Marta Boffi - room A23 - 13.30-15.00
Institute of Marketing and Communication Management
Start date: 3 May 2012
End date: 4 May 2012
Selling Innovation
The aim of my doctoral research is to explore how sales function contributes in making the innovation happen in industrial markets. In industrial markets, innovation is a phenomena that can be understood observing interactions among companies involved in innovation itself. Innovation is the result of a combination of different knowledges, expertises and resources that exist within different organizations, and is developed across companies’ boundaries. Following the interactive approach on industrial markets, having a relationship is not a matter of choice, but relationships with customers exist and in that context the sales process takes place. Relationships with customers are not the outcome of unilateral activity by the sellers, all parties are responsible for the development of such relationships and for the outcomes of the interactions; furthermore each actor involved has expectations about the relationships and about the sales process too. Adopting a qualitative approach, based mainly on multiple case studies, participant observations, in-depth interviews and self completion diary, I will explore how the sales function contributes in making the innovation happen in industrial markets.
