Simplicity and Consistency in Sales Compensation with Pauline Xu, Sales Comp Leader at Unity

In this episode of The Sales Compensation Show, Nabeil Alazzam welcomes Pauline Xu, a distinguished sales compensation leader currently at Unity Technologies and formerly Director of Global Sales Compensation at Flexport. With an impressive career spanning roles at companies like Aetna, Markel, and Adobe, Pauline brings a wealth of expertise in sales comp, financial planning, and operational excellence.
Throughout the conversation, Pauline shares her journey into the world of sales compensation and the surprising aspects of the role. She emphasizes the importance of business acumen, common sense, and using data effectively to tell a story and spot trends.
Pauline reveals best practices for designing effective sales compensation plans, including aligning with sales strategy, keeping things simple, and thinking through crediting rules upfront. She recommends documenting "what if" scenarios in an FAQ doc during plan design to proactively address potential issues.
When it comes to plan rollouts, Pauline believes in partnering with sales leaders and top reps to communicate the plan effectively. She shares examples of how this approach has worked well in her experience.