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What are your strategies for managing discrepancies in pipeline forecasting between sales and demand gen?

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3 Answers
Sales / Demand Gen Alignment Stakeholder Management
  1. Emily Chisholm
    Emily Chisholm

    Seso Head of Demand Generation • Jun 10

    Remember that you're all on the same team—that mindset solves more forecasting disputes than any model does. The fastest structural fix is a strong RevOps analyst sitting between the two functions. A good one will save you enormous headache by giving both sides a single source of truth, so you're not arguing about whose numbers are right before you can even talk about what they mean. And attribution doesn't have to be perfect. That's genuinely fine, as long as you and sales agree on the level of ...Read More

    358 Views
  2. Tatiana Morozova
    Tatiana Morozova

    Mews Head of Growth Marketing • 1y

    To manage pipeline forecasting differences between sales and demand generation, I'd focus on building a system where sales, demand gen, RevOps, and MarOps work together, combining sales' insights with campaign data for one solid forecast and identifying any root causes. Below are the typical steps that I go through: Create joint processes, like unified dashboards, to quickly spot and troubleshoot discrepancies. Ensure a common understanding of key metrics - lead volume, conversion rates, etc. - ...Read More

    2,742 Views
  3. Jeff Jewett
    Jeff Jewett

    OfferFit Director of Demand Generation | Formerly Workday, Atlassian, Deel • 2mo

    First, Demand gen has to move on from anchoring around lead volume and MQLs. Those numbers can look healthy while pipeline misses badly. I focus the forecasting conversation on opportunity creation rates and close rates of marketing-sourced leads because those are what actually connect demand gen activity to revenue outcomes. Discrepancies between sales and demand gen usually come down to different definitions of what counts or different assumptions about conversion rates. The fix starts with a ...Read More

    385 Views

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