Revenue Predictability The finger in the air guessing game to answer the age-old question of “Where will we end up this quarter?” no longer plays. Given the massive amount of data we now capture across the sales cycle, doesn’t it seem a bit archaic that most companies still track pipeline opportunities using just a handful (typically seven) of high level, round number percentage stages? “25% for qualified”… yeah, that seems fair. Every opportunity has specific nuances, and I guarantee some of those prospects in that 25% bucket are more qualified than others. Now that we are able to track more and more data related to rep activity and capture information from every interaction/touchpoint with a prospect – in an automated way – opportunities can be analyzed with much more than seven stages of granularity. There is a new crop of vendors leveraging innovative analytical approaches to surface signals gleaned from the breadcrumbs of data produced across the buyer journey to form a much more detailed view of pipeline health. Like grading a test on scale from 1-100 versus using the five-tier “A” through “F” letter grade range, these approaches seek to incorporate a multitude of variables to provide a highly refined view of where each engagement stands. Organizations adopting these solutions are also better positioned to become increasingly agile with budgeting and real-time with forecasting as they scale. The local weather woman doesn’t just guess what tomorrow will bring based on gut feel, she listens to the data to make an informed prediction. Sales should be no different. - 10 -