Blog · Territory, capacity and quota planning
Why the coverage model, which says which accounts each rep touches at what cadence, and the capacity plan, which says how many touches each rep can make, are the same arithmetic from two ends, how to check that they agree, the identity that touches required equal touches available within a stated tolerance, the two ways they usually disagree, cadence set without hours and hours set without accounts, and the reconciliation that fixes both.
A sales organisation builds a coverage model and a capacity plan in different meetings and never puts them on the same page. One says each tier-one account gets six touches a quarter; the other says each rep has a hundred and twenty touch hours a month. Whether the two agree is arithmetic, and it usually does not. This guide sets out the identity, the two ways it breaks, and the reconciliation.
| Plan | Says | Set by |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage model | Accounts per rep, tier per account, touches per tier per period | Sales leadership |
| Capacity plan | Reps, available hours per rep, minutes per touch | Sales operations, finance |
Touches required per rep = Σ accounts × tier cadence Touches available per rep = available hours × 60 ÷ minutes per touch Required ≈ available, within the stated tolerance
Rep identifiers only.
Minutes per touch: tier one 45, tier two 30, tier three 15. Available: 120 hours a month per rep, 360 a quarter.
| Rep | Tier 1 accounts × 6 | Tier 2 × 3 | Tier 3 × 1 | Hours required | Hours available | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R-04 | 9 × 6 = 54 | 23 × 3 = 69 | 30 × 1 = 30 | 40.5 + 34.5 + 7.5 = 82.5 | 360 | Under-loaded by 277 |
| R-11 | 8 × 6 = 48 | 18 × 3 = 54 | 18 × 1 = 18 | 36 + 27 + 4.5 = 67.5 | 360 | Under-loaded |
| R-22 | 30 × 6 = 180 | 60 × 3 = 180 | 80 × 1 = 80 | 135 + 90 + 20 = 245 | 360 | Fits |
On this cadence the reps have hours to spare, which says the cadence is too low or the touch duration too short. Raise tier one to twelve touches and tier two to six:
| Rep | Hours required | Hours available | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-04 | 165 | 360 | Fits |
| R-22 | 490 | 360 | Over by 130: cannot deliver |
Now R-22 cannot deliver the coverage model. Either R-22's book moves, or the cadence on R-22's tier three accounts drops. The table says which by how much.
Cadence without hours. A workshop sets touches per tier from what tier-one accounts deserve. Nobody multiplies. The coverage model is unachievable for the reps with large books, and coverage at cadence reads low for reasons that are not the rep's.
Hours without accounts. Headcount is set from revenue per rep. Nobody checks the accounts those reps would carry. The capacity plan has reps with nothing to touch and reps with too much.
Never put on one page. Two plans, both approved, contradictory.
Tolerance unstated. Every rep is either over or under by some amount; nobody knows which matters.
Touch duration from a guess. The activity log has the real number.
Reconciled once. Re-tiering and hiring both move it.
Mapped once, the assignments, tiers, cadence, roster and touch durations produce required against available per rep and the gap in hours every cycle. Covirage builds this from the exports as they are. The capacity planning solution describes the setup, and the rep load guide covers the load figure the required side is built from.
Usually the coverage model, because cadence is set by ambition. Six touches a quarter on tier one sounds right until sixty tier-one accounts times six touches times forty minutes is more hours than the rep has. The capacity plan has the hours; the cadence has to fit them, or the tiers have to move.
Ten percent either way is a common band. A rep whose required touches exceed available by more than that cannot deliver the coverage model whatever they do; one whose available exceeds required by more is under-loaded, and the capacity plan is carrying headcount the coverage does not need.
At every plan cycle and every re-tiering, because both move the required side, and at every hiring or attrition event, because those move the available side. Monthly in a stable team; the identity is cheap to compute and expensive to ignore.