Sales Incentive Review
Incentives Sales understands and Finance signs.
We review and redesign variable pay for your commercial teams: how much variable each role should carry, which measures trigger it, how the pay curve behaves and what the plan costs in each attainment scenario. A reward decision with its financial model alongside.
Total Rewards
The most expensive reward decision almost nobody reviews.
Sales variable pay is usually the largest reward item after base salary and the one with most influence on team behaviour. Yet many plans are inherited year after year: accumulated measures, quotas nobody defends and payouts that do not distinguish a strong seller from a strong territory. We review it as a business decision: a diagnosis of the current plan, a design by role and a financial model that shows the cost before it is approved.
- Pay mix and target total opportunity by commercial role
- Measures, weights and pay curve: threshold, target and over-attainment
- Plan cost and cost of sales in each attainment scenario
- Plan governance: quotas, exceptions, payout windows and documentation
Illustrative design example
View the equivalent table
| Attainment | Variable payout |
|---|---|
| 70% · Threshold | 0× |
| 100% · Target | 1× |
| 120% · Accelerator | 1.5× |
| 150% · Cap | 2× |
| Role | Fixed | Variable |
|---|---|---|
| Sales representative | 65% | 35% |
| Key Account Manager | 70% | 30% |
| Territory manager | 75% | 25% |
| Commercial director | 80% | 20% |
What we review in your current plan.
We start from the plan as it operates, not as it is written: how each payout of the last cycle was calculated and what behaviour it produced in the team.
- 01
Plan architecture
Eligible roles, pay mix by role, target total opportunity and how it relates to the salary structure.
- 02
Measures and weights
What is measured (revenue, margin, product mix, new customers, collections) and with what weight. Few measures, tied to what the role controls.
- 03
Pay curve
Entry threshold, payout at target, accelerators above target, cap or no cap, and how the plan behaves at the extremes.
- 04
Quotas and territories
How targets are set, with which data and how much dispersion there is between territories and people.
- 05
Last cycle's payouts
Actual distribution of variable pay: who earned what against their attainment, concentration and outliers.
- 06
Governance and communication
Plan document, payout calendar, treatment of exceptions and how each seller understands it.
What the plan costs, before it is approved.
Each design is simulated with the real portfolio and headcount. The model shows total variable cost, cost of sales and the distribution of payouts across people in each scenario, so Finance approves the plan with the same numbers Sales will live with.
- 01Below thresholdTarget attainmentunder 70%Variable payout vs. target0×What it protectsNo variable pay for results that do not cover the cost of the sale
- 02EntryTarget attainment70% to 100%Variable payout vs. target0× to 1×What it protectsProportional payout from the threshold up to target
- 03Over-attainmentTarget attainment100% to 120%Variable payout vs. target1× to 1.5×What it protectsAccelerator: each point above target pays more than the last
- 04ExceptionalTarget attainment120% to 150%Variable payout vs. target1.5× to 2× (cap)What it protectsCap or windfall review above 150%
Illustrative example of a pay curve. Thresholds, multipliers and caps are defined by role and by company; they are not general recommendations.
Design principles.
An incentive plan is not fixed by adding measures. It is fixed by choosing few, paying well for what is hard to achieve and writing it so any seller can calculate their own payout.
- Few measures: three at most, each within the control of the role it pays.
- The curve pays more for the over-attainment that is hard to reach and nothing below the threshold.
- The pay mix reflects the role's influence on the sale, not its seniority.
- Defensible quotas: built from territory data and reviewed once per cycle, not every month.
- A plan document any seller understands on one page.
Five stages. Eight weeks of reference.
Diagnosis and design use the real portfolio and the last cycle's payouts. Roll-out is scheduled for the start of the next sales period, so the new plan starts with new quotas.
- 01Weeks 1–2
Diagnosis
Current plan, last cycle's payouts and interviews with commercial leaders.
- 02Weeks 2–3
Market reference
Pay mix, total opportunity and practices by role, with the Salary Benchmark as the base.
- 03Weeks 3–5
Design
Measures, weights, pay curve and quota method by role.
- 04Weeks 5–6
Financial model
Plan cost and payout distribution in each attainment scenario.
- 05Weeks 7–8
Documentation and launch
Written plan by role, example calculator and communication to the team.
Indicative eight-week reference for a plan with up to four commercial roles; confirmed at kick-off.
For which commercial teams.
The design changes with the sales cycle and with how much each role controls the result. These are the most frequent configurations.
- 01
Direct sales force
Representatives, account executives and territory managers: individual quota, monthly or quarterly payout and volume and mix measures.
- 02
Long-cycle B2B sales
Strategic accounts, tenders and technical sales: pipeline milestones, margin and measures that span more than one period.
- 03
Channels and distribution
Channel heads, distributors and trade marketing: sell-in versus sell-out, coverage and execution at the point of sale.
- 04
Commercial leadership
Commercial and sales directors: variable tied to team results, margin and portfolio quality.
Few measures, well paid
3
measures at most per plan, each within the control of the role it pays.
Method reference · Sales Incentive Review 2026
What your team receives
What your team receives.
For Finance
- Financial model of the plan: total variable cost, cost of sales and payout distribution by scenario
- Comparison of the current plan against the redesign using the last cycle's actual payouts
- Accrual rules, payout windows and treatment of exceptions
For Sales and HR
- Plan design by role: pay mix, measures, weights, pay curve and quota method
- One-page plan document per role and an example calculator for each seller
- Communication plan and launch session with commercial leaders
Reference timing
Eight weeks, from diagnosis to launch.
The calendar follows the start of the next sales period. If the current plan has an obvious problem in the curve or the quotas, the diagnosis shows it within the first two weeks.
- Weeks 1–3Diagnosis and reference · current plan, actual payouts and market reference by role
- Weeks 3–6Design and financial model · curve, measures, quotas and plan cost by scenario
- Weeks 7–8Documentation and launch · plan by role, calculator and communication to the team
Indicative reference, confirmed at kick-off.
How we start
Start with the last cycle's payouts.
There is no need to redesign everything. With the current plan and one cycle of actual payouts we know within two weeks whether the problem is in the curve, the measures or the quotas.
Related services
- 01Weeks 1–2
You share the plan and payouts
Current incentive plan and last cycle's variable payouts by person, under confidentiality.
You receiveA diagnosis with the three highest-impact adjustments.
- 02Week 2
Roles and launch date
Together we define the commercial roles in scope, the sales period the new plan starts in and the calendar.
You receiveProposal with scope and calendar.
- 03Weeks 3–8
Design, model and launch
Measures, pay curve and quotas by role, financial model by scenario, plan document and communication to the team.
You receiveA plan per role with its cost approved by Finance.
Let's define the next step.
Tell us about the decision, the context and the timeline.