Issue

In the context of the CRM transformation, we must define the role of the standard Opportunity object in the renewal process. Should a Renewal Quote be linked to an Opportunity? If so, should this linkage be manual, automated, or should the Opportunity be bypassed entirely? The decision must ensure consistency across the Sales process, maintain accurate pipeline reporting, and maximize user adoption. 

In the current system, Opportunities are only used to manage the new/growth business. Opportunities are sometimes created for renewals if the deal is considered as a growth business.

Recommendation

Recommended Option: Option 3 (Opportunity is Not Used for Renewal Quotes)

Given that the company's primary forecasting is handled by an external tool, and the internal Salesforce pipeline is explicitly reserved for "New Business" only, forcing the creation of a Renewal Opportunity would introduce unnecessary process complexity and actively pollute the "New Business" pipeline. The Sales Agreement object (part of Manufacturing Cloud) is specifically designed to handle and track recurring revenue commitments. We recommend leveraging the Sales Agreement as the primary container for renewal tracking and linking the Renewal Quote directly to the Sales Agreement or Account, bypassing the Opportunity entirely. This minimizes user steps, reduces data volume, and aligns perfectly with the defined forecasting scope.

Background & Context

• Current State:
  • New business: Managed via Opportunities and Quote process is followed if a quote is required
  • Renewals: Typically managed via Quotes only, without Opportunities.
  • Spot sales: Managed as exceptions, not standardized.
  • Recurring business: Managed outside Salesforce (in SAP).
• Strategic Goal: Standardize and harmonize the global Sales processes within Salesforce and significantly improve the efficiency of the Sales team. This is intended to increase revenue and reduce the time required to close a deal.

• To-Be Architectural State:

  • The project introduces Manufacturing Cloud for Sales and Revenue Cloud (CPQ). 

  • Sales Agreements of Manufacturing Cloud are intended to handle recurring revenue commitments and tracking.

  • Forecasting Scope: The Salesforce Opportunity pipeline will be strictly limited to "New Business" deals; primary demand forecasting is handled by an external tool.

Assumptions

• Forecasting Tool:

  • Business relies on an external system for demand forecasting.

• CRM Pipeline Scope:

  • The standard Salesforce Opportunity object will be used exclusively for New Business sales pipeline tracking and reporting. Renewal/recurring revenue must not appear in this Sales pipeline.

• Sales Agreement Focus:

  • The Sales Agreement will be utilized as the source of truth and management tool for recurring revenue commitments and consumption (as per Manufacturing Cloud design)

• Revenue Cloud/CPQ Integration:

  • It is technically feasible for the CPQ/Revenue Cloud quoting process to be successfully triggered and completed by linking the Renewal Quote to the Sales Agreement or Account record, bypassing the Opportunity object. (This must be confirmed with the Revenue Cloud team).

• Change management:
  • Change management and user adoption are critical for success.

Constraints

The validity of the recommended approach is constrained by the following factors:

• Forecasting Tool Constraint: This decision is invalidated if business decides to retire the external forecasting tool and mandate the use of the Salesforce Opportunity pipeline for all revenue (New, Renewal and Recurring).

• CPQ Technical Constraint: The decision is dependent on the confirmed technical ability of the Revenue Cloud/CPQ module to successfully generate and manage a Renewal Quote without a parent Opportunity record. If this technical dependency fails, the decision must be revisited to use Option 2 or 4.

• Manufacturing Cloud Functionality Constraint: The decision assumes that all required renewal data and metrics can be tracked and managed directly on the Sales Agreement object, as designed by Manufacturing Cloud.

Impacts

Business Rules

• Opportunity Creation Prohibition for Renewal: Sales users are prohibited from manually creating an Opportunity record for any renewal-related transaction.

• Renewal Quote Linkage: All Renewal Quotes must maintain a mandatory lookup relationship to the Sales Agreement record from which they originated.

• New Business Check: The creation of a Sales Agreement must not automatically trigger the creation of an Opportunity.

• System Automation: The system must be configured to prevent the auto-generation of an Opportunity during the Renewal Quote process, even if standard CPQ/Revenue Cloud settings default to this behavior.

Options considered

Option A: Opportunity is mandatory for renewal with manual creation

The user is responsible for manually creating a Renewal Opportunity before initiating the Renewal Quote process.

Option B: Opportunity is mandatory for renewal with automatic creation

Option C: No Opportunity usage for renewal

Option D: Opportunity is mandatory for renewal and Sales Agreement-Driven

Evaluation

	Option A	Option B	Option C	Option D
Criterion 1	Pro Con	Pro Pro	Pro Con	Pro Con
Criterion 2	Pro Con	Con	Pro Pro	Con Con
Criterion 3	Pro	Con	Con	Pro

See also

Change log