A Greater Understanding: How to Be a Strategic Sales Comp Partner

The leader of the sales department — the chief revenue officer (CRO) — places high importance on the effectiveness of the sales compensation program.

In many companies, this position owns the program. You can understand the CRO’s passion to ensure that the sales pay program drives the company’s strategic objectives, aligns to the market and motivates sellers to achieve their sales goals.

Each year, many sales comp design teams find themselves focused on executing tactical design decisions as they rush to implement the new fiscal year incentive plan. The proposed list of changes might be long and disconnected, such as adopting new measures and changing pay mix, hurdles and accelerators. Due to time limitations, many design teams fall short of being strategic in their design process.

Is there a role for human resources/compensation to contribute to the effectiveness of the sales compensation program? Unfortunately, many HR/comp professionals find themselves on their back foot when it comes to contributing to effective designs. We recommend implementing these four steps to become a strategic partner to your CRO:

1. Become an expert on all sales jobs
2. Apply corporate design principles
3. Invest in staying up to date with market practices
4. Set up your governance and manage your stakeholders

Download this article to learn more about these steps.

Article by Rachel Parrinello, Alexander Group
Published May 2019, Workspan, the Magazine of WorldatWork©

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