Forecasting for Sales Managers

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Overview

The accuracy of a forecast is the foundation of organizational trust. A top-down budget is only the sum of bottoms-up inputs, and sales leaders must be responsible for consistently communicating an accurate, reliable, and trustworthy forecast to inform company decisions. 

This course is designed to teach you the fundamentals of forecasting accurately, the scientific rigor that must go into it, and how to evaluate and re-forecast while on the fly.

Tommy McNulty

Designer

Tommy McNulty is the Founder and CEO of Rhythm, the first HCM platform dedicated to revenue teams. Prior to founding Rhythm, Tommy ran B2B sales at NerdWallet, where he joined via the acquisition of Fundera, and oversaw an 80M annual P&L. As VP of Sales at Fundera, Tommy helped scale the organization from 0 to 50M+ in annual revenue, profitability, and three consecutive Crain’s Best Place to Work awards, all while managing a team of 100+. 

Tommy is also a Sales Mentor at First Round Capital, a Venture Fellow at Primary Venture Partners, Growth Advisor at TimberGrove VC, and a Limited Partner at GTMfund and Stage 2 Capital. Fun fact, he got his start in sales managing a chain of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu schools in Brooklyn in the early 2000s.

Information

About

In this 3-week course, students will learn the fundamentals of forecasting accurately including developing a forecasting process, using quantitative techniques like weighting and time series analysis to build a forecast, communicating forecasts to different stakeholders, and more.

Who Should Enroll

This course is designed for sales managers and leaders who are looking to bring more rigor and accuracy to their forecasting process.

Impact

By the end of this course, you will be equipped with the knowledge and skills to:

  • Forecast accurately and consistently
  • Show and prove your work regarding your forecast
  • Communicate your forecast to various stakeholders including investors, execs, and individual contributors

Why Enroll

Incorrect forecasts set off chain reactions like overspending or hiring, or under-investment and money left on the table. You will never be 100% precise, but your company depends on you being as close to it as possible to accurately set goals and make decisions.

Curriculum

Session #1
Introduction to
Sales Forecasting

By the end of this class, you will be able to:

  • Understand the purpose of forecasting
  • Develop a forecasting process
  • Understand how to gather data for a forecast
  • Use sales forecasts to inform business decisions or recommendations

Session #2
Science and Rigor
in Forecasting

By the end of this class, you will be able to:

  • Use quantitative techniques like weighting and time series analysis to build a forecast
  • Build a “revenue confidence” score
  • Use qualitative techniques like expert judgment and scenario planning
  • Incorporate external factors like economic conditions and competitive landscape into a forecast

Session #3
Managing and Communicating
the Forecast

By the end of this class, you will be able to:

  • Communicate forecasts to different stakeholders (Execs, Reps, Investors, etc)
  • Use forecasts to set goals and objectives for individuals and teams
  • Measure the accuracy of your sales forecasts
  • Adjust sales forecasts as needed based on changes in the environment
  • Delegate forecasting responsibilities

Frequently Asked Questions

This course is included in the cost of a Pavilion Membership.

At this time, this course is open to Pavilion Members only. Apply to join Pavilion to enroll.

Due to the length of this course, there will be no cohorts.

No, there is no final exam at the end of this course.

Applications are currently closed.

Yes, 100% attendance is required. We recommend that participants attend the live sessions for the optimal learning experience. However, watching session recordings count toward attendance for those who have scheduling conflicts or are in time zones where live attendance is a challenge.

Applications are currently closed.

Applications are currently closed.

After successfully meeting attendance requirements, you will receive a certificate of completion for this course.

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