Conflict & communication
Best practices for resolving disputes involving overlapping territories or accounts between sales representatives fairly and transparently.
This guide outlines fair, transparent approaches to managing overlapping territories and shared accounts, emphasizing clear rules, collaborative negotiation, documented decisions, and consistent accountability to preserve trust and performance.
July 15, 2025 - 3 min Read
When territories and accounts overlap, the natural tension is competition and confusion. A structured approach begins with clarity: define the boundaries of each region, including what constitutes an overlap, and codify how assignments shift when strategic priorities change. Leaders should establish a neutral dispute mechanism, such as an escalation channel connected to a regional director or sales operations. This setup reduces ad hoc decisions and helps prevent resentment from simmering into persistent conflicts. Communication plays a central role; the more predictable the process, the easier it is for reps to align their efforts with the organization’s broader goals and client expectations.
Equitable resolution hinges on measurable criteria that guide decisions, not personalities. Create objective rules for overlap handling, such as revenue thresholds, account age, product line focus, and client lifetime value. Document these criteria in a shared policy that sales teams can reference during negotiations. In practice, this means agreeing on which rep is primary for a given account, when co-selling is appropriate, and under what circumstances a reallocation occurs. The policy should also specify timelines, review intervals, and the role of sales leadership in approving changes. When criteria are transparent, disputes shift from “who deserves it” to “what method serves the customer and the company best.”
Collaboration reduces friction and sustains customer value over time.
Transparency is not just a policy; it is a cultural habit that informs every interaction. Teams benefit when frontline reps understand how decisions are made and can trace how overlaps were resolved in past cases. A practical step is maintaining a central repository of overlap scenarios, including the rationale, data inputs, and outcomes. Regularly scheduled reviews of these cases help prevent repeated friction and provide a learning loop for both sales and operations. Such transparency also supports onboarding, as new hires learn the standard operating procedure for overlapping territories. When everyone sees the same rules applied consistently, trust grows and the organization experiences fewer reactive disputes.
Beyond policy, collaborative negotiation between involved reps often yields superior results for customers. Facilitate joint discovery sessions where the parties outline client needs, leverage points, and success metrics. During these conversations, encourage reps to propose win-win configurations rather than one-sided wins. A shared scorecard can track performance across overlapping zones, including account retention, cross-sell success, and time-to-value for clients. Leadership can observe the process and step in only to enforce fairness or resolve stalemates. The objective is to maintain customer continuity while honoring each rep’s strengths, ensuring long-term retention is not sacrificed for short-term gains.
Data-driven decisions reinforce fairness and accountability.
A practical framework for negotiation begins with listing each party’s contributions, client relationships, and knowledge of complex deals. This visibility helps identify where a rep’s strengths align with a particular client segment, which often clarifies who should lead engagements. In many cases, a hybrid approach—shared ownership with clearly defined milestones—serves both reps and clients well. The milestones should be tied to measurable outcomes such as renewal probability, upsell rate, and customer satisfaction scores. Establish interim reassignments when progress stalls, with defined criteria for reverting to original arrangements. By maintaining flexibility under a consistent governance model, teams stay focused on customer success rather than internal competition.
Equally important is the role of data in resolving overlapping territories. Centralize data streams from CRM, marketing automation, and customer success metrics to illuminate where overlaps occur and how they impact revenue. Data helps counter bias and supports objective decisions. Regular dashboards should highlight the mix of primary versus secondary ownership, the rate of conversion on overlapping opportunities, and the time elapsed since reassignment. When decisions are data-driven, reps feel they have a fair shot, and management can defend choices with evidence. In turn, this fosters accountability and reduces the likelihood of private negotiations undermining formal processes.
Consistency and audits build lasting trust in processes.
In addition to governance and data, training plays a critical role in conflict resolution. Equip sales teams with communication skills that promote constructive dialogue, such as active listening, reframing objections, and collaborative problem-solving. Role-playing scenarios based on realistic overlap cases can prepare reps to navigate tension without escalating disputes. Training should also cover conflict de-escalation techniques and the ethical guidelines for negotiating with colleagues. When reps feel competent handling disputes, they rely less on leadership intervention and more on their own negotiation craft. The organization benefits from smoother handoffs, quicker resolutions, and stronger, more resilient teams.
Another essential element is governance consistency across regions. When overlapping territories span multiple geographies or product lines, differences in local practices can complicate resolution. Standardize escalation paths so that every overlap case follows the same sequence of steps, approvals, and documentation, regardless of where it originates. This uniformity reduces confusion and avoids “territory bias.” Periodic audits of overlap decisions help detect drift from policy and provide opportunities to adjust rules to reflect changing markets. Ensuring consistency reinforces fairness and makes the entire process auditable, which increases confidence among sales staff and executive leadership alike.
Technology and customer focus sustain fair, swift agreements.
Customer-centric thinking should guide every negotiation about overlaps. When customers benefit from continuity, faster responses, and clear ownership, the organization earns loyalty that translates into greater lifetime value. Teams should map every overlap scenario to a customer journey, identifying touchpoints where handoffs matter most. If a client has longstanding relationships with multiple reps, the policy should favor continuity and minimize disruption, while still recognizing each rep’s contributions. Regularly collect customer feedback on the experience of working with overlapping territories, and use this input to tune the agreed-upon rules. The customer voice often reveals gaps that data alone cannot capture.
Tech-enabled collaboration tools can simplify dispute resolution. Use shared calendars, deal-ownership indicators, and real-time collaboration spaces to keep all stakeholders aligned. Automated alerts can notify reps when a reallocation is under consideration, preventing surprise changes. A transparent trail of decisions—who approved what, when, and why—should be readily accessible to relevant teams. By reducing information asymmetry, you bolster fairness and accelerate agreement. In environments where speed matters, a well-designed workflow becomes the backbone of reliable performance and healthy competition.
Finally, leadership accountability matters in maintaining fair practices. Senior managers must model collaborative dispute resolution, demonstrate adherence to policy, and address violations swiftly. Establish a quarterly review of overlap outcomes at the executive level, with clear metrics for success and consequences for noncompliance. Encourage leaders to share success stories where a fair process led to stronger client partnerships and higher team morale. Public acknowledgement of good behavior reinforces desired conduct and signals that fairness is non-negotiable. When leadership visibly supports the process, reps are more likely to engage honestly and work toward long-term, mutually beneficial results.
Sustaining fair dispute resolution requires ongoing iteration. Markets evolve, product lines shift, and sales teams grow, all of which can alter overlap dynamics. Build a feedback loop into governance that welcomes suggestions from frontline reps, account managers, and customer success professionals. Regular updates to the policy should reflect learnings from recent cases without compromising core principles. A living framework communicates adaptability while preserving the integrity of the process. With time, the organization will experience fewer escalations, quicker settlements, and better customer outcomes, reinforcing a durable foundation for cross-team collaboration and sustained revenue growth.
