MKT315 week 2 discussion 2 AND response

As a channel member in today’s market, my functions will be to buy and sell, maintain logistical functions, and facilitate functions for companies. I will need to analyze three factors in each company to fulfill my duties as a channel member. These factors are the size of the producer or manufacturer relative to the channel member, the organization of the channel, and the set of circumstances surrounding the channel relationship. I will first look at the individuals who are in power and then decide were the bases of power are placed within the company. The bases of power are legitimate, expert, referent, coercive, and reward. Legitimate power will decide positional power. Expert power will derive from the knowledge of the business. Referent power will come from interpersonal relationships in the company. Coercive power will be obtained by the ability to influence others in an organization. Reward power will be used to allocated incentives to influence and motivate employees. Each one of these power bases will be needed in an organization. Sometimes, authority stems from a person’s title in the organization, or from specialized knowledge and expertise (Merchant, 2019). Therefore, I would use all the power bases for channel control.

The two fundamental behavioral problems that arise in every organization are competition and conflict. Each one of these problems are going to happen, and an organization will have to arrive at solutions such as offering lower prices, market individuality, improve on customer feedback, define purpose, and quality of process.

Merchant, P. (2019). 5 Sources of Power in Organizations. Retrieved from