analysis

The implementation of sales force automation applications (SFA) often fails owing to the lack of adoption by salespeople. Previous studies investigating drivers of salespeople’s SFA adoption have mainly scrutinized predictors on the level of salespeople (within-level analysis). Hence, these studies have mostly neglected the social influence of coworkers’ and superiors’ SFA adoption on salespeople’s SFA adoption. We introduce a new perspective using a multilevel framework of SFA adoption at several hierarchical levels. The findings demonstrate that coworkers’ and superiors’ SFA adoption has a positive effect on subordinates’ SFA adoption which goes beyond the commonly tested determinants. Also, results reveal differences among predictors of the Technology Acceptance Model (within-level effects) examined at three different hierarchical levels.

[1]  Henry L. Tosi,et al.  Multilevel Theory Building: Benefits, Barriers, and New Developments , 1999 .

[2]  M. Deutsch,et al.  A study of normative and informational social influences upon individual judgement. , 1955, Journal of abnormal psychology.

[3]  A. Banerjee,et al.  A Simple Model of Herd Behavior , 1992 .

[4]  Jay A. Conger,et al.  Charismatic leadership in organizations: Perceived behavioral attributes and their measurement , 1994 .

[5]  Gary K. Hunter,et al.  Making Sales Technology Effective , 2007 .

[6]  Deborah Compeau,et al.  Computer Self-Efficacy: Development of a Measure and Initial Test , 1995, MIS Q..

[7]  Jonathan A. Rhoades,et al.  The empowering leadership questionnaire: the construction and validation of a new scale for measuring leader behaviors , 2000 .

[8]  S. Bikhchandani,et al.  Learning from the behavior of others : conformity, fads, and informational cascades , 1998 .

[9]  Fred D. Davis,et al.  A Theoretical Extension of the Technology Acceptance Model: Four Longitudinal Field Studies , 2000, Management Science.

[10]  S. Bikhchandani,et al.  You have printed the following article : A Theory of Fads , Fashion , Custom , and Cultural Change as Informational Cascades , 2007 .

[11]  A. Bandura.  Social learning theory , 1977 .

[12]  Kieran Mathieson,et al.  Beyond the interface: Ease of use and task/technology fit , 1998, Inf. Manag..

[13]  R. Kraut,et al.  Varieties of Social Influence: the Role of Utility and Norms in the Success of a New Communication Medium , 1998 .

[14]  Izak Benbasat,et al.  Development of an Instrument to Measure the Perceptions of Adopting an Information Technology Innovation , 1991, Inf. Syst. Res..

[15]  George J. Avlonitis,et al.  Antecedents and consequences of CRM technology acceptance in the sales force , 2005 .

[16]  Adam Rapp,et al.  Moving Beyond the Direct Effect of SFA Adoption on Salesperson Performance: Training and Support as Key Moderating Factors , 2005 .

[17]  Janet Fulk,et al.  Organizational Colleagues, Media Richness, and Electronic Mail , 1991 .

[18]  Jane M. Howell,et al.  Personal Computing: Toward a Conceptual Model of Utilization , 1991, MIS Q..

[19]  Pradeep K. Tyagi.  Relative Importance of Key Job Dimensions and Leadership Behaviors in Motivating Salesperson Work Performance , 1985 .

[20]  Dale Goodhue,et al.  Task-Technology Fit and Individual Performance , 1995, MIS Q..

[21]  Anthony S. Bryk,et al.  Hierarchical Linear Models: Applications and Data Analysis Methods , 1992 .

[22]  S. Green,et al.  In the shadow of the boss's boss: effects of supervisors' upward exchange relationships on employees. , 2007, The Journal of applied psychology.

[23]  Fred D. Davis.  Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, and User Acceptance of Information Technology , 1989, MIS Q..

[24]  D. Scharfstein,et al.  Herd Behavior and Investment , 1990 .

[25]  Niels Schillewaert,et al.  The Influence of Market Orientation on E-Business Innovation and Performance: The Role of the Top Management Team , 2008 .

[26]  J. Scott Armstrong,et al.  Estimating nonresponse bias in mail surveys. , 1977 .

[27]  C. Speier,et al.  The Hidden Minefields in the Adoption of Sales Force Automation Technologies , 2002 .

[28]  J. Mathieu,et al.  A Longitudinal Examination of Individual, Organizational, and Contextual Factors on Sales Technology Adoption and Job Performance , 2006 .

[29]  Marlene E. Burkhardt,et al.  SOCIAL INTERACTION EFFECTS FOLLOWING A TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE: A LONGITUDINAL INVESTIGATION , 1994 .

[30]  Michael Ahearne,et al.  A Longitudinal Cross-Level Model of Leader and Salesperson Influences on Sales Force Technology Use and Performance , 2007, The Journal of applied psychology.

[31]  I. Ajzen,et al.  Belief, Attitude, Intention, and Behavior: An Introduction to Theory and Research , 1977 .

[32]  Fred D. Davis,et al.  User Acceptance of Computer Technology: A Comparison of Two Theoretical Models , 1989 .

[33]  Eli Jones,et al.  High Touch Through High Tech: The Impact of Salesperson Technology Usage on Sales Performance via Mediating Mechanisms , 2008, Manag. Sci..

[34]  C. Fornell,et al.  Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. , 1981 .

[35]  D. Leonard-Barton,et al.  Managerial influence in the implementation of new technology , 1988 .

[36]  R. Moenaert,et al.  The Adoption of Information Technology in the Sales Force , 2005 .

[37]  J. Pfeffer,et al.  A social information processing approach to job attitudes and task design. , 1978, Administrative science quarterly.