15 Sales Operations Terminologies (with Formulas) Every New Sales Ops Professional Should Know

Starting out in Sales Operations (Sales Ops) can feel like learning a brand new language. Between CRM jargon, pipeline talk, and performance metrics, it’s easy to feel lost in early meetings.

The good news? Once you understand the key terms and formulas behind them, everything starts to click.

Here are 15 Sales Ops terminologies and formulas every new professional should know.

1. CRM (Customer Relationship Management)

Not a formula, but the foundation. A CRM (like Salesforce or HubSpot) is where all customer and prospect data lives. Sales Ops manages the CRM to ensure data hygiene and accurate reporting.

2. Pipeline

The collection of all opportunities a sales team is working on. Often visualized as a funnel.

Formula (Pipeline Coverage):

Pipeline Coverage=Total Pipeline ValueQuota\text{Pipeline Coverage} = \frac{\text{Total Pipeline Value}}{\text{Quota}} Pipeline Coverage=QuotaTotal Pipeline Value​

Example: If your pipeline is $2M and quota is $1M, coverage = 2x.

3. Forecast

A prediction of expected revenue in a period. Typically combines pipeline stage weighting + rep input.

Formula (Weighted Forecast):

\text{Forecast} = \sum (\text{Deal Value} \times \text{Probability %})

Example: $100K deal at 50% = $50K weighted contribution.

4. Quota

The target assigned to a rep or team.

Formula (Quota Attainment %):

Quota Attainment=Actual RevenueQuota×100\text{Quota Attainment} = \frac{\text{Actual Revenue}}{\text{Quota}} \times 100Quota Attainment=QuotaActual Revenue​×100

Example: Rep closes $90K against a $100K quota = 90% attainment.

5. Win Rate

The percentage of opportunities that become closed-won.

Formula:

Win Rate=Closed-Won DealsTotal Opportunities×100\text{Win Rate} = \frac{\text{Closed-Won Deals}}{\text{Total Opportunities}} \times 100Win Rate=Total OpportunitiesClosed-Won Deals​×100

Example: 25 wins out of 100 opps = 25% win rate.

6. Sales Cycle Length

How long it takes to close a deal, on average.

Formula:

Sales Cycle Length=Sum of Close Dates - Created DatesNumber of Deals\text{Sales Cycle Length} = \frac{\text{Sum of Close Dates - Created Dates}}{\text{Number of Deals}}Sales Cycle Length=Number of DealsSum of Close Dates - Created Dates​

Example: 10 deals taking a combined 450 days → 45-day sales cycle.

7. Lead Scoring

Ranking leads by likelihood to convert. Usually built using a points system (demographics + behavior).

Formula (simplified):

Lead Score=Demographic Points+Behavioral Points\text{Lead Score} = \text{Demographic Points} + \text{Behavioral Points}Lead Score=Demographic Points+Behavioral Points

Example: Job Title = +20, Demo Request = +30 → Score = 50.

8. MQL, SQL, SAL

• MQL (Marketing Qualified Lead): Meets marketing engagement criteria.

  
  

• SQL (Sales Qualified Lead): Vetted by sales as sales-ready.

  
  

• SAL (Sales Accepted Lead): Sales formally accepts to work.

  
  

Formula (MQL→SQL Conversion):

Conversion Rate=SQLsMQLs×100\text{Conversion Rate} = \frac{\text{SQLs}}{\text{MQLs}} \times 100Conversion Rate=MQLsSQLs​×100

Example: 100 MQLs → 30 SQLs = 30% conversion.

9. Territory Management

Allocating accounts or regions to reps. No single formula, but often measured by account coverage:

Formula:

\text{Coverage %} = \frac{\text{Accounts Assigned to Reps}}{\text{Total Accounts}} \times 100

10. Compensation Plan (Comp Plan)

Defines rep earnings (base + commission + bonuses).

Formula (On-Target Earnings, OTE):

OTE=Base Salary+Target Commission\text{OTE} = \text{Base Salary} + \text{Target Commission}OTE=Base Salary+Target Commission

Example: $60K base + $40K commission = $100K OTE.

11. ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue)

Recurring revenue normalized over a year.

Formula:

ARR=Total Contract Value (TCV)÷Contract Length (Years)\text{ARR} = \text{Total Contract Value (TCV)} \div \text{Contract Length (Years)}ARR=Total Contract Value (TCV)÷Contract Length (Years)

Example: $120K TCV over 3 years = $40K ARR.

12. MRR (Monthly Recurring Revenue)

The recurring revenue earned per month.

Formula:

MRR=ARR12\text{MRR} = \frac{\text{ARR}}{12}MRR=12ARR​

Example: $120K ARR → $10K MRR.

13. Churn

The percentage of customers or revenue lost in a period.

Formula (Customer Churn):

\text{Customer Churn %} = \frac{\text{Customers Lost}}{\text{Customers at Start}} \times 100

Formula (Revenue Churn):

\text{Revenue Churn %} = \frac{\text{ARR Lost}}{\text{ARR at Start}} \times 100

14. Sales Enablement

Not a KPI but a key function: building training, playbooks, and resources for reps. Impact is often measured via:

Formula (Time to Ramp):

Ramp Time=Days from Start→First Quota Attainment\text{Ramp Time} = \text{Days from Start} \to \text{First Quota Attainment}Ramp Time=Days from Start→First Quota Attainment

15. Conversion Rate (General)

The percentage of leads or opportunities progressing to the next stage.

Formula:

Conversion Rate=Leads/Deals at Next StageLeads/Deals at Current Stage×100\text{Conversion Rate} = \frac{\text{Leads/Deals at Next Stage}}{\text{Leads/Deals at Current Stage}} \times 100Conversion Rate=Leads/Deals at Current StageLeads/Deals at Next Stage​×100

Bonus: SLA (Service Level Agreement)

Not a KPI, but a rule. For example: Sales must follow up with inbound leads within 24 hours. Sales Ops tracks SLA adherence rate as a KPI.

Formula:

\text{SLA Adherence %} = \frac{\text{Leads Followed Within SLA}}{\text{Total Leads}} \times 100

Final Thought

Sales Ops is part strategist, part data analyst, part process architect. By knowing these core terms and formulas, you’ll not only understand what’s happening—you’ll be able to measure, analyze, and improve it.

Master these 15, and you’ll sound like a seasoned Sales Ops professional in your next pipeline review.

Ready to put these formulas into action? Join the Reklik Community, where Sales Ops and GTM professionals share playbooks, real-world examples, and the kind of support you can’t get from Google searches alone.