AMA: Asana Head of Enterprise, North America, Mike Haylon on Sales KPIs

As important as any KPI is why the metric is being measured, how you intend to reliably collect and review the data and the frequency you will get together to review the trend good or bad. In entering new markets, however difficult and unpredictable, you need to establish what you do believe to be true: size of the TAM, ICP definition and owners of each stage and target conversion of part of the funnel. Once you commit to the process - and give enough time for the work to show meaningful results, perhaps then can discuss what might feel arbitrary. If after all that there is still uncertainty about what goals might be realistic then commit simply to make improvements each week until there is enough data to set the right goal. Or take a leap of faith, set the goal and over communicate how and why you set it and what you'll do and why if you need to adjust at some point.

I think any KPI that is not integrated into the quota and comp structure for any AE by and large is misguided. If you want AEs to focus on specific behaviors then build it into their comp plan and prioritize quota relief over increased commission payments if you have to choose. There are only two exceptions to this in my mind: any KPIs (pipe coverage, onsite meetings, etc.) where you can establish a direct connection to the health of those metrics and their ability to close more revenue OR behavior changes you might want to see mid year, in which case you can use SPIFFs as a tool to align incentives to the behavior changes you want to see. And for any behaviors where the KPIs or SPIFFs are not baked into their quota, be sure to have dashboards that accurately reflect what is happening and commit to communicating regularly progress each AE is making against them. They will otherwise be lost or forgotten about as quota relief and commission always reigns supreme.

Sales KPIs play a critical role in forecast accuracy, especially in unpredictable markets. Amidst the market turbulence, really the only thing you have are deal execution and forecast accuracy. The difference between having a math based forecast everyone is aligned around vs not is stark. There are so many ways to cut your forecast in an effort to determine where you'll land. The math itself is important but the most important is having a shared language and "walkup" in order to pinpoint the assumptions you're making - so you can have an in-depth discussion in a short amount of time.

Sales leaders can set KPIs around behaviors we want to see and hold the team accountable to them but top performers will disregard them if they don’t find it is what puts them in the best position to achieve their growth targets. That’s why it’s really important to spend meaningful time with your top account executives upfront to be sure you have a pulse on the ways in which they are translating the strategy you’ve set into actual work in the field. If I believe based on the data that it will take five customer on-sites per qtr to drive expansion then I want to be sure my top performers also see that as the benchmark, are consistently driving towards that mark and that they have scalable methods for doing that. Not only does this increase the confidence I can have in the target I set but I can also now enable and inspire the rest of the team to do the same because I’m using a top performer to drive belief and show them how it’s done. Absent this important context, you run the risk of setting unattainable targets, or worse, targets AEs drive towards only because they’re being asked to, not because it actually drives the behavior and results you know lead to the ultimate growth targets every sales leader is out to achieve.

I like a consistent review of competitive win rates by stage. I think these can serve as early signals to so much: from how your narrative is landing, whether price is where you fall down or perhaps even foresight into late losses building up as a result of a missing piece of functionality or two. We have the benefit of someone who dedicates the majority of their time on content creation, visiting with customers and regular analysis of our results. Whether or not you can make this a full-time job, I think carving it out intentionally for a relevant function to own is worth it - the insight is invaluable.