Read this article about HP inc., one of our finalists, in the category Best Achievement in Technology Enabled Process Automation (Robotic Process Automation, Machine Learning, Cognitive Learning, Blockchain etc) , selected by the independent judging panel, for the 2020 Business Transformation & Operational Excellence Industry Awards program.

Predicting and Deploying Sales Quota using machine learning techniques

Executive Summary

Sales Compensation and IT partnered with to develop test and implement Machine Learning and other digital technologies to help change their old ineffective models and become more agile and adaptable. The core strategy was to identify and define key Quota deployment process which were costly, time consuming and error prone and then use appropriate tools to quickly automate an “optimized and standardized” process. To accelerate the journey, the team put in place strong processes and methodologies to easily understand and adapt to change.

The program has gone through multiple adaptations along its transformation journey – from its earliest incubation period and deploying the first automated sales quota deployment in 2017, to its current state of automation on world class infrastructure and processes supporting the same. The program has already saved about $14M in 2 years and expected to hit $20M by end of FY20. Some workstreams have also shown an increase of 8% revenue of the total quota allocated. The solution is also generating clear data indicating improving accuracy, timeliness, improved quality and reduction in risk.

The program is now deploying over $700 million quota automatically across all regions and is catering to over 90% of the total deployment landscape.

Approach – Background

Sales quota is a key element in any company and refers to a time-bound sales target set by management or business planners for a region, channel, sales team or individual rep. Sales quota are often deployed monthly, quarterly or half-yearly cycle. Quota setting should be accurate, fair and attainable.
Obtaining accurate quota is the function of the quota-setting procedure given the market conditions and demography. It involves determining the proper blend of sales potential and experience. Machine learning help us build an efficient model that can obtain an accurate forecast of future sales to use them for quota setting.

Traditionally it is done manually by planners and channel management team. Manual process of preparing baseline data and then providing quota recommendation is time consuming, laborious activity and there is no standard process globally. That’s why in HP, we are innovating since 2017 by having centralized process using machine learning increasing overall efficiency, providing cost savings and helping in allocating performance based fair quota.

Our main goals were to Offload most of transactional work, eliminate manual processes by building an standard data & quota process once we had that create an enterprise wide Quota Planning Tool this tool will Reduce & streamline E2E Quota planning effort, shortened readiness cycle. At the end, introducing central analytics gives reliable quota values that supports HP business growth.

The goal was to deliver automation solutions with partnership of impacted business groups. Right from the inception we decided to use the following guard rails.

1. Clear and measurable ROI
2. Clear adoption criteria
3. Rapid delivery of innovation
4. Enterprise enabled
5. Thoughtful Change Management
6. Automation and data quality management

At that time other than the CRISP framework, there were no standard machine learning deployment frameworks or standards available. The team had to develop these mythologies as we learnt from our mistakes and success.

We started with a focus up with one workstream. Trying out ideas, process and methodologies, we came up with a standardized process that could scale across multiple workstreams and improve the rate of delivery. We focused on developing standard framework and approach every step of the way including building a machine learning tool that can pick the best algorithm for a given use case and partner behavior. with the culture of innovation.

To build the capabilities, we had to identify the right skillsets and talents, develop inhouse expertise, and in some cases, bring in new people with a separate set of skills. This combination required a cultural shift from the organization to make it happen.
In terms of leadership support - The team received the support of various key leadership such as Josh Brenkel (VP Sales Strategy) and John Flaxman (COO) at that time. There were many other senior leaders at the exec level who co-partnered to guarantee further deployments of Quota Analytics within HP.

The program also demanded a well-defined and robust governance framework – an ecosystem to manage the environment. This was pivotal for project prioritization, development, testing, deployment and support. To provide the governance around value capture, funnel management, and project management, we implemented a simple tracking tool that could capture all metrics, associate costs and ROI. This always enabled us to cut back on workstreams that were not providing enough value and focus on the ones that were generating high value. The key to the success of this program has been leadership support, strong knowledge building and training processes and complete transparency to the stakeholders.

As we developed a methodology that could work for HP, through Centre of excellence, we began sharing these learnings, methodologies and processes pan HP.

About the Awards

The Business Transformation & Operational Excellence Awards have been established to showcase globally the most outstanding organizational achievements through the application of Operational Excellence programs. Click here to view the Press Release.

The winners will be announced at the Awards Ceremony at The Business Transformation & Operational Excellence World Awards (BTOES) on Wednesday, March 25th, 2020, from 6.30pm in the Venetian Ballroom at the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando Resort.

The Business Transformation & Operational Excellence Awards are open to all organizations, both private and public sector, across the globe, which have implemented Operational Excellence programs to deliver outstanding business results.

The Awards will be held in conjunction with the Business Transformation & Operational Excellence World Summit, BTOES 2020 in the beautiful Venetian Ballroom on March 25, 2020 at the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando™️. Click to access the agenda, view the current speakers, and watch the highlights video from last year.

BTOES.com

The issues in this article are just one of topic areas that are going to be discussed at the Business Transformation & Operational Excellence World Summit & Industry

BTOES is the industry’s biggest and best, senior-level, cross-industry gathering of Business Transformation & Operational Excellence industry leaders and senior executives.

It also hosts the Business Transformation & Operational Excellence Awards, which showcase globally the most outstanding organizational achievements through the application of Operational Excellence programs.

The summits hosts a number of private forums for C-Level & Global corporate-level leaders as well as business unit heads.

With over 150 speakers, over 100 sessions, 12 Keynotes, 9 Track Themes, 5 parallel tracks, 60+ track sessions, 50 roundtable discussions, 20 Interactive Workshops, 6 Thought Leader Panels, 5 Leaders Boardrooms, 5 co-located events, the Industry Awards Program, Site Visits, 20+ hours of social networking including 2 gala cocktail parties, dinners, numerous group activities, this is the ultimate event to benchmark, network and drive Operational Excellence to the next level.

Quick Links

Speakers

Agenda

BTOES Awards

There is a strong focus on Cultural Transformation, Customer Delight, Sustaining an Operational Excellence program, Need for end-to-end Business Transformation, Keeping up with new technologies/impact of digitalization and Leadership Buy-in & Understanding. We dedicated two tracks to advanced technologies, such as AI, Machine Learning, RPA, Predictive Analytics, Blockchain, Cloud infrastructure etc.

The agenda is designed to encourage active meaningful conversations though all day enhanced networking and interaction opportunities, including

• All-day Refreshment & Themed Breaks

• 1¼ Hour Hot Breakfast Networking Sessions

• 1½ Hour Hot Plated Networking Lunches with Topic & Industry Sector focussed tables

• 1½ Hour Roundtable Sessions by Topic & Industry Sector.

• Keynote & Themes Panel Sessions

• Hosted Welcome Receptions from 5.30pm

• Expanded more lavish Awards Program

• Newly launched Night Summit for attendees to meet after dinner

For more information or to discuss the summit in more detail please schedule a call below,

Click here to schedule a call.