1. INTRODUCTION
Digital transformation is fundamentally changing companies and purchasing processes, giving customers the option to easily switch between online and offline environments (). To keep up with this development, if companies want to be successful, they must make full use of digital tools in sales processes (), which intrinsically implies the sales department’s involvement (). Therefore, to facilitate the adoption of digital tools, companies should listen to salespeople and gather feedback from them, allow them to play a part in the decision-making process and redesign new activities for them (). Technology use can be significantly improved by taking on board the vast knowledge that salespeople have (). Technology is highly effective for Customer Relationship Management (CRM), this and customer knowledge management being positively related to each other (). As for the mobile phone, an analysis of a salesperson’s telecommunication connections can help measure social capital, which includes networks, people and the relationships developed through the network (). As a consequence, the use of technology can mean the construction of knowledge for a salesperson and a company, both for markets and customers ().
Indeed, it can be said that salespeople with a good understanding of customers are more relevant to the success of a company than those with technical knowledge (). To illustrate, during a creative exchange of ideas with a customer, a salesperson may identify previously unknown needs and/or a solution which had not been previously thought of; intrapreneurial salespeople bring new and challenging insights to companies and thus create better solutions to problems than their competitors can (). This individual is capable of re-assigning staff and resources in the sales company a to cater for the customer (). Thus, generating deep insights into shoppers helps salespeople to identify customers' business strategies (). As can be seen, the role of salespeople is incredibly decisive in the preliminary stages of selling solutions () because they act as the middlemen between the supplier and the customer (). Hence, they become intrapreneurs because they seek internal solutions to meet customer needs. Although technological advances tend to automate sales operations (), in many situations the seller is called upon to provide the solution to the problems (). For this reason, the salesperson is currently an investigator and advisor to customers, inherently with social and ethical responsibilities ().
However, studies on intrapreneurial salespeople are very scarce (; ). considered intrapreneurship as one of the individual-level abilities of salespeople, and they reveal that individual abilities affect relationship processes (communication quality, customer trust) and, consequently, relationship outcomes (perceived effectiveness). studied salespeople's intrapreneurial behaviour as a precursor to the quality of a customer-salespeople relationship represented by a commitment to, trust in, and satisfaction with salespeople. Nevertheless, there is still a need for studies on intrapreneurial practices (), in the fields of predictors, or antecedents, of intrapreneurship, among others (). As a result, this study aims to expand the literature regarding salespeople by addressing this specific research gap, considering the use of sales technology by salespeople as sources of information and consequently having an impact on intrapreneurial practices.
This work begins with a review of the relevant literature on the uses of sales technology by salespeople, information systems and intrapreneurial practices. Then, the quantitative methodology used to examine the relationship among these constructs is presented. After this, the paper offers a discussion of the findings and implications. Lastly, it indicates some limitations and directions for further research.
2. THEORETICAL BACKGROUND, HYPOTHESES AND RESEARCH MODEL
2.1. The direct influence of the use of technology and information systems by salespeople
Technology may provide upgrades in various areas of business and management (), transforming sales operations forever, even being considered an essential aspect of a salesperson’s skills (). Customers are using technology more and more, so sales departments need to keep on top of it (). Sales managers must deploy technology that enhances the interaction between the company and its customers (), by adopting sales technology such as CRM software () and mobile CRM () and/or social media (). These tools are important for business operations since sales activities and presentations can be planned, as well as the recording of relevant customer or market information ().
Indeed, digital capabilities can deal with a large amount of information from the internal and external environment (), involving multiple functional areas, particularly information systems (). WhatsApp, one of the most popular instant messaging apps today, is considered an informative platform that can help to strengthen the internal CRM system of companies (), providing content for an internal information system. Considering the technological perspective, information systems are an integrated set of tools that aim to collect, store and process data and provide information and knowledge for the decision-making process (). Such systems are important because companies need to apply these techniques for data processing so that the data-mined content is understandable to users (). Because of this, the following research hypothesis has been proposed:
2.2. The direct influence of information systems on intrapreneurship
If information technology is managed well, it can have a positive effect on a company’s development of intrapreneurial culture (); tangible, information system-based tools and processes can help leverage ideas into intrapreneurial projects and/or products (). It is crucial for employees to have access to information systems so that they feel suitably informed about the processes conducted by the company (). have characterized digital information platforms as boosters of intrapreneurship, providing intrapreneurs with opportunities to create new start-up business units or companies.
Intrapreneurship is a process in which an employee or a group of employees within a company identifies, seeks, and encourages innovative opportunities and creates new structures, revitalising the company or introducing innovative products and processes (). Intrapreneurship is when an employee acts like an entrepreneur in a company (). have argued that the conceptualization of intrapreneurship encompasses two concepts: venture behaviour and strategic renewal behaviour. According to the authors (), employee venture behaviour is related to entrepreneurial activities by employees aimed at creating, adding or investing in resources in new businesses. Employee strategic renewal behaviour includes activities to capture opportunities and advantages aimed at radically or incrementally renewing the company's current products, services or processes. Therefore, intrapreneurial salespeople are avowedly creative, initiative-taking and action-oriented people, but, to be like that, they need to be constantly aware of what is happening in the company. Companies must implement practices that promote the flow and sharing of information and internal communication. Because of this, the following research hypotheses have been proposed:
2.3. The mediating role of the information system
Technology can help salespeople work more efficiently when they have relevant customer or market information (); digitization (the process of converting information into digital format) can facilitate internal and external company interactions and capture critical market and customer information (). Thus, top management must implement strategies and information services so that its employees (including salespeople) are informed about the processes related to the company (). A digital platform may contain data and information that can help to generate and screen ideas as well as develop and test concepts. In other words, this type of platform nourishes intrapreneurship (), represented by two sub-dimensions (strategic renewal and venture behaviour), which can be considered two indicators of employee intrapreneurship (). Technology can help in the development, monitoring and implementation of information, leading to intrapreneurial results ().
In short, this study argues that the effects of the use of sales technology by salespeople on intrapreneurship are not direct. Consequently, the existence of an information system plays a mediating role between the use of sales technology by salespeople and intrapreneurship, leading to the formulation of the following hypotheses:
2.4. Moderator role of the business context
This study argues that the business context can be a differentiating factor. Although intrapreneurship has an individual dimension within a bottom-up process, the intrapreneur is not a single actor within the company; he/she acts as part of an organization where there is mutual influence (). For instance, industries and manufacturers are normally involved in value chains and production systems. For industries that wish to remain competitive, continuous improvements and innovations in production processes have become imperative (). On the other hand, in a service company, the focus is tending towards relying less on innovation and more on the intrinsic behaviour of intrapreneurs, by way of proactiveness and risk-taking (). It is true that intrapreneurs are individuals willing to take risks, whether they be financial or reputational, putting their careers at stake if their initiatives fail, meaning that taking risks seems to be conditioned to contextual factors (). Therefore, between the industry and the services sector there seems to be a contextual difference to consider.
2.5. The research model
Figure 1 illustrates the developed research model, which suggests that information systems are influenced by the use of sales technology by salespeople. Intrapreneurship (represented by two dimensions: strategic renewal behaviour and venture behaviour) is influenced by the information system. Furthermore, the model reveals that the information system has a mediating role between a salesperson’s use of sales technology and the two dimensions of intrapreneurship. The model has been built based on a review of the literature, hypothetically represented, and in conditions to test their hypotheses using current data.
3. METHODS
This research model examines how the use of sales technology by salespeople affects information systems and, subsequently, their intrapreneurial behaviour. Therefore, the collection of data, samples and measurements is illustrated in the remainder of this section.
3.1. Data and sample
The target population of this research is Portuguese salespeople employed to sell goods or services. The data collection process has been performed using a survey. This study has randomly collected contacts from a database belonging to a prestigious Portuguese Salespeople’s Association. The database comprises up-to-date and comprehensive personal data on 1,245 salespeople who were contacted in May 2022 by email and were requested to answer the questionnaire in electronic format. In the end, 565 valid and complete responses were collected, with a response rate of 45.4%. The sample size is considered robust since it is >300 observations, overcoming the item/response ratio (1/10) as well (). The t-test has been employed to compare the mean difference between the first 300 and the last 265 respondents () to check for non-response bias (). Empirical results have revealed no significant differences.
Table 1 presents the demographic information for the salespeople and the companies where they worked at the time of the survey.
Characteristics | Values | Frequency | Percentage |
---|---|---|---|
Gender | Male | 344 | 60.9 |
Female | 216 | 38.2 | |
Other | 5 | 0.9 | |
Year of birth | 1946-1965 | 77 | 13.6 |
1966-1980 | 278 | 49.2 | |
1981-1994 | 168 | 29.7 | |
1995-2012 | 42 | 7.4 | |
Years of experience | < 3 years | 72 | 12.7 |
4 - 10 years | 145 | 25.7 | |
10 - 20 years | 165 | 29.2 | |
> 20 years | 183 | 32.4 | |
Education | High school graduate or similar, or left without qualifications | 190 | 33.6 |
University education | 375 | 66.4 | |
Type of company | Manufacturer/ | 248 | 43.9 |
Services/Other | 317 | 56.1 | |
Size* | Micro | 185 | 32.7 |
Small | 173 | 30.6 | |
Medium | 132 | 23.4 | |
Large | 75 | 13.3 | |
Export level | 0% | 188 | 33.3 |
>0-<25% | 172 | 30.4 | |
25%-50% | 69 | 12.2 | |
>50% | 136 | 24.1 |
3.2. Research tools and measurements
The survey has been divided into three parts, the first consisting of demographic information for the salespeople (i.e. gender, age, years of experience and education), the second comprising information about the company where they worked at the time of the survey (i.e. the type of company, size and export level) and the third measuring the research model constructs. Regarding the use of sales technology by salespeople, four items have been used, based on . Concerning the information system, four items have been employed from . The constructs that characterize intrapreneurship (strategic renewal behaviour and venture behaviour) have been measured with four items each, adapted from .
All the scales used in the study have already been validated in previous studies and all items have been measured employing a five-point Likert scale ranging from 1 = “Strongly Disagree” to 5 = “Strongly Agree”. The items are shown in Table A1 (appendix).
3.3. Data analysis
The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) Statistics Software (version 26) and its integrated AMOS software (version 22) have been used to perform Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) (). SEM is a multivariate statistical analysis technique suitable for examining structural models representing hypotheses for causal relations among several variables. SEM includes two phases: the exploratory factor analysis and the confirmatory factor analysis ().
To analyse the mediating effects of the “information system” construct, the bootstrapping method, a nonparametric resampling procedure, has been applied. Meanwhile, to analyse the moderating effect of the type of company (industrial vs. services), the multigroup analysis has been used ().
4. RESULTS
4.1. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA)
Although the study uses a construction measurement scale already validated in previous studies (; ; ), an exploratory factor analysis has been applied to identify the theoretical structure. Table 2 reveals the mean and standard deviations of the responses to the items, as well as the skewness and kurtosis of the data, which measure how concentrated or dispersed it is. The values of skewness between ±2 and the kurtosis between ±7 denote appropriate values (). Hence, the results obtained are adequate, revealing a tendentially normal distribution.
Table 2 also shows the findings for the Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) in section 4.1. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) and Bartlett tests of sphericity have been applied to analyse the suitability of the data. The KMO coefficient is > 0.70, and Bartlett's test is significant at the 0.001 level, indicating the item’s appropriateness (). Factor loadings with varimax rotation have also been employed. The values obtained are associated with the previously defined theory, linking the items to the corresponding constructs, with factor loadings higher than the recommended value of 0.5. The total explained variance in all constructs exceeds the minimum value of 60% (). Finally, Table 2 reveals that the Cronbach's alpha values of all constructs are > 0.7, and the full-scale Cronbach's alpha is > 0.9. Therefore, the EFA meets the requirement for the reliability coefficient of the measurement scales, presenting high internal consistency (; ).
4.2. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA)
The next stage is the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), which has been performed to investigate the factorial structure of the model. The CFA focuses on the main indicators of convergent validity: composite reliability (CR) and average extracted variance (AVE). The values obtained meet the recommended requirements (CR >0.70; AVE >0.50). Thus, the results indicate that the measurement model has good convergent validity (), as shown in Table 2.
4.3. Structural model
The structural model with four constructs (Use of sales technology by salespeople; Information system; Strategic renewal behaviour; Venture behaviour) and hypothesized relationships has been evaluated. The various fit indices have been used to determine whether the model is acceptable or not. Hence, chi-square normalized by degrees of freedom ( /df) = 3.646 (between 1.0 and 5.0); p< 0.001; goodness-of-fit (GFI) = 0.939 ( 0.90); normed fit index (NFI) = 0.950 ( 0.90); incremental fit index (IFI) = 0.963 ( 0.90); Tucker–Lewis index (TLI) = 0.953 ( 0.90); confirmatory fit index (CFI) = 0.963( 0.90); root means square approximation (RMSA) = 0.068(<0.08). Thus, the indices obtained are appropriate (; ), so the model is well fit to the data.
In the next step, a path analysis has been used to indicate the direct effect (hypothesized relationships) of an independent variable on a dependent one (; ). The results reveal that the use of sales technology by salespeople has a positive and significant impact on a company's information system (β= 0.61; p<0.001), so H1 is supported. The results also show that a company's information system has a positive and significant impact on salespeople’s strategic renewal behaviour ( = 0.85; p<0.001) and on their venture behaviour ( = 0.72; p<0.001), therefore supporting H2 and H3, respectively.
The values of correspond to the coefficient of determination; in other words, the indicates the percentage of variance of the dependent variable explained by the antecedent variable of the model. All s have values >0.25, which is considered significant (). Figure 2 illustrates the structural model with parameter estimates.
4.4. The information system mediating role test
To assess the mediating role of the information system, the significance of the mediation effects by bootstrap resampling has been analysed (). Estimates for the indirect effects of the use of technology by salespeople on their strategic renewal behaviour and their venture behaviour are framed by a 95% confidence interval (C.I.) with limits of ]0.514;0.772[ and ]0.516;0.792[, respectively. Therefore, H4 and H5 are statistically supported. Figure 2 shows the estimated parameters.
4.5. Examining the moderating role of the business context
This study argues that between industrial and services salespeople, a contextual difference should be considered. Thus, to examine the moderating role of the type of company (industrial vs. service sectors) where salespeople work, the multigroup analysis of the structural model has been employed ().
This analysis evaluates the invariance of the measurement model and the structural model between the two groups (salespeople from industrial companies and salespeople from service companies). The invariance of the measurement model has been assessed in both groups, first by comparing the unconstrained model, and then by comparing the model with structural coefficients (; ). Therefore, assuming the unconstrained model ( ;p = 0.740) and the model measurement weights ( ;p = 0.088), the results reveal that the model is invariant.
Regarding the mediating role of information systems between groups, there are no differences either. Therefore, the use of technology by industrial salespeople in terms of their strategic renewal behaviour and venture behaviour is framed by a 95% C.I. with limits of ]0.401;0.740[ and ]0.448;0.856[, respectively. The use of technology by service salespeople in the arena of their strategic renewal behaviour and venture behaviour is framed by a 95% C.I. with limits of ]0.533;0.947[ and ]0.491;0.889[, respectively. Therefore, H4 and H5 are statistically supported in both groups, although for service salespeople, the indirect effects appear to be stronger.
5. DISCUSSION AND THEORETICAL IMPLICATIONS
This study combines the literature on salespeople, sales technology and intrapreneurship, developing a theoretical model to investigate the relationships between the use of sales technology by salespeople, information systems and intrapreneurship, represented by strategic renewal and venture behaviour. The study also investigates the mediating role of information systems and the moderating role of the business context (industrial vs services).
Evidence from 565 salespeople suggests that the use of sales technology by salespeople has positive effects on a company's information system and that its information system positively affects a salesperson's intrapreneurial behaviour, characterized by strategic renewal and venture behaviour. Furthermore, the study finds that an IT system in a business plays a mediating role between the use of technology by salespeople and their strategic renewal and venture behaviour. Next, comparing industrial salespeople with service salespeople, the results show that the groups are not different at the model level. Finally, regarding the moderating role of information systems, the results show that it does not contrast between the two groups (industrial and service salespeople), although it seems that the moderating effect is more robust with service salespeople.
This paper brings three theoretical contributions to the literature. First, the study develops the current research on the antecedents of intrapreneurship (), most specifically at the salesperson level, a topic which has scarcely been studied (; ). Previous literature has only focused on the intrapreneurial behaviour of salespeople for the quality of and strategies employed for customer-salesperson relationships (; ). However, a piece of work on the antecedents of intrapreneurship was felt to be opportune for the sales literature. This study has made it possible to identify and clarify a process that promotes intrapreneurial behaviour in salespeople. Thus, this paper demonstrates that the integrated use of technology by salespeople in the form of information systems can cause a permanent transformation of the sales operation (). Generally, these systems involve the development, monitoring and implementation of information (; ). Consequently, they have an impact on entrepreneurial practices () but more so on the activities of salespeople who seek to increase changes or seize opportunities which may determine a company's long-term competitiveness (strategic renewal) and who possess other intrapreneurial behaviour such as creating, adding and investing resources in new businesses (venture behaviour []).
Therefore, this study presents an original model that makes understanding the relationships between the use of sales technology (information input), information systems (information processing and output) and the intrapreneurship behaviour of salespeople (action) clearer.
Regarding the second theoretical implication, this piece of work highlights the mediating role of information systems. Indeed, the stages of grouping, collecting, processing, storing and transmitting information facilitate intrapreneurial intentions, in this case of salespeople, regardless of the business environment. Information systems are important for transforming the input of data (based on sales technology) into accessible knowledge for their users (). The knowledge derived from these systems empowers salespeople towards intrapreneurial behaviour, thus enhancing the role of technology in intrapreneurial results (). Information is an asset; extracting knowledge from information is proficiency.
The third theoretical implication concerns the analysis of the business environment. This study has not found significant differences in the model between industrial or service salespeople. Although some authors point to the influence of contextual factors (; ), the findings of this paper reveal that intrapreneurial behaviour following on from the capture of information from sales technology and the implementation of information systems seems to be accessible to all salespeople regardless of their business environment.
In short, the validation of the structural model corroborates the idea that sales technology can be considered an essential benefit for salespeople (). Moreover, the findings confirm that it can help in the development, monitoring and implementation of information, leading to intrapreneurial behaviour (). This dynamic revealed by the structural model adds to contributions from several studies, such as the role of technology for helping salespeople to collect critical market and customer information (; ). This also supports , who have highlighted information systems as sources of intrapreneurship. Finally, the results on model invariance based on business type do not clarify the differences between industries and services that previous studies have suggested (; ).
5.1. Implications for practice
This study offers several significant implications for salespeople. The findings show that the integration of sales technology and information systems is vital for fostering intrapreneurial behaviour in said professionals, which is beneficial to those who want to build upon their entrepreneurial/intrapreneurial knowledge. Thus, sales technology and information systems, like mobile phones and CRM (; ), can be used to capture data, manage information and work processes and connect with customers, partners or the market in general (). Hence, for individuals to efficiently develop intrapreneurial skills, they need to obtain facts and knowledge that can facilitate the decision-making process, a situation where information systems can play a fundamental role ().
Indeed, the current context is increasingly marked by digital behaviour () and shows an escalating need for salespeople to be connected at all times. This means that sales technology should be seen as an essential benefit for salespeople (); they must understand the importance of omnichannel customer service, integrating face-to-face contact with text messaging via SMS, chatbots, social media, email and instant messaging, among other digital tools, to provide a unified service experience. Also, using big data analytics tools, CRM or other sales analytics software can help manage prospecting and customer relationships, as well as effectively track, evaluate and improve sales performance. Sales technology is a powerful source of data for information systems that support decision-making and help identify opportunities and changing needs (). Thus, salespeople must actively engage with technology and information systems because the knowledge they gain from these digital tools is a key resource for their intrapreneurial behaviour; in turn, this can, for instance, encourage changes in an organization, improve products and services and allow innovative ideas and strategies to be created, as well as new business units to be implemented or new markets to be reached (). Therefore, salespeople can assume a dual role within any company; firstly, as a source of external information (market, customers, competitions, etc.) supported by sales technology; secondly as an active player in intrapreneurial practices. These are generally internal solutions to meet customer needs or competitive advantages, regardless of the business environment, whether industrial or in the service sector.
This study also offers significant implications for companies. A manager should see a salesperson not only as an interface between the supplier and customer but also as a creator of solutions, value propositions and/or competitive advantages (;). Consequently, it is also up to managers to create an intrapreneurial culture where salespeople can play a fundamental role.
This study also suggests that managers should invest in sales technology, such as CRM, mobile data, big data, sales optimization software and information systems. (; ; ;). This is highly recommended because such technology facilitates the creation of solutions to problems and a quick and effective response to market issues. More and more customers are demanding a seamless blended experience; at the same time, companies, whether in the industry or services sector, should provide conditions for salespeople to assume an omnichannel position for greater flexibility, visibility and connectivity across channels. Thus, sales technology can be used to leverage customer relationships, improve data collection and, consequently, employers’ intrapreneurial practices.
Finally, this study also has implications for companies that supply sales technology. Since it can play an essential role in salespeople’s intrapreneurial activities, these suppliers are not just able to find a niche in the market to promote available technology but can also explore and develop innovative technology oriented towards intrapreneurship.
5.2. Limitations and future research
Despite the various theoretical and managerial implications, this study does have some limitations, although they could offer opportunities for future investigations. Firstly, the study covers only Portuguese salespeople, and the sample is somewhat biased towards men, which limits its generalization. Therefore, studies considering other locations and more gender balance are suggested.
Secondly, the study only embraces sales technology as an antecedent of information systems and consequent intrapreneurial behaviour. However, other variables could be studied in the future related to the management of human resources (recruitment and selection, integration, performance evaluation, training and development) and/or in the arena of organization (capacity for innovation, research and organizational culture), for example.
Thirdly, this study does not explore moderating variables, so future studies could develop a more in-depth analysis of factors like education, age and generational differences and remuneration.
Fourthly, this study has been limited to the analysis of antecedent variables of intrapreneurial behaviour, so future studies could also consider its outcomes, like the impact of intrapreneurship on the performance of salespeople and/or companies.
Fifthly, regarding the business context, this paper has only examined the differences between industrial and service companies but has not analysed the specific characteristics of the sector which could have an influence on intrapreneurial behaviour, depending on the complexity of the product or service offered. Future studies could consider these specific characteristics because complex products or services may encourage salespeople to develop creative solutions for customers based on venture behaviour. In contrast, simple products or services, because of restricted alternatives, might make low venture behaviour create a “Take it or leave it” system.
Finally, for future studies, it would also be recommended to consider the next step of the digital revolution, namely, artificial intelligence, and how it may influence intrapreneurial behaviour.
Author contribution
Conceptualization PMS; Data Curation PMS; Methodology PMS; Visualization PMS, APL, SFT; Software PMS; Formal analysis PMS; Validation APL, SFT; Writing Original Draft PMS; Writing- Reviewing and Editing APL, SFT.
Acknowledgments
This work has been financed with Portuguese national funds from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT [Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia]), under project number UIDB/05422/2020.
We would also like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their contributions, which have helped to improve the study.
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