A study of salespeople's psychological readiness towards digital transformation in semiconductor organization

A study of salespeople's psychological readiness towards digital transformation in semiconductor organization | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article A study of salespeople's psychological readiness towards digital transformation in semiconductor organization DONGXUAN CHEN, Vincent Cho This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8947438/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Digital technology has become a core driver for enterprises to build market competitiveness, accelerating DT across various industries. Although digital tools provide employees with richer and more efficient work resources, their introduction is often accompanied by increased workload and heightened role pressure. Against this contradictory backdrop, for enterprises to ensure the success of DT, it is essential not only to adopt a systematic strategic approach but also to focus on the role of human factors at the micro level. To support semiconductor enterprises in effectively advancing digital sales transformation, this study, based on the theory of employee’s readiness for change, constructs an individual-level framework for the influencing mechanisms of digital sales readiness. The research focuses on sales personnel’s perceptions of the organizational Digital Selling support atmosphere, Trust in Leadership, and Cohesion, aiming to reveal how these socio-psychological factors influence their willingness to adopt technology and their adaptability to change. Through a random sampling questionnaire survey, this study collected valid data from 123 frontline sales personnel across multiple semiconductor enterprises to test the theoretical model and related hypotheses. Empirical results indicate that organizational support atmosphere, Trust in Leadership, and team cohesion all have significant positive effects on Digital Selling Readiness. Notably, the study found that sales personnel’s perception of team cohesion is relatively weak, reflecting a need to strengthen the culture of team collaboration. This study not only uncovers the key psychological mechanisms driving Digital Selling Readiness but also provides targeted managerial insights for semiconductor enterprises: during the transformation process, efforts should be made to enhance organizational support, deepen leadership development, and optimize team collaboration to effectively improve the readiness of frontline salespeople, thereby laying a solid human resource foundation for DT. Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 1. Introduction The semiconductor industry is the cornerstone of the modern digital economy, with its products widely used in various electronic devices, ranging from smartphones and Internet of Things devices to supercomputers and artificial intelligence systems (Yun, Zhao and Ahn, 2025 ). This industry is typically both technology-intensive and capital-intensive, having developed a highly globalized and specialized division of labor that relies heavily on global supply chains (Kim and Cho, 2022 ). In recent years, as international conflicts have intensified, the fragility of this industrial chain has become increasingly apparent. At the same time, the rapid development of digital technology has brought significant opportunities to semiconductor companies, effectively leveraging these technologies can not only enhance corporate performance but also strengthen their ability to cope with market uncertainties (Yun, Zhao and Ahn, 2025 ; Marzi et al., 2023 ). Against this backdrop, a growing number of semiconductor companies are actively utilizing digital technologies to boost their competitiveness. Therefore, for sales organizations in the semiconductor sector, falling behind in digital capabilities could lead to marginalization within the value chain. Consequently, a growing number of agents and distributors are accelerating the deployment of digital sales initiatives to maintain competitiveness and solidify their market position (Schmitt, Casenave and Pallud, 2021 ; Hallikainen, Savimäki and Laukkanen, 2020 ; Shankar et al., 2025 ). However, despite actively promoting digital transformation, many companies commonly find themselves struggling with a high failure rate. According to statistics from Zoltners et al. ( 2021 ), approximately 70% of such projects fail to achieve their objectives. The root cause, as pointed out by Piderit ( 2000 ), is that employees’ resistance and negative reactions to organizational change are one of the key factors hindering transformation and even leading to its failure. Further corroborating this, research by Huang ( 2025 ) confirms that employee behavior profoundly influences the ultimate outcomes of digital transformation. In the semiconductor industry, frontline sales personnel are facing increasingly prominent dual pressures. As business models continue to evolve, salespeople play a critical role in the value realization process. The solution sales model proposed by Tuli, Kohli, and Bharadwaj ( 2007 ) emphasizes that salespeople must continuously optimize solutions to consistently respond to customer needs. Grove et al. ( 2018 ) further point out that the sales function is undergoing a paradigm shift from transaction-oriented to outcome-oriented, with its core objective focused on helping customers achieve quantifiable business outcomes and becoming trusted “value co-creation partners”. However, these evolving business models also bring about an expansion of salespeople’s work boundaries (Hochstein et al., 2021 ). At the same time, effectively applying digital technology to work is no easy task but rather a complex skill that is difficult to master quickly (Lindner et al., 2024 ). Therefore, frontline sales personnel under dual pressures, if lacking effective support and alleviation over the long term, may intensify their resistance to technology adoption, ultimately hindering the company’s progress in digital sales transformation (Guenzi and Nijssen, 2021 ). Numerous academic studies based on organizational climate theory indicate that organizational support, such as institutionalized structures, digital education, and effective incentive mechanisms, can help employees recognize the advantages of digital sales, thereby promoting their adoption of relevant technologies in practice (Schmitt, Casenave and Pallud, 2021 ; Lee and Yi, 2025 ; Katsaros and Tsirikas, 2023 ). However, the impact of organizational climate factors such as trust in leadership and cohesion on employees’ readiness for digital sales has rarely been explored. Although studies in other fields have confirmed the significant positive effects of these factors on employees’ change readiness (Guenzi and Nijssen, 2024 ; Samaranayake and Takemura, 2017 ), this area of research remains underdeveloped in high-tech industries, such as the semiconductor sector. Therefore, this study will employ a questionnaire survey to systematically investigate the impact mechanisms of three key factors in organizational climate—Digital Selling Psychological Climate, Trust In Leadership, and Cohesion—on the digital sales readiness of frontline sales personnel in the semiconductor industry. The aim is to provide theoretical insights and practical guidance for enterprises advancing digital selling transformation. In the subsequent chapters, this paper will sequentially construct a theoretical framework, elaborate on the investigation process and data analysis, and propose recommendations for corporate digital selling practices based on the research findings. 2. Conceptual framework development 2.1 Digital Selling According to the study of Xu and Li ( 2023 ), DT is regarded as a key strategic pathway for enterprises to build and sustain a lasting competitive advantage. In the semiconductor industry, companies are increasingly adopting digital sales models to enhance operational efficiency and customer responsiveness. In this context, Digital Selling Transformation refers to the process through which frontline sales personnel utilize digital technologies to reconfigure traditional sales models, thereby achieving systematization, data-driven decision-making, and intelligent automation in sales activities. 2.2 The Need for Digital Selling: the leading indicator of Digital Selling Readiness According to the definition by Armenakis, Harris and Mossholder ( 1993 ), readiness for change refers to the beliefs, attitudes, and behavioral intentions of organizational members toward change, reflecting their psychological tendency to support or resist a specific change. In the context of digital transfermation, this concept can be further contextualized as “Digital Selling Readiness”, which denotes frontline sales personnel’s trust in and acceptance of digital technologies, as well as their psychological and behavioral preparedness to proactively adopt and apply digital tools in sales tasks. As noted by Herscovitch and Meyer ( 2002 ), employees’ readiness for not only helps reduce resistance to change at the organizational level but also effectively predicts the ultimate success of change implementation. Particularly in sales functions, where employees serve as the critical interface between the enterprise and customers, their acceptance and utilization of digital tools directly impact customer experience, responsiveness, and overall performance. Therefore, accurately assessing the readiness of frontline sales personnel to adapt to DT helps mitigate potential cognitive resistance and operational obstacles in the early stages of transformation. Moreover, the support from employees with high readiness for change is crucial for ensuring a smooth change process. Theoretical frameworks on “readiness” in existing research present multidimensional perspectives across different contexts. Mullins and Agnihotri ( 2022 ) systematically conceptualize digital readiness as the perceived need for digital technologies, which encapsulates an individual’s cognitive and affective readiness and drives the proactive use of these tools to address sales-related business challenges. Based on the aforementioned theoretical framework, this study considers frontline sales personnel’s perceived need for digital technology as a core indicator for assessing their Digital Selling Readiness. By measuring the extent to which employees recognize the necessity of digital technologies in their sales tasks, it is possible to effectively reflect their cognitive and emotional preparedness. 2.3 Digital Selling Psychological Climate: the cornerstone of implementing organizational strategies According to Tierney ( 1999 ), psychological climate is defined as employees’ subjective perception of the organization’s emphasis at the strategic level. Building on this, Mullins and Agnihotri ( 2022 ), further proposed the core concept of “Digital Selling Psychological climate”, defining it as salespeople’s shared perception of the organization’s encouragement, support, and reward for the application of digital technologies in sales activities. Drawing on this concept, this study aims to explore how semiconductor industry salespeople’s perception of organizational support for Digital Selling influences their readiness. 2.4 Trust in Leadership: the real starting point for leadership practices According to research by Korsgaard, Sapienza and Schweiger ( 2002 ), Trust in Leadership refers to employees’ perception of the credibility of their direct supervisors and senior management. In this paper, it is conceptualized as the extent to which employees have confidence in the capability, determination, and sincerity demonstrated by management in driving the digital sales transformation. 2.5 Cohesion: the key guarantee for achieving team goals According to the research by Koys and DeCotiis ( 1991 ), team cohesion is defined as employees’ subjective perception of mutual support and collaboration among team members. Building on this, the present study operationalizes team cohesion as employees’ comprehensive perception of the willingness to collaborate, mutual assistance behaviors, and supportive atmosphere within the team during the process of digital sales transformation. In summary, this paper constructs a conceptual framework, aiming to systematically examine the key drivers and mechanisms of influence. 3. Theorical Framework and hypotheses 3.1 Digital Selling Psychological Climate The Digital Selling Psychological Climate, as a critical strategic element in organizational environments, demonstrates its significance through profound impacts on frontline sales personnel’s specific digital practice behaviors. Distinct from broad concepts like “organizational climate” or “culture”, the digital sales psychological climate possesses a clear strategic focus—it specifically denotes sales personnel’s shared perceptions of organizational expectations, support, and rewards regarding digital sales (Klein and Sorra, 1996 ). Drawing on the research of Evans et al. ( 2007 ), the Digital Selling Psychological Climate acts as a sense-making framework. It allows sales personnel to systematically interpret the organization’s resource allocation, performance expectations, and value propositions regarding digital sales. Specifically, a positive Digital Selling Psychological Climate drives sales personnel’s digital behaviors through two key mechanisms. Goal-alignment mechanism : It explicitly links “using digital technologies” to core organizational performance objectives, such as sales volume and customer conversion rates. When sales perceive that the organization expects and rewards the use of digital tools to achieve sales outcomes, they clearly recognize the necessity and strategic value of developing digital capabilities. Consequently, they view digital technology adoption as an essential pathway to achieving both personal and organizational goals. Capability building mechanism : During the DT process, organizations aim to reduce employees’ barriers to adopting new technologies by providing systematic digital tool training, professional technical support, and easily accessible data analysis resources. When employees perceive a supportive organizational atmosphere, they are more likely to view these resources as effective aids for mastering digital skills and achieving digital sales goals. This perception not only encourages proactive use of the tools but also boosts employees’ confidence and sense of control over technology applications, thereby further increasing the success rate of technology adoption. Under the combined influence of this climate, salespeople actively assess the level of organizational encouragement and support for using digital technologies in sales processes. When they perceive that the organization not only “expects” them to adopt digital tools but also provides tangible “support” and “rewards”, they are more likely to proactively adapt their technology adoption behaviors. Moreover, they become significantly more aware of how digital technologies can address shortcomings in traditional sales models (e.g., over-reliance on in-person visits and delayed information access), leading to identification with and acceptance of digital sales practices. This ultimately translates into an internalized, strong demand for digital tools and methodologies. As such, the study assumes that: H1 Digital Selling Psychological Climate has a positive effect on the Need for Digital Selling. 3.2 Trust In Leadership During organizational change processes, particularly DT, task deviation risks and high uncertainty often emerge, which instinctively trigger employees’ resistance and anxiety, significantly reducing their willingness to participate in the change (Tierney, 1999 ). In this context, leadership behavior becomes a critical moderating factor influencing employees’ readiness for change (Islam, Idris and Furuoka, 2021 ). Leaders can foster change acceptance through the following three core mechanisms. Transparent communication mechanism : Leaders clearly and consistently communicate the strategic objectives of digital sales, specific implementation plans, and potential challenges and risks, reducing information asymmetry and transforming employees from passive recipients of change into active participants (Matthysen and Harris, 2018 ). Relationship-building mechanism : Leaders strive to establish open and reliable working relationships by listening, supporting, and empowering employees, enabling them to consistently perceive organizational backing, thereby enhancing their sense of security and belonging (Sadarić and Škerlavaj, 2023 ). Leadership exemplary effect : Leaders demonstrate positive attitudes and behaviors toward innovation, serving as role models. As noted by Salanova et al. ( 2011 ), this effect can effectively stimulate employees’ intrinsic motivation, innovative spirit, and adaptability, setting an example for adopting new practices. However, Graen and Uhl-Bien ( 1995 ) argue that the quality of the relationship between employees and their leaders—known as leader-member exchange (LMX)—significantly influences how employees interpret managerial behaviors. In high-quality LMX relationships, leaders’ use of soft influence tactics, such as consultation and inspiration is more likely to be perceived as genuine support, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of policy implementation. In contrast, in low-quality LMX relationships, even identical tactics may be interpreted as manipulative or self-serving. Therefore, trust serves as a critical mediating mechanism that enables employees to accurately understand leadership intentions and actions. In the context of Digital Selling transformation, if employees have a high level of trust in their leaders, they are more likely to interpret initiatives promoting digital sales as strategically visionary rather than merely driven by short-term pressures. Simultaneously, salespeople are more inclined to recognize the leader’s capability to achieve goals and feel motivated by their behavioral modeling, thereby enhancing their own willingness and actions to engage in digital practices. In summary, Trust In Leadership not only helps alleviate employees’ doubts and resistance toward DT goals, evaluation methods, and incentive mechanisms but also significantly enhances their willingness to participate organizational commitment. Through such positive interactions, employees are more likely to perceive digital technologies as effective tools for addressing challenges and achieving performance goals, thereby gradually developing an intrinsic demand for digital solutions. Therefore, this paper proposes that: H2 Trust In Leadership has a positive effect on the Need for Digital Selling. 3.3 Cohesion Lee and Yi ( 2025 ) emphasizes that the transformation of sales models cannot rely solely on fragmented individual efforts. As a fundamental restructuring of traditional sales approaches, digital sales depends more heavily on collaborative team practices. In this process, team cohesion—a key dimension of organizational climate—significantly shapes members’ perceptions and behavioral responses to the shift toward digital sales. Firstly, highly cohesive teams are more likely to develop a “collective spirit”, encouraging members to internalize team visions, such as “becoming a digital pioneer team”, as personal missions (Kleinewiese, 2022 ). This fosters identity-based intrinsic motivation. Compared to external incentives, such motivation is more sustainable and helps employees proactively explore the value of digital technologies, develop an awareness of the need for technological application, and thereby provide a deeper driving force for the implementation of digital sales. Secondly, highly cohesive teams serve as ideal vehicles for organizational learning by reducing communication costs and breaking down barriers to knowledge flow (Montes, Moreno and Morales, 2005 ). For example, during DT, when team members perceive a high level of cohesion within the organization, they are more willing to share knowledge and help peers solve problems related to digital technology applications. At the same time, colleagues facing technical difficulties are less likely to hesitate to seek help due to fear of losing face. This mechanism of knowledge sharing and collaborative problem-solving can significantly enhance members’ self-efficacy in mastering new technologies. Such confidence in their abilities further motivates them to proactively identify their technological needs. Finally, the formation of a highly cohesive team typically requires time, accumulated experience, and ongoing mutual adjustment. When team members successfully navigate organizational change within a high-cohesion environment, their shared positive experiences in managing such change gradually become embedded as valuable organizational memory (Mathur, Kapoor and Swami, 2023 ). This collective memory not only strengthens members’ confidence in the team’s capacity for change but also motivates them to proactively embrace future transformation challenges, thereby fostering a positive attitude toward organizational change. This psychological mechanism helps alleviate members’ anxiety during transitions while simultaneously enhancing their intrinsic motivation to adopt new technologies, ultimately deepening their recognition of the need for digital technology integration. Therefore, many studies have confirmed that a highly cohesive organizational climate can significantly enhance employees’ acceptance of organizational changes, such as DT, and generate demand for using digital technologies. Hence, the author formulates the following hypotheses: H3 Cohesion has a positive effect on the Need for Digital Selling. In summary, this paper constructs a hypothetical model as shown in Fig. 1 to analyze the impact of the aforementioned three major factors on digital readiness. 4. Study 4.1 Methodology 4.1.1 Questionnaire development This study employed a self-report questionnaire to test the theoretical model. All constructs in the questionnaire were measured using a 7-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree, 7 = strongly agree). In the designing of the questionnaire, well-established scales were adapted, and the terminology of certain constructs was localized to suit the specific context of the semiconductor industry. To enhance the content applicability of the scales, qualitative interviews were conducted with frontline sales personnel who had recently participated in digital sales projects, focusing on identifying the digital sales tools and industry-specific expressions they use in their daily work. Based on the interview results, the semantic expression and contextual relevance of the scale items were optimized. These adjustments were made without deviating from the theoretical structure and measurement logic of the original scales, thereby improving the comprehensibility and relevance of the scales within the industry context. Specifically: The Digital Selling Psychological Climate scale was adapted from the 6-item scale developed by Mullins and Agnihotri ( 2022 ), with some items adjusted to fit the digital sales context. For example, “In our sales organization, I have easy access to content that aligns with the customer purchase journey (designed to assess whether the organization provides structured and process-oriented content support for Digital Selling)”. The scales for Trust In Leadership and Cohesion were adopted from Bouckenooghe, Devos and Van (2009), including items, such as “There is effective two-way communication between company management and various departments” and “There is intense competition among colleagues in my department”. After data collection, some respondents reported difficulty understanding certain items in the Cohesion scale due to potential semantic deviations during translation. To ensure good convergent and discriminant validity, two ambiguous items were ultimately removed. The Need for Digital Selling was measured using a 4-item scale adapted from Mullins and Agnihotri ( 2022 ), with items contextually optimized to reflect practices in the semiconductor industry. For instance, an original item was rephrased as: “I believe social media tools (e.g., WeChat, Official Accounts) are crucial for maintaining relationships with potential customers”. However, after data collection, multiple respondents indicated that this item did not align with the actual context of the semiconductor industry, making it difficult to achieve the intended measurement purpose. To improve content validity and measurement accuracy, this item was deleted. Learning Orientation was measured using the 4-item Learning Orientation scale developed by Sujan, Weitz and Kumar ( 1994 ), including items, such as “I consistently learn new knowledge related to customers”. The specific literature sources for each variable are detailed in Table 1. Construct Literatur support Table 1. A review of literature support of the constructs (Source: Author) Digital Selling Psychological Climate Mullins and Agnihotri ( 2022 ) Trust in Leadership Bouckenooghe, Devos and Van (2009) Cohesion Bouckenooghe, Devos and Van (2009) The Need for Digital Selling Mullins and Agnihotri ( 2022 ) Learning Orietation Sujan, Weitz and Kumar ( 1994 ) Furthermore, in terms of page design, the authors followed the recommendations of Hulland, Baumgartner and Smith ( 2018 ) and implemented the following measures to mitigate common method bias (see Appendix 1 for details). Finally, to eliminate potential language comprehension biases, the questionnaire was designed in both Chinese and English versions. Prior to formal data collection, a pilot test was conducted to ensure the validity of the questionnaire. This included a quantitative pilot study involving five sales professionals (Grégoire and Fisher, 2008 ). 4.1.2 Survey design This questionnaire was conducted in September 2025, in China. The target respondents of this study were frontline practitioners aged over 18 with sales experience in the semiconductor industry. These respondents were not only familiar with industry sales processes but also had a basic understanding of digital sales technologies, often acquiring related knowledge through corporate training or social media platforms. The questionnaires were distributed on-site through random sampling and were completed and collected immediately to ensure data quality. 4.1.3 Data collection A total of 167 invitations were sent out, with 123 valid questionnaires returned, yielding a response rate of 73.7%. The sample covered practitioners of education levels, work experience, and job positions, demonstrating strong representativeness. 4.2 Results 4.2.1 Demographic profile Table 2 presents the demographic distribution of survey respondents. It is noteworthy that 74.8% of the respondents hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, and 91.9% possess more than seven years of industry experience. These demographic characteristic align closely with the unique nature of the semiconductor industry. Given that the industry requires sales professionals to have a deep understanding of complex product architectures and technical solutions, practitioners generally need a relatively high educational background as a knowledge foundation. At the same time, sales personnel heavily rely on long-term practical experience to master industry-specific sales processes, customer decision-making mechanisms, and communication strategies. Therefore, an extended period of professional experience is essential for sustaining long-term career development. This explains why most respondents have experienced their organizations’ Digital Selling transformation processes. The sample also demonstrates a relatively balanced representation between frontline sales staff (43.1%) and sales supervisors (56.9%). These randomly sampled characteristics effectively represent the current frontline sales workforce undergoing DT in the semiconductor industry. Table 2 . Demographic profile summary (Source: Author) Frequency % Education High school / secondary specialized school 0 0.00% Junior college 18 14.60% Bachelor’s degree 92 74.80% Master’s degree or higher 13 10.60% Work Experince Less than 1 years 0 0.00% 1 to 3 years 2 1.60% 3 to 6 years 8 6.50% More than 7 years 113 91.90% Position Pre sales 15 12.20% Sales 25 20.30% Pro sales 13 10.60% Sales Supervisors 70 56.90% 4.2.2 Instrument validity and reliability Prior to testing the theoretical model using structural equation modelling, this paper first examined the reliability and validity of the collected data. As shown in Table 4, with the exception of Cohesion (α = 0.68) which fell slightly below the recommended threshold of 0.70, the alpha coefficients for the remaining four constructs ranged between 0.70–0.89, indicating good scale reliability (Hair, 2010 ). In terms of validity, as shown in the PCA results in Table 3 , all measurement items loaded significantly on their corresponding factors, and no significant cross-factor loadings were observed, indicating that the constructs in this study possess good validity. 4.2.3 Common method bias To examine potential common method bias, this study first employed PCA along with VARIMAX orthogonal rotation to conduct an exploratory factor analysis on the 18 measurement items (as Table 3 shown). Following the Kaiser criterion of eigenvalues greater than 1, the analysis extracted a total of five factors. According to Harman’s single-factor test proposed by Podsakoff and Organ ( 1986 ), in this study, the first factor accounted for only 18.743% of the total variance, while the cumulative variance explained by the five factors reached 70.4%, indicating that the data did not exhibit a covariance structure dominated by a single latent factor. Therefore, it can be concluded that the impact of common method bias on the findings of this study is within an acceptable range. 4.2.4 Data convergence validity analysis According to Campbell and Fiske ( 1959 ), convergent validity refers to the level of consistency that should exist between results obtained when measuring the same construct using different methods. To ensure strong convergent validity, this study adopted the dual criteria proposed by Fornell and Larcker ( 1981 ) for evaluation. Table 3 presents the factor loading results of the 18 measurement items. The analysis reveals that 14 items exceeded the recommended threshold of 0.70 for their respective constructs. However, three items in the Digital Selling Psychological Climate construct (with loadings of 0.580, 0.685, and 0.670) and one item in the Need for Digital Selling construct (loading of 0.639), while slightly below the threshold. As Table 4 shown, the analysis of AVE revealed that all constructs surpassed the critical benchmark of 0.50. Therefore, although some individual measurement values in this study did not fully meet the expected standards, the overall measurement results still satisfy the dual criteria for convergent validity. Table 3 . Results of PCA with VARIMAX rotation (Source: Author) Factor Loadings of Constructs Constructs 1 2 3 4 5 Digital Selling Psychological Climate In our sales organization,I can easily access content that is aligned with a potential customer’s buying process. .580 .181 .259 .190 − .193 In our sales organization,I follow a sales process that is attuned to our customers’ interactions with our digital media. .809 .131 .006 .031 .066 In our sales organization,we have extensive support to help with problems related to our digital media tools and platforms. .753 .138 .111 − .031 .160 In our sales organization,creating relationships through digital channels is highly valued. .685 .176 .051 .396 − .099 In our sales organization, top management shows a clear a visible commitment towards our digital selling strategy. .670 .176 .096 .271 − .011 In our sales organization,we are well trained in the use of our digital media tools and platforms. .719 .171 .062 .272 .063 Trust in Leadership Corporate management team consistently implements its policies in all departments. .261 .814 .182 .013 .088 Corporate management team fulfils its promises. .212 .856 .113 .132 .095 Corporate management team keeps all departments informed about its decisions. .184 .779 .081 .291 .001 Two-way communication between the corporate management. .135 .834 .126 .199 − .027 Cohesion There is a strong rivalry between colleagues in my department. .115 .178 .004 .109 .870 I doubt whether all of my colleagues are sufficiently competent. − .049 − .061 − .249 .148 .795 Learning Orientation I am always learning something new about my customers. .088 .206 .866 .023 − .066 It is worth spending a great deal of time learning new approaches for dealing with customers. .114 .034 .871 .057 − .153 Learning how to be a better salesperson is of fundamental importance to me. .121 .165 .860 .010 − .030 The Need for Digital Selling An important part of being a good salesperson is continually building your credibility through digital platforms. .317 .152 .290 .639 .094 I believe social media tools (e.g., WeChat, Official Account) are integral for staying connected with potential customers. .181 .260 .072 .739 .134 A salesperson who does not maintain a social network presence (e.g.,Moments, Channels) will be unable to become a top performer. .180 .129 − .159 .778 .112 4.2.5 Variable Independence To determine their suitability for subsequent regression analysis, this study employed Pearson correlation analysis to examine the relationships among the five variables. The results presented in Table 4 show that there are no statistically significant correlations among these variables. 4.2.6 Data discriminant validity analysis As shown in Table 3 , all items loaded significantly on their intended factors, with no notable cross-loadings on other factors, indicating good discriminant validity of the measurement model. To further assess discriminant validity, this study applied the criterion developed by Fornell and Larcker ( 1981 ). As presented in Table 4, the correlation matrix shows that all diagonal values (representing the square roots of AVEs) are significantly larger than the off-diagonal correlation coefficients, confirming that all constructs in this study exhibit satisfactory discriminant validity. 4.2.7 Covariates This study introduces covariates that may explain significant variations in digital sales readiness. This approach also helps mitigate the interference of unobserved heterogeneity with the research findings and rules out other potential explanations (Ye, Marinova and Singh, 2007). Specifically, at the salespeople level, demographic variables were controlled for, including sales experience (measured in years) and tenure within the enterprise (measure in years), to capture variations in the dependent variable attributable to factors such as knowledge. Additionally, Learning Orientation, measured using the single-item scale developed by Sujan, Weitz and Kumar ( 1994 ), was included as a covariate. As shown in Table 4, these variables exhibited no significant correlation with the Need for Digital Selling, indicating the absence of multicollinearity issues in the analysis. 4.2.8 Descriptive analysis As shown in Table 4, the standard deviations of the measurement items indicate sufficient data dispersion to effectively reflect population characteristics. The measurements based on the 7-point Likert scale reveal the following findings: First, respondents demonstrated significant demand for using digital technologies, with a mean score of 4.95 (approaching the “agree” level). Second, respondents generally perceived organizational encouragement and support for digital technology adoption (mean score = 4.9) and reported high Trust In Leadership (mean score = 5.36). However, perceived cohesion scores were relatively low (mean score = 4.48), which may be attributed to industry-specific characteristics such as competition for client resources and the performance-driven nature of sales positions. Finally, respondents exhibited strong Learning Orientation (mean score = 6.09), reflecting the semiconductor industry’s emphasis on knowledge accumulation among frontline personnel. Therefore, in the semiconductor sales sector, there is a broad consensus on the necessity of digital technologies, and sales personnel demonstrate a strong perception of organizational support and Trust in Leadership. 4.2.9 Hypotheses testing with regression analysis Table 5 and Fig. 2 present the standardized path coefficients between key constructs. The empirical analysis reveals that, with the exception of Learning Orientation which showed no significant predictive effect (β = 0.02, p > 0.05), Digital Selling Psychological Climate (β = 0.397, p < 0.001), Trust in Leadership (β = 0.237, p < 0.01), and Cohesion (β = 0.172, p < 0.05) all demonstrated significant positive influences on salespeople’s digital technology needs recognition. These findings support the Hypotheses H1, H2, and H3. Table 5 . Results of regression analysis for hypothesis testing (Source: Author) Model1 Model2 Dependable variable: The Need for Digital Selling Control variables Main effects Standardised coef Standardised coef Control variables Work experience -0.162 -0.122 Education -0.042 -0.101 Position 0.005 0.003 Main effects Digital Selling Psychological Climate 0.393*** Trust in Leadership 0.237** Cohesion 0.172* Learning Orientation 0.002 Model information R 2 0.004 0.34 △R 2 0.336 *p < 0.05; **p < 0.01; ***p < 0.001 Collectively, all predictor variables explained 34% of the variance in attitudes (R² = 0.34), indicating that the research model possesses good predictive validity. Table 4. Summary of Pearson correlation and discriminant validity test (Source: Author) Variables Mean SD Cronbach’s alpha AVE 1 2 3 4 5 Digital Selling Psychological Climate 4.90 1.15 0.85 0.50 0.707 Trust in Leadership 5.36 1.04 0.89 0.67 0.478** 0.819 Cohesion 4.48 1.25 0.68 0.69 0.081 0.129 0.83 Learning Orientation 6.09 0.76 0.87 0.75 0.278** 0.314** -0.199* 0.866 The Need of Digital Selling 4.95 1.16 0.72 0.52 0.520** 0.441** 0.254** 0.133 0.721 N (salespersons) = 123; *p < 0.05; **p<0.01; ***p < 0.001 5. Discussion In the technology-intensive semiconductor industry, digital sales transformation has become a key strategy for enterprises to build and maintain core competitiveness. However, technology adoption merely represents the first step of transformation. Its successful implementation fundamentally depends on frontline sales personnel’s active adoption and effective utilization of these digital tools. The study found that the “Digital Selling Psychological Climate” plays a pivotal role in the process of digital sales transformation. Specifically, the supportive organizational climate perceived by salespeople has a significant positive impact on their Digital Selling Readiness. The study further uncovers two critical driving mechanisms: Firstly, Trust In Leadership can enhance salespeople’s readiness for Digital Selling transformation. Lehman, Greener and Simpson ( 2002 ) have pointed out, if employees perceive their leaders as having strategic vision, capable of balancing organizational goals with employee interests in decision-making, and providing substantive support for change, their anxiety about the uncertainty of change will be significantly reduced. The study by Islam, Idris and Furuoka ( 2021 ) further supplements that employees’ Trust In Leadership significantly influences their acceptance of the change. Therefore, building on trust, salespeople are more inclined to internalize the organizational vision as their personal action goals. This psychologically rooted mechanism, driven by Trust In Leadership, further translates into stronger willingness to adopt digital technologies and a clearer recognition of the need for digital sales transformation. Secondly, high team cohesion significantly enhances sales personnel’s readiness for digital sales. In highly cohesive teams, members achieve complementary strengths and synergistic capabilities through continuous support and collaboration. This not only improves overall team performance but also boosts individuals’ confidence in their own abilities. When salespeople perceive a sense of unity and support within their team, their self-efficacy in using digital technologies increases, making them more willing to experiment with and adopt digital tools. Furthermore, team cohesion lays the foundation for building a dynamic learning ecosystem. Highly cohesive teams foster an environment conducive to knowledge sharing, experience transfer, and emotional support, serving as an ideal vehicle for organizational learning (Montes, Moreno and Morales, 2005 ). When facing challenges associated with the application of digital technologies, team members can quickly acquire new skills through efficient collaboration, thereby reducing learning costs. This collaborative learning mechanism not only accelerates the process of technological adaptation but also reinforces individuals’ self-efficacy through continuous successful experiences. As a result, sales personnel become more proactive in exploring the value and advantages of digital technologies, gradually developing an intrinsic demand for continuous technological updates and deeper application. This, in turn, drives the ongoing refinement and expansion of digital sales practices. 6. Contributions This study constructs an integrated theoretical framework: with a supportive organizational climate as the core engine, dual-driven by Trust In Leadership and Cohesion, collectively shaping sales personnel’s digital readiness. It makes contributions in three key aspects. First, this study focuses on the semiconductor industry and examines sales personnel’s perceptions of organizational support, trust in leadership, and team atmosphere during the process of digital sales transformation. It effectively reveals the current state of their readiness for Digital Selling transformation, providing empirical evidence and practical guidance for management to optimize transformation strategies and enhance the success rate of change implementation. Second, the analytical framework developed in this study demonstrates strong transferability and can be extended to other technology-intensive manufacturing sectors and industries employing complex B2B business models. Enterprises undertaking significant organizational changes can draw on the ideas and methods of this research to systematically assess employees’ psychological readiness, identify potential resistance, and formulate targeted interventions to ensure the smooth progress of transformations. Finally, this study enriches and expands the application scenarios of the theory of readiness for change in the context of DT. By empirically examining the relationship between employees’ organizational perceptions and readiness for change, it offers new empirical evidence and theoretical support for the deepening of this theory in high-tech industry settings. 7. Theoretical implications This study carries significant theoretical and practical implications. Firstly, to enhance frontline personnel's perception of organizational support for digital sales, enterprises should demonstrate their commitment through concrete actions—such as integrating the digital transformation into strategic communications and including relevant behaviors in performance evaluations. Secondly, the leadership should play a key demonstrative and guiding role in the process of digital sales transformation. eaders can win trust and support for digital strategies in two ways: on one hand, by exemplifying clear digital attitudes and behaviors, and on the other, by using consultation and motivation to balance rational guidance with emotional resonance. Finally, managers in semiconductor companies should attach great importance to fostering team cohesion and strive to create a highly supportive and collaborative team atmosphere. This research results indicate that sales personnel’s perception of team cohesion is not significant, reflecting that corporate team building still requires strengthening. To effectively enhance team cohesion, management can focus on the following three aspects: Clarify role division to alleviate the “individual ambidexterity dilemma”. Systematically implement team-building activities. Establish team-oriented incentive mechanisms. Through these measures, salespeople will continuously accumulate experience through collaboration, optimize technology application strategies, and ultimately develop self-driven patterns of technology adoption. 8. Limitations and future studies Although this study has made certain progress in exploring the drivers of Digital Selling Readiness among sales personnel in semiconductor enterprises, several methodological limitations remain and should be addressed in future research. First, the sample’s representativeness is limited. Due to the specialized nature of the industry, the pool of eligible respondents was limited, and the use of random sampling methods resulted in a relatively small sample size. Future studies could enhance sample diversity and representativeness by expanding the range of participating firms or conducting cross-regional sampling. Second, the measurement instrument’s ability to fully capture the construct requires improvement. Since this study employed only two items to measure cohesion, the sufficiency of the construct's measurement may be compromised, thereby affecting its content validity and discriminant validity. Future research is advised to adopt comprehensive scales or multidimensional measurement tools to capture the complex structure of cohesion more thoroughly and accurately. Finally, the research design has static limitations. This study adopted a cross-sectional design, with all variables measured at the same point in time. However, as noted by Grimolizzi-Jensen ( 2018 ), readiness for change is a dynamically evolving process. Cross-sectional data struggle to accurately reveal causal relationships between variables or their dynamic evolutionary pathways. Future research could follow the recommendations of Caci et al. ( 2025 ) by employing longitudinal designs or multi-stage data collection methods to delve deeper into the dynamic formation mechanisms of Digital Selling Readiness and its intrinsic patterns of evolution over time. Declarations Funding Statement This paper was independently conducted by the author and did not receive any funding or sponsorship from any institution, organization, or individual. All related costs (including but not limited to data acquisition, experimentation, and publication fees) were borne solely by the author. Author Contribution This is my contribution. Vincent Cho offered guildline of the research. 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J Acad Mark Sci 46(1):92–108 Islam MN, Idris A, Furuoka F (2021) Dynamic forces of amplifying employee change supportive behavior: An individual-level analysis. Int J Asian Bus Inform Manage (IJABIM) 12(3):1–18 Katsaros KK, Tsirikas A (2023) Exploring behavioral change support: the role of perceived uncertainty and self-and other-interest in change. Leadersh Organ Dev J 44(4):503–519 Kim D, Cho K (2022) Digital transformation characteristics of the semiconductor industry ecosystem. Sustainability 15(1):483 Klein KJ, Sorra JS (1996) The challenge of innovation implementation. Acad Manage Rev 21(4):1055–1080 Kleinewiese J (2022) Situational Action Theory and the particular case of settings including a group. Eur J Criminol 19(5):1188–1204 Korsgaard MA, Sapienza HJ, Schweiger DM (2002) Beaten before begun: The role of procedural justice in planning change. J Manag 28(4):497–516 Koys DJ, DeCotiis TA (1991) Inductive measures of psychological climate. Hum Relat 44(3):265–285 Lee H, Yi S (2025) Corporate Education for Digital Transformation in the Semiconductor Industry: Proactive Consideration in Early Implementation Phase. IEEE Access . vol.13, 2025, pp. 78107–19 Lehman WE, Greener JM, Simpson DD (2002) Assessing organizational readiness for change. J Subst Abuse Treat 22(4):197–209 Lindner F, Przybysz KA, Schneider G, Keil S (2024) Workers’ Attitudes Towards Digital Transformation and Perceived Well-Being At Work: A Case Study. ACC J 30(2):47–62 Marzi G, Marrucci A, Vianelli D, Ciappei C (2023) B2B digital platform adoption by SMEs and large firms: Pathways and pitfalls. Ind Mark Manage 114:80–93 Mathur M, Kapoor T, Swami S (2023) Readiness for organizational change: the effects of individual and organizational factors. J Adv Manage Res 20(4):730–757 Matthysen M, Harris C (2018) The relationship between readiness to change and work engagement: A case study in an accounting firm undergoing change. SA J Hum Resource Manage 16(1):1–11 Montes FJL, Moreno AR, Morales VG (2005) Influence of support leadership and teamwork cohesion on organizational learning, innovation and performance: an empirical examination. Technovation 25(10):1159–1172 Mullins R, Agnihotri R (2022) Digital selling: organizational and managerial influences for frontline readiness and effectiveness. J Acad Mark Sci 50(4):800–821 Piderit SK (2000) Rethinking resistance and recognizing ambivalence: A multidimensional view of attitudes toward an organizational change. Acad Manage Rev 25(4):783–794 Podsakoff PM, Organ DW (1986) Self-reports in organizational research: Problems and prospects. J Manag 12(4):531–544 Sadarić A, Škerlavaj M (2023) Leader idea championing for follower readiness to change or not? A moderated mediation perspective of prosocial sensegiving. J Change Manage 23(2):200–227 Salanova M, Lorente L, Chambel MJ, Martínez IM (2011) Linking transformational leadership to nurses’ extra-role performance: the mediating role of self‐efficacy and work engagement. J Adv Nurs 67(10):2256–2266 Samaranayake SU, Takemura T (2017) Employee readiness for organizational change: a case study in an export oriented manufacturing firm in Sri Lanka. Eurasian J Bus Econ 10(20):1–16 Schmitt L, Casenave E, Pallud J (2021) Salespeople's work toward the institutionalization of social selling practices. Ind Mark Manage 96:183–196 Shankar A, Gupta R, Kumar A, Biswas B, Rathore B (2025) Exploring the adoption of enterprise metaverse in business-to-business (B2B) organisations. Ind Mark Manage 124:224–238 Sujan H, Weitz BA, Kumar N (1994) Learning orientation, working smart, and effective selling. J Mark 58(3):39–52 Tierney P (1999) Work relations as a precursor to a psychological climate for change: The role of work group supervisors and peers. J Organizational Change Manage 12(2):120–134 Tuli KR, Kohli AK, Bharadwaj SG (2007) Rethinking customer solutions: From product bundles to relational processes. J Mark 71(3):1–17 Xu Y, Li C (2023) Digital transformation, firm boundaries, and market power: Evidence from China’s listed companies. Systems , 11(9), p.479 Yun JJ, Zhao X, Ahn H (2025) Open innovation over the regional and national boundaries in the semiconductor industry: The effects of digital transformation and decoupling of the global value chain. Sci Technology Society 30(1):7–29 Zoltners AA, Sinha P, Sahay D, Shastri A, Lorimer SE (2021) Practical insights for sales force digitalization success. J Personal Sell Sales Manage 41(2):87–102 Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8947438","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":617899409,"identity":"99d7f8b9-a4fb-494e-bd0d-2dea22d9e432","order_by":0,"name":"DONGXUAN CHEN","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA/0lEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDACCSDmgbKZGQ7YgKgGBoYDxGtJY2BgYyRNy2HCWvhnNx978Kbijt2GG8nPHhecOS9ncL+x8cGHMwzy/GLY9UncOZZuOOfMs+SZM9LMjWfcuG1scIyx2XDGDQbDmbMTsGoxkMgxk+ZtO5zML5FgJs3z4XbihmOMbUAGQ4LBbVxa8r+BtbBJpH8DqjxHjJYcNpAWO36QdTw3DkC13MCtReJGmpnknDOHEyR73pRJ85xJNpY8lgj0yxkJnH7hn5H8TOJNxWF7g+Pp26R5jtnJ8R0+fPDBh2M28vzS2LXAQGIDuvV4lYOAPUEVo2AUjIJRMHIBALWJY9zgb0VjAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"","institution":"Hong Kong Polytechnic University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"DONGXUAN","middleName":"","lastName":"CHEN","suffix":""},{"id":617899417,"identity":"367d0149-0b38-46ed-bdf7-8d6b1b78104d","order_by":1,"name":"Vincent Cho","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Hong Kong Polytechnic University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Vincent","middleName":"","lastName":"Cho","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-02-23 13:08:31","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8947438/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8947438/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":106726853,"identity":"55bbdbf6-7223-48d6-858b-f56956fab9ac","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-12 18:37:25","extension":"jpg","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":67478,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eThe hypothesized model of drivers for salespeople’s readiness for change (Source: Author)\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Picture1.jpg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8947438/v1/44bac8a33508958fa09a8a4b.jpg"},{"id":106647426,"identity":"81410372-f231-4aa6-a6f3-7bd65830646c","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-10 20:48:29","extension":"jpg","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":78454,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eResults of regression analysis for the \u003cstrong\u003ehypothesized model (Source: Author)\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Picture2.jpg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8947438/v1/d27fd0c2c86ecae59c402056.jpg"},{"id":107479269,"identity":"c46cfe04-8c4f-41e0-a2c9-ee40d2864ddf","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-22 01:21:57","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":792976,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8947438/v1/8f974b67-5e63-4cdd-bdf6-23176119572c.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"A study of salespeople's psychological readiness towards digital transformation in semiconductor organization","fulltext":[{"header":"1. Introduction","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe semiconductor industry is the cornerstone of the modern digital economy, with its products widely used in various electronic devices, ranging from smartphones and Internet of Things devices to supercomputers and artificial intelligence systems (Yun, Zhao and Ahn, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e). This industry is typically both technology-intensive and capital-intensive, having developed a highly globalized and specialized division of labor that relies heavily on global supply chains (Kim and Cho, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e). In recent years, as international conflicts have intensified, the fragility of this industrial chain has become increasingly apparent. At the same time, the rapid development of digital technology has brought significant opportunities to semiconductor companies, effectively leveraging these technologies can not only enhance corporate performance but also strengthen their ability to cope with market uncertainties (Yun, Zhao and Ahn, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e; Marzi et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). Against this backdrop, a growing number of semiconductor companies are actively utilizing digital technologies to boost their competitiveness.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTherefore, for sales organizations in the semiconductor sector, falling behind in digital capabilities could lead to marginalization within the value chain. Consequently, a growing number of agents and distributors are accelerating the deployment of digital sales initiatives to maintain competitiveness and solidify their market position (Schmitt, Casenave and Pallud, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR39\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e; Hallikainen, Savim\u0026auml;ki and Laukkanen, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Shankar et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR40\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eHowever, despite actively promoting digital transformation, many companies commonly find themselves struggling with a high failure rate. According to statistics from Zoltners et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR46\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e), approximately 70% of such projects fail to achieve their objectives. The root cause, as pointed out by Piderit (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR34\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2000\u003c/span\u003e), is that employees\u0026rsquo; resistance and negative reactions to organizational change are one of the key factors hindering transformation and even leading to its failure. Further corroborating this, research by Huang (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e) confirms that employee behavior profoundly influences the ultimate outcomes of digital transformation.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn the semiconductor industry, frontline sales personnel are facing increasingly prominent dual pressures. As business models continue to evolve, salespeople play a critical role in the value realization process. The solution sales model proposed by Tuli, Kohli, and Bharadwaj (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e) emphasizes that salespeople must continuously optimize solutions to consistently respond to customer needs. Grove et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e) further point out that the sales function is undergoing a paradigm shift from transaction-oriented to outcome-oriented, with its core objective focused on helping customers achieve quantifiable business outcomes and becoming trusted \u0026ldquo;value co-creation partners\u0026rdquo;.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eHowever, these evolving business models also bring about an expansion of salespeople\u0026rsquo;s work boundaries (Hochstein et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). At the same time, effectively applying digital technology to work is no easy task but rather a complex skill that is difficult to master quickly (Lindner et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e). Therefore, frontline sales personnel under dual pressures, if lacking effective support and alleviation over the long term, may intensify their resistance to technology adoption, ultimately hindering the company\u0026rsquo;s progress in digital sales transformation (Guenzi and Nijssen, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eNumerous academic studies based on organizational climate theory indicate that organizational support, such as institutionalized structures, digital education, and effective incentive mechanisms, can help employees recognize the advantages of digital sales, thereby promoting their adoption of relevant technologies in practice (Schmitt, Casenave and Pallud, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR39\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e; Lee and Yi, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e; Katsaros and Tsirikas, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). However, the impact of organizational climate factors such as trust in leadership and cohesion on employees\u0026rsquo; readiness for digital sales has rarely been explored. Although studies in other fields have confirmed the significant positive effects of these factors on employees\u0026rsquo; change readiness (Guenzi and Nijssen, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e; Samaranayake and Takemura, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e), this area of research remains underdeveloped in high-tech industries, such as the semiconductor sector.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTherefore, this study will employ a questionnaire survey to systematically investigate the impact mechanisms of three key factors in organizational climate\u0026mdash;Digital Selling Psychological Climate, Trust In Leadership, and Cohesion\u0026mdash;on the digital sales readiness of frontline sales personnel in the semiconductor industry. The aim is to provide theoretical insights and practical guidance for enterprises advancing digital selling transformation.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn the subsequent chapters, this paper will sequentially construct a theoretical framework, elaborate on the investigation process and data analysis, and propose recommendations for corporate digital selling practices based on the research findings.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"2. Conceptual framework development","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec3\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.1 Digital Selling\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAccording to the study of Xu and Li (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR44\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e), DT is regarded as a key strategic pathway for enterprises to build and sustain a lasting competitive advantage. In the semiconductor industry, companies are increasingly adopting digital sales models to enhance operational efficiency and customer responsiveness. In this context, Digital Selling Transformation refers to the process through which frontline sales personnel utilize digital technologies to reconfigure traditional sales models, thereby achieving systematization, data-driven decision-making, and intelligent automation in sales activities.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec4\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.2 The Need for Digital Selling: the leading indicator of Digital Selling Readiness\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAccording to the definition by Armenakis, Harris and Mossholder (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1993\u003c/span\u003e), readiness for change refers to the beliefs, attitudes, and behavioral intentions of organizational members toward change, reflecting their psychological tendency to support or resist a specific change. In the context of digital transfermation, this concept can be further contextualized as \u0026ldquo;Digital Selling Readiness\u0026rdquo;, which denotes frontline sales personnel\u0026rsquo;s trust in and acceptance of digital technologies, as well as their psychological and behavioral preparedness to proactively adopt and apply digital tools in sales tasks.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAs noted by Herscovitch and Meyer (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR15\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2002\u003c/span\u003e), employees\u0026rsquo; readiness for not only helps reduce resistance to change at the organizational level but also effectively predicts the ultimate success of change implementation. Particularly in sales functions, where employees serve as the critical interface between the enterprise and customers, their acceptance and utilization of digital tools directly impact customer experience, responsiveness, and overall performance. Therefore, accurately assessing the readiness of frontline sales personnel to adapt to DT helps mitigate potential cognitive resistance and operational obstacles in the early stages of transformation. Moreover, the support from employees with high readiness for change is crucial for ensuring a smooth change process.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTheoretical frameworks on \u0026ldquo;readiness\u0026rdquo; in existing research present multidimensional perspectives across different contexts. Mullins and Agnihotri (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e) systematically conceptualize digital readiness as the perceived need for digital technologies, which encapsulates an individual\u0026rsquo;s cognitive and affective readiness and drives the proactive use of these tools to address sales-related business challenges.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eBased on the aforementioned theoretical framework, this study considers frontline sales personnel\u0026rsquo;s perceived need for digital technology as a core indicator for assessing their Digital Selling Readiness. By measuring the extent to which employees recognize the necessity of digital technologies in their sales tasks, it is possible to effectively reflect their cognitive and emotional preparedness.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec5\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.3 Digital Selling Psychological Climate: the cornerstone of implementing organizational strategies\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAccording to Tierney (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR42\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1999\u003c/span\u003e), psychological climate is defined as employees\u0026rsquo; subjective perception of the organization\u0026rsquo;s emphasis at the strategic level. Building on this, Mullins and Agnihotri (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e), further proposed the core concept of \u0026ldquo;Digital Selling Psychological climate\u0026rdquo;, defining it as salespeople\u0026rsquo;s shared perception of the organization\u0026rsquo;s encouragement, support, and reward for the application of digital technologies in sales activities. Drawing on this concept, this study aims to explore how semiconductor industry salespeople\u0026rsquo;s perception of organizational support for Digital Selling influences their readiness.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec6\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.4 Trust in Leadership: the real starting point for leadership practices\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAccording to research by Korsgaard, Sapienza and Schweiger (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2002\u003c/span\u003e), Trust in Leadership refers to employees\u0026rsquo; perception of the credibility of their direct supervisors and senior management. In this paper, it is conceptualized as the extent to which employees have confidence in the capability, determination, and sincerity demonstrated by management in driving the digital sales transformation.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec7\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5 Cohesion: the key guarantee for achieving team goals\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAccording to the research by Koys and DeCotiis (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1991\u003c/span\u003e), team cohesion is defined as employees\u0026rsquo; subjective perception of mutual support and collaboration among team members. Building on this, the present study operationalizes team cohesion as employees\u0026rsquo; comprehensive perception of the willingness to collaborate, mutual assistance behaviors, and supportive atmosphere within the team during the process of digital sales transformation.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn summary, this paper constructs a conceptual framework, aiming to systematically examine the key drivers and mechanisms of influence.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"3. Theorical Framework and hypotheses","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec9\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.1 Digital Selling Psychological Climate\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Digital Selling Psychological Climate, as a critical strategic element in organizational environments, demonstrates its significance through profound impacts on frontline sales personnel\u0026rsquo;s specific digital practice behaviors. Distinct from broad concepts like \u0026ldquo;organizational climate\u0026rdquo; or \u0026ldquo;culture\u0026rdquo;, the digital sales psychological climate possesses a clear strategic focus\u0026mdash;it specifically denotes sales personnel\u0026rsquo;s shared perceptions of organizational expectations, support, and rewards regarding digital sales (Klein and Sorra, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1996\u003c/span\u003e). Drawing on the research of Evans et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e), the Digital Selling Psychological Climate acts as a sense-making framework. It allows sales personnel to systematically interpret the organization\u0026rsquo;s resource allocation, performance expectations, and value propositions regarding digital sales.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSpecifically, a positive Digital Selling Psychological Climate drives sales personnel\u0026rsquo;s digital behaviors through two key mechanisms.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003col\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eGoal-alignment mechanism\u003c/b\u003e: It explicitly links \u0026ldquo;using digital technologies\u0026rdquo; to core organizational performance objectives, such as sales volume and customer conversion rates. When sales perceive that the organization expects and rewards the use of digital tools to achieve sales outcomes, they clearly recognize the necessity and strategic value of developing digital capabilities. Consequently, they view digital technology adoption as an essential pathway to achieving both personal and organizational goals.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eCapability building mechanism\u003c/b\u003e: During the DT process, organizations aim to reduce employees\u0026rsquo; barriers to adopting new technologies by providing systematic digital tool training, professional technical support, and easily accessible data analysis resources. When employees perceive a supportive organizational atmosphere, they are more likely to view these resources as effective aids for mastering digital skills and achieving digital sales goals. This perception not only encourages proactive use of the tools but also boosts employees\u0026rsquo; confidence and sense of control over technology applications, thereby further increasing the success rate of technology adoption.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003c/ol\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eUnder the combined influence of this climate, salespeople actively assess the level of organizational encouragement and support for using digital technologies in sales processes. When they perceive that the organization not only \u0026ldquo;expects\u0026rdquo; them to adopt digital tools but also provides tangible \u0026ldquo;support\u0026rdquo; and \u0026ldquo;rewards\u0026rdquo;, they are more likely to proactively adapt their technology adoption behaviors. Moreover, they become significantly more aware of how digital technologies can address shortcomings in traditional sales models (e.g., over-reliance on in-person visits and delayed information access), leading to identification with and acceptance of digital sales practices. This ultimately translates into an internalized, strong demand for digital tools and methodologies. As such, the study assumes that:\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eH1 Digital Selling Psychological Climate has a positive effect on the Need for Digital Selling.\u003c/b\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec10\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.2 Trust In Leadership\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eDuring organizational change processes, particularly DT, task deviation risks and high uncertainty often emerge, which instinctively trigger employees\u0026rsquo; resistance and anxiety, significantly reducing their willingness to participate in the change (Tierney, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR42\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1999\u003c/span\u003e). In this context, leadership behavior becomes a critical moderating factor influencing employees\u0026rsquo; readiness for change (Islam, Idris and Furuoka, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Leaders can foster change acceptance through the following three core mechanisms.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003col\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eTransparent communication mechanism\u003c/b\u003e: Leaders clearly and consistently communicate the strategic objectives of digital sales, specific implementation plans, and potential challenges and risks, reducing information asymmetry and transforming employees from passive recipients of change into active participants (Matthysen and Harris, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eRelationship-building mechanism\u003c/b\u003e: Leaders strive to establish open and reliable working relationships by listening, supporting, and empowering employees, enabling them to consistently perceive organizational backing, thereby enhancing their sense of security and belonging (Sadarić and Škerlavaj, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR36\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eLeadership exemplary effect\u003c/b\u003e: Leaders demonstrate positive attitudes and behaviors toward innovation, serving as role models. As noted by Salanova et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR37\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e), this effect can effectively stimulate employees\u0026rsquo; intrinsic motivation, innovative spirit, and adaptability, setting an example for adopting new practices.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003c/ol\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eHowever, Graen and Uhl-Bien (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1995\u003c/span\u003e) argue that the quality of the relationship between employees and their leaders\u0026mdash;known as leader-member exchange (LMX)\u0026mdash;significantly influences how employees interpret managerial behaviors. In high-quality LMX relationships, leaders\u0026rsquo; use of soft influence tactics, such as consultation and inspiration is more likely to be perceived as genuine support, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of policy implementation. In contrast, in low-quality LMX relationships, even identical tactics may be interpreted as manipulative or self-serving. Therefore, trust serves as a critical mediating mechanism that enables employees to accurately understand leadership intentions and actions.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn the context of Digital Selling transformation, if employees have a high level of trust in their leaders, they are more likely to interpret initiatives promoting digital sales as strategically visionary rather than merely driven by short-term pressures. Simultaneously, salespeople are more inclined to recognize the leader\u0026rsquo;s capability to achieve goals and feel motivated by their behavioral modeling, thereby enhancing their own willingness and actions to engage in digital practices.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn summary, Trust In Leadership not only helps alleviate employees\u0026rsquo; doubts and resistance toward DT goals, evaluation methods, and incentive mechanisms but also significantly enhances their willingness to participate organizational commitment. Through such positive interactions, employees are more likely to perceive digital technologies as effective tools for addressing challenges and achieving performance goals, thereby gradually developing an intrinsic demand for digital solutions. Therefore, this paper proposes that:\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eH2 Trust In Leadership has a positive effect on the Need for Digital Selling.\u003c/b\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec11\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3 Cohesion\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eLee and Yi (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e) emphasizes that the transformation of sales models cannot rely solely on fragmented individual efforts. As a fundamental restructuring of traditional sales approaches, digital sales depends more heavily on collaborative team practices. In this process, team cohesion\u0026mdash;a key dimension of organizational climate\u0026mdash;significantly shapes members\u0026rsquo; perceptions and behavioral responses to the shift toward digital sales.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFirstly, highly cohesive teams are more likely to develop a \u0026ldquo;collective spirit\u0026rdquo;, encouraging members to internalize team visions, such as \u0026ldquo;becoming a digital pioneer team\u0026rdquo;, as personal missions (Kleinewiese, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR23\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e). This fosters identity-based intrinsic motivation. Compared to external incentives, such motivation is more sustainable and helps employees proactively explore the value of digital technologies, develop an awareness of the need for technological application, and thereby provide a deeper driving force for the implementation of digital sales.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSecondly, highly cohesive teams serve as ideal vehicles for organizational learning by reducing communication costs and breaking down barriers to knowledge flow (Montes, Moreno and Morales, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR32\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2005\u003c/span\u003e). For example, during DT, when team members perceive a high level of cohesion within the organization, they are more willing to share knowledge and help peers solve problems related to digital technology applications. At the same time, colleagues facing technical difficulties are less likely to hesitate to seek help due to fear of losing face. This mechanism of knowledge sharing and collaborative problem-solving can significantly enhance members\u0026rsquo; self-efficacy in mastering new technologies. Such confidence in their abilities further motivates them to proactively identify their technological needs.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFinally, the formation of a highly cohesive team typically requires time, accumulated experience, and ongoing mutual adjustment. When team members successfully navigate organizational change within a high-cohesion environment, their shared positive experiences in managing such change gradually become embedded as valuable organizational memory (Mathur, Kapoor and Swami, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). This collective memory not only strengthens members\u0026rsquo; confidence in the team\u0026rsquo;s capacity for change but also motivates them to proactively embrace future transformation challenges, thereby fostering a positive attitude toward organizational change. This psychological mechanism helps alleviate members\u0026rsquo; anxiety during transitions while simultaneously enhancing their intrinsic motivation to adopt new technologies, ultimately deepening their recognition of the need for digital technology integration.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTherefore, many studies have confirmed that a highly cohesive organizational climate can significantly enhance employees\u0026rsquo; acceptance of organizational changes, such as DT, and generate demand for using digital technologies. Hence, the author formulates the following hypotheses:\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eH3 Cohesion has a positive effect on the Need for Digital Selling.\u003c/b\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn summary, this paper constructs a hypothetical model as shown in Fig.\u0026nbsp;1 to analyze the impact of the aforementioned three major factors on digital readiness.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"4. Study","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec13\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.1 Methodology\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec14\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.1.1 Questionnaire development\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis study employed a self-report questionnaire to test the theoretical model. All constructs in the questionnaire were measured using a 7-point Likert scale (1\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;strongly disagree, 7\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;strongly agree). In the designing of the questionnaire, well-established scales were adapted, and the terminology of certain constructs was localized to suit the specific context of the semiconductor industry. To enhance the content applicability of the scales, qualitative interviews were conducted with frontline sales personnel who had recently participated in digital sales projects, focusing on identifying the digital sales tools and industry-specific expressions they use in their daily work. Based on the interview results, the semantic expression and contextual relevance of the scale items were optimized. These adjustments were made without deviating from the theoretical structure and measurement logic of the original scales, thereby improving the comprehensibility and relevance of the scales within the industry context. Specifically:\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003col\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Digital Selling Psychological Climate scale was adapted from the 6-item scale developed by Mullins and Agnihotri (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e), with some items adjusted to fit the digital sales context. For example, \u0026ldquo;In our sales organization, I have easy access to content that aligns with the customer purchase journey (designed to assess whether the organization provides structured and process-oriented content support for Digital Selling)\u0026rdquo;.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe scales for Trust In Leadership and Cohesion were adopted from Bouckenooghe, Devos and Van (2009), including items, such as \u0026ldquo;There is effective two-way communication between company management and various departments\u0026rdquo; and \u0026ldquo;There is intense competition among colleagues in my department\u0026rdquo;. After data collection, some respondents reported difficulty understanding certain items in the Cohesion scale due to potential semantic deviations during translation. To ensure good convergent and discriminant validity, two ambiguous items were ultimately removed.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Need for Digital Selling was measured using a 4-item scale adapted from Mullins and Agnihotri (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e), with items contextually optimized to reflect practices in the semiconductor industry. For instance, an original item was rephrased as: \u0026ldquo;I believe social media tools (e.g., WeChat, Official Accounts) are crucial for maintaining relationships with potential customers\u0026rdquo;. However, after data collection, multiple respondents indicated that this item did not align with the actual context of the semiconductor industry, making it difficult to achieve the intended measurement purpose. To improve content validity and measurement accuracy, this item was deleted.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eLearning Orientation was measured using the 4-item Learning Orientation scale developed by Sujan, Weitz and Kumar (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR41\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1994\u003c/span\u003e), including items, such as \u0026ldquo;I consistently learn new knowledge related to customers\u0026rdquo;.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003c/ol\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe specific literature sources for each variable are detailed in Table\u0026nbsp;1.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"No\" id=\"Taba\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"3\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConstruct\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLiteratur support\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\" morerows=\"5\" rowspan=\"6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;1.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA review of literature support of the constructs (Source: Author)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDigital Selling Psychological Climate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMullins and Agnihotri (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTrust in Leadership\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBouckenooghe, Devos and Van (2009)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCohesion\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBouckenooghe, Devos and Van (2009)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Need for Digital Selling\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMullins and Agnihotri (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLearning Orietation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSujan, Weitz and Kumar (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR41\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1994\u003c/span\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFurthermore, in terms of page design, the authors followed the recommendations of Hulland, Baumgartner and Smith (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR18\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e) and implemented the following measures to mitigate common method bias (see Appendix 1 for details).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFinally, to eliminate potential language comprehension biases, the questionnaire was designed in both Chinese and English versions. Prior to formal data collection, a pilot test was conducted to ensure the validity of the questionnaire. This included a quantitative pilot study involving five sales professionals (Gr\u0026eacute;goire and Fisher, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2008\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec15\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.1.2 Survey design\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis questionnaire was conducted in September 2025, in China. The target respondents of this study were frontline practitioners aged over 18 with sales experience in the semiconductor industry. These respondents were not only familiar with industry sales processes but also had a basic understanding of digital sales technologies, often acquiring related knowledge through corporate training or social media platforms. The questionnaires were distributed on-site through random sampling and were completed and collected immediately to ensure data quality.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec16\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.1.3 Data collection\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eA total of 167 invitations were sent out, with 123 valid questionnaires returned, yielding a response rate of 73.7%. The sample covered practitioners of education levels, work experience, and job positions, demonstrating strong representativeness.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec17\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.2 Results\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec18\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.2.1 Demographic profile\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003epresents the demographic distribution of survey respondents. It is noteworthy that 74.8% of the respondents hold a bachelor\u0026rsquo;s degree or higher, and 91.9% possess more than seven years of industry experience. These demographic characteristic align closely with the unique nature of the semiconductor industry. Given that the industry requires sales professionals to have a deep understanding of complex product architectures and technical solutions, practitioners generally need a relatively high educational background as a knowledge foundation. At the same time, sales personnel heavily rely on long-term practical experience to master industry-specific sales processes, customer decision-making mechanisms, and communication strategies. Therefore, an extended period of professional experience is essential for sustaining long-term career development. This explains why most respondents have experienced their organizations\u0026rsquo; Digital Selling transformation processes. The sample also demonstrates a relatively balanced representation between frontline sales staff (43.1%) and sales supervisors (56.9%). These randomly sampled characteristics effectively represent the current frontline sales workforce undergoing DT in the semiconductor industry.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"4\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"15\" rowspan=\"16\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eDemographic profile summary (Source: Author)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFrequency\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEducation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHigh school / secondary specialized school\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eJunior college\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e18\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e14.60%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBachelor\u0026rsquo;s degree\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e92\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e74.80%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMaster\u0026rsquo;s degree or higher\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e13\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10.60%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWork Experince\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLess than 1 years\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.00%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 to 3 years\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.60%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3 to 6 years\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.50%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMore than 7 years\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e113\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e91.90%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePosition\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePre sales\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e12.20%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSales\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e20.30%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePro sales\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e13\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10.60%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSales Supervisors\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e70\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e56.90%\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec19\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.2.2 Instrument validity and reliability\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003ePrior to testing the theoretical model using structural equation modelling, this paper first examined the reliability and validity of the collected data. As shown in Table\u0026nbsp;4, with the exception of Cohesion (α\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.68) which fell slightly below the recommended threshold of 0.70, the alpha coefficients for the remaining four constructs ranged between 0.70\u0026ndash;0.89, indicating good scale reliability (Hair, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR13\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn terms of validity, as shown in the PCA results in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e, all measurement items loaded significantly on their corresponding factors, and no significant cross-factor loadings were observed, indicating that the constructs in this study possess good validity.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec20\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.2.3 Common method bias\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo examine potential common method bias, this study first employed PCA along with VARIMAX orthogonal rotation to conduct an exploratory factor analysis on the 18 measurement items (as Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e shown). Following the Kaiser criterion of eigenvalues greater than 1, the analysis extracted a total of five factors. According to Harman\u0026rsquo;s single-factor test proposed by Podsakoff and Organ (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR35\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1986\u003c/span\u003e), in this study, the first factor accounted for only 18.743% of the total variance, while the cumulative variance explained by the five factors reached 70.4%, indicating that the data did not exhibit a covariance structure dominated by a single latent factor. Therefore, it can be concluded that the impact of common method bias on the findings of this study is within an acceptable range.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec21\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.2.4 Data convergence validity analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAccording to Campbell and Fiske (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR4\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1959\u003c/span\u003e), convergent validity refers to the level of consistency that should exist between results obtained when measuring the same construct using different methods. To ensure strong convergent validity, this study adopted the dual criteria proposed by Fornell and Larcker (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1981\u003c/span\u003e) for evaluation.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003epresents the factor loading results of the 18 measurement items. The analysis reveals that 14 items exceeded the recommended threshold of 0.70 for their respective constructs. However, three items in the Digital Selling Psychological Climate construct (with loadings of 0.580, 0.685, and 0.670) and one item in the Need for Digital Selling construct (loading of 0.639), while slightly below the threshold. As Table\u0026nbsp;4 shown, the analysis of AVE revealed that all constructs surpassed the critical benchmark of 0.50. Therefore, although some individual measurement values in this study did not fully meet the expected standards, the overall measurement results still satisfy the dual criteria for convergent validity.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"24\" rowspan=\"25\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eResults of PCA with VARIMAX rotation (Source: Author)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFactor Loadings of Constructs\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eConstructs\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDigital Selling Psychological Climate\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn our sales organization,I can easily access content that is aligned with a potential customer\u0026rsquo;s buying process.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.580\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.181\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.259\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.190\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.193\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn our sales organization,I follow a sales process that is attuned to our customers\u0026rsquo; interactions with our digital media.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.809\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.131\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.006\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.031\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.066\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn our sales organization,we have extensive support to help with problems related to our digital media tools and platforms.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.753\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.138\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.111\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.031\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.160\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn our sales organization,creating relationships through digital channels is highly valued.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.685\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.176\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.051\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.396\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.099\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn our sales organization, top management shows a clear a visible commitment towards our digital selling strategy.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.670\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.176\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.096\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.271\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.011\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn our sales organization,we are well trained in the use of our digital media tools and platforms.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.719\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.171\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.062\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.272\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.063\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrust in Leadership\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCorporate management team consistently implements its policies in all departments.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.261\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.814\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.182\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.013\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.088\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCorporate management team fulfils its promises.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.212\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.856\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.113\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.132\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.095\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCorporate management team keeps all departments informed about its decisions.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.184\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.779\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.081\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.291\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTwo-way communication between the corporate management.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.135\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.834\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.126\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.199\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.027\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eCohesion\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThere is a strong rivalry between colleagues in my department.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.115\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.178\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.004\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.109\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.870\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eI doubt whether all of my colleagues are sufficiently competent.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.049\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.061\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.249\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.148\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.795\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eLearning Orientation\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eI am always learning something new about my customers.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.088\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.206\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.866\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.023\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.066\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIt is worth spending a great deal of time learning new approaches for dealing with customers.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.114\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.034\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.871\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.057\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.153\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLearning how to be a better salesperson is of fundamental importance to me.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.121\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.165\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.860\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.010\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.030\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Need for Digital Selling\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAn important part of being a good salesperson is continually building your credibility through digital platforms.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.317\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.152\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.290\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.639\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.094\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eI believe social media tools (e.g., WeChat, Official Account) are integral for staying connected with potential customers.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.181\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.260\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.072\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.739\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.134\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eA salesperson who does not maintain a social network presence (e.g.,Moments, Channels) will be unable to become a top performer.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.180\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.129\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;.159\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e.778\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e.112\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec22\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.2.5 Variable Independence\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo determine their suitability for subsequent regression analysis, this study employed Pearson correlation analysis to examine the relationships among the five variables. The results presented in Table\u0026nbsp;4 show that there are no statistically significant correlations among these variables.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec23\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.2.6 Data discriminant validity analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAs shown in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e, all items loaded significantly on their intended factors, with no notable cross-loadings on other factors, indicating good discriminant validity of the measurement model.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo further assess discriminant validity, this study applied the criterion developed by Fornell and Larcker (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1981\u003c/span\u003e). As presented in Table\u0026nbsp;4, the correlation matrix shows that all diagonal values (representing the square roots of AVEs) are significantly larger than the off-diagonal correlation coefficients, confirming that all constructs in this study exhibit satisfactory discriminant validity.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec24\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.2.7 Covariates\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis study introduces covariates that may explain significant variations in digital sales readiness. This approach also helps mitigate the interference of unobserved heterogeneity with the research findings and rules out other potential explanations (Ye, Marinova and Singh, 2007). Specifically, at the salespeople level, demographic variables were controlled for, including sales experience (measured in years) and tenure within the enterprise (measure in years), to capture variations in the dependent variable attributable to factors such as knowledge. Additionally, Learning Orientation, measured using the single-item scale developed by Sujan, Weitz and Kumar (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR41\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1994\u003c/span\u003e), was included as a covariate.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAs shown in Table\u0026nbsp;4, these variables exhibited no significant correlation with the Need for Digital Selling, indicating the absence of multicollinearity issues in the analysis.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec25\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.2.8 Descriptive analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAs shown in Table\u0026nbsp;4, the standard deviations of the measurement items indicate sufficient data dispersion to effectively reflect population characteristics. The measurements based on the 7-point Likert scale reveal the following findings: First, respondents demonstrated significant demand for using digital technologies, with a mean score of 4.95 (approaching the \u0026ldquo;agree\u0026rdquo; level). Second, respondents generally perceived organizational encouragement and support for digital technology adoption (mean score\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4.9) and reported high Trust In Leadership (mean score\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;5.36). However, perceived cohesion scores were relatively low (mean score\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4.48), which may be attributed to industry-specific characteristics such as competition for client resources and the performance-driven nature of sales positions. Finally, respondents exhibited strong Learning Orientation (mean score\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;6.09), reflecting the semiconductor industry\u0026rsquo;s emphasis on knowledge accumulation among frontline personnel. Therefore, in the semiconductor sales sector, there is a broad consensus on the necessity of digital technologies, and sales personnel demonstrate a strong perception of organizational support and Trust in Leadership.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec26\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e4.2.9 Hypotheses testing with regression analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 5\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eand Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e present the standardized path coefficients between key constructs. The empirical analysis reveals that, with the exception of Learning Orientation which showed no significant predictive effect (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.02, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;0.05), Digital Selling Psychological Climate (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.397, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001), Trust in Leadership (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.237, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.01), and Cohesion (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.172, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05) all demonstrated significant positive influences on salespeople\u0026rsquo;s digital technology needs recognition. These findings support the Hypotheses H1, H2, and H3.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"4\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"15\" rowspan=\"16\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eResults of regression analysis for hypothesis testing (Source: Author)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModel1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModel2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDependable variable:\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Need for Digital Selling\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eControl variables\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMain effects\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStandardised coef\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStandardised coef\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eControl variables\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWork experience\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-0.162\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-0.122\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEducation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-0.042\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-0.101\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePosition\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.005\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.003\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMain effects\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDigital Selling Psychological Climate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.393***\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTrust in Leadership\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.237**\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCohesion\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.172*\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLearning Orientation\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.002\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eModel information\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.004\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.34\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e△R\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.336\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e*p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05; **p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.01; ***p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.001\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eCollectively, all predictor variables explained 34% of the variance in attitudes (R\u0026sup2; = 0.34), indicating that the research model possesses good predictive validity.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e4.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003eSummary of Pearson correlation and discriminant validity test (Source: Author)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n \u003ctable border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" width=\"842\"\u003e\n \u003ctbody\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 184px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eVariables\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 68px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMean\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 59px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSD\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd style=\"width: 108px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCronbach\u0026rsquo;s alpha\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 66px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAVE\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e1\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 74px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e3\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 71px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e4\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 62px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e5\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 184px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eDigital Selling Psychological Climate\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 68px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e4.90\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 59px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e1.15\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 108px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.85\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 66px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.50\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.707\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 74px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 71px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 62px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 184px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eTrust in Leadership\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 68px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e5.36\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 59px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e1.04\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 108px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.89\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 66px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.67\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.478**\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.819\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 74px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 71px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 62px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 184px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eCohesion\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 68px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e4.48\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 59px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e1.25\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 108px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.68\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 66px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.69\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.081\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.129\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 74px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.83\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 71px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 62px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 184px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eLearning Orientation\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 68px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e6.09\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 59px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.76\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 108px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.87\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 66px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.75\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.278**\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.314**\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 74px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e-0.199*\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 71px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.866\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 62px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 184px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThe Need of Digital Selling\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 68px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e4.95\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 59px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e1.16\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 108px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.72\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 66px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.52\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.520**\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 75px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.441**\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 74px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.254**\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 71px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.133\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" style=\"width: 62px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e0.721\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd nowrap=\"\" colspan=\"10\" style=\"width: 842px;\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eN (salespersons) = 123; \u0026nbsp;*p \u0026lt; 0.05; **p\u0026lt;0.01; ***p \u0026lt; 0.001\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003c/tbody\u003e\n \u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"5. Discussion","content":"\u003cp\u003eIn the technology-intensive semiconductor industry, digital sales transformation has become a key strategy for enterprises to build and maintain core competitiveness. However, technology adoption merely represents the first step of transformation. Its successful implementation fundamentally depends on frontline sales personnel\u0026rsquo;s active adoption and effective utilization of these digital tools. The study found that the \u0026ldquo;Digital Selling Psychological Climate\u0026rdquo; plays a pivotal role in the process of digital sales transformation. Specifically, the supportive organizational climate perceived by salespeople has a significant positive impact on their Digital Selling Readiness.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe study further uncovers two critical driving mechanisms:\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFirstly, Trust In Leadership can enhance salespeople\u0026rsquo;s readiness for Digital Selling transformation. Lehman, Greener and Simpson (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR27\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2002\u003c/span\u003e) have pointed out, if employees perceive their leaders as having strategic vision, capable of balancing organizational goals with employee interests in decision-making, and providing substantive support for change, their anxiety about the uncertainty of change will be significantly reduced. The study by Islam, Idris and Furuoka (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e) further supplements that employees\u0026rsquo; Trust In Leadership significantly influences their acceptance of the change. Therefore, building on trust, salespeople are more inclined to internalize the organizational vision as their personal action goals. This psychologically rooted mechanism, driven by Trust In Leadership, further translates into stronger willingness to adopt digital technologies and a clearer recognition of the need for digital sales transformation.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSecondly, high team cohesion significantly enhances sales personnel\u0026rsquo;s readiness for digital sales. In highly cohesive teams, members achieve complementary strengths and synergistic capabilities through continuous support and collaboration. This not only improves overall team performance but also boosts individuals\u0026rsquo; confidence in their own abilities. When salespeople perceive a sense of unity and support within their team, their self-efficacy in using digital technologies increases, making them more willing to experiment with and adopt digital tools.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFurthermore, team cohesion lays the foundation for building a dynamic learning ecosystem. Highly cohesive teams foster an environment conducive to knowledge sharing, experience transfer, and emotional support, serving as an ideal vehicle for organizational learning (Montes, Moreno and Morales, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR32\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2005\u003c/span\u003e). When facing challenges associated with the application of digital technologies, team members can quickly acquire new skills through efficient collaboration, thereby reducing learning costs. This collaborative learning mechanism not only accelerates the process of technological adaptation but also reinforces individuals\u0026rsquo; self-efficacy through continuous successful experiences.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAs a result, sales personnel become more proactive in exploring the value and advantages of digital technologies, gradually developing an intrinsic demand for continuous technological updates and deeper application. This, in turn, drives the ongoing refinement and expansion of digital sales practices.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"6. Contributions","content":"\u003cp\u003eThis study constructs an integrated theoretical framework: with a supportive organizational climate as the core engine, dual-driven by Trust In Leadership and Cohesion, collectively shaping sales personnel\u0026rsquo;s digital readiness. It makes contributions in three key aspects.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFirst, this study focuses on the semiconductor industry and examines sales personnel\u0026rsquo;s perceptions of organizational support, trust in leadership, and team atmosphere during the process of digital sales transformation. It effectively reveals the current state of their readiness for Digital Selling transformation, providing empirical evidence and practical guidance for management to optimize transformation strategies and enhance the success rate of change implementation.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSecond, the analytical framework developed in this study demonstrates strong transferability and can be extended to other technology-intensive manufacturing sectors and industries employing complex B2B business models. Enterprises undertaking significant organizational changes can draw on the ideas and methods of this research to systematically assess employees\u0026rsquo; psychological readiness, identify potential resistance, and formulate targeted interventions to ensure the smooth progress of transformations.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFinally, this study enriches and expands the application scenarios of the theory of readiness for change in the context of DT. By empirically examining the relationship between employees\u0026rsquo; organizational perceptions and readiness for change, it offers new empirical evidence and theoretical support for the deepening of this theory in high-tech industry settings.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"7. Theoretical implications","content":"\u003cp\u003eThis study carries significant theoretical and practical implications.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFirstly, to enhance frontline personnel's perception of organizational support for digital sales, enterprises should demonstrate their commitment through concrete actions\u0026mdash;such as integrating the digital transformation into strategic communications and including relevant behaviors in performance evaluations.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSecondly, the leadership should play a key demonstrative and guiding role in the process of digital sales transformation. eaders can win trust and support for digital strategies in two ways: on one hand, by exemplifying clear digital attitudes and behaviors, and on the other, by using consultation and motivation to balance rational guidance with emotional resonance.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFinally, managers in semiconductor companies should attach great importance to fostering team cohesion and strive to create a highly supportive and collaborative team atmosphere. This research results indicate that sales personnel\u0026rsquo;s perception of team cohesion is not significant, reflecting that corporate team building still requires strengthening. To effectively enhance team cohesion, management can focus on the following three aspects:\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003col\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eClarify role division to alleviate the \u0026ldquo;individual ambidexterity dilemma\u0026rdquo;.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eSystematically implement team-building activities.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003eEstablish team-oriented incentive mechanisms.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003c/ol\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThrough these measures, salespeople will continuously accumulate experience through collaboration, optimize technology application strategies, and ultimately develop self-driven patterns of technology adoption.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"8. Limitations and future studies","content":"\u003cp\u003eAlthough this study has made certain progress in exploring the drivers of Digital Selling Readiness among sales personnel in semiconductor enterprises, several methodological limitations remain and should be addressed in future research.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFirst, the sample\u0026rsquo;s representativeness is limited. Due to the specialized nature of the industry, the pool of eligible respondents was limited, and the use of random sampling methods resulted in a relatively small sample size. Future studies could enhance sample diversity and representativeness by expanding the range of participating firms or conducting cross-regional sampling.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSecond, the measurement instrument\u0026rsquo;s ability to fully capture the construct requires improvement. Since this study employed only two items to measure cohesion, the sufficiency of the construct's measurement may be compromised, thereby affecting its content validity and discriminant validity. Future research is advised to adopt comprehensive scales or multidimensional measurement tools to capture the complex structure of cohesion more thoroughly and accurately.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFinally, the research design has static limitations. This study adopted a cross-sectional design, with all variables measured at the same point in time. However, as noted by Grimolizzi-Jensen (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e), readiness for change is a dynamically evolving process. Cross-sectional data struggle to accurately reveal causal relationships between variables or their dynamic evolutionary pathways. Future research could follow the recommendations of Caci et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e) by employing longitudinal designs or multi-stage data collection methods to delve deeper into the dynamic formation mechanisms of Digital Selling Readiness and its intrinsic patterns of evolution over time.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003ch2\u003eFunding Statement\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis paper was independently conducted by the author and did not receive any funding or sponsorship from any institution, organization, or individual. All related costs (including but not limited to data acquisition, experimentation, and publication fees) were borne solely by the author.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAuthor Contribution\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is my contribution. Vincent Cho offered guildline of the research.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eArmenakis AA, Harris SG, Mossholder KW (1993) Creating readiness for organizational change. Hum Relat 46(6):681\u0026ndash;703\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eBouckenooghe D, Devos G, Van den Broeck H (2009) Organizational change questionnaire\u0026ndash;climate of change, processes, and readiness: Development of a new instrument. 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Sci Technology Society 30(1):7\u0026ndash;29\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eZoltners AA, Sinha P, Sahay D, Shastri A, Lorimer SE (2021) Practical insights for sales force digitalization success. J Personal Sell Sales Manage 41(2):87\u0026ndash;102\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8947438/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8947438/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"Digital technology has become a core driver for enterprises to build market competitiveness, accelerating DT across various industries. Although digital tools provide employees with richer and more efficient work resources, their introduction is often accompanied by increased workload and heightened role pressure. Against this contradictory backdrop, for enterprises to ensure the success of DT, it is essential not only to adopt a systematic strategic approach but also to focus on the role of human factors at the micro level.\n \nTo support semiconductor enterprises in effectively advancing digital sales transformation, this study, based on the theory of employee’s readiness for change, constructs an individual-level framework for the influencing mechanisms of digital sales readiness. The research focuses on sales personnel’s perceptions of the organizational Digital Selling support atmosphere, Trust in Leadership, and Cohesion, aiming to reveal how these socio-psychological factors influence their willingness to adopt technology and their adaptability to change.\n \nThrough a random sampling questionnaire survey, this study collected valid data from 123 frontline sales personnel across multiple semiconductor enterprises to test the theoretical model and related hypotheses. Empirical results indicate that organizational support atmosphere, Trust in Leadership, and team cohesion all have significant positive effects on Digital Selling Readiness. Notably, the study found that sales personnel’s perception of team cohesion is relatively weak, reflecting a need to strengthen the culture of team collaboration.\n \nThis study not only uncovers the key psychological mechanisms driving Digital Selling Readiness but also provides targeted managerial insights for semiconductor enterprises: during the transformation process, efforts should be made to enhance organizational support, deepen leadership development, and optimize team collaboration to effectively improve the readiness of frontline salespeople, thereby laying a solid human resource foundation for DT.\n ","manuscriptTitle":"A study of salespeople's psychological readiness towards digital transformation in semiconductor organization","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-04-10 20:48:25","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8947438/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"12fcaf5a-6541-4831-8300-3689448759cb","owner":[],"postedDate":"April 10th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-10T20:48:25+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-04-10 20:48:25","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-8947438","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-8947438","identity":"rs-8947438","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}