High performance management: An illustrative example of sales departments' productivity measurement

Abstract

This paper describes a conceptual approach to measure and compare productivity of resource utilization at the firm level, adapting a set of techniques known as Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). Within this approach, the paper addresses the issues of multiple inputs and multiple outputs of the sales departments of a firm. In particular, we focus on the resource management of sales departments. The proposed measurement methodology will allow assessment of the impact of different management policies on firm performance. It is hoped that this novel approach to productivity measurement will help sales managers identify efficient practices and superior management policies, and will promote the adoption of these policies.