How Pennylane Cut Its Commission Closing Time by Three Times — Customer Story

At Pennylane, variable compensation plays a central role in the growth strategy. Commissions represent a significant portion of sales representatives' compensation and are a direct lever for generating revenue, strategic alignment, and team engagement.

To be effective, a commission system must be reliable, transparent, easy to understand, and manageable in real time. Before implementing Qobra, Pennylane faced several limitations that hindered the strategic impact of its variable compensation.

This case study shows how the company transformed a complex and time-consuming process into a real performance driver.

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Context: strategic variable compensation in a growing environment

A demanding sales organization

In a rapidly growing environment, the accuracy and transparency of commissions are crucial. Variable compensation directly influences:

• The individual motivation of salespeople
• The achievement of collective objectives
• The deployment of strategic initiatives
• Talent retention

However, the tool previously used by Pennylane did not allow it to meet these requirements.

"We clearly use variable compensation as a lever, both to generate revenue at Pennylane's global scale and to push certain strategic initiatives."

Thomas Mesnil, Sales Operations at Pennylane

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Challenges encountered before Qobra

Lack of visibility for sales teams

The tool in place was not sufficiently up to date nor consulted enough by salespeople. The result:

• Difficulty tracking variable compensation in real time
• Uncertainty about amounts to be received
• Frequent requests from managers

Managers regularly received messages asking where commissions stood and what the impact on compensation would be.

Instead of being a motivating factor, variable compensation became a source of questions and friction.

"I didn't really use our previous tool because it wasn't up to date. Qobra is connected directly to Salesforce, so I can see my compensation data refresh in real time alongside my target attainment."

Stan Hollande, Sales at Pennylane

Lack of clarity and simplicity

Between CRMs, data visualization tools, and scattered files, finding reliable and understandable information was complex.

This led to:

• Difficulty understanding calculations
• A perceived lack of transparency
• A risk of errors or disputes

In a structured sales environment, opacity undermines trust.

A long and time-consuming closing process

Closing commissions involved:

• Centralizing scattered files
• Multiple realignments with managers
• Manual calculations
• Numerous checks

At the end of each period, it took about three days of work to close bonuses.

For the Sales Operations teams, this time represented a heavy and unscalable operational burden.

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The deployment of Qobra: a structured and adoption-oriented transition

Prioritizing the Sales teams' experience

For Pennylane, adoption by the sales representatives was a determining factor. The change in tools had a direct impact on their daily work and their compensation.

Qobra supported the team with:

• On-site onboarding
• Productive work sessions
• Personalized support

This approach enabled a smooth transition and rapid adoption by the teams.

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Results achieved with Qobra

Real-time visibility into performance and compensation

Thanks to Qobra dashboards:

• Managers can view individual and collective commission trends with just two clicks
• Sales reps can track their variable compensation on a daily basis
• Commission accelerators are immediately visible

Direct integration with Salesforce ensures that data is continuously updated.

Sales reps can now:

• Know how much they will earn based on signed contracts
• Anticipate the achievement of accelerators
• Manage their performance independently

Variable compensation becomes a daily management tool.

Complete transparency on calculations

Qobra allows you to break down each element of the calculation.

Teams can:

• Understand exactly where the amounts come from
• Verify the calculations
• Identify the impact of each deal

This transparency greatly reduces disputes and builds trust between Sales, managers, and Operations teams.

"Transparency on the calculations lets you verify them, understand them and know exactly why this amount is being displayed. And for sales reps it's just as simple, they don't Slack me constantly to ask where they stand."

Thibault Lemaître, Sales Manager at Pennylane

Major operational time savings

Commission closing has been reduced from three days to half a day.

The process is now simplified:

• Sales Operations teams notify managers
• Managers verify amounts
• Validation is done with a single click

"I get pinged directly by Ops, basically asking me to validate that the variable in Qobra is correct. So I just double-check the number is right, and it's literally one click."

Thibault Lemaître, Sales Manager at Pennylane

This time saving allows teams to focus on high-value strategic issues rather than administrative tasks.

"Before, with the time it took to realign with every manager, centralize scattered files, calculate commissions and review formulas, each closing took about 3 days. Today we've squeezed that down to less than a day, I'm pretty much at half a day at the end of each period."

Thomas Mesnil, Sales Operations at Pennylane

High value-added customer support

Pennylane highlights the quality of Qobra's support:

• Responsiveness
• Professionalism
• Ongoing support
• Help with optimizing new features

In a subject as sensitive as variable compensation, the quality of support is a key factor for success.

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Strategic benefits for Pennylane

Making variable compensation a motivational lever

Salespeople have clear, up-to-date visibility. They can track their performance and immediately understand the financial impact of their actions.

"It lets me see how much I'll earn based on what I bring in, and it lets me anticipate hitting accelerators. Compensation is a motivation lever."

Stan Hollande, Sales at Pennylane

Enhancing attractiveness and retention

The transparency and reliability of the commission system builds trust and contributes to talent retention.

Improving managerial oversight

Managers have a consolidated, instant view of performance and associated compensation.

Optimize the efficiency of operations teams

The drastic reduction in closing time frees up resources for higher value-added initiatives.

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Conclusion: a structuring tool for sales departments

The Pennylane case demonstrates that variable compensation should not be considered a simple administrative process.

When it is:

• Difficult to understand
• Lacking in transparency
• Complex to manage

It hinders performance.

When it is:

• Updated in real time
• Understandable by all
• Easy to manage and validate

It becomes a powerful strategic lever for motivation, alignment, and growth.

By implementing Qobra, Pennylane has transformed its commission system into a structuring driver of its sales performance.

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Qobra in figures

• More than 250 client companies (Doctolib, Payfit, Spendesk, Go1, Make, CoachHub, SeLoger, Figaro, Agicap, etc.)
• More than 20,000 users (Finance, Revenue Operations, Sales Operations, HR, Sales, etc.)
• International presence: France, United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Spain, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, and Czech Republic