In B2B companies, commission plans almost always have a clear clause that they are 100% subject to the discretion and judgment of the company.
I don’t see much cheating in SaaS companies. But a few things I see at the corner:
- First time CEOs sometimes get frustrated when a rep makes “too much”. This is backwards. More on that here: Your #1 Sales Rep Should Be Driving an M6 Convertible By Month 12. (And Not Buying a Panerai Watch.) | SaaStr
- Companies don’t want to pay reps that leave. This is pretty common. Assume if you leave, you may not get any commissions for deals “in flight”.
- Double credit vexes many companies. What if the channel or a partner and a rep both say they closed a deal? Do you pay both? Oftentimes, you sort of need to. But many companies don’t, or split it.
- SMB SaaS can struggle with attribution. If the customer really closed itself on line, do you pay the rep? Sometimes? What if the rep did a quick call, but really no work?
Some grey and higher drama areas you see often.
