Les Cahiers de Recherche - HEC Paris
No 670:
The Impact of Cultural Dimensions on Sales Force Compensation
Dominique ROUZIES, Michael SEGALLA and Madeleine BESSON
Abstract: Financial compensation has long been held as the primary
motivator of salespeople. Motivation however may be achieved differently in
various countries, as the large disparities in pay schemes across countries
seem to indicate. In this paper, the authors explore the impact of cultural
dimensions on sales force compensation structures. Using data collected
from financial companies of three European countries, they (1) assess
transnational cultural profiles of managers (i.e., market, group-centric
and hybrid), (2) confirm discrepancies in terms of managerial preferences
for compensation structures and (3) uncover associated rationales such as
rejection of incentive compensation due to its perceived immorality. The
results indicate that cultural dimensions explain managers choice for (1)
the use of incentive pay in the compensation package (i.e., fixed versus
variable compensation) as well as (2) the basis for its allocation (i.e.,
individual versus group). The authors conclude by discussing the
implications of their research for designing compensation plans in the
global market place.
Keywords: sales force compensation; cross-cultural research; (follow links to similar papers)
JEL-Codes: J31; J33; (follow links to similar papers)
45 pages, April 1, 1999
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