The Salesperson’s Operating Freedom: A Matter of Perception

This study compared the perceptions of the salesperson to those of his or her respective manager. In this paired comparison of matched responses, findings indicate that salespeople’s evaluations of the degree of latitude they have over the sales call are significantly different from those of their managers. Salespeople perceive they are given more latitude than their managers are giving. When managers have the opportunity to interact with fewer subordinates—or interact with those subordinates over longer periods of time—these perceptual differences occur less frequently.