Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relations between salespeople’s empathy and listening behaviour and the relationship quality (RQ) customers have with their banks, taking into consideration the moderating effect of felt stress (FS) experienced by salespeople. The paper examines specific effects of FS on factors related to a salesperson’s performance. Design/methodology/approach – To examine the proposed model, responses from 150 customers were collected and matched with responses from 25 salespeople working at a major ba ' nk in Chile. The paper analysed the dyadic data gathered using two analysis techniques. Structural equation modelling was employed to test the relationships proposed at the customer level. Moreover, hierarchical linear modelling was used to test the moderating effect of FS, measured at the salesperson level, on the proposed relationships. Findings – The results show that customers’ perceptions of salespeople’s listening behaviour mediate the relationship between customers’ perception of salespeople’s empathy and RQ with the bank. Moreover, the positive relationship between salespeople’s empathy and salespeople’s listening behaviour, and the positive relationship between salesperson’s listening and customer’s RQ with bank are attenuated by the salesperson’s FS. Originality/value – This paper examined the effects of the salesperson’s empathy and listening behaviour on the quality of customer relationships with the bank. Moreover, dyadic data show that such effects are influenced by variables related to the bank’s salespeople, such as FS. The findings show that under high FS conditions, salespeople with high listening skills will have negative effects on their customers’ RQ with the bank.

Purpose This paper aims to explore the role of leadership in influencing the strategy implementation behaviors of salespeople. This paper also seeks to examine the moderating influence of competitive environment on the leadership style – salesperson implementation of sales strategy relationship. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from a sample of 190 business-to-business salespeople in different industries. The study’s hypotheses were tested using partial least squares (PLS). Findings The results of the study show that a transformational leadership style has stronger effects on the sales strategy implementation behaviors of salespeople when compared to transactional leadership. However, in highly competitive environments, the effects of transactional leadership on the sales strategy implementation behaviors of salespeople become stronger. The results also show when salespeople implement sales strategy, it has a positive impact on their sales performance. Practical implications Sales managers should adapt their leadership style depending on the competitive environment that operate in. As transformational leadership and transactional leadership are not mutually exclusive, managers should tailor their use of these styles to improve the strategy implementation behaviors of their salespeople. Managers should also train their salespeople on the use of sales strategy. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature by showing that the effectiveness of a particular leadership style is often contingent on the external environment. This research also demonstrates that when salespeople are strategic in their approach to selling, they will improve their sales performance.

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Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore salesperson empathy and the moderating impact of positive/negative affect on a salesperson’s listening and adaptive selling behaviors. It also seeks to identify whether and how empathy influences performance. Design/methodology/approach The study’s hypothesis was analyzed using data collected from business-to-business salespeople working for a manufacturing firm. A partial least squares analysis was used to test the study’s proposed hypotheses. Findings The results of this study show that empathy and the moderating role of positive affect foster desirable sales behaviors (listening and adaptive selling behaviors) that subsequently enhance in-role (expected) and extra-role (discretionary) performance. Originality/value Contributions from the findings enhance the literature through its consideration of how the direct effect of empathy on sales behaviors (a salesperson’s listening and adapting selling behavior) is moderated by the salesperson’s positive and negative affect and how sales behaviors impact final sales outcomes (in-role and extra-role performance).

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