Nathaniel Hartmann (Purdue University) Brian Rutherford (Kennesaw State University)

1. The Effects of Salesperson Mentoring on Multi-Faceted Job Satisfaction2011 Global Sales Science Institute Conference – Milan, Italy Nathaniel Hartmann (Purdue University) Brian Rutherford (Kennesaw State University) Scott B. Friend (University of Nebraska-Lincoln) G. Alexander Hamwi (Missouri State University)

2. Order of Presentation • Research Motivation • Importance of Mentorship & Satisfaction • Gap Analysis • Literature Review • Theoretical Support • Mentoring & Job Satisfaction • Hypothesis Development • Research Method • Sample • Results • Discussion • Implications • Future Research

3. Research Motivation

4. Importance of Mentorship • Salesperson performance and turnover (Galvin 2001; Wilson et al. 2002) • Job satisfaction (Brown and Peterson 1994; Netemeyer et al. 1990; Sager et al. 1988) • Mentoring programs (Hegstad and Wentling 2004) • Mentoring • Job satisfaction within non-sales setting (Collins 1994; Ensher et al. 2001; Fagan and Walter 1982; Underhill 2006) • Absenteeism and turnover (Viator 1991) • Loyalty and organizational commitment (Colarelli and Bishop 1990; Mendleson et al. 1989) • Financial and human resource costs

5. Gap Analysis • Sales context • Non-sales literatures suggests relationships (Allen et al. 1997; Chao et al. 1992; Ensher et al. 2001; Underhill 2006) • Question generalizability - source (Hawes et al. 2004; Lewin and Sager 2007; Seevers et al. 2007) • Global salesperson job satisfaction (Collins 1994; Ensher et al. 2001; Fagan and Walter 1982; Underhill 2006) • Fail to capture true complexity of salesperson job satisfaction (Churchill et al. 1974) • RQ1: Does mentoring have an impact on the seven facets of job satisfaction within the sales context? • RQ2: Does the source of the mentoring relationship have an impact on the seven facets of job satisfaction?

6. Literature Review

7. Theoretical Framework • Social Exchange Theory (SET) • Relationships based on perceived benefits and costs (Emerson 1981) • Theoretical framework for mentoring research (Brashear et al. 2006; Brown and Sorrell 1990; Ensher et al. 2001) • Benefits received by protégé should lead to greater satisfaction with the relationship (Emerson 1981; Homans 1974) • Protégés benefit from a mentoring relationship • Receiving career-related support and access to role modeling (Scandura 1992; Scandura and Viator 1994) • Emotional support, status, information, goods and services provided by the mentor (Foa and Foa 1974) • Social Learning Theory • Learn through observing attitudes, behaviors and outcomes of such behaviors (Bandura 1978) • Modeling attitudes and behaviors (Manz and Sims 1981) • Associations between mentoring and sales outcome variables: • Performance, organizational commitment, intention to leave (Brashear et al. 2006) • Explain antecedents of job satisfaction (Mulki et al. 2006; Mulki et al. 2008; Ping 2007)

8. Mentoring • Intense interpersonal relationship developed to enhance the protégé’s career growth (Kram 1985) • Supervisors, peers, organizational members, and individuals from other organizations (Kram 1985) • Provide protégés with support: • Career-related support - career advancement support • Mentor sponsorship, coaching, visibility, challenging assignments, protection • Psychological support - emotional, mental and social support • Role modeling (skill development), counseling, advice, acceptance and friendship • Organizational mentors and external mentors • Formal mentors - protégé and mentor within sponsoring organization [Organizational Mentoring] • Informal mentors –relationship w/out intervention from organization (Chao et al. 1992) [External Mentoring]

9. Job Satisfaction • Job Satisfaction - employee retention (Ladik et al. 2002; McNeilly and Goldsmith 1991; Park and Holloway 2003) • “All characteristics of the job itself and the work environment which industrial salesmen find rewarding, fulfilling and satisfying, or frustrating and unsatisfying” (Churchill et al. 1974) • Multi-faceted salesperson satisfaction: work, pay, promotion, co-workers, company policies, supervisors and customers

10. Hypothesis Development • Mentoring and job satisfaction - non-sales setting (e.g., Allen et al. 1997; Chao et al. 1992; Ensher et al. 2001) • Global job & multi-faceted job satisfaction hypothesized in same direction (Boles et al. 2007; Futrell and Parasuraman 1984; Johnston et al. 1988) • H1: Salespeople with mentors will exhibit higher levels of satisfaction with: (a) supervisors, (b) job, (c) company policy, (d) promotion, (e) pay, (f) fellow workers and (g) customers than salespeople without mentors • Organizational mentors may provide salespeople clearer expectations of their role resulting in greater job satisfaction when compared to external mentors • Role modeling function may result in greater job satisfaction through the influence of social learning effects on skill development (Lankau and Scandura 2002) • H2: Salespeople with organizational mentors exhibit higher levels of satisfaction with: (a) supervisors, (b) job, (c) company policy, (d) promotion, (e) pay, (f) fellow workers and (g) customers than salespeople with external mentors

11. Research Method

12. Research Method • Online panel (n=647) • n = 117 (mentor) • n = 68 organizational mentors • n = 49 external mentor • CFA good model fit (χ² = 378.31, df = 231, p = 0.00, RMSEA = 0.030, SRMR = .026, CFI=1.00) • AVE > .50 for all seven facets of job satisfaction (Hair et al. 2010) • Reliability - Supervisor (.94), Overall (.95), Policy (.94), Promotion (.77), Fellow Workers (.89), Customer (.88) Sample

13. Results

14. Results

15. Discussion

16. Discussion • Demonstrate impact of mentoring on protégé job satisfaction in a sales context • Mentoring sig. increase in satisfaction • Supervisor, Overall Job, Policy, Promotion, Pay, Fellow Workers, Customer • Organizational mentors play more important role than external mentors in increasing salesperson job satisfaction • Organizational mentors sig. increase in satisfaction • Supervisor, Overall Job, Policy, Pay, Fellow Workers

17. Managerial Implications • Organizations should encourage the formation of mentor-protégé relationships within the organization to increase salesperson job satisfaction. • Organizational culturesthat promote assumptions, values, and artifactsthat promote the development of mentoring relationships are more likely to lead to successful mentoring relationships which increase job satisfaction and performance (Hatch 1993; Schein 1985).

18. Limitations and Future Research • Online panel data • Sample size • Need for additional mentoring research in sales context • Confirms importance of mentoring on protégé job satisfaction in sales contexts using a multi-faceted measure • Formal vs. informal mentoring within organizations • Types of mentor • Peer, step-ahead, traditional

19. The Effects of Salesperson Mentoring on Multi-Faceted Job Satisfaction2011 Global Sales Science Institute Conference – Milan, Italy Nathaniel Hartmann (Purdue University) Brian Rutherford (Kennesaw State University) Scott B. Friend (University of Nebraska-Lincoln) G. Alexander Hamwi (Missouri State University) Questions or Comments?