There's no I in team: aligning self- and group-efficacy to optimize the effects of support on sales outcomes

Research has shown that self-efficacy influences individual performance. However, individuals often work in teams, and perceptions of the group's ability also impact performance. Drawing on social cognitive theory, we develop a proxy for efficacy alignment (self-efficacy = group-efficacy) and efficacy misalignment (self-efficacy not equal group-efficacy), and then position them as focal constructs in our conceptual framework. We test our model using three surveys across different sales contexts. First, we find that efficacy alignment is positively related to sales performance, goal achievement, and team satisfaction. Next, we position team and management support as antecedents to efficacy alignment, uncovering the indirect influence of support on sales outcomes through the mediating mechanism of efficacy alignment. Finally, if misalignment does occur, we show how a misalignment toward self-efficacy (self-efficacy > group-efficacy) benefits sales performance while a misalignment toward group-efficacy (self-efficacy < group efficacy) increases team satisfaction.