FRONTLINE BANK STAFF’S SOCIAL CAPITAL, ADAPTIVE SELLING BEHAVIORS AND SALES PERFORMANCE

Abstract

Understanding how salespeople’s characteristics influence their effective selling as well as consequences of adaptive selling are important in managing the salesforce, given the growing complexity of selling settings. Drawing on job demands-resources framework and Stimulus- Organism-Response model, the purpose of this paper is threefold. First, we examine the impact of social capital on the adaptive selling behaviors of frontline bank employees in a relatively under- researched context. Second, several mediating mechanisms underlying this relationship are also explored in this research. Third, the effectiveness of adaptive selling behaviors is revisited by testing its effect on sales performance. Data have been obtained from 280 frontline employees working at Vietnamese commercial banks employing a questionnaire survey. Empirical analyses reveal that employees’ social capital is positively related to adaptive selling behaviors, and that person-job fit and work engagement are significant mediating factors explaining the linkage between social capital and adaptive selling behaviors. Moreover, a positive association between adaptive selling behaviors and sales performance is also documented in this study. Our research findings provide important practical implications for bank managers.