A large-scale study analysing more than 5.5 million retail transactions at a Fortune 500 company has found that when sales managers step in to assist their staff on the floor, teams outperform those without managerial support by 5% to 13% — translating to an estimated $13 million in additional annual revenue. The effect was strongest when managers took a secondary, supportive role rather than leading the interaction, as customers perceived this as a status boost for the salesperson, making them more inclined to buy. However, researchers caution that the benefit has limits: beyond roughly one in every three transactions, excessive manager involvement begins to hurt overall store performance, likely because managers are pulled away from their broader duties.