How do I build a key account forecast my CRO can trust?

How do I build a key account forecast my CRO can trust?

Your chief revenue officer (CRO) trusts a number because they have reliable evidence that you know what you're doing in forecasting key accounts. A forecast that is reviewed every month, validated with the customer, built on finance and delivery data, and produced the same way by every key account manager (KAM) answers most questions before they're asked.

Five questions to see if your team can do this job today:

1. Does your team review the forecast with leadership every month?
2. Has the customer validated the assumptions behind your forecast?
3. Does your forecast use finance and delivery data, along with the pipeline?
4. Has every KAM been trained on the team's forecasting process?
5. Does your team review its forecasting process at least once a year to keep it accurate?

Two or more no's, and every forecast review may turn into ten questions.

I find the best data source for predicting future outcomes is the source itself: the key account. Their information doesn't necessarily have to change the forecast, but it can play a major role in validating the number.

I once worked for a very large company with huge accounts. Rarely would one account's forecast move the needle enough to involve the C-suite, with one exception. We had two accounts that were 4X the size of our other major accounts and 1,000X larger than the average customer in our portfolio. The chairman, the CEO and the CROs were all very interested in the forecasts for these two giants and the impact they could have on our business.

But the forecasting process didn't change. The questions, the data sources, and the strategy and planning were all the same. The scale may be different, but the logic isn't. If you run a good forecast process with integrity, the results should follow, and the C-suite's confidence in your ability to predict the future will increase.

Your team can earn that confidence by running the same process on every key account, starting with your largest.

Our system, the Vitality Index, shows your key account teams where they stand today, the work it takes to level up, and how to do it, until they reach a vital partnership that lasts.

What question does your CRO ask most often about your key account forecast?

We built a free, 4-minute Key Account Risk Assessment. It gives you a risk score for your key accounts across team alignment, account planning, account transitions, and visibility. Link in the comments.