Mary Edie Mobley

John Humphreys

Bob Carlton vio cómo el coche de ritmo despegaba y los 43 coches que estaban agrupados detrás de él rugir a toda velocidad. Siempre fue un espectáculo emocionante: estaban abarrotadas más apretadas que las furgonetas en un aparcamiento de Wal-Mart. Estudió su primera vuelta de jockey y luego se encorvó para jugar con las perillas de su escáner. Se quitó las gafas de sol, no es fácil con los auriculares puestos. Una vez que decidió la frecuencia correcta, las bromas de la cabina le llenaron los oídos. Pero unos minutos después, lo apagó. No podía disfrutarlo y, de todos modos, necesitaba pensar.

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Reprint: R0604A
When Bob Carlton decided to expand OptiMotors, the Alabama engine-parts manufacturer he had founded, he knew he&#8217;d have to take on a lot of debt. So he followed a headhunter&#8217;s advice and hired Galen McDowell to bring new energy to sales.
No question, Galen knew how to sell. He quickly hooked a big-league outfit, Kinan Motors, as a potential customer. He invited their representatives to come take a tour of the company and, while they were in town, visit the Red Ruby Club.
The Red Ruby? That&#8217;s a strip club.
Galen assured Bob it was upscale and full of businesspeople. He said his reps had often made use of the club to woo important accounts away from rivals. As if to prove his point, Kinan quickly signed a multimillion-dollar contract with OptiMotors after the visit.
Then April Hartley, Bob&#8217;s first salesperson, quit. She had been trying to build relationships with customers, but the really big accounts, it seemed, were looking for &#8220;more exciting stuff&#8221; than she could give them. Now Joan Warren&#8212;another saleswoman, and one who would happily close a deal anywhere she got the chance&#8212;is complaining because Galen won&#8217;t let her go to the Red Ruby with him. &#8220;I won&#8217;t stand by and be disadvantaged simply because I&#8217;m a woman,&#8221; she says.
When does client entertainment cross the line? Four experts discuss this fictional case study: John Brown, the director of institutional sales and customer relations at Fortis Investments; Katherine Frank, a former dancer who is now an author and postdoctoral fellow at the University of Wisconsin&#8211;Madison; Das Narayandas, a professor of business administration at Harvard Business School; and Denise Rousseau, a professor at Carnegie Mellon&#8217;s Heinz School of Public Policy and Tepper School of Business.

How Low Will You Go?

Reimpresión: R0604A Cuando Bob Carlton decidió expandir OptiMotors, el fabricante de piezas de motores de Alabama que había fundado, sabía que tendría que endeudarse mucho. Así que siguió el consejo de un cazatalentos y contrató a Galen McDowell para dar nueva energía a las ventas. Sin duda, Galen sabía cómo vender. Rápidamente enganchó a un equipo de las grandes ligas, Kinan Motors, como posible cliente. Invitó a sus representantes a hacer un recorrido por la empresa y, mientras estaban en la ciudad, a visitar el Red Ruby Club. ¿El rubí rojo? Eso es un club de striptease. Galen le aseguró a Bob que era exclusivo y estaba lleno de empresarios. Dijo que sus representantes utilizaban el club a menudo para alejar cuentas importantes de sus rivales. Como para demostrar su punto de vista, Kinan firmó rápidamente un contrato multimillonario con OptiMotors tras la visita. Entonces, April Hartley, la primera vendedora de Bob, renunció. Había estado intentando entablar relaciones con los clientes, pero las cuentas más grandes, al parecer, buscaban «cosas más interesantes» de las que podía ofrecerles. Ahora Joan Warren, otra vendedora y que estaría encantada de cerrar un trato en cualquier lugar donde tuviera la oportunidad, se queja porque Galen no la deja ir al Red Ruby con él. «No me quedaré de brazos cruzados ni en desventaja simplemente por ser mujer», afirma. ¿Cuándo cruza la línea el entretenimiento para clientes? Cuatro expertos analizan este estudio de caso ficticio: John Brown, director de ventas institucionales y relaciones con los clientes de Fortis Investments; Katherine Frank, una exbailarina que ahora es autora y becaria posdoctoral en la Universidad de Wisconsin—Madison; Das Narayandas, profesora de administración de empresas en la Escuela de Negocios de Harvard; y Denise Rousseau, profesora de la Escuela Heinz de Políticas Públicas y la Escuela de Negocios Tepper del Carnegie Mellon..

&iquest;Qu&eacute; tan bajo caer&aacute;?

Reprint: R0604A When Bob Carlton decided to expand OptiMotors, the Alabama engine-parts manufacturer he had founded, he knew he’d have to take on a lot of debt. So he followed a headhunter’s advice and hired Galen McDowell to bring new energy to sales. No question, Galen knew how to sell. He quickly hooked a big-league outfit, Kinan Motors, as a potential customer. He invited their representatives to come take a tour of the company and, while they were in town, visit the Red Ruby Club. The Red Ruby? That’s a strip club. Galen assured Bob it was upscale and full of businesspeople. He said his reps had often made use of the club to woo important accounts away from rivals. As if to prove his point, Kinan quickly signed a multimillion-dollar contract with OptiMotors after the visit. Then April Hartley, Bob’s first salesperson, quit. She had been trying to build relationships with customers, but the really big accounts, it seemed, were looking for “more exciting stuff” than she could give them. Now Joan Warren—another saleswoman, and one who would happily close a deal anywhere she got the chance—is complaining because Galen won’t let her go to the Red Ruby with him. “I won’t stand by and be disadvantaged simply because I’m a woman,” she says. When does client entertainment cross the line? Four experts discuss this fictional case study: John Brown, the director of institutional sales and customer relations at Fortis Investments; Katherine Frank, a former dancer who is now an author and postdoctoral fellow at the University of Wisconsin–Madison; Das Narayandas, a professor of business administration at Harvard Business School; and Denise Rousseau, a professor at Carnegie Mellon’s Heinz School of Public Policy and Tepper School of Business.

¿Qué tan bajo caerá?

Resumen.

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