Sales compensation is one of the largest levers driving go-to-market performance—directly influencing rep behavior, pipeline velocity and revenue predictability. Yet it's also one of the biggest P&L line items, making it a constant focus in CFO and boardroom discussions. If you don’t come prepared, your comp plan risks being delayed, revised or outright rejected.
That’s the challenge tackled by Ryan Milligan, VP of RevOps at QuotaPath, and Amy Walker, Partner at Walker Glantz. They unpack how to build comp plans that sellers love—and Finance can approve—without endless back and forth.
Why Finance Scrutiny Is Increasing
Amy explains that comp plans face increased scrutiny for three reasons:
- Pressure on unit economics – Rising CAC and margin expectations mean every commission dollar must be justified
- Forecasting accuracy – Finance needs predictable cost exposure to drive investor confidence
- Complexity costs – As product and sales motions multiply, commission structures become harder to model and control
For a deeper dive, see QuotaPath’s guide: How to Build a Sales Compensation Plan in 2025.
What Finance Really Wants to Know
It’s less about motivation and more about financial risk. Key questions Finance will ask:
- What’s the maximum exposure per deal if full accelerators kick in?
- What’s the average commission rate (ECR) as a percentage of bookings?
- How will the plan affect CAC and gross margin?
- Are renewals, expansions or multi-year deals included—so there are no margin blind spots?
- Does the plan align with ASC 606 expense recognition rules?
For more, see: Sales Commission Expense Recognition.
The Finance-Proofing Checklist
Ryan recommends starting with a checklist before engaging Finance:
- Deal-level modeling – Run scenarios across products, discount levels and accelerators
- Total cost forecasting – Aggregate expected payouts under conservative, expected and aggressive attainment rates
- ECR tracking – Show commission as a % of bookings over time
- Stress testing – Model what happens if more reps hit accelerators or top-heavy deals close unexpectedly
Helpful framework: Guide to Strategic Compensation Planning.
Pitfalls That Sink Comp Plans
Amy and Ryan flagged common failure points:
- Unrealistic quota-to-OTE ratios—too high and reps disengage; too low and Finance sees runaway costs
- Over-engineered structures—layering too many multipliers or carve-outs makes modeling opaque
- Ignoring renewals and expansion—leads to margin blind spots
- Misaligned payout timing—front-loading commissions without aligning to revenue recognition
See QuotaPath’s perspective on Optimizing Compensation Plans.
Bridging the Sales–Finance Divide
RevOps sits at the intersection of GTM agility and financial discipline. To bridge the gap:
- Speak Finance’s language—exposures, margins, CAC, ECR
- Involve Sales early—test plans against real pipeline before Finance review
- Socialize early—involve Finance before the plan is “final”
- Document assumptions—transparency builds credibility
Explore more: How Sales and Finance Can Work Better Together.
A Better Way Forward
Successful organizations make comp planning predictable, transparent and iterative:
- Run comp simulations quarterly, not just annually
- Build dashboards that surface attainment vs. cost exposure in real time
- Monitor ECR and attainment trends as early warning signals
- Create cross-functional working groups with Sales, Finance and RevOps
Key Takeaway
The sign of a great comp plan isn’t just whether it motivates sellers—it’s whether Finance can model it confidently and approve it quickly. RevOps leaders who master the art of Finance-proofing accelerate approvals, reduce friction and cement their value as strategic partners to the business.
Additional Resources from QuotaPath
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