The Challenge
This pan-African pharmaceutical company had invested heavily in field force expansion over several years, but revenue growth lagged behind expectations.
The symptoms:
- Revenue per rep declining year-on-year
- Inconsistent CRM data quality
- Sales managers reporting activity but not results
- High performer complaints about territory inequity
- Suspicion of “ghost calling” but no evidence
Leadership had commissioned two previous consulting engagements. Both delivered recommendations that went unimplemented because they lacked the operational detail to translate strategy into action.
Our Approach
Phase 1: SKII Diagnostic (Weeks 1-4)
We deployed SKII field force diagnostics to build a comprehensive picture of commercial productivity:
Data integration:
- CRM call records (claimed activity)
- Customer purchase data (actual outcomes)
- Expense claims (travel patterns)
- GPS data where available
- Manager field visit records
Diagnostic findings:
The analysis exposed a 4x variance between the top and bottom performer, with 30% growth in one area and 31% decline in another, yet reps received the same salary and incentives.
More critically, we identified:
- 23% of claimed calls showed no correlation with customer purchasing
- High performers were allocated territories with 40% less customer potential than average
Phase 2: Root Cause Analysis (Weeks 5-6)
The variance wasn’t primarily a people problem; it was a systems problem:
- Territory inequity: High performers were penalised with lower-potential territories “because they can handle it”
- Invisible activity: No system to verify call claims against outcomes
- Manager absence: First-line managers averaged 2 field days per month
- Incentive misalignment: Bonuses based on activity metrics that were easily gamed
Phase 3: Revenue Dashboard Implementation (Weeks 7-10)
We built revenue intelligence dashboards providing:
- Real-time visibility into rep activity and outcomes
- Automatic flagging of activity-outcome disconnects
- Territory performance comparison
- Manager field activity tracking
- Early warning alerts for declining accounts
For the first time, leadership could see what was actually happening in the field -not what reps claimed was happening.
Phase 4: Targeted Intervention (Weeks 11-16)
Based on diagnostic findings, we implemented:
Immediate actions:
- Performance management for 6 reps with no verified activity (4 exited, 2 returned to productivity)
- Territory rebalancing to equity opportunity across performers
- Manager field day requirements (minimum 12 days per month)
Systemic changes:
- Incentive redesign linking compensation to verified outcomes
- Auto-Snipe weekly intelligence to guide rep activity
- Customer classification driving call frequency requirements
- Monthly diagnostic reviews to catch issues early
The Results
Within 6 months:
- 16% improvement in average revenue per rep
- 47% increase in verified customer interactions
- Variance reduced significantly (still work to do, but structurally different)
Ongoing impact:
- Revenue dashboards now provide permanent visibility
- Auto-Snipe guides weekly activity for all reps
- Monthly SKII diagnostics identify emerging issues before they become problems
- Manager field time doubled from 2 to 4 days per week
Key Insight
Performance variance isn’t a people problem until you’ve eliminated systems problems. Most “underperformers” are rational actors responding to broken incentives, impossible territories, or absent management. Fix the system first, then address the individuals who still can’t perform.
The gap was hiding in plain sight: the company had all the data, just not the diagnostic framework to see what it meant.