Pipeline Audit Template

The fastest-leaking stage. Speed-to-lead decides most of these.

• Every new lead has an owner assigned within 5 minutes of arriving
• No lead has sat uncontacted for more than one business day
• Each lead source is tagged so you can see which channels actually close
• Duplicate leads are merged, not left as parallel records
• Disqualified leads are marked with a reason, not silently deleted

Where you confirm fit before spending real time.

• Every active deal has a documented next step with a due date
• Budget, authority, need, and timeline are captured on the record
• Deals failing fit checks are moved out, not left to inflate the pipeline
• Discovery notes are logged against the contact, not stuck in someone's inbox
• Lead score or priority is set so reps work the best deals first

The classic black hole — proposals sent, then silence.

• No proposal has been outstanding more than 7 days without a follow-up
• Every proposal has a defined follow-up cadence, not a one-and-done send
• Deal value and expected close date are realistic and recently updated
• Stalled negotiations have a named blocker and an owner driving it
• Verbal commitments are written into the deal record same day

Won or lost — capture the lesson either way.

• Won deals trigger a structured onboarding handoff, not a cold start
• Lost deals are tagged with a loss reason for pattern analysis
• Close dates are accurate so your forecast means something
• Closed-won contacts move into a renewal or upsell track
• Nothing sits in 'closing' for weeks — it's won, lost, or back in negotiation

The cross-cutting checks that keep the whole thing trustworthy.

• No deal has been stuck in the same stage past its time-in-stage limit
• Forecast pipeline value matches what reps actually believe will close
• Every open deal has a logged activity in the last 14 days
• Stage definitions are written down and everyone uses them the same way
• Dead deals are archived so reporting reflects reality, not wishful thinking