Ventana Research Releases Buyers Guide on Revenue Performance Management

    BEND, OR, August 04, 2023 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Ventana Research today released its 2023 Buyers Guide on Revenue Performance Management (RPM), a quantified, research-based index evaluating technology providers and products. This Buyers Guide assesses seven vendors' products using our Ventana Research methodology and blueprint, evaluating software in seven key categories that are weighted to reflect buyers' needs based on our expertise and research. The Buyers Guide evaluated the sophistication of technology vendors and products for use in revenue performance management.

The next generation of revenue and sales leaders is embracing the need to focus on creating processes that generate and project predictable revenues. RPM is a coordinated set of revenue-generating and related activities, processes, and systems that enable organizations to plan, execute, monitor, and adjust in real-time to achieve customer, product, and revenue targets. The imperative to maximize outcomes from all channels and departments of revenue faces many challenges in every organization. Key revenue responsibilities across departments that generate new business and client relationships, retain existing ones through potential subscription renewals or upselling, and expand into existing customers are all about setting up revenue efforts in an effective manner. Balanced territories, quotas, and compensation that are aligned with corporate objectives, and reliable forecasts are key to achieving overall goals and outcomes. The research includes the needs of organizations who are just examining sales performance management which is a subset of revenue performance management and assesses the needs if only focused on direct sales

Ensuring that all buying and selling channels and departments contribute as fully as possible to the success of the organization — to retention, growth, profitability, and the overall customer experience — requires not only dedication but effective strategy and planning. A well-developed strategy and plan to utilize current and future talent for sales and revenue efforts are essential for the best possible performance. To carry out this mission, organizations need a set of coordinated revenue-related activities, processes, and systems that enable the sales and revenue organization, from leadership and operations to the manager and sellers and customer success, to operate in a coordinated and collaborative manner. The evolution to RPM enables the ability to maximize outcomes across all buying or revenue channels.

"Though the execution is vital to sales and revenue teams' success, knowing the true north and planning how to reach it is equally important," says Stephen Hurrell VP & Research Director of the Office of Revenue at Ventana Research. "Our Revenue Performance Buyers guide evaluates vendors who also recognize the importance of integrating planning and execution to improve the ability of sales and revenue teams to hit organizational targets."

The Buyers Guide evaluates the following vendors that offer products that deliver revenue performance management as we define it: Anaplan, Board International, Oracle, Salesforce, SAP, Varicent, and Xactly.

We urge organizations to be thorough in evaluating vendors that support RPM and offer this Buyers Guide as both the results of our in-depth analysis of these vendors and as an evaluation methodology. The guide can be used to evaluate existing suppliers and provides evaluation criteria for new projects; applying it can shorten the cycle time for an RFP.

The research finds Oracle first on the list with Varicent in second place and Anaplan in third. Companies that place in the top three in any category earn the designation of Leader. Oracle has done so in all seven; Anaplan in four, Board and Varicent in three, Salesforce in two, and Xactly and SAP in one category, and are all Leaders.

The research places vendors into one of four overall categories: Assurance, Exemplary, Merit, or Innovative. This representation classifies vendors' weighted performance overall in Product Experience and Customer Experience. The vendors awarded Exemplary are Oracle, Anaplan, and Board. The vendor awarded Innovative is Varicent. The vendor awarded Assurance is Xactly. The vendors awarded Merit are Salesforce and SAP.

Ventana Research has designed the Buyers Guide to provide a balanced perspective of vendors and products that are rooted in an understanding of how products should be assessed, evaluated, and selected, and how the products are utilized across roles and must be adapted and managed to meet the business requirements. This approach not only reduces cost and time but also minimizes the risk of making a decision that is bad for the organization. Using the Value Index will enable your organization to achieve the levels of efficiency and effectiveness needed to support RPM.

"Since we defined sales performance management (SPM) in 2003, it has been clear that the path to managing all revenue performance should be a unified approach available to all sales, revenue, and finance leaders," said Mark Smith, CEO and chief research officer. "Finally, with this buyers guide, organizations can examine a short list of technology vendors who are dedicated to this requirement."

The 2023 Buyers Guide on Revenue Performance Management is neither sponsored nor influenced by technology vendors and is conducted solely in pursuit of Ventana Research's mission to provide value to business and IT through advisory services, benchmark assessments, and workshops. Ventana Research's goal is to help guide organizations to optimal efficiency in their use of technology investments for business and IT. To learn more and to read the RPM Buyers Guide, please click here.

About Ventana Research

Ventana Research is the most authoritative and respected market research and advisory services firm. We provide insight and expert guidance on mainstream and disruptive technologies through a unique set of research-based offerings including benchmark research and technology evaluation assessments, education workshops, and our research and advisory services, Ventana On-Demand. Our unparalleled understanding of the role of technology in optimizing business processes and performance and our best practices guidance are rooted in our rigorous research-based benchmarking of people, processes, information, and technology across business and IT functions in every industry. This benchmark research plus our market coverage and in-depth knowledge of hundreds of technology providers means we can deliver education and expertise to our clients to increase the value they derive from technology investments while reducing time, cost, and risk.

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