In this episode of HBR IdeaCast, Christoph Senn, a marketing professor at INSEAD, discusses the significant impact of CEO involvement in B2B sales. He identifies five CEO archetypes based on their behavior in sales scenarios and assesses their effectiveness in closing deals or nurturing client relationships. Senn emphasizes the necessity for account managers to understand these archetypes and their implications. The conversation touches upon a case study illustrating the risks of over-involvement, highlighting the potential for disastrous outcomes during critical negotiations.
An account manager had the division president join the final negotiation. But when the client suddenly asked for more price reductions, that executive was so hell bent on sealing the deal, they were about to agree to something that would have cost the firm two million dollars.
There's a fine line between successful outcomes and counterproductive disasters when CEOs engage with strategic customers during negotiations.
Our guest today has spent years researching the role of top leaders in B2B relationships, and he's going to share how the best CEOs succeed at it.
Knowing your CEO's archetype can be helpful when navigating B2B dynamics, especially to understand the potential impact on sales outcomes.
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