Uncappd Insider

What does it take to design and run one of the world’s largest sales compensation organizations, paying out nearly half a billion dollars in commissions?In this episode of Uncappd Insider, we sit down with John Lee, Senior Director of Sales Compensation at LinkedIn, who leads a team that manages compensation for 5,000+ sales reps.Presented by: Everstage • Uncappd Insider PodcastGuest: John Lee, Senior.Director of Sales Compensation, LinkedIn (   / johnlee49ers    )Host: Shiva, CEO & Co-founder, Everstage  (  / sivasrajamani    )If you’re in RevOps, Sales Ops, or SaaS leadership, this is your masterclass on how sales comp becomes a growth engine. John Lee shares 25 years of lessons from spreadsheets to AI agents on scaling compensation systems, driving growth, and turning governance from red tape into trust.Join for Uncappd here for everything about sales comphttps://www.uncappd.com/  / uncappd  YouTube Chapters00:00 – Intro: The hardest part of building a modern revenue engine  02:20 – From analyst to architect: John’s journey into sales comp  05:10 – From spreadsheets to systems: the rise of cloud-based comp  08:55 – Designing plans that drive the right behavior  10:30 – How LinkedIn scaled comp for 5,000+ reps   14:45 – The art of agility: how priorities shift during the year   22:00 – Building one of the largest global comp teams  27:20 – Inside LinkedIn’s comp org structure  32:00 – Building resilient systems and processes    37:40 – AI in sales comp: the first inning  38:30 – How John’s team uses AI agents to flag and automate  40:20 – Why AI won’t replace judgment—it’ll scale it  44:30 – What future leaders in sales comp need to master  48:10 – Storytelling and stakeholder influence as core skills  50:30 – The biggest lesson learned in 25 years  52:00 – Why execution beats perfect strategy  56:40 – Lightning round: metrics that matter  1:00:20 – The most underrated enablement artifact   1:04:00 – Closing analogy: run comp like a Michelin-star restaurant#RevOps #SalesCompensation #SalesOps #IncentiveCompensation #SaaSLeaders #GTMStrategy #RevenueOperations #SaaSGrowth #CompensationDesign #SalesLeadership #LinkedInSales #Everstage #UncappdInsider #AIinSales #SalesExecutionsales compensation, sales comp strategy, incentive compensation, RevOps podcast, sales ops podcast, LinkedIn sales compensation, John Lee LinkedIn, comp plan design, SaaS revenue operations, GTM operations, scaling sales comp, managing 5000 sales reps, sales commission systems, IC plan modeling, AI in sales comp, sales comp automation, Everstage podcast, revenue engine design, SaaS leadership insights, operational excellence SaaS, compensation governance, global sales comp, compensation architecture, RevOps masterclass, forecasting commissions, comp plan agility, Salesforce and comp ops, enterprise sales compensation, scaling GTM teams, sales performance analytics

John Waldron is currently the Total Rewards Director, Global Compensation at PepsiCo. He is a time-tested veteran in sales compensation with over 27 years of experience across multiple roles in sales management, sales operations, and sales compensation.This episode of the Uncappd Insider features John, where he shares about:His unique journey from a sales rep to a global sales leaderAdvice for novice sales compensation professionalsNew-age trends in sales compensation to keep an eye out onConnect with John WaldronFollow us: Linkedin | X 

David Miller is currently the Sr. Manager of Global Incentive Compensation at Integrated DNA Technologies. With over 15 years of experience spread across 3 decades, he is a seasoned veteran in sales compensation.This episode of the Uncappd Insider features David, where he discusses:The role of technology in shaping sales compensationTips for upcoming sales comp professionals for career growthThe changing landscape of sales compensation and the opportunities in itConnect with David MillerFollow us: Linkedin | X

Ryan Wheeler is currently the Manager of Sales Compensation at Altus Group. Previously, Ryan was a Senior Sales Compensation Analyst at Rapid7, a software technology company based out of Boston.In the latest episode of the Uncappd Insider, Ryan talks about:Transitioning from business development to sales compensationTips for novice sales compensation professionals for career growthThe challenges and new age approaches in sales compensationConnect with Ryan WheelerFollow us: Linkedin | X

Tatiana Silverman is the Director, Compensation and HRIS at Transportation Insight. Previously, Tatiana was an Assistant VP, Risk Analysis & Specialist II at Bank of America and also held positions at Bank of America Merchant Services, Siemens, InComm Payments, DeVry University, and E*TRADE. She is also a co-founder of DRG Group, a sales compensation and performance management administration.In the latest episode of the Uncappd Insider, Tatiana discusses:How sales compensation acts as a liaison between leadership and field teamsThe ideal skillset required for potential career growthThe current challenges and future trends in sales compensationConnect with Tatiana SilvermanFollow us: Linkedin | X

Leo Rocha is the Head of Incentive Design & Governance at Moody's Analytics. With over 16 years of corporate experience in sales compensation, incentives, rewards, consulting, and project management across various industries and markets, Leo is passionate about understanding how incentives influence behavior and drive performance. Leveraging his analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills, he delivers effective and innovative solutions for his clients and stakeholders. Prior to Moody's Analytics, he held key positions at Equifax and IBM, spearheading the global incentives/sales compensation team.In the latest episode of the Uncappd Insider, Leo discusses:The best practices in Sales Compensation, drawing from his vast experience.The nuances of Sales Compensation and outlining potential career trajectories.The contemporary challenges and essential considerations to address pressing issues in Sales Compensation.Connect with Leo RochaFollow us: Linkedin | X

Dan Johnson is an experienced Sales Compensation professional with a demonstrated history of working across various business functions to design, deliver, and execute motivational sales compensation plans. Currently, he holds the position of Senior Sales Compensation Manager at FullStory, where he leads the sales commission team, focuses on process excellence, and builds rewarding commission plans for the GTM teams. Dan has accumulated over 20 years of experience in sales compensation and has previously worked at BD and Microsoft.The latest episode of the Uncappd Insider features Dan Johnson, during which we discuss:How collaboration is the key to Sales Compensation effectiveness: How do you actually get all those different individuals to collaborate?The various intricacies of Sales Compensation and what the career trajectory looks like.Modern-day challenges in Sales Compensation and the key pressing issues everyone needs to consider.Connect with Dan JohnsonFollow us: Linkedin | Twitter