GTM Commission Manager; Remote

We believe in the power and joy of learning

At Cengage Group, our employees have a direct impact in helping students around the world discover the power and joy of learning. We are bonded by our shared purpose – driving innovation that helps millions of learners improve their lives and achieve their dreams through education.

Our business is driven by our strong culture, and we know that creating an inclusive workplace is absolutely essential to the success of our company and our learners, as well as our individual well‑being. We recognize the value of diverse perspectives in everything we do, and strive to ensure employees of all levels and backgrounds feel empowered to voice their ideas and bring their authentic selves to work.

We achieve these priorities through programs, benefits, and initiatives that are integrated into the fabric of how we work every day.

Cengage is seeking a Sales GTM Commission & Incentives Manager to own the strategy, design of sales compensation and SPIFF programs across our Go‑To‑Market organization. Reporting into Revenue Operations, this role is the single‑threaded owner for translating GTM strategy into clear, motivating, and financially sound incentive mechanics that drive seller behavior across new business, renewals, expansion, and customer success motions.

This role is highly focused on commission plan architecture, SPIFF design, earnings modeling, payout accuracy, and cost‑of‑sales discipline
. You will partner closely with Sales Leadership, Finance, HR, Legal, and Analytics to ensure incentives are competitive, attainable, operationally scalable, and tightly aligned to revenue, retention, and profitability goals.

• Own annual and in‑year commission plan design for all GTM roles (AE, AM/CSM, SDR/BDR, Channel/Partner, overlays), ensuring plans directly reinforce GTM priorities and desired seller behavior.

• Design and govern all incentive mechanics
  , including:

• Quotas and targets
• Commission rates and payout curves
• Accelerators, decelerators, caps and thresholds
• MBOs and short‑term incentives (SPIFFs)
• Role‑, segment‑, and territory‑based plan variations

• Lead the design and deployment of SPIFF programs to drive focus on priority products, segments, seasons, or behaviors; evaluate SPIFF ROI and sunset underperforming incentives.

• Run detailed scenario modeling and sensitivity analysis to balance motivation, earnings distribution, and total cost of sales while preventing gaming or unintended outcomes.

• Establish and maintain compensation governance
  , including plan documentation, eligibility rules, change control, and policy compliance.

• Partner with broader Rev Ops on alignment between comp plans, territories, coverage models, product priorities, and pricing/discount guardrails
  .

• Collaborate with Sales Leadership on incentive alignment to goals, quotas, and GTM motions.
• Partner closely with Finance on commission accruals, budgeting, forecasting, and period close
  , ensuring incentive expense predictability and control.
• Work with HR and Legal to ensure plans comply with employment policies and legal requirements.
• Partner with finance on spiff and comp effectiveness
• Partner with finance to ensure dashboards and insights are available for all roles

• 5–7+ years of experience in Sales Compensation, Incentive Compensation Management, Revenue Operations, or Finance with deep incentive comp ownership.
• Proven track record designing and operating complex, multi‑role GTM commission plans and SPIFF programs in a SaaS, subscription, or education/learning business.

Cengage Group is committed to working with broad talent pools to attract and hire strong and most qualified individuals. Our job applicants are considered regardless of any classification protected by applicable federal, state, provincial or local laws.

Cengage is also committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities during our job application process. If you are an…