The salesperson wellness lifestyle, coping with stress and the reduction of turnover

• Published in: The Journal of business & industrial marketing 2019-03, Vol.34 (2), p.347-359
• Main Authors: Kraft, Frederic B, Maity, Devdeep, Porter, Stephen
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Coping; Customers; Job satisfaction; Lifestyles; Sales territories; Salespeople; Stress; Structural equation modeling; Studies; Turnover; Work environment
• ISSN: 0885-8624; 2052-1189
• DOI: 10.1108/JBIM-03-2017-0058

Purpose It is well known that job stress is major cause of salesperson job dissatisfaction and turnover. Salespeople require the resources to cope adequately with a multitude of job stressors, and the purpose of this study is to demonstrate that salesperson wellness promotes the ability of salespeople to use effective coping strategies in the workplace and as a result decrease their intentions of leaving the firm. Design/methodology/approach Data including measures of coping strategies and a wellness lifestyle orientation were collected from a sample of 441 full-time professional salespeople in two metropolitan statistical areas of the USA. Structural equation modeling was used to demonstrate the relationship of a wellness lifestyle to coping strategies and in turn the relationship of coping strategies to job satisfaction and turnover intentions. Findings The study demonstrated the influence of the wellness lifestyle on salespeople’s ability to cope effectively with job stress. It extends previous research by demonstrating the direct influence of salesperson wellness on coping behaviors and demonstrates the nomological validity of the wellness lifestyle construct by modeling its relationship with job satisfaction and the intent to leave the organization. Research limitations/implications The study recommends new research on the synergies that might be produced by simultaneous consideration of the social, physical, and psychological elements of the multicomponent wellness lifestyle. This should be particularly valuable in the context of the Challenger Sale. Practical implications Wellness programs may be introduced or improved following an assessment of coping resource weaknesses of the sales force. New employees could be screened by examining their wellness profiles. Originality/value Major firms have promoted wellness lifestyle programs for years, but no studies have examined the influence of such programs on coping with job stress by salespeople. The paper demonstrates the value of the salesperson wellness lifestyle by showing that it promotes the most adjustive form of coping strategy, problem-focused coping.