BCG -2027 年收入议程 将人工智能的关注点从生产力转向价值验证 The 2027 Revenue Agenda Moving the AI Focus from Productivity to Proof of Value

SALESCHANNELSTRATEGY

The2027Revenue

Agenda:MovingtheAIFocusfromProductivitytoProofofValue

ByFedericoFabbni,MarinaNekrasova,TarandeepSingh,andNachoHafnerARTICLEOCTOBER19,20268MINREAD

CROsareheadinginto2027withanunusuallyambitiousgrowthagenda:morepeople,more

spending,andhigherexpectationsforeveryseller.InBCG'ssurveyofnearly400CROs,sales

leaders,chiefcommercialofficers,andrevenueoperationsleadersacross23countriesandfivesectors,65%expectheadcounttogrowoverthenextyear,72%expectsalesandrevenuebudgetstoincrease,and91%expectquotasorproductivityrequirementspersellertorise.(See“About

◎2026BostonConsultingGroup1

OurSurvey.”)It’sa“domorewithmore”agenda,with

AI

expectedtohelpsalesteamsdeliveronthoseambitions.

AboutOurSurvey

BCGsurveyed398CROs,salesleaders,chiefcommercialofficers,andrevenue

operationsleadersatlargecompaniesacross23countries:Australia,Austria,

Belgium,Canada,Denmark,Finland,France,Germany,India,Ireland,Italy,Japan,

SouthKorea,Luxembourg,theNetherlands,NewZealand,Norway,Portugal,

Spain,Sweden,Switzerland,theUnitedKingdom,andtheUS.Respondents

workedinmultiplesectors,primarilyintechnology,telecommunications,

industrialgoods,consumer,healthcarebutalsoinenergyandenvironment,

financialservices,realestate,insurance,media,professionalservices,and

transport,shipping,andlogistics.

Butthere’sagapbetweenAIadoptionandcommercialimpact.NinetypercentoftheleaderswesurveyedreportmeaningfulAIuseinsalesworkflows,yetonly13%reportwinratesasatopareaofmeasurableAIimpact,andonly8%reporthigherquotaattainment.

AsCROsfinalizetheir2027plans,itraisesapressingquestion:Whatwillittaketoturnthis

growinginvestment,AIadoption,andhigherexpectationsofsellersintomeasurablegrowth?OurfindingsrevealwhereAIinvestmentmaybemissingchangingbuyerneeds,wherereturnsare

beginningtoemerge,andwhatCROsfurthestaheadsaytheyaredoingdifferently.

FocusingAIontheCustomer

MomentsThatInfluenceBuyingDecisions

©2026BostonConsultingGroup2

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PartofthereasonAI'scommercialimpacthasbeenslowertoemergeisbecausetoomuchofthefocussofarhasbeenonmakingsalesteamsmoreproductive.Today'sbuyersincreasinglyneedsellerstohelpthemnavigatemorecomplexpurchasedecisions,andAlcanhelpsellersdothat.

Nearly60%ofsalesleaderssaycustomersarriveatthefirstconversationknowingsignificantlymoreaboutproducts,competitors,andpotentialusecasesthantheydidtwoyearsago.Yetmoreinformationhasnotnecessarilymadebuyingeasier.Nearlyone-quarterofsalesleadersreportthatinternalconsensus-buildinghasbecomemoredifficult,asstakeholdersbringtheirown

research,priorities,andperspectivestothedecision.

Atthesametime,buyersincreasinglyexpectsellerstodemonstratevalueearlierandmakethecasespecifictotheirbusiness.Fifty-fourpercentofsalesleadersreportgreaterdemandfor

customer-orindustry-specificpersonalizationinproposalsandthebusinesscase,while51%saybuyersexpectmorecustomizedproofofvalue,includingevidenceofROI,beforetheypurchase.Theseller'schallengeisthereforebecominglessaboutinformingbuyersandmoreabouthelpinganinformed,andsometimesdivided,groupofstakeholdersbuildconfidenceinadecision.(See

Exhibit1.)

EXHIBIT1

CustomerAIUseIsCreatingMoreInformedBuyersandGreater

PressureonSalesTeams

Customers'Aluseanditsimpactonsalesteams

%OFRESPONDENTSSELECTINGEACHIMPACT

Buyersaremoreinformedatfirstcontact

Pricingpressurehasincreased

Buyersexpectmoresegment-specific,customer-specific,orindustry-specificpersonalizationinproposalsandoutreach

Buyersexpectmorecustomizedproofofvaluebeforepurchase

Competitivepressurehasincreased

Salescyclesarecompressed

NegotiationwindowsaretighterInternalconsensusbuildinghasbecomeharder

Source:BCGRevenueAgendaSurvey2026(n=398CROs,salesandrevenueleadersacross23countriesandfivesectors).

lCrei'elinsii,niiing

divided,groupofstakeholdersbuildconfidenceina

decision.

ThatshiftcreatesanimportantquestionaboutwhereCROsdirecttheirAlinvestments.Sofar,

theirAlinvestments'returnhasbeenweightedtowardincreasingsellerproductivityandcoverage

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(51%)andimprovingleadqualification(44%).Only32%pointtoacceleratingearlierproof-of-valueactivities,whicharetheverymomentswhensellerscanhelpskepticalbuyersunderstand

whetherasolutionwilldeliverwhattheyneedwithpersonalizednarratives.

CROsAreBettingonGrowthwithMoreSellers,Bigger

Budgets,HigherQuotas

Withbuyerexpectationsrisingandthepressuretodelivertop-linegrowthunchanged,howare

CROsplanningtomeettheirambitionsfor2027?Thesurveysuggeststheyarepullingnearly

everygrowthleveratonce:addingpeople,increasinginvestmentintheirsalesorganizations,andexpectingmorefromeveryseller.

Sixty-fivepercentofCROsexpectrevenueorganizationheadcounttogrowoverthenextyear,

including22%whoexpectittoincreasebymorethan10%.Atthesametime,72%expectsales

andrevenuebudgetstoincrease,while91%expectquotasorproductivityrequirementspersellertorise.(SeeExhibit2.)

EXHIBIT2

ForSalesTeams,Headcount,Budgets,andQuotasAreGrowing

%OFRESPONDENTSEXPECTINGANINCREASE

QuotaBudgetHeadcount

Source:BCGRevenueAgendaSurvey2026(n=398CROs,salesandrevenueleadersacross23countriesandfivesectors).

Note:Percentagesmaynotsumto100%duetorounding.

Thosenumberspointtoanambitiousgrowthmodelbuiltonmorepeople,moreinvestment,andhigherexpectationsforwhateachsellercandeliver.AnddespitewidespreaddebateaboutAl

replacingsalesjobs,thesurveysuggeststhatCROsarenotprimarilyplanningtouseAltoshrink

theirsalesorganizations.Instead,theyappeartobecountingonAltoexpandwhatagrowingsalesforcecanaccomplish.

CanBiggerGrowthBets

TranslateintoStrongerSales?

Alisbeingwidelydeployedacrosssalesorganizations,butitsclearestreturnsremain

concentratedinproductivityandoperationalimprovementsratherthanrevenuegrowth.

NinetypercentofsalesleadersreportmeaningfulAluseintheirsalesworkflows,butmost

deploymentsremainrelativelylimitedinscope.Only6%saytheyhavereachedautonomous,end-to-enddeployment.(SeeExhibit3.)Alhasadvancedfurthestinactivitiessuchasdataentry,CRMupdates,accountresearch,andothertaskswithrelativelyclearinputsandoutputs,while

adoptionremainslowerinthecustomer-facingandjudgment-heavypartsofthesalesprocess.

EXHIBIT3

90%ofSalesOrganizationsUseAI,butOnly6%ReportFully

AutonomousWorkflows

HighestlevelofAlagentautonomyusedinsalesandrevenueworkflows

%OFTOTALRESPONSES

NomeaningfulAluseinsalesandrevenueworkflowstoday10

Augmented:Al

providesrecommendationsorcontent,buthumanscompletetheworkflow

25

Assisted:Alcompletesdiscretetaskssuchasdrafts,summaries,

scoringrouting,orquotepreparation,withhumanreview

Semi-autonomous:Alexecutespartsofaworkflow,suchasoutreachsequencing,

pilotfollow-up,orrenewalriskalerts,withexception-basedhumanreview

Autonomous:AIcompletesanend-to-endworkflow,suchasaccountprioritization,

servicequotepreparation,orrenewalplayexecution,withingovernedlimits

Source:BCGRevenueAgendaSurvey2026(n=398CROs,salesandrevenueleadersacross23countriesandfivesectors).

Giventhisfocus,it'snotsurprisingthattheearliestreturnsonAlareoperational:athirdofsalesleaders(33%)reportreducedadministrativeworkloadsand18%reportbetterforecastaccuracy.Whenitcomestoimpactsondealexecutionandcommercialgains,however,only13%report

measurableimprovementsinwinrates,andonly14%reportimprovedconversion.(SeeExhibit4.)

◎2026BostonConsultingGroup

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EXHIBIT4

AIIsShowingGreaterImpactonSalesProductivityThanon

CommercialOutcomes

%RESPONDENTSRANKINGEACHAREAFIRSTORSECONDFORMEASURABLEAIIMPACT

33

1918

16

14

1111

ReducedSellertimeadministrativesaved

workload

discounting

Productivitygains—

Higher-qualitypipeline

creation

Better

coaching

and

Faster

proposal,

RFP

Improved

conversion

Commercialimpact

More

consistent

Improved

winrate

forecast

accuracy

Better

retention

and

renewal

Higher

quota

attainment

Faster

pipeline

turnaround

pricing,

velocity

training

~4x

18

22

18

13

Source:BCGRevenueAgendaSurvey2026(n=398CROs,salesandrevenueleadersacross23countriesandfivesectors).

Butthesurveyalsooffersaglimpseofwhat'sahead.MoreAl-advancedorganizations—thosewithmoreautonomousagentsdeployed—aretwiceaslikelytoreportimprovedconversionasatopareaofAlimpact(23%versus11%)andaremorelikelytobegrowingrevenueatdouble-digit

rates(69%versus42%).

Thegapbetweenleadingorganizationsandtherestofthemarketextendsbeyondcommercialresults.TheseorganizationsarealsomorelikelytohaveformalgoalsandtrackinginplaceandaretwiceaslikelytoexpectAlagentstotakeonmorethanhalfoftheirsalesworkflowsoverthenextthreeyears.

CROLeadersAreTurningAI

fromaToolintoaGrowthEngine

ThesedifferencesofferanearlylookatwhatseparatesorganizationsbeginningtotranslateAladoptionintocommercialimpactfromthosestillseeingprimarilyoperationalgains.Here'swhatCROsfurthestalonginthatjourneysaythey’redoingdifferently.

TheysetclearmeasuresofsuccessandaccountabilityaroundAl.Inoursurvey,81%of

respondentsestablishedAladoptiongoals,butonly36%havetargetsandtrackinginplace.(SeeExhibit5.)MoreAl-advancedorganizationsare44percentagepointsmorelikelytohaveformalAladoptiontargets(67%versus23%).Theyarealsomorelikelytotiesellerperformanceto

provenAladoptionratherthantoolusagealone,andtohaveacenterofexcellenceinplacetoownthefollow-through.Thesepracticessuggestthatorganizationsfurtheralongarenotsimply

◎2026BostonConsultingGroup

encouragingAladoption;theyaredefiningwhatsuccesslookslike,howitwillbemeasured,andaligningtheirgrowthexpectationswithwhatAlisequippedtodeliver.

EXHIBIT5

MostSalesTeamsHaveAIAdoptionGoals,butOnly36%FormallyTrackThem

ExplicitgoalssetforAladoptionwithinsalesandrevenueorganization

%OFTOTALRESPONSES

Yes,withformaltargetsandtracking36

Yes,butinformalordirectionalonly

Notyet18

Source;BCGRevenueAgendaSurvey2026(n=398CROs,salesandrevenueleadersacross23countriesandfivesectors).

TheyaligngrowthambitionswithAlreadiness.Beforeapprovingincreasesinheadcount,

budgets,orquotas,leadingorganizationsassesswhetherAlissufficientlyembeddedinsalesworkflowstosupporthigherexpectationsintermsofexpansion,cross-selling,andupselling.Otherwise,CROssayadditionalinvestmentandmoreambitioustargetscanbecomealiabilityratherthananadvantage.

TheyinvestinthedataandtalentneededtotakeAldeeperintosales.More-advanced

organizationsaremorethantwiceaslikelytoreportmaturedatainfrastructureandtreatdatareadinessascorerevenueinfrastructureratherthanaback-officedependency.Theyarealso22percentagepointsmorelikelytohireAl-specializedroles,18pointsmorelikelytoestablish

cross-functionalAlpods,and19pointsmorelikelytoprovideformalAlupskillingforsenior

leaders,notjustindividualcontributors.(SeeExhibit6.)ThesefoundationsbecomeincreasinglyimportantasorganizationsextendAltothecustomer-facingandjudgment-heavypartsofthesalescycle,usingittoimprovetheinteractionsanddecisionsthatmostinfluencecustomer

outcomes.

EXHIBIT6

◎2026BostonConsultingGroup

AdvancedSalesOrganizationsAreBuildingtheTalenttoScaleAI

HiredAIspecializedrolesDeployedformalupskilling

inlast12monthsSetupcross-functionalAlpodsforseniorleaders

+22pp-

55%

33%

+18pp

44%

26%

+19pp

51%

32%

AdvancedorgsOthers

Source:BCGRevenueAgendaSurvey2026(n=398CROs,salesandrevenueleadersacross23countriesandfivesectors).

TheyarepushingAlfurtherintothemomentsthatmattermostinselling.RatherthanlayeringAlontoexistingprocesses,more-advancedorganizationsredesigncoverageandworkflows

aroundtheareaswiththegreatestgrowthpotential.TheyextendAltothecustomer-facingand

judgment-heavypartsofthesalescycle,usingittoimprovetheinteractionsanddecisionsthat

mostinfluencecustomeroutcomes.InBCG'sexperience,thehighest-impactapplicationsinthesestagesdrawonwhatisalreadyhappeningincustomerconversations.Forexample,

conversationalAlcananalyzecallsandmeetingsatscaletoidentifytheargumentsandvaluemessagesthatconsistentlymovedealsforward.Thosepatternscanthenfeedreal-timepromptsandcoaching,benchmarkedagainsttopperformers,todirectlyimprovewinandconversionratesinthefield.

lCMore-advancedorganizationsextendAltothe

customer-facingandjudgment-heavypartsofthesales

cycletoimprovetheinteractionsanddecisionsthat

mostinfluencecustomeroutcomes.

TheyredirectthetimeAlsavestowardhigher-valueselling.TheCROsweintervieweddescribedusingthehoursAlfreesuptoincreasecustomer-facingtime,broadenaccountcoverage,andfocusmoreattentiononsales.Thosechoicesbecomeincreasinglyimportantasbuyersdemandmorepersonalizedengagement,strongerevidenceofvalue,andmorehelpaligningstakeholders

aroundadecision.

AustraliaandNewZealandprovideoneexampleofhowseveralofthesepatternscancome

together.Amongsurveyedorganizationsintheregion,CEOsaremorelikelytoownAlinvestment

decisions(64%,versus44%elsewhere),companiesreportfewerconcernsaboutunclear

executiveownership,andAlfluencyfeaturesmoreprominentlyinhiring.InAustralianandNewZealandorganizationswithliveAldeployments,nearlyaquarterreportachievingmeasurableROlinlessthansixmonths,whichismorethantwicetheroughly10%rateelsewhereinthe

survey.

CROsenter2027withnoshortageofambition.Theyareinvestingingrowth,askingmoreof

sellers,andadoptingAlacrosstheirsalesorganizations.Thequestionishowquicklythoseeffortscantranslateintostrongercommercialperformance.

ThesurveysuggeststhatAlisbeginningtodeliver,butunevenly.Formostorganizations,the

clearestgainsstillcomefromreducingadministrativeworkandimprovingvisibility.ThenexttestiswhetherCROscanturnthoseproductivitygainsintomoreeffectivesellingandstronger

revenuegrowth.

Authors

FedericoFabbri

ManagingDirector&SeniorPartner

SanDiego

TarandeepSingh

ManagingDirector&Partner

Singapo