How CFI Unified Salesforce, 606 Reporting, and Payouts with QuotaPath

At Corporate Finance Institute (CFI), commissions didn’t start out complicated.

But growth changes everything.

As the company scaled, so did expectations from leadership and the board. Quotas evolved. Spiffs were introduced. Performance initiatives multiplied. And what once worked in a spreadsheet quickly became unsustainable.

For Kim Stithem, Controller at CFI, commissions span the full lifecycle, from comp plan design with the CFO to final payout and ASC 606 reporting.

Her mandate was clear: modernize the process without adding operational friction.

“We were doing very manual calculations for simple plans. But as we started introducing new quotas and initiatives, you can’t scale that on a spreadsheet,” said Kim.

CFI needed more than automation. They needed continuity from deal close to payout to revenue recognition…without stitching together multiple tools.

That’s what led them to QuotaPath.

Watch and read more of Kim’s story below.

The Challenge: Growth Demanded More Than Spreadsheets

CFI’s commission plans became more sophisticated as the business matured.

More quotas. Accelerators. Spiffs. And, more board visibility.

But all of it lived in manual workflows.

“We had to up our game. Spreadsheets just weren’t cutting it anymore,” said Kim.

And the complexity didn’t stop at commission calculations.

Kim wasn’t just responsible for calculating payouts. She also needed to:

• Sync data from Salesforce
• Ensure payout eligibility
• Record and manage ASC 606 reporting
• Maintain audit-ready accuracy

Trying to manage all of that across disconnected tools would have doubled the operational load.

“I didn’t have the A to Z anywhere else,” Kim explained.

She needed one system that handled the full lifecycle, without forcing her to toggle between platforms.

Why QuotaPath Won the Evaluation

CFI’s procurement process required evaluating at least three vendors. Kim met with five.

She’d also used QuotaPath at a previous company, so she brought real-world experience to the process.

Even after a fresh evaluation, QuotaPath came out ahead.

“I’d used QuotaPath at a prior company. Even after evaluating everything again, QuotaPath still came out ahead,” said Kim.

Several factors stood out:

1. True All-in-One Functionality

Other vendors required pairing separate systems to handle commission calculations and 606 reporting.

“With QuotaPath, I could go from order to payout in one place,” Kim said.

That single workflow was critical.

“Others have it, but it’s two platforms, and you still have to do the connection. That’s just painful,” she explained.

2. Deep CRM Integration

Kim has integrated QuotaPath with both HubSpot and Salesforce across roles.

“The connection is huge. It connects to HubSpot or Salesforce… I like having everything in one stop shop,” she said.

3. Flexible Calculations for Complex Plans

As comp plans evolved, she needed confidence the system could handle increasing complexity.

“The continued expanding what it can do in terms of the calculations — because some plans can start getting really, really complicated — that was really nice,” Kim said.

4. Customer Success That Actually Shows Up

Kim doesn’t mince words about support.

“I absolutely love them. Every single one,” she said.

From customer success managers to support engineers, responsiveness stood out.

“Matt and I hammer out so much in two- and three-minute Looms back and forth. It’s amazing,” said Kim.

That Loom-first collaboration saves additional time on top of operational efficiency.

Implementation: “They Do Almost All of It for You”

Kim has onboarded QuotaPath twice… once at a previous company and again at CFI.

The second time, she saw even more maturity in the onboarding process.

“You now have this amazing checklist. The CS team sets up the plans for you. It was perfect to a T,” she said.

QuotaPath’s team drafts plans directly in the system based on provided documentation.

“You just basically hand it over, and you guys do like ninety percent of it,” Kim explained.

For a finance leader balancing reporting, payroll, and compliance responsibilities, that level of hands-on implementation made a difference.

“QuotaPath saves me hours every month, makes it easy to train others, and gives me full visibility from Salesforce to payout. I can’t imagine doing this without it.”

Partnership, Product Evolution, and a Clear Recommendation

No system is perfect, and Kim is candid about that.

From an accounting standpoint, she’d like the ability to formally “close” a period within 606 reporting. As someone in Finance, having a locked period is second nature.

But what stands out isn’t the limitation; it’s how QuotaPath handles feedback.

“I love working with the developers. They take our feedback into account, and they’re always asking for it,” Kim said.

Rather than feeling boxed into a static tool, she feels part of an evolving partnership. Feature requests aren’t dismissed; they’re acknowledged and often placed on the roadmap.

That responsiveness reinforces why she chose QuotaPath in the first place.

And the value is undeniable.

“QuotaPath saves me hours every month, makes it easy to train others, and gives me full visibility from Salesforce to payout. I can’t imagine doing this without it,” said Kim.

When asked whether she would recommend QuotaPath, her answer was immediate.

“Absolutely. I already have,” she said.

In fact, she recently helped a former coworker evaluate and select QuotaPath for their new company, walking them through the same considerations CFI had faced.

Her summary of the decision?

“It’s worth it. For the money and what it’s going to do, you wouldn’t have gotten it elsewhere.”

Closing Remarks

For CFI, QuotaPath isn’t just commission automation.

It’s a unified workflow that connects Salesforce, payouts, and 606 reporting, while giving Finance back 15–20 hours every month.

If you’re ready to eliminate spreadsheets and unify commissions from deal close to revenue recognition, book time with our team here.