Stages that advance on evidence
The value of a pipeline is not how many opportunities it holds but that every stage means the same thing to everyone. The criterion for advancing should be something observable: a meeting agreed with the person who decides, a confirmed budget, a shortlist sent. If advancement depends on the salesperson's impression, the forecast cannot be used for planning.
Mutual commitment is the most reliable signal and the least often recorded. An opportunity in which the client has invested nothing — neither their team's time nor a date in the diary of someone with authority — rarely closes, however good the conversation was.
- Few stages, each with a written exit criterion
- A next action with a date on every opportunity
- Probability derived from history, not assigned by feel
- Closing reason recorded on losses as well as wins