Senior leaders plan aggressive growth despite uneven delivery and persistent execution constraints
Original Press Release can be found here.
The 2026 Executive Pricing Benchmarks Survey, conducted by Revenue Management Labs, draws on insights from more than 330 senior leaders and shows that revenue forecasts for 2026 assume a sharp acceleration in performance, even as many companies fell short of similar expectations in 2025.
On average, organizations are planning for 8.2% revenue growth in 2026. That step up follows a year in which pricing was heavily relied upon to offset softer demand, yet still underdelivered across industries. The data suggests that many revenue plans are built on optimism rather than evidence.
"Targets are rising faster than execution is changing. Many organizations are assuming pricing will deliver more growth, with more consistency, without addressing the same structural issues that limited performance last year."
The survey highlights a widening gap between ambition and delivery. While companies continue to push price increases, tighten discounting, and pursue margin recovery, the operational foundations needed to support those outcomes often remain unchanged. Coverage models, pricing governance, analytics, and incentives frequently lag behind the expectations embedded in revenue plans.
Key findings from the 2026 Executive Pricing Benchmarks Survey include:
- Average planned revenue growth of 8.2% for 2026, despite uneven delivery in prior years
- Continued reliance on pricing as a primary growth lever across industries
- Margin recovery targets rising ahead of structural improvements in cost, mix, and pricing discipline
- Increased execution pressure as multiple assumptions must hold simultaneously to meet plan
"When targets consistently outrun reality, they lose credibility internally. Sales teams disengage, forecasts deteriorate, and pricing becomes the silent absorber of unrealistic expectations. The companies that outperform are the ones willing to pressure test their plans early and ground ambition in evidence."
The full 2026 Executive Pricing Benchmarks Survey provides detailed insights into how pricing contributed to performance in 2025 and what senior leaders are assuming for growth, margin, and execution in 2026.
About the 2026 Executive Pricing Benchmarks Survey
The survey was conducted by Revenue Management Labs in late 2025 and includes responses from more than 330 senior executives across North America and Europe. It examines pricing performance, revenue delivery, and forward-looking assumptions for 2026.
