Sales Performance of Politically Skilled Salesperson: An Intervening Analysis

Abstract

Despite the theoretical relevance of salespeople’s political skill and job-related outcomes, scholars have recently devoted their attention to empirically examine the outcomes of political skill. Thus, grounding upon COR theory, the study aims to explore the direct and indirect effects of political skill on job-related outcomes. To test the hypothesized relationships, data were collected from 306 sales representatives of the pharmaceutical industry. Findings indicate that political skill fosters adaptive selling, which in turn enhances sales performance. Furthermore, our results also confirmed the indirect association between political skill and sale performance via adaptive selling. In sum, findings pronounce that political skill plays a crucial role in implementing marketing strategies and maintaining a foothold in the marketplace. Along with valuable insights for effective managerial interventions, our study provides avenues for further research.