Results of Multi-Year Corporate Partner Pilot Conducted over 2024 - 2025.
Between 2023 and 2025, a select group of organisations participated in a structured Corporate Partner Pilot Program delivered by the Chartered Institute of Sales Professionals (CISP). The objective was clear: to test, in a real-world commercial environment, whether sales capability — when measured objectively and developed systematically — could be materially improved, and whether such improvement would translate into measurable revenue outcomes.
Participants included sales professionals across a broad spectrum of experience, seniority and responsibility. Each individual commenced the program by undertaking the CISP Sales Capability Assessment (SCA), establishing a detailed and objective baseline of their current capability across the Institute’s Sales Capability Framework.
Based on these results, individuals were directed into a personalised, self-directed Continuing Professional Development (CPD) pathway. Unlike traditional training models, this approach was not uniform or time-bound. Instead, it provided access to a curated suite of targeted development resources aligned precisely to each individual’s identified capability gaps. Participants were able to engage with this content at their own pace, in volumes determined by their own commitment to development, supplemented where appropriate by more traditional learning interventions.
After a 12-month period, participants were reassessed using the SCA, enabling a direct comparison between initial baseline capability and subsequent performance. In parallel, several participating organisations provided internal sales performance data, allowing for the analysis of relationships between three critical variables:
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time invested in capability development;
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improvement in measured sales capability; and
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performance against sales quotas.
In the case of senior sales leaders — many of whom completed Level 6 assessments — performance data was, in some instances, aggregated at team or business unit level to reflect their span of control.
The SCA operates across four defined levels, each mapped directly to the Institute’s Sales Capability Framework. Level 3 is designed for early-career sales professionals, typically with less than two years’ experience, while Level 6 reflects the capabilities expected of highly experienced Chief Sales Officers and Sales Directors, often with 20 or more years in senior leadership roles.
The analysis that follows presents the detailed results from one participating organisation, which enrolled 54 sales professionals spanning Business Development Managers, Relationship Managers, Sales Managers and Sales Directors. Each individual completed an SCA assessment and engaged in a tailored CPD program over the 12-month period.
The charts below illustrates the relationship between development effort and capability improvement. The horizontal axes represents the average number of hours per week invested in CPD activity, as derived from individual SCA engagement data. The vertical axes reflects the corresponding change in SCA scores between baseline and reassessment. Bubble sizes indicates the magnitude of change in sales performance, with darker bubbles representing increases in quota attainment and lighter bubbles with dotted outlines indicating declines.
Participating Partners
Headline Results and Insights
Average increase in sales against quota (12 months)
Average individual SCA score improvement (12 months)
Correlation coefficient (r) between CPD hours and change in SCA scores [0.6 – 0.8 = strong correlation; 0.8 – 1.0 = very strong correlation]
Correlation coefficient (r) between changes in SCA scores and sales quota improvement.
Correlation coefficient (r) between CPD hours consumed and sales quota improvement.
Average monthly CPD hours per person.
