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Simple comp plans are easy to explain. Bad comp plans are easy to regret.
This episode gets into the real damage sales leaders create when compensation becomes unclear, unfair, too clever, or easy to game.
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In this sales leadership lesson, Mike Pritchett of BuzzTrail and David Wilkins unpack what actually happens when comp plans drift away from the behaviours the business needs.
- Reps disengage fast when they cannot clearly see how they make money
- Changing comp after overachievement destroys trust and pushes good people out
- Complex plans create confusion, politics, and arguments over who deserves what
- Poorly designed incentives drive sandbagging, bad meetings, gaming, and low-value activity
- Too much disparity across reps creates distraction, resentment, and “why are they getting more than me?” conversations
- Team-based targets can hide poor performance and pull everyone toward mediocrity
- Commission-only setups sound attractive in startups, but make it harder to judge fit and build real team energy
- Small non-cash rewards can sometimes motivate better than taxed cash incentives
- Public recognition, competition, and simple scoreboards still matter because sales is hard and momentum matters
The core message is straightforward: compensation is not just about paying people. It shapes behaviour, trust, culture, focus, and performance. When leaders get it wrong, they do not just create payroll problems. They create distraction, resentment, short-term thinking, and a sales team that starts working the plan instead of working the market.
This episode is for VPs of Sales, Heads of Sales, SDR leaders, and founders trying to build comp plans that stay simple, reward the right actions, reduce internal friction, and help good reps perform without creating avoidable chaos.
- (00:00) - Start
Timestamps
00:00 Why simple comp plans outperform clever ones
08:35 The hidden damage of changing comp mid-year
16:42 Incentivising the wrong behaviour and how reps game the system
27:18 SDR and AE comp, quotas, territory fairness, and startup trade-offs
39:46 Why communal targets and uneven comp create resentment
48:58 Non-financial rewards, surprise incentives, and recognition that actually lands
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