Sales variable pay in France: the complete guide to commission plans

For a sales team, the variable pay plan is far more than a line on a payslip: it is the engine of your growth and the first lever for retaining your talent.

For some, variable pay is a powerful motivational lever; for others, a complex source of frustration. Yet, when it is well calibrated, it turns a decent sales team into a team of top performers. How do you build a plan that aligns the interests of your sales team with those of your company?

Here is our complete guide to designing variable pay that performs.

👉 Our article on sales salaries may also interest you.

👉 Hiring a salesperson? See our dedicated page: Sales and Business Developer recruitment agency.

1. The foundation: understanding OTE (On-Target Earnings)

Before talking about percentages, you need to define OTE. It is the total amount earned if 100% of targets are met. It is therefore made up of the base salary plus the variable pay. Historically, the fixed part represents 60-80% of the package and the variable part 20-40%. In Tech and SaaS, however, the 50/50 model has become the standard for hunters.

Licorne Society’s advice: a base salary that is too low attracts flighty “mercenaries”. A base that is too high can blunt the hunting instinct. Balance (often 60/40 to secure the hire) is your best ally.

2. Variable pay by role: ratios and key metrics

You do not pay a “hunter” the same way as a “farmer”. For your sales cycle to run smoothly, each role needs its own metrics.

2.1. SDR / BDR variable pay

The SDR (Sales Development Representative) or BDR (Business Development Representative) is responsible for sales prospecting and generating qualified leads. You reward activity and the quality of the pipeline they generate.

An SDR’s quality is generally measured by the number of qualified meetings (SQLs) or opportunities created. For an average deal size (ACV) of €10k, expect a commission of €50-100 per qualified meeting. For Enterprise deals (>€50k ACV), this can go up to €200-300 per qualified opportunity.

Be aware that some prospects may not turn up to the first qualified meeting. This is called a no-show. We also recommend building a maximum no-show rate into the variable structure, for example 20%, to encourage reps to book quality leads.

2.2. Account Executive variable pay: commissions vs bonuses

The Account Executive (often called “ingénieur commercial” in French tech companies) is responsible for turning qualified prospects into actual customers. They generally handle everything from the first qualification meeting to closing the deal. However, more and more Account Executives also take care of prospecting. When it comes to their pay, two models compete: commissions or target-based bonuses.

A commission is a direct percentage of revenue. It generally sits between 8% and 12% of the contract value (ACV) for new business, with a lower percentage for renewals. The advantage is total clarity (“I sign €10k, I earn €1k”).

A Management by Objectives bonus (MBO) is a fixed bonus unlocked in tiers. For example, if the salesperson reaches €75,000 in revenue this quarter, they receive €4,000. The advantage is that you can include qualitative criteria such as proper CRM hygiene or customer satisfaction.

The two models can of course be combined.

2.3. Account Manager / CSM variable pay

The Account Manager steps in once the Account Executive has closed the sale. Their metrics are mainly linked to contract renewals, as well as upsell and cross-sell.

The CSM (Customer Success Manager) is the customer’s strategic partner. Their role is to make sure the customer makes good use of the product and reaches its own business objectives. They are generally paid on their Net Promoter Score (NPS), the retention rate and upsell/cross-sell.

Typical ratios are 2% to 5% commission on renewals and 10% to 15% on upsell, because the effort is closer to that of a new deal. For these roles, we recommend a split of 80% fixed vs 20% variable.

2.4. Sales Manager variable pay

The Sales Manager’s job is no longer just to sell, but to get others to sell. In an early-stage company, variable pay is hybrid, indexed both on their own deals and on the achievement of their team’s overall target. As the company scales, the manager steps back from day-to-day selling to focus on management, hiring and strategy. Their variable pay then shifts to a commission model or to a bonus based on their team’s revenue.

In a scale-up, the usual preference is variable pay based 80% on achieving the collective quota and 20% on qualitative or structural objectives. These performance indicators can include the ramp-up speed of new hires, forecast accuracy or reducing turnover within the sales department.

3. Getting new hires up to speed: the ramp-up period

The success of a Sales hire is not decided when the contract is signed, but during the first 90 days. Onboarding new talent takes time: between product training, mastering the sales pitch and building a healthy pipeline, performance cannot be immediate.

Demanding 100% performance from the very first month from a salesperson who is discovering your ecosystem is the surest way to create frustration and early turnover. To secure your hire and boost your new recruit’s confidence, you need to structure their ramp-up.

To set up a fair and motivating transition, you can offer a draw against commission: you guarantee payment of 100% of the target variable (or a significant fixed portion) during the first months. This lets the salesperson focus on training and on the quality of their prospecting without the financial anxiety of “zero commission” while the first deals come in.

Rather than setting the bar at the top straight away, also define realistic tiers that follow the learning curve:

It is also a recruitment argument: you show that you are genuinely investing in the candidate’s long-term success.

4. Individual vs collective: the great debate

Striking the balance between individual performance and collective success is a complex exercise for any Sales Director. While salespeople are, by nature, competitive people who need a direct correlation between their personal effort and their pay, a company’s long-term success depends above all on healthy group dynamics.

For an early-stage company, the 100% individual model is often the most appropriate. At this stage, the top priority is to validate Product-Market Fit and secure the first revenue. It is therefore crucial that each salesperson feels fully responsible for their own pipeline.

On the other hand, as soon as the team grows and you enter the scale-up phase, the 80/20 mix becomes a strategic standard. By keeping 80% of the variable on individual performance, you maintain the drive the sales profession requires. The remaining 20%, indexed on the company’s overall target, encourages top performers to lead the way in sharing best practices, mentoring new hires during ramp-up and building overall team cohesion.

5. Performance levers

To turn your plan into an engine of outperformance, it must reward exceptional effort through accelerators. The principle is simple: above 100% of target, the commission rate increases (e.g. from 10% to 15%). Once your company’s fixed costs are covered by hitting the base quota, every additional sale becomes highly profitable for the company, which justifies higher pay for the salesperson.

We also advise you not to cap commissions, as this sends a counter-productive message. It mechanically pushes your best salespeople to hold back their deals for the next quarter or, worse, to ease off. In short, the more money your salesperson earns, the faster your company grows.

6. Timing: when should you pay?

Choosing when you pay commissions is just as strategic as calculating the amount itself. A payout too far removed from the sales effort could frustrate your teams, while paying too early on long cycles can weaken your cash flow or lead to more bonus clawbacks.

The goal is to maintain positive sales tension. The salesperson must feel a direct link between closing a deal and its impact on their payslip. To achieve this, the golden rule is to align bonus frequency with the reality of your sales cycle. The shorter the cycle, the more frequent the reward must be to keep the adrenaline going; the longer it is, the more the payout should be smoothed to reflect the complexity and maturity of the deals.

7. Mistakes to avoid

To conclude this guide, it is essential to identify the mistakes that can undermine the effectiveness of your strategy. 

Conclusion on variable pay: test, measure, adjust

A variable pay plan is not set in stone. It must evolve with the maturity of your company.

The key takeaway? A salesperson who fully understands their commission plan is a salesperson who knows exactly where to focus their efforts to smash their targets.

Hiring your future top closers? At Licorne Society, we find the talent who do not just reach their targets, but exceed them.