In the course of digitalization, companies are rethinking how they generate, process, and act on customer data and sales is at the center of this transformation. This module examines the strategic opportunities and challenges that digitalization and artificial intelligence create for sales organizations. Students learn to analyze changing market structures, new strategic options, the digitalized customer journey, and to translate these insights into concrete business decisions for sales force management. At the same time, the module addresses key implementation challenges, including sales force adoption, resistance to change, and the integration of digital tools into existing sales processes.

The module combines three elements: (1) engagement with current academic research through paper reading and presentations, (2) hands-on experience with digital sales tools in an in-class case study and (3) the development of a project report and presentation addressing a real, current challenge from a partner company’s sales organization. In the context of this partner company case study, students apply and deepen their theoretical knowledge and develop theory-grounded, actionable recommendations, which they discuss with experienced practitioners. At the end of the module, students present their case-study results to representatives of the partner company, who will challenge and assess the recommendations.