Within-Seller and Buyer–Seller Network Structures and Key Account Profitability

Abstract

In business-to-business (B2B) markets, the success of key account management (KAM) teams depends heavily on how they are structured and how they handle the relationship with customer accounts. The authors conceptualize the relationships among selling team members as a within seller (intrafirm) network, and the relationships between selling team members and buyer representatives as a buyer-seller (interfirm) network. Drawing on the motivation–ability framework, the authors examines how the interplay between these two networks drives seller account profitability. The authors argue that buyer–seller tie density and within-seller tie density can be conceptualized as motivation, whereas buyer-seller similar-function ties, within seller cross-function ties, and within seller centralization can be conceptualized as ability in this context. Using field data from 207 key account managers from a variety of B2B industries, in a regression model that corrects for unobserved heterogeneity and endogeneity, the authors find a negative interactive effect of motivation factors and a positive interactive effect of ability factors on seller account profitability. These findings suggest that motivation factors serve as substitutes, whereas ability factors serve as complements, across the two KAM networks. The findings also suggest that aligning the motivation and ability aspects of buyer–seller and within-seller firm KAM networks can improve account profitability by up to 4%.

Keywords: Buyer–seller relationship, Buying center, Key account management, Selling team, Social networks, Selling team structure

JEL Classification: L14, M31