Our sales team is consistently hitting their scorecard target for weekly outbound touches, but our actual pipeline value is flat. How do we rewrite our scorecard metrics to stop our team from gaming simple activity metrics that do not produce revenue?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When a team games their metrics, it is usually because you are measuring activity instead of outcomes. Tracking outbound touches is a classic example. If a salesperson has a target of fifty calls a week, they will make fifty low-quality calls just to turn their scorecard box green, regardless of the pipeline impact.

To fix this, you must pair your activity metrics with quality metrics to create a self-balancing scorecard. For every quantity metric, establish a corresponding quality or conversion metric.

Instead of tracking outbound touches in isolation, pair it with scheduled discovery calls. If the touches are high but discovery calls are red, the activity is useless.

Another excellent balancing metric is pipeline value added weekly. This forces the salesperson to focus on qualified prospects rather than just dialing phone numbers to satisfy a quota.

If a team member continues to hit their activity targets while their outcome metrics remain red, it is time to IDS® the issue in your Level 10 Meeting™. This approach forces a conversation about their technique and capability rather than their effort. Stop rewarding empty activity and start measuring metrics that have a direct line to your business growth.