PSE Research Grant
Exciting Announcement: PSE Inaugural Research Grant and Data Collection Opportunity
The Pi Sigma Epsilon (PSE) National Educational Foundation is excited to announce the launch of the PSE National Educational Foundation Inaugural Research Grant and Data Collection Opportunity—a pioneering initiative designed to advance sales research and elevate the selling profession.
As a long-standing supporter of sales education, the PSE National Educational Foundation has consistently connected students with careers in professional sales. Now, for the first time, we are offering faculty, doctoral students, and practitioners a unique opportunity to contribute to sales research in a significant and lasting way. In partnership with the University of Alabama Department of Marketing, the PSE National Educational Foundation will administer a research survey in May 2025, marking a new chapter in the Foundation’s commitment to supporting cutting-edge sales research.
Up to three teams will be chosen to add unique survey constructs, creating distinct research projects that will yield data from experienced sales professionals across various B2B industries. The grant provides $3,000 in funding for each team, supporting conference travel, software, or research-related resources. Participants will receive data sets by June 2025 to advance their research and academic contributions.
We extend our heartfelt appreciation to the dedicated individuals who worked tirelessly to bring this first-of-its-kind initiative to life. Their vision, commitment and hard work have set the stage for advancements in sales research, empowering the academic and practitioner communities to make lasting contributions to the field.
To all interested faculty and doctoral students—this is your opportunity to collaborate, innovate, and drive forward the next generation of sales research. We eagerly anticipate your proposals and are excited to see how this inaugural initiative will contribute to the future of our profession.
Proposal Submission Deadline: January 15, 2025
Selected teams will be announced by February 15, 2025.
NEF Grant Call for Proposals
Pi Sigma Epsilon (PSE) has a long tradition of supporting sales education and connecting students with careers in professional sales. The PSE National Education Foundation (PSE NEF) offers this grant and data collection program to help advance sales research. Specifically, PSE NEF is partnering with the University of Alabama Department of Marketing to administer a research survey during May of 2025. The grant and data collection opportunity regards this research survey.
The sampling frame for this study includes individuals who work in sales as individual contributors rather than managers. They will have at least one year of experience. Participants will be required to receive some form of variable pay and dedicate the bulk of their sales activities toward B2B companies. Participants will represent a broad range of firms and industries.
PSE will administer a survey with a fixed set of constructs (see Appendix) to which researchers can add unique constructs—developing several distinct research projects. The result will be up to three unique data sets that combine the fixed constructs, each research team’s proposed constructs, and a variety of DVs that will draw upon LinkedIn accounts, potential company data, and survey items included within the questionnaire.
Faculty members or doctoral students collaborating with their faculty advisors are eligible to apply. Practitioners can also apply, provided they meet the academic research standards.
A Selection Committee will select up to three proposals. Each selected research team (proposal) will have the opportunity to add up to 20 survey items (approximately 5-6 constructs) to the survey instrument. The research team (proposal) will also receive data pertaining to a larger set of core constructs—see Appendix. The data will be delivered to participants by June 2025.
In addition, each research team will receive funding ($3000) that can be used to purchase NCSM 2025 conference travel, software, student work, copy editing, or other research-related resources.
- PSE NEF is able to manage these funds for the research team, making purchases and payments as needed to get the funding to where it is required.
- PSE NEF can also send the funds to a university for internal management.
- Each research team will be asked to present their proposal and work at the annual NCSM conference. The grant funds can be used for this purpose.
To be considered for the PSE Grant and Data Collection Opportunity, research teams should submit the following.
- A proposal not to exceed 5 pages (Double spaced) that discusses:
- Overview of the problem to be researched
- Brief review of relevant literature
- Identification of a gap to be addressed
- Summary of relevant theory
- Outline of constructs to be added to the survey
- Initial conceptual model that illustrates relationships that blend the set of unique constructs, core constructs, and potential external data
- Brief overview that outlines the key contributions for scholars and managers
- Overview of budget for included funding
- List of authors and affiliations (in a separate document)
An independent Selection Committee, comprising a balanced mix of esteemed academic researchers and accomplished practitioners, will evaluate the research proposals. When evaluating the proposals, committee members will not be aware of the authors of the proposals. The Selection Committee’s decisions are final. Recipients will be notified, and the decisions will be announced. Proposals will be assessed based on their completeness, novelty, relevance, and potential to advance sales theory and practice addressing current sales issues and questions.
Each proposal will be selected based on merit (up to three proposals will be selected), with priority for at least one of the three grants given to projects based on doctoral student projects, potentially as data collection for dissertation purposes.
Selected proposals will be announced by February 15, 2025.
Once selected, the author teams will be contacted and must provide their final set of constructs to PSE by March 15, 2025.
Selected teams will be required to have at least one researcher attend the 2025 NCSM Conference to present their proposal. In addition, each team is required to submit a summary of their research project and findings to PSE NEF by October 15, 2025 (format details will be provided). The expectation is that each project will result in an academic journal submission.
PSE NEF will promote the research teams with winning proposals via social media and other channels. Research teams with selected proposals are expected to have team members promote this on social media (e.g., commenting and resharing).
Appendix: Initial Study Constructs and Items
Total Survey Items 60
Core Survey Constructs (recurring)
SOCO 6
Adaptive Selling 3
Work Engagement 3
Subjective Performance 3
Salesperson Job Satisfaction 3
Salesperson Well-being 3
Salesperson Turnover Intention 3
Demographics/Marker/QC 12
Manager's span of control (?)
Career stage
Age
Gender
Firm experience
Control experience (?)
Incentive compensation as % of pay
Connection to Linkedin (SP provides LinkedIn link)
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Total Core Items 36
Variable Survey Constructs (may vary year to year)
Competitiveness (Trait or other) 3
AI Technology Use 3
Selling Skills 3
Analytical Skills 3
Sales Manager Support 3
Sales Manager Competence 3
Sales Manager Warmth 3
Political Skill 3
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Total Variable Items 24
Proposal Submission Deadline: January 15, 2025
Selected teams will be announced by February 15, 2025.
Proposal Submission Deadline: January 15, 2025
Selected teams will be announced by February 15, 2025.