If you’re a sales manager or team lead, you’ve probably been pitched on leaderboards as the magic bullet for motivation. Sometimes they work, sometimes they flop, and sometimes they just tick people off. This guide is for managers who actually want leaderboards in Atriumhq to make a difference—without the cringe or drama.
Let’s get practical about what works, what’s a waste of time, and how to set up a leaderboard your team won’t secretly hate.
Why use team leaderboards at all?
First, the tough love: leaderboards aren’t a cure-all for motivation. If your comp plan is broken or your team culture is toxic, a leaderboard will just highlight the problem. But if your team is healthy and competitive, a good leaderboard can:
- Make progress visible and real
- Celebrate both big wins and steady effort
- Nudge healthy competition (not resentment)
- Help you spot coaching opportunities
If you’re hoping to “fix” morale with a leaderboard, pump the brakes. But if you want to keep an already solid team engaged—or just make performance clearer—read on.
Step 1: Decide what you actually want to measure
This is where most leaderboards go wrong. If you just rank people by closed deals, you’ll get a predictable outcome: the same top reps win, everyone else tunes out.
Ask yourself: What behaviors do I want to encourage? - New reps ramping up? Track activity metrics (calls, meetings set). - Seasoned team? Focus on pipeline created or deals advanced, not just closed-won. - Want more consistency? Reward improvement, not just the usual winners.
Avoid these traps: - Only tracking “vanity metrics” (like dials made) when those don’t drive results. - Metrics nobody can control (e.g., inbound leads assigned). - Too many metrics—pick one or two that matter.
Pro tip: If you can’t explain why a metric is on the board in one sentence, drop it.
Step 2: Set up your leaderboard in Atriumhq
Atriumhq makes it easy to build leaderboards, but defaults aren’t always your friend. Here’s how to build something useful:
1. Log in and pick your team
- Go to your team dashboard in Atriumhq.
- Make sure everyone you want to track is included (double-check if people changed teams recently).
2. Choose your metric(s)
- Use the Metrics Library to pick what you want to track—calls set, meetings held, pipeline added, etc.
- Avoid mixing wildly different metrics on one board (e.g., calls vs. revenue). It gets confusing and demotivating.
3. Set a clear time frame
- Weekly or monthly leaderboards work best.
- Daily leaderboards are usually too noisy (and stressful).
- Rolling 30-day windows can help smooth out weird weeks.
4. Tweak visibility settings
- Decide who sees what. Team-wide boards are great, but don’t surprise people by making results public.
- Consider private “personal best” boards for coaching, especially with new reps.
5. Name your leaderboard
- Keep it clear, not cutesy. “June Pipeline Created” beats “Crushing It Champions.”
Honest take: The simpler, the better. The more filters and exceptions you add, the less anyone will care.
Step 3: Make it easy to find and understand
A leaderboard nobody checks is just digital wallpaper. Avoid that with:
- A link in your team Slack/Teams channel
- Brief shout-outs in your weekly standup (don’t make it awkward)
- A short explanation on what the metric means and why it matters
Don’t:
- Email screenshots every day (people will tune out)
- Make people log into five different tools to see it
Do:
- Keep the leaderboard front and center in Atriumhq dashboards
- Encourage reps to check their standing—but don’t nag
Step 4: Use leaderboards to coach, not just rank
This part is easy to overlook: leaderboards aren’t just for winners. They’re a tool for managers to spot who needs help and who’s quietly crushing it.
- If someone’s slipping, use the board as a starting point for a real conversation (“Hey, I noticed your activity is down—let’s dig in.”)
- Celebrate improvement, not just top spots (e.g., “Biggest jump in meetings set”).
- Avoid public shaming. Leaderboards should motivate, not embarrass.
Watch out for:
- The same person always at the bottom (that gets old fast)
- Reps gaming the metric (e.g., logging meaningless calls)
If the board causes more anxiety than motivation, rethink your setup.
Step 5: Try, tweak, and don’t overthink it
No leaderboard is perfect out of the gate. Some things to keep in mind:
- Ask your team for feedback after a couple weeks (“Is this helping? Annoying? Useless?”)
- Swap out metrics if the current ones aren’t driving the right behavior
- Keep it fresh—monthly resets, new challenges, or rotating focus
What to ignore: - Fancy leaderboard “gamification” features—badges, points, avatars. Most people just want clarity, not a new video game. - Overly complex rules (“This counts double on Fridays!”). It’s confusing and breeds cynicism.
A few real-world lessons (learned the hard way)
- Transparency beats secrecy: Share how the leaderboard works and what’s measured. No black boxes.
- Don’t tie everything to comp: If every leaderboard is tied to a bonus, people will start gaming the system.
- Recognize effort and improvement: Sometimes the “most improved” rep needs more attention than the #1.
Keep it simple and keep it moving
Leaderboards in Atriumhq can be a useful way to spotlight wins and drive healthy competition—but only if you keep them simple, relevant, and fair. Don’t let a leaderboard become another chore or source of stress. Start with one or two clear metrics, make it visible, and check in with your team often. Iterate as you go.
In the end, the best motivation isn’t a fancy leaderboard—it’s a team that knows what matters and feels recognized for the right stuff. Good luck, and don’t be afraid to change things up if it’s not working.