How to Calculate AE Ramping Quotas
A step-by-step framework and examples to set realistic AE quotas that account for onboarding and sales cycle length
Part Two of the Scaling GTM series on setting AE quotas and OTE. See the first post here: Setting AE Quotas at an Early Stage.
In the last article, I talked about how to set a full-year quota. The full year quota is assumes an AE is fully ramped up, already has deals in cycle, and is regularly booking new meetings.
The reality is that it takes anyone time to get up to speed and to start building pipeline. So as part of the first-year quota, you need to include a ramping component. And importantly, this should be part of any financial model you build as well.
The Challenge with Straight Quotas
You can’t assign full quota from day one. A new AE needs time to ramp up, learn your product, understand the ICP (ideal customer profile), and become effective at selling. On top of that, pipeline takes time to build, opportunities take time to mature, and the first bookings usually don’t show up until well after the average sales cycle has run its course.
Without a ramping quota, you set your new hire up to fail, or worse, you misdiagnose the problem as performance when the reality is timing.
What Is a Ramping Quota?
A ramping quota recognizes the reality of sales cycles and gives your AE a fair runway to reach productivity.
Think about the sequence for a 60-day sales cycle:
Month 1: Onboarding, learning ICP, prospecting. No closed deals expected.
Month 2: First meetings occur, opportunities enter the pipeline, but they’re not closeable yet.
Month 3+: Early deals begin to close as the cycle time passes.
That’s why ramping matters - it aligns expectations with reality while still holding your AE accountable for building pipeline and progressing deals.
Example: $600K Annual Quota with a 60-Day Sales Cycle
Let’s say your standard AE quota is $600K ARR/year (~$50K/month). Here’s how a ramp might look:
Rules of Thumb
Here’s the simple framework I recommend:
0% quota until average sales cycle length passes. If your cycle is 60 days, expect no bookings in the first two months.
50% quota at 1× average sales cycle + 1 month. For a 2-month cycle, ramp to 50% in Month 3.
100% quota at ~2× average sales cycle + 1 month. For a 2-month cycle, full quota by Month 5.
You can use the Ramped Quota Calculator in the Quota Setting Workbook to calculate this for your business.
This balances realism with accountability: your AE is incentivized to build pipeline early, but not penalized for things outside their control.
Why This Matters
Realistic expectations: Prevents false negatives on good hires who simply need time.
Pipeline accountability: Even at 0% quota, you still measure activity - prospecting, meetings, pipeline created.
Smooth transition: By the time full quota kicks in, the AE has worked through a complete sales cycle.
Takeaway
If your sales cycle is 60 days, don’t expect bookings before 60 days. If they close deals, that’s a bonus and the comp plan will accommodate that. Align quotas to reality, not wishful thinking. A ramping quota gives your AE the structure to succeed, while giving you the clarity to separate timing from performance.
Up Next in the Series
In the next article, I’ll cover how to set On-Target Earnings (OTE) for your AEs - tying together base salary, variable compensation, and realistic ramp expectations so you can build a comp plan that scales with your business.