Example Sales Performance Meter Report

Generated on August 10, 2010
2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.
www.millerheiman.com | 1-877-678-3389
Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010
Introduction
Excuses won't save you; sales leaders are responsible for producing results regardless of economic
conditions. Where will improvements make the greatest impact on performance in your sales organization?
Most companies track their own performance year after year to measure their improvement, but few take a
quantitative look at how they compare to other organizations. The purpose of this report is to help you identify
some of these areas by comparing your current sales practices, based on your responses, to the practices of
World Class Sales Organizations.
The responses you provided for this report were based on several questions featured in Miller Heiman's
annual, global study of sales organizations, the Miller Heiman Sales Best Practices Study. This study reveals
the activities that are shown to have the greatest impact on producing results that are common goals for most
sales organizations:
Average account billing
Sales force quota attainment
Number of qualified opportunities/ leads
Customer retention
Forecast accuracy
Revenue growth
World Class Sales Organizations were significantly more likely to report year over year growth in these
metrics. This report provides graphs and descriptions of how your responses compare to the activities that
produced measureable sales results for these high- performing organizations.
How to Read the Report

The graphs in this report show your responses categorized in red, yellow, and green.
Red activities represent an area for immediate attention. We have labeled these as Focus activities. These
are activities that are not being practiced as rigorously as they are by the other respondents in our annual
study.
Yellow activities are comparable to the average in our study, but are below the World Class level. We have
labeled these as Monitor activities.
Green activities should be noted as strengths. These are activities that are equal to or greater than the
benchmark set by World Class Sales Organizations. We have labeled these as Sustain activities.
The activities included in this report have been statistically shown to impact sales results, therefore, we
recommend that you sustain the practice of green activities, monitor the development of yellow activities, and
focus on taking immediate steps to improve red activities.
Focus
Monitor
Sustain
The Miller Heiman Sales System
Developed as a framework to help sales leaders organize their thoughts and strategies for achieving sales
results, this system has become a centerpiece for communications and planning sessions with our clients.
The system should be viewed starting from the center with the concept that all strategy emanates from
customer requirements. No strategy should be set unless it is based on customer requirements. Each of the
elements that surround the customer forms your overall sales strategy.
Next, take a look at your customer management strategies. How does your organization create opportunities
and manage these opportunities to close? And, does your strategy support how client relationships are
managed on an ongoing basis?
Finally, examine how your strategies will be sustained. Is your organization structured in a way so decisions
can be made quickly? Do your managers have specific roles and understand what they need to do to execute
against organizational strategies? Is your entire organization supported by critical components like systems,
marketing programs, and compensation plans that enable efficiency?
Summary of Results by Element of The Miller Heiman Sales System
Your Overall Score: Monitor
Monitor
Monitor
Focus
Focus
Monitor
Monitor
Creating Opportunities Monitor

It is likely that you have salespeople on your team who are performing the activities in this element very well,
but you recognize that there is work to be done. Coach your team to improve on the activities in this element
and share the best practices of those who are performing well in this area. Continue to nurture these
activities, but your first priority should be on activities in this report that are noted as red or 'Focus' activities.
We find that the best sales organizations create opportunities very well. They develop consistent criteria for
the types of accounts and opportunities they want to pursue, and walk away from those that arent a good fit.
They first understand what the customer is trying to accomplish, fix, or avoid before presenting solutions.
When they present a solution, they differentiate based on their unique strengths, and they gain commitment
to keep the sale moving forward. They have a higher success rate in getting to senior- level decision makers
and have strong, persuasive dialogue at this level.
Companies can expect to grow their number of qualified sales opportunities when activities are performed
well in this element. Those that reported they are practicing the activities in this area were significantly more
likely to experience growth in qualified leads, an important early step in the sales process.
Focus
Monitor
Sustain
Sales and marketing are aligned in what

our customers want and need.
We consistently utilize comprehensive
prospecting plans.
Our salespeople have a solid
understanding of our customers' business
needs.
More Benchmarking Data

We have additional questions related to Creating Opportunities available for comparison in the Miller Heiman
Sales Best Practices benchmark database:
We have a formalized value proposition that is very compelling to our prospects.
Our salespeople are experts in our products and services.
We consistently follow a standardized process to qualify opportunities.
Our salespeople are always held accountable for converting leads to closed business.
Analysis of your organization compared to these related questions is available through our benchmarking
services. Please contact us at www.millerheiman.com/ benchmark for additional information.
Managing Opportunities Monitor

Your results indicate you are likely doing many of the activities in this element well, but consistency may be
your biggest issue. High performance is not something that's achieved and stays in place; this objective
needs to be continually earned through constant attention and reinforcement of the activities that are
producing results. Establishing a repeatable process for loss reviews and being very disciplined about the
criteria for when to stop pursuing a deal are things to consider for improvement in this element.
World Class Sales Organizations effectively manage opportunities through to close. This involves developing
and executing a strategy necessary to win complex deals. These top- performing organizations effectively
assign resources to the opportunity, identify the key players in the decisionmaking process, understand their
issues, and influence them to support their solutions. These organizations are experts at involving the right
people at the right time to win business.
Companies can expect to improve their new account acquisition metric when things are working well in this
element. Those who reported high performance in this area were significantly more likely to experience
growth in new account acquisition. Expanding business with existing account is a likely outcome as well,
especially when combined with the right activities in the next element, Relationship Management.
Focus
Monitor
Sustain
Our organization collaborates across

departments to pursue large deals.
When we lose a significant sales
opportunity, we always know the reason
why.
In a large deal, we always gain access to
key decision makers.
We have an established procedure to
know when to stop investment in large
deals.

We have additional questions related to Managing Opportunities available for comparison in the Miller
Heiman Sales Best Practices benchmark database:
We have a disciplined process that is consistently used to pursue all large deals.
We have an established procedure to know when to stop investment in large deals.
Our salespeople are very effective at selling at an executive level.
We have a formal process for utilizing executive- to- executive selling.
We clearly understand our customers' issues before we propose a solution.
Win or lose, we get accurate feedback on all proposals from our customers.
When we give price concessions, we always get comparable value in return.
Our salespeople immediately communicate with management when something unexpected happens to
jeopardize a sale.
Our price is almost always higher than the competition.
Managing Relationships Monitor

Congratulate yourself for reaching the average benchmark for this element because it is no small
accomplishment. But, don't celebrate for too long because there is work to do. While your responses are in
the average range, you can still reach World Class status. Customer churn is costly, exceedingly so for some
companies, so this is an area of sales management where you should ensure that the right activities continue
to improve because the benefit to your organization can be tremendous.
World Class Sales Organizations also manage relationships extremely well. Once they identify their strategic
accounts, they treat these accounts like corporate assets. They invest in their largest, most strategic
accounts in the same way they invest in their own people. They understand their business, engage in joint
planning, make focus investments that add value to their client's business and ensure their mutual success.
They build solid business partnerships that can't be easily displaced by competitors.
Customer retention will improve as a result of achieving high performance in this element. Various reports put
the cost of acquiring new business at multiples ranging from 4x to as much as 10x compared to retaining
existing clients. Whatever the actual cost in your business, it is a clear case for protecting these corporate
assets.
Focus
Monitor
Sustain
Our salespeople are definitely effective at

producing year- over- year revenue growth
from existing customers.
We have relationships and dialog at the
highest executive levels with all our
strategic accounts.
Our organization regularly collaborates
across departments to manage strategic
accounts.

We have additional questions related to Managing Relationships available for comparison in the Miller
We always review the results of our solution with strategic accounts.
When we lose a strategic account, we always know the reasons why.
We jointly set long- term objectives with our strategic accounts.
We regularly engage our strategic accounts in our product/ service planning process.
Specific criteria have been established to define a strategic account in our company.
People & Organization Monitor

Identifying the reasons why your top performers are succeeding is a practice that offers high potential for
payoff, but this discipline may be somewhat weak in your organization. Efforts to improve sales force
performance should be monitored for signs of trouble. While some sales force turnover is healthy,
undesirable turnover rates could be addressed by directing attention to this area. This element is not an
immediate cause for concern, but it should be monitored.
Salespeople are the face of your company and they spend the most time with your most important corporate
asset, your customers. World Class Sales Organizations know their people extremely well and what
differentiates high performers. They have distinct processes and tools for ensuring they have the right people
in the right roles and an understanding of their current capabilities and areas for future development.
Organizations that recognize their ability to play a role in the development of a high- performance sales team
are at an advantage over those who focus too heavily on existing skills during the hiring process. People are
often hired for the skills, experience and education they possess, but decisions to terminate salespeople are
not usually based on a deficiency in those areas. Instead, it's often because their attitude leaves much to be
desired. Skills can be developed, attitude is inherent.
Focus
Monitor
Sustain
Our organization requires the sales force

to regularly participate in professional
development programs.
Our performance review process helps
improve the sales force's job performance.
We know why our top performers are
successful.

We have additional questions related to People & Organization available for comparison in the Miller Heiman
Sales Best Practices benchmark database:
When we lose a high- performing salesperson, we always know the reasons why.
Our performance reviews consistently include a coaching element.
We proactively terminate poor performers.
Our current under- performers are capable of significantly improving.
Support and Enablement Focus

As you prioritize your overall improvement plan, focus on this area after you have addressed any key issues
in the customer management elements of the sales system. Being able to effectively support a sales team's
productivity first requires a clear vision of the sales strategies. The odds for wasting time and resources are
high in this element. Fortunately, there are also many opportunities that have a low cost and high return.
World Class Sales Organizations clearly reinforce and support important processes and policies needed to
drive consistency. They know that even the most compelling business processes wont stick in an
organization if they are cumbersome to adopt. And, they carefully think through key change initiatives to
maximize their success. For example, they may introduce technology to enable process change, or align
compensation plans to reinforce the desired behaviors.
Companies that effectively support their sales teams with management commitment and provide the tools
they need to perform their job more efficiently report better forecasting capability than other organizations.
Improvement made in this area should result in better revenue predictability.
Focus
Monitor
Sustain
Our organization's sales conferences are

highly effective for reinforcing our sales
process.
Our sales performance metrics are aligned
with our business objectives.

We have additional questions related to Support and Enablement available for comparison in the Miller
Our sales compensation policies are aligned with our business objectives.
Our sales management team is highly confident in the data available from our CRM system.
Our CRM system significantly improves the productivity of our salespeople.
We have significantly increased the use of online learning for our sales force.
Management Execution Focus

Companies that are not open to the changing needs of their customers will quickly lose business to hungrier
competitors. This does not mean giving in to all requests for concessions; but it does require a deeper
understanding of customer's needs so you can create a win- win scenario to help secure profitable business.
Learn how your top performers win business in the face of these challenges and be sure to share these
insights with your team.
We find that the very best sales organizations rigorously execute their strategy, and they constantly strive to
get better. They create metrics, track against these metrics, and use the information to support decisionmaking and drive accountability. Salespeople and executives spend adequate time staying close to
customers and sales management coaching is focused on continuous improvement of the sales team.
When discipline is applied across the six elements defined in the sales system, companies will see growth in
key sales performance metrics, including revenue. While there are many other factors that can influence
revenue and profitability, sales leaders must be held accountable for the activities within their span of control.
Focus
Monitor
Sustain
We leverage the best practices of our top

performers to improve everyone else.
Our organizational structure allows us to
easily adapt to our customers' changing
needs.

We have additional questions related to Management Execution available for comparison in the Miller
Our executive leadership is actively engaged in our sales process.
Our company has clearly defined the activities required for each stage in our sales funnel.
In an average week, our sales force definitely spends adequate time with customers.
In an average month, our sales managers definitely spend adequate time coaching each individual on the
sales team.
Sales Performance Metrics

This chart shows how your responses provided for the following metric questions compare to the benchmarks
of World Class Sales Organizations.
Focus
Monitor
Sustain
New account acquisition:

Quantity of qualified opportunities/ leads:
Quota achievement for our sales force:
Customer retention rate:
Revenue growth:
Average account billing (or average
purchase per customer):
Sales forecast:
Close rate (or lead conversion rate):

Metrics that fall within the Focus range are at or below the level reported by all study participants. Metrics in
the Monitor range are above the benchmark set by overall study particpants but below the results reported by
World Class Sales Organizations. Metrics that appear in the Sustain range are at or above the level reported
by World Class Sales Organizations.
10
In Conclusion
While benchmarking has been used for years as a continuous improvement discipline, it is still relatively new
to sales. Measuring top- line revenue influences in your organization can be accomplished through a few
simple activities.
Choose a small number of highly relevant metrics to measure.
Create an internal baseline on those metrics, with a commitment to measure consistently over time without
changing the definitions or metrics.
Report on the metrics and make them visible.
Create actionable improvement plans based on the results.
When discipline is applied across the six elements defined in the sales system, companies will see growth in
key sales performance metrics, including revenue. While there are many other factors that can influence
revenue and profitability, sales leaders must be held accountable for the activities within their span control.
Next Steps
Schedule a consultation based on the results included in this report. Well schedule time for you with a
consultant who has experience in your industry to answer questions about the activities in this report and
provide recommendations for improvement.
This report is based on your responses to a survey of 25 questions about sales best practices. These
questions are from a more extensive set of questions included the annual Miller Heiman Sales Best Practices
Study. Miller Heiman offers additional benchmarking services for companies that want to further explore how
their organization compares to the best practices of World Class Sales Organizations.
Our full benchmarking services can provide you with additional insights to help guide your sales performance
initiatives:
Input from more participants in your organization for a more comprehensive view of the activities being
practiced by your sales force.
Comparisons of your sales practices to others in your industry (for industries where data is available).
Perception differences among functional levels in your organization: executive leadership, sales
management, and field level.
To discuss our benchmarking services, contact us at www.millerheiman.com/ benchmark.
Or call us at:
North and South America: 877-678-3389
UK: 0800 132595
Asia Pacific: +61 (02)9909 8699
Across the Globe: +44 1908 211212
11
About the Miller Heiman Sales Best Practices Study

Miller Heiman's annual research study of sales practices, success metrics, and World Class Sales
Organizations is recognized as the largest continuous research project dedicated to sales performance in the
world. Sales leaders benefit from the resulting trends, insights, and best practices revealed by our research.
Even more significant, the research results support benchmarking exercises that enable companies to
understand how they compare to their peers and how they can better identify areas for improvement.
Since the study was launched, more than 25,000 sales professionals have participated. Our formal research
projects, day- to- day business relationships with sales professionals, and the experience of our own
executives and consultants enable us to continually validate and refine the services we provide our clients to
help them achieve results.
Miller Heiman's research focuses on complex, business- to- business sales. To date, participants in this
study represent more than 20 industries in 30 countries.
About Miller Heiman

Miller Heiman is the proven leader and innovator in sales execution, with more than 30 years of helping
businesses grow profitable sales by increasing their close rates, lowering the cost of sales and reducing the
length of the sales cycle. The companys common framework of easily repeatable methodologies, combined
with a tradition of research and thought leadership, helps firms of all sizes win complex sales. Miller Heiman
is a worldwide leader in sales performance, with programs in 20 languages and corporate offices in the
United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. For more information, visit www.millerheiman.com.
Copyright 2010 by Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this report may be reproduced in any
form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems without
written permission from the publisher.
Publisher
Miller Heiman, Inc.
10509 Professional Cr., Suite 100
Reno, NV 89521
877-678-3389
12

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Generated on August 10, 2010

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

How to Read the Report

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

The Miller Heiman Sales System

Summary of Results by Element of The Miller Heiman Sales System

Your Overall Score: Monitor

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

Creating Opportunities Monitor

Sales and marketing are aligned in what

More Benchmarking Data

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

Managing Opportunities Monitor

Our organization collaborates across

More Benchmarking Data

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

Managing Relationships Monitor

Our salespeople are definitely effective at

More Benchmarking Data

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

People & Organization Monitor

Our organization requires the sales force

More Benchmarking Data

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

Support and Enablement Focus

Our organization's sales conferences are

More Benchmarking Data

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

Management Execution Focus

We leverage the best practices of our top

More Benchmarking Data

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

Sales Performance Metrics

New account acquisition:

More Benchmarking Data

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sales Performance Meter: Assessment Report | Generated on August 10, 2010

About the Miller Heiman Sales Best Practices Study

About Miller Heiman

2010 Miller Heiman, Inc. All rights reserved.

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