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Copyright ©2015 Optymyze. All rights reserved.www.optymyze.com
A Glance into Sales Operations
as a Service
Overview
Not a single day looks like the other when you deal
with Sales Operations. From territories and channels,
to incentive compensation, quota setting, data
analytics and communications – the burden of Sales
Operations on sales organizations has never been
heavier. And how could it not, when sales forces are
globally expanding to support business growth?
Almost 7 in 10 companies plan to increase the
size of their sales force in 2015,1
so every sales ops
department should brace itself to face even more
work in the coming years.
The traditional approach to solve sales operations’
burden has been Sales Performance Management
software. Various computer programs – some more
advancedthatothers–havejoinedthetightcompetition
to win sales operations’ ‘heart’, and be the ones to help
them calculate incentives, dig up data about territories,
channels, and analyze performance metrics.
However, software is just a starting point and an
enabler. Only half of sales technology buyers achieve
expected ROI, according to SiriusDecisions.2
Research
shows that software limitations are present in many
industries, and any software-centric approach comes
with serious constraints to enterprises.3
Lasting gains
are realized when software is combined with business
process management.
1
2015 CSO Sales Performance Optimization, www.csoinsights.com, last accessed 02.03.15
2
SiriusDecisions research on Sales Analytics, SFA, Sales Training and CPQ applications. Data gathered from B2B sales organizations that were asked
if the listed technologies met the expected ROI.
3
5 Untold Truths About Software: Why Features Don’t Lift Your Business, www.synygy.com/research/untold-truths-about-software, last accessed 03.04.15

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Copyright ©2015 Optymyze. All rights reserved.www.optymyze.com
This dilemma has led many organizations to
embrace a “more than software” approach for
their sales performance processes and incentive
management operations. This whitepaper provides
data on Sales Operations as a Service, a more than
software alternative, embraced by more and more
organizations with large sales forces, in search of
better business outcomes.
WhatisSalesOperationsasaService?
To ease their sales operations burden, sales organizations
only have two options:
1. Implement sales performance technology alone
2. Engage in a Business Process as a Service relationship.
SOaaSisacomprehensivesetofsalesoperationsmanagement
services that uniquely combine cloud technologies and
collaborative business process management. These serve
both internal operations and the sales force through:
• Sales planning and strategy execution
• Sales compensation and motivation
• Sales productivity
• Sales activities
• Sales insights and analysis
Through a collaborative operating model, organizations
are able to rapidly adapt to changes in strategy, markets,
and priorities. The approach revolves around the benefits
of Business Process as a Service leveraging enabling
technologies and expert staff augmentation.
Recent studies on companies with large sales forces show
that Sales Operations as a Service clients report deeper and
more sustained sales performance improvement than SPM
software alone in all ten measured categories, including
15% better process reliability and 13% more cost savings.
OriginsofSalesOperationsasaService
Many companies still fail to realize that poorly aligned
processes and bad policies are not fixed by software
alone, according to business analysts.
In this challenging context, many companies have
discovered that commitment to their strategic goals
comes from Business Process as a Service, and particularly
from Sales Operations as a Service.
“While some technologies help sales team members
serve the customer better, others can actually bog
down processes or stifle the creativity needed to truly
customize the buyer experience.”4
The “more than SPM software” approach emerged as an
efficient solution to take away the SPM burden from sales
operations. The need for an alternative to software – or
rather a beyond software solution – continues to be fueled
by the huge sales growth this year. According to research,
67.9% of companies plan to increase the size of their 2015
sales force.5
At the same time, compensation trends in 2015
show the acute need for an alternative to software to help
prevent turnover.
While the economy improves, hiring and retaining top
sales talent will become more difficult without a complex
sales performance management plan.

Only half of sales technology buyers
achieve expected ROI.
Source: SiriusDecisions
4
Lewin, Lauren, Overcome Technology Challenges With Your Sales Team http://businesslightsideas.com/?p=3221, last accessed 02.03.15
5
2015 CSO Sales Performance Optimization, http://www.csoinsights.com/publications, last accessed 02.03.15

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Copyright ©2015 Optymyze. All rights reserved.www.optymyze.com
Territories & Channels
• Sales Force Design
• Territory Design
• Segmentation & Targeting
• Call & Activity Planning
Talent
• Recruiting Management
• Total Compensation Management
• Training Management
• Competencies Management
• Performance Reviews Management
Quotas
• Quota Methodology Design
• Quota Process Implementation
• Quota Setting
• Quota Management
Objectives
• Objectives Plan Design & Rollout
• Objectives Process Implementation
• Objectives Management
Compensation
• Sales Compensation Plan Design,
Modeling, & Rollout
• Sales Compensation Process Implementation
• Sales Compensation Management
Data Processes
• Parameter Management
• Exception Management
• Data Adjustments
• Data Collection
• Data Integration & Validation
Metrics & Analytics
• Metrics Analysis and Planning
• Data Warehousing
• Data Analytics
Analyses
• Design of Management Analyses
• Implementation of Analysis Process
• Management of Analyses
Reports
• Design of Salesperson Reports
• Implementation of Reporting
Process
• Management of Reports
Communications
• Communications Planning &
Management
• Inquiry & Dispute Management
• Field Feedback Management
The Burden of SPM on
Sales Operations
With sales forces increasing, Sales Ops has to deal with more operations than ever.

4.
Copyright ©2015 Optymyze. All rights reserved.www.optymyze.com
Benefits to Sales Operations
as a Service
Compensation plans and sales performance management
should be unique to products and services, to individual
reps’ experience, and to sales and overall business goals.
When changes occur, organizations usually focus on
small parts of their compensation plans. Software may be
utilized to integrate changes but will not provide feedback
on the accuracy of the new plans.
Companiesthatwantstrategicsalesoperationsunderstand
the integral relationship between software and service. As
such, Sales Operations as a Service is not another tool but
a long-term solution that offers several key benefits:
1. Mitigate Risk
Expertise in implementing best practices developed for
your organization reduces the risk of less than desirable
outcomes from simply automating ineffective processes.
The expertise in leading edge technology combined with
industry expertise mitigates the risk that comes with
changes from mergers, new systems or growth. With
responsibilities sitting fully at the provider, SOaaS enables
more capabilities and also reduces regulation concerns.
2. Increase Speed
Things get done quicker, cheaper, and with better
business outcomes when proven business process
changes are implemented.
3. Multiply Capacity
Resources on demand to deliver 24/7 sales operations
support.
4. Improve Focus
Sales Operations as Service experts eliminate distractions
and allow companies, leaders and sales reps to focus on
achieving corporate objectives.
5. Define Accountability
Sales Operations as Service helps companies define the
line of responsibility through shared governance which
also helps companies comply with regulatory changes.
6. Reduce Costs
Sales Operations as a Service cuts technological and
operational costs by providing both the experts and the
enabling technologies in a single service. Companies
achieve higher revenue while lowering their cost of sales.
6 REASONS SALES OPS NEEDS
MORE THAN JUST SOFTWARE:
1. People fill the gap
2. People translate
3. People validate
4. People adjust on the go
5. People fix errors
6. People communicate

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Copyright ©2015 Optymyze. All rights reserved.www.optymyze.com
About Optymyze
Optymyze helps companies rapidly improve sales performance and create strategic sales operations. Optymyze solutions include Optymyze Sales
Performance™
software, software services, and Synygy Sales Operations as a Service™
. By providing compensation management, sales optimization,
sales enablement, and sales analytics, Optymyze enables customers to leverage continuous change for strategic business advantage.
Conclusions
With increased competition and shifts in buying behaviors, enterprises around the world
struggle to continually optimize and amplify channel and sales performance. One of
the key functions they outsource is sales operations. This allows for focus on achieving
the business outcomes needed without the distractions of creating and managing the
ever-changing processes of the sales organization.
By removing the barriers of technology management and adding in business process expertise and expert
staff on demand, Sales Operations as a Service delivers the agility and productivity you need to stay
competitive.
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50% reduction in
administration
85% reduction in
field disputes
20% reduction in
salesperson turnover
40% reduction in
processing time
100
% improvement
in salesperson
satisfaction
25% overpayments
eliminated 425% increase in
salespeople with no
increase in support
75%reduction
in IT
100% reduction in
shadow accounting
85% reduction
in dispute
resolution time
92% improvement in payroll
processing time 90% reduction
in errors
DRIVE BETTER BUSINESS OUTCOMES
Sales ROI
Source: Optymyze quarterly survey of clients