How to Automate Sales Commissions & Boost Sales Performance

As a CEO, you constantly juggle between meeting your company’s immediate needs and ensuring long-term growth—especially in a startup. One of the toughest decisions you’ll face is whether to invest aggressively in future-focused initiatives or take a more conservative, cost-effective approach. A prime example of this dilemma is the classic "build versus buy" decision when it comes to software solutions. 

When adding technology to your stack, the question isn’t just whether to build but if it’s worth it. Developing an incentive automation platform, for instance, requires significant time and resources—ones that might be better spent on building your core revenue-generating product. On the other hand, relying on off-the-shelf solutions comes with its own considerations. 

Historically, building custom software has been a costly and time-consuming process—53% of projects end up costing 189% more than estimated, and 31% are canceled altogether. Despite these risks, many companies still opt for in-house development, often underestimating the long-term challenges of maintenance and scalability. 

So, why does this struggle go beyond just building an incentive automation platform? The real challenge lies in maintaining it. Here’s why: 

Why your in-house sales commission automation system will fail 

Following are the reason why your in-house sales commission automation system will fail. 

1. 1. Tidak lincah 

Sebagian besar organisasi beroperasi dalam lanskap bisnis yang berubah dengan cepat. Tim penjualan mereka memiliki promosi penjualan, peluncuran produk, perubahan harga, dan wilayah baru yang akan diluncurkan. 

To respond to ever-changing business needs, sales incentive programs must be highly dynamic. After all, sales commission programs drive sales behaviors. For this reason, making changes to your sales commission program should be quick and easy. 

However, without a deep understanding of various sales incentive plans and their underlying logical structure, it’s quite difficult to create a flexible system where requested changes and new requirements are incorporated quickly. Most in-house incentive calculation software's require significant code overhaul or re-design – even for little changes that make the entire process slow. 

Dan Anda tidak bisa menunggu beberapa minggu untuk tim teknologi Anda melakukan perubahan atau mendesain ulang otomatisasi internal Anda. Sebagian besar tim teknologi cukup sibuk membangun perangkat lunak yang menghasilkan pendapatan bagi organisasi dan setiap perubahan pada sistem yang ada secara otomatis menjadi tidak diprioritaskan. Membuat mereka memberikan perubahan pada solusi internal Anda dengan kecepatan yang Anda butuhkan bisa melelahkan. 

Hampir tidak masuk akal jika tim teknologi Anda memutuskan untuk melakukan pengeditan kecil pada program penjualan 12 minggu setelah Anda meminta pengeditan. 

2. Keamanan data dan kepatuhan hukum 

Sales incentive data is highly sensitive data. To calculate sales incentives, your system must have access to all business transactions. It also requires access to additional confidential data, such as employee salaries, compensation structure, etc. 

Sangat penting untuk memiliki sistem yang dapat mengontrol akses pengguna ke rencana insentif, data terkait komisi, dan pembayaran. Memiliki sistem yang memungkinkan Anda untuk memberikan akses ke informasi berdasarkan peran dan senioritas mereka sangatlah penting. 

However, implementing adequate access control is just a first step. You also need to think about data retention, secure reporting, and change management. It’s unlikely that your tech team will keep up with requests to make changes to incentive plans for minor edits let alone making significant changes to the entire software.  

It’s even more unlikely they will have time to implement proper encryption, data retention policies, a comprehensive audit log, payment gateways in case they allow payment automation which is a rare functionality in the case of software built in-house. 

Tak pelak lagi, keamanan data yang memadai akan menghalangi Anda untuk menghadirkan program komisi penjualan yang gesit, dinamis, dan responsif, dan dengan demikian, perangkat lunak penghitungan insentif. Hal ini dapat memaksa Anda untuk berkompromi antara kelincahan vs. keamanan - yang mengarah pada keputusan yang sulit dan penundaan. 

3. Solusi yang rentan 

Designing a comprehensive, flexible sales incentive calculation solution requires a unique architecture. It should be based on a data processing pipeline. It should break down the commission calculation process into independent phases such as sourcing, filtering, slicing, calculating, apportioning, and then displaying. 

Most tech teams will deliver a “working solution” fairly quickly. However, as additional requirements like adding cumulative tiers, split commissions, product and geography-based competitions are added, your in-house solution may start falling apart.  

You might have to then choose between the two most dangerous things, implementing a quick fix or resorting to extensive system re-architecture to accommodate even minor changes. (We’ve warned you about the 31% project drop, haven't we?) 

Anda mungkin juga akan berselisih paham dengan tim teknis Anda saat mereka menjelaskan bahwa "perubahan seperti ini akan memakan waktu 8 minggu" atau bahwa "kami tidak mendukung perhitungan seperti ini". Selain itu, Anda juga bisa mengharapkan beberapa (atau banyak) biaya tersembunyi di kemudian hari (kami telah memperingatkan Anda tentang biaya proyek 189%). 

All these limitations make the in-house-built incentive calculation software a move of part automation at best and chaotic at worst. 

Ini membuat perangkat lunak penghitungan insentif yang Anda buat sendiri menjadi spreadsheet yang luar biasa. 

Jika Anda telah memutuskan untuk membangun otomatisasi komisi penjualan internal, Anda sudah memahami biaya yang harus dikeluarkan jika tidak mengotomatisasi komisi penjualan. Dan biayanya sangat besar. Dan banyak yang dipertaruhkan. Namun hal terbesar yang dipertaruhkan adalah kesempatan.

5 reasons why you need a sales automation system 

1. Visibilitas yang lebih baik ke dalam proses komisi penjualan

Mengadopsi perangkat lunak komisi penjualan era baru memastikan akses real-time ke penghitungan komisi, untuk perwakilan penjualan, manajer mereka, dan mungkin siapa pun dalam organisasi. Dengan tersedianya informasi ini, perwakilan penjualan akan termotivasi untuk melihat apa yang telah mereka dapatkan dan berusaha untuk mendapatkan lebih banyak lagi. Manajer penjualan juga dapat memotivasi tim mereka, sambil mengawasi kemajuan mereka. 

Compass helps you turbo charge your sales teams, enables less manual reporting, and provides transparency in the actual calculations behind the numbers, which helps the reps trust the numbers they see because they can see how they’re calculated with just one click. What’s more is with automated payments, you can have a clear picture about redemption trends.

2. Peningkatan produktivitas untuk tim penjualan dan keuangan 

Memasukkan data secara manual ke dalam spreadsheet membuka peluang untuk terjadinya kesalahan dan membuat prosesnya menjadi sangat lambat dan membosankan. Diperlukan waktu berjam-jam dan berhari-hari untuk menghitung komisi untuk semua perwakilan. Kemungkinan kesalahan manusia menyebabkan keraguan. Tenaga penjualan menghabiskan waktu berjam-jam untuk menghitung, mengonfirmasi, dan mengonfirmasi ulang laporan komisi akhir mereka dengan manajer dan tim keuangan. Ketika Anda memiliki tenaga kerja yang sangat banyak, menghabiskan begitu banyak waktu untuk kegiatan yang sia-sia yang menyebabkan hilangnya efisiensi, pemborosan waktu dan tenaga. 

Compass removes the necessity of human intervention in commission calculation and payment process thus eliminating error from the sales commission process. It also empowers sales teams to focus on selling instead of spending time calculating their commissions. 

Mengelola komisi secara manual membatasi skalabilitas dan pertumbuhan. Organisasi menghadapi tantangan besar ketika mereka mencoba membangun perangkat lunak komisi di dalam Excel yang membutuhkan logika yang rumit sehingga tidak memungkinkan untuk menghitung komisi dalam skala besar. 

With Compass, you get the best of excel like an intuitive interface along with variables, payout options and is scalable for small and gigantic enterprises and start ups alike. 

3. Akurasi yang ditingkatkan di seluruh proses komisi 

Did you know that 88% of spreadsheets contain errors. That is crazy right? Imagine, calculating commissions on Excel for hundreds of thousands of sales reps and 88% of them turning out incorrect. The waste of resources in terms of lost time, efforts and money, coupled with chaos resulting in demotivated sales reps is a horrible spot to be in.  

Now imagine this happening routinely. Miscalculating commission leads to unhappy sales reps, resulting in high turnover rates. Yet another challenge when you release payments manually is first the possibility of error while releasing payment and the rigidity of cash and brand vouchers. 

Otomatisasi mengurangi kesalahan manusia-pada akhirnya, menghilangkan lebih dari 90% kesalahan-sehingga Anda dapat yakin dengan data Anda dan percaya bahwa keputusan Anda didukung oleh fakta. 

With Compass, you can easily build complex commission programs with the familiarity of Excel within a few clicks, release payments in terms of bank transfers, credit notes or gift cards with an option to redeem from 20000+ options , also reducing the constant friction between sales, HR and finance teams.

4. Akses yang lebih baik ke data dan wawasan penting 

Dengan semua transaksi dan perhitungan yang terjadi di dalam sistem, sistem komisi memungkinkan kemampuan untuk melaporkan informasi komisi penjualan secara komprehensif. Analisis dan dasbor memberdayakan perwakilan penjualan, pemimpin tim, manajemen untuk mengiris dan memotong informasi yang tersedia dalam berbagai cara. 

Compass instantly becomes the single source of truth that ensures that everyone in the business ecosystem bases business decisions on the same data and derives action insights. 

Compass gives you a configurable widgets & reports dashboard that helps you measure what matters with configurable widgets for both admins and end users.  

It lets admin users configure widgets like Investment ROI, program participation, leaderboard, regional performance, team wise performance, and empowers end users with widgets including earning trends, team leaderboard, earning simulator, and more. 

5. Kepatuhan pajak dan hukum yang unggul 

Ketika Anda menghitung komisi secara manual di Excel, Anda tidak dapat mengonfigurasi implikasi pajak, apalagi memperhitungkan data berdasarkan lempengan atau geografis, sehingga pelaporan keuangan dan kepatuhan hukum tidak bergantung pada penghitungan dan pembayaran komisi. 

Compass, apart from enabling fair, error free and transparent incentive calculations, takes care of user authentication and all security measures like GDPR or ISO and handles geographical tax implications and compliance 

Kenyataannya adalah Anda tidak dapat menjadi strategis meskipun Anda mengelola satu aspek dari proses penjualan Anda secara manual. Karena Anda berfokus pada langkah-langkah taktis, bukan strategi-dan lebih buruk lagi, data Anda statis, sehingga keputusan Anda bersifat reaktif, bukan proaktif, yang membuat Anda kehilangan ratusan dolar, karena Anda melepaskan tenaga penjualan terbaik Anda, waktu yang kritis, dan upaya yang penting. 

How to set up sales commission automation system?  

Here’s a comparative table on how you need to do it: 
 

Overcoming common challenges in automating sales commissions with Compass 

Automating commission calculations can significantly streamline your sales compensation process, but it comes with its own set of challenges. Here are the top five obstacles businesses face and how Compass helps overcome them effectively. 

Challenge #1: Complex Commission Structures 

Many organizations have intricate commission plans with multiple tiers, bonuses, and exceptions. Managing these manually is difficult, but even automation can be tricky if the system isn’t equipped to handle complexity. 

Challenge #2: Data integration 

Accurate commission payments rely on seamless data integration from multiple sources like CRM and ERP systems. Poor data quality or mismatched records can lead to errors in commission payouts.

Challenge #3: Dispute resolution 

Commission disputes can arise due to calculation errors, miscommunication, or unclear policies. A lack of transparency in commission tracking can frustrate sales teams and lower morale.

Challenge #4: Training and adoption 

Even the best commission automation tool is ineffective if your sales team doesn’t know how to use it. Rolling out training programs can be time-consuming, delaying adoption.

Wrapping up: 

Automating sales commissions isn’t just about efficiency—it’s about accuracy, motivation, and business growth. An in-house system may seem like a cost-saving move, but the hidden expenses, security risks, and lack of agility can make it an uphill battle. Compass eliminates these challenges with a scalable, no-code platform that simplifies commission calculations, ensures compliance, and boosts sales performance. If you want to drive sales without the headaches of manual calculations or inflexible in-house software, Compass is your go-to solution. 

Pertanyaan Umum