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Research · Updated 13 June 2026

The Research Behind Our Guides — Sources & Further Reading

Our guides aren't opinion dressed up as fact. The positions we take — that conversation skill is a performance skill, that AI can score a conversation consistently against clear criteria, that work-like assessment predicts performance better than a polished interview — rest on a body of peer-reviewed research in sales, marketing, artificial intelligence, and management science.

This page collects that research in one place. Throughout the guides you'll find links pointing back here, so you can check the source behind a claim and read further if you want the full argument. The list below is the complete bibliography, in APA style, alphabetised by author. Where a DOI or stable link exists, it's included.

A note on how to read these

Academic papers are written for other academics — dense, hedged, and slow. Our guides translate the findings into plain language a manager or salesperson can act on. Where we simplify, we try not to distort; if you want the precise claim, with all its caveats, go to the source. The works below span several broad areas:

References

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Agnihotri, R., Chaker, N. N., Dugan, R., Galvan, J. M., & Nowlin, E. (2023). Sales technology research: A review and future research agenda. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 43(4), 307–335. https://doi.org/10.1080/08853134.2023.2260108

Ahearne, M., Atefi, Y., Lam, S. K., & Pourmasoudi, M. (2022). The future of buyer–seller interactions: A conceptual framework and research agenda. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 50(1), 22–45. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-021-00803-0

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Alamäki, A., & Korpela, P. (2021). Digital transformation and value-based selling activities in business-to-business sales. Industrial Marketing Management, 98, 44–55.

Alavi, S., & Habel, J. (2021). The human side of digital transformation in sales: Review & future paths. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 41(2), 83–86.

Alvesson, M., & Einola, K. (2019). Warning for excessive positivity: Authentic leadership and other traps in leadership studies. The Leadership Quarterly, 30(4), 383–395.

Bauer, C., Galvan, J. M., Hancock, T., Hunter, G. K., Nelson, C. A., Riley, J., & Tanner, E. C. (2024). Integrating technology within the sales-service ecosystem: The emergent sales techno-ecosystem. European Journal of Marketing, 58(3), 782–811. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-04-2023-0221

Beeler, L., et al. (2022). Natural language processing in sales: A review and research agenda. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 42(1), 15–32.

Ben-David, I., Graham, J. R., & Harvey, C. R. (2013). Managerial miscalibration. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 128(4), 1547–1584.

Bloom, N., Eifert, B., Mahajan, A., McKenzie, D., & Roberts, J. (2013). Does management matter? Evidence from India. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 128(1), 1–51.

Bloom, N., Genakos, C., Sadun, R., & Van Reenen, J. (2012). Management practices across firms and countries. Academy of Management Perspectives, 26(1), 12–33.

Bridgman, T., Cummings, S., & Ballard, J. A. (2019). Who built Maslow's pyramid? A history of the creation of management studies' most famous symbol and its implications for management education. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 18(1), 81–98.

Brown, T. (2021). Artificial intelligence and machine learning in modern business. Technology & Innovation Review, 14(2), 45–60.

Bush, V. D., et al. (2010). Ethical conduct in B2B social selling. Journal of Business Ethics, 95(1), 35–49.

Byington, E. K., & Felps, W. (2017). Solutions to the credibility crisis in management science. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 16(1), 142–162.

Castelo, N., Bos, M. W., & Lehmann, D. R. (2019). Task-dependent algorithm aversion. Journal of Marketing Research, 56(5), 809–825.

Chaker, N. N., et al. (2022). Inside sales versus outside sales: An empirical investigation. Industrial Marketing Management, 102, 111–125.

Chatterjee, A., & Hambrick, D. C. (2007). It's all about me: Narcissistic chief executive officers and their effects on company strategy and performance. Administrative Science Quarterly, 52(3), 351–386.

Chatterjee, S., Chaudhuri, R., & Vrontis, D. (2021). Adoption of artificial intelligence-integrated CRM systems in agile organizations in India. Technological Forecasting & Social Change, 168, 120873.

Chatterjee, S., Chaudhuri, R., Vrontis, D., & Kadić-Maglajlić, S. (2023). Adoption of AI-integrated partner relationship management (AI-PRM) in B2B sales channels: Exploratory study. Industrial Marketing Management, 109, 164–173. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2022.12.014

Chen, Y., & Zhou, L. (2022). AI-driven sales management: Optimization and forecasting. Journal of Business Research, 140, 25–39.

Dane, E., & Pratt, M. G. (2007). Exploring intuition and its role in managerial decision making. Academy of Management Review, 32(1), 33–54.

Davenport, T., Guha, A., Grewal, D., & Bressgott, T. (2020). How artificial intelligence will change the future of marketing. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 48(1), 24–42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-019-00696-0

Denrell, J., & Fang, C. (2010). Predicting the next big thing: Success as a signal of poor judgment. Management Science, 56(10), 1653–1667.

Deveau, M., et al. (2023). Generative AI and sales enablement. Journal of Marketing Technology, 8(2), 44–59.

Dickie, J., et al. (2022). Prospecting automation through artificial intelligence. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 42(3), 200–215.

Dietvorst, B. J., Simmons, J. P., & Massey, C. (2015). Algorithm aversion: People erroneously avoid algorithms after seeing them err. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 144(1), 114–126.

Dietvorst, B. J., Simmons, J. P., & Massey, C. (2018). Overcoming algorithm aversion: People will use imperfect algorithms if they can (even slightly) modify them. Management Science, 64(4), 1155–1170.

Dixon, A. L., & Tanner, J. F. (2012). Transforming selling: Why it is time to think differently about sales research. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 32(1), 9–13.

Dong, M., Yakura, H., Sherif, O., Bonnefon, J.-F., & Rahwan, I. (2025). Shadow AI thrives under punitive social evaluation [Preprint]. Center for Humans and Machines, Max Planck Institute for Human Development. https://osf.io/edv52/

Dubinsky, A. J. (1981). A factor analytic study of the personal selling process. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 1(1), 26–33.

Dwivedi, Y. K., et al. (2021). Artificial Intelligence (AI): Multidisciplinary perspectives on emerging challenges, opportunities, and agenda for research, practice and policy. International Journal of Information Management, 157, 101994.

Elhajjar, S., Yacoub, L., & Ouaida, F. (2024). The present and future of the B2B sales profession. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 44(2), 128–141. https://doi.org/10.1080/08853134.2023.2183214

Fehrenbach, D., Herrando, C., & Österle, B. (2025). Artificial intelligence applications in the B2B sales funnel. Journal of Business-to-Business Marketing, 33(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/1051712X.2025.2481374

Feldman, M. S., & Pentland, B. T. (2003). Reconceptualizing organizational routines as a source of flexibility and change. Administrative Science Quarterly, 48(1), 94–118. https://doi.org/10.2307/3556620

Fischer, H., Seidenstricker, S., Berger, T., & Holopainen, T. (2022). Artificial intelligence in B2B sales: Impact on the sales process. In T. Ahram & R. Taiar (Eds.), Human factors in communication of design (AHFE 2022) (Vol. 28, pp. 135–142). AHFE International. https://doi.org/10.54941/ahfe1001456

Fischer, H., Seidenstricker, S., & Poeppelbuss, J. (2023). The triggers and consequences of digital sales: A systematic literature review. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 43(4), 264–281. https://doi.org/10.1080/08853134.2022.2102029

García-Peñalvo, F. J., & Vázquez-Ingelmo, A. (2023). What do we mean by GenAI? A systematic mapping of the evolution, trends, and techniques. International Journal of Interactive Multimedia and Artificial Intelligence, 8(4), 7–16.

Gartner. (2020). The future of sales in 2025: A Gartner trend insight report. Gartner Research.

Gavin, M., et al. (2020). Virtual selling during the pandemic. Harvard Business Review, 98(4), 22–26.

Giovannetti, M., Cardinali, S., & Sharma, P. (2021). Sales technology and salespeople's ambidexterity: An ecosystem approach. Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, 36(4), 615–629. https://doi.org/10.1108/JBIM-01-2020-0034

Goel, A., Baliga, A. J., Rangarajan, D., & Lussier, B. (2025). Technology use in B2B sales: Examining the extant literature and identifying future research opportunities using morphological analysis. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 45(1), 82–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/08853134.2024.2362684

Guenzi, P., & Habel, J. (2020). Mastering the digital transformation of sales. California Management Review, 62(4), 57–85.

Haag, S., Eckhardt, A., & Schwarz, A. (2019). The acceptance of justifications among shadow IT users and nonusers: An empirical analysis. Information & Management, 56(5), 731–741. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2018.11.006

Habel, J., et al. (2023). Sales analytics and artificial intelligence. Industrial Marketing Management, 108, 223–238.

Hambrick, D. C. (2007). The field of management's devotion to theory: Too much of a good thing? Academy of Management Journal, 50(6), 1346–1352.

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Hautamäki, P., & Heikinheimo, S. (2025). Fully leveraging AI in B2B sales: Exploring sales managers' capabilities and organizational knowledge processes. Journal of Business Research, 194, 115396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2025.115396

Houdek, P. (2016). What comes to a manager's mind: Theory of local thinking. Journal of Management Inquiry, 25(4), 359–366.

Huang, M. H., & Rust, R. T. (2018). Artificial intelligence in service. Journal of Service Research, 21(2), 155–172. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094670517752459

Huang, M. H., & Rust, R. T. (2021). A strategic framework for artificial intelligence in marketing. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 49(1), 30–50.

Huising, R. (2019). To hive or to hold? Producing professional authority through scut work. Administrative Science Quarterly, 64(2), 263–300.

Kerr, S. (1975). On the folly of rewarding A, while hoping for B. Academy of Management Journal, 18(4), 769–783.

King, S. (2012). Predictive analytics and the B2B sales pipeline. Journal of Direct Marketing, 26(3), 11–23.

Kshetri, N., et al. (2023). Generative AI in business contexts. IT Professional, 25(2), 34–41.

Lauzi, E., et al. (2023). Sales enablement systems and their impact on performance. Journal of Business-to-Business Marketing, 30(2), 145–162.

Ledro, E., et al. (2022). Artificial intelligence in customer relationship management: Literature review and future research directions. Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, 37(11), 2218–2234. https://doi.org/10.1108/JBIM-07-2021-0332

Lee, I., & Shin, Y. J. (2020). Machine learning for enterprises: Applications, algorithm selection, and challenges. Business Horizons, 63(2), 157–170.

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Liu, Y., Sheng, F., & Liu, R. (2025). Generative AI adoption and employee outcomes: A conservation of resources perspective on job crafting, career commitment, and the moderating role of liking of AI. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 12, 1376. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-05656-4

Luo, X., Qin, M. S., Fang, Z., & Qu, Z. (2021). Artificial intelligence coaches for sales agents: Caveats and solutions. Journal of Marketing, 85(2), 14–32.

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Martin, K. D., Borah, A., & Palmatier, R. W. (2017). Data privacy: Effects on customer and firm performance. Journal of Marketing, 81(1), 36–58.

Mattila, M., Yrjölä, M., & Hautamäki, P. (2021). Digital transformation of business-to-business sales: What needs to be unlearned? Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 41(2), 113–129. https://doi.org/10.1080/08853134.2021.1916396

McClure, C. E., Epler, R. T., Schmitt, L., & Rangarajan, D. (2024). AI in sales: Laying the foundations for future research. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 44(2), 108–127. https://doi.org/10.1080/08853134.2024.2329905

Meckler, M., & Boal, K. (2020). Decision errors, organizational iatrogenesis, and errors of the seventh kind. Academy of Management Perspectives, 34(2), 266–284.

Micallef, S., Keränen, J., & Kokshagina, O. (2023). Understanding the consequences of digital technology use in sales: Multilevel tensions inside sales organizations. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 43(4), 305–324. https://doi.org/10.1080/08853134.2022.2159422

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Peterson, R. M., & Dover, H. (2021). Sales enablement: A framework for success. Journal of Business-to-Business Marketing, 28(1), 45–62.

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Petrescu, M., et al. (2022). Empathy and AI in the sales process. European Journal of Marketing, 56(1), 123–145.

Petriglieri, G. (2020). F**k management: The crisis of meaning in management theories. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 19(1), 10–14.

Rai, A. (2020). Explainable AI: From black box to glass box. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 48(1), 137–141.

Ramesh, A., & Chawla, S. (2022). Conversational AI in B2B sales interactions. Journal of Business Research, 142, 190–205.

Rangarajan, D., Sharma, A., Lyngdoh, T., & Paesbrugghe, B. (2021). Business-to-business selling in the post-COVID-19 era: Developing an adaptive sales force. Business Horizons, 64(5), 647–658. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2021.02.030

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