Pipeline inspection is the habit of checking whether each open deal is as healthy as the CRM says it is. Done well, it improves forecasts, finds deals that need help and exposes data that cannot be trusted.
Use this checklist as a baseline. Adapt the thresholds to your sales cycle and methodology.
Deal basics
- The amount is current and matches what the buyer has seen
- The close date is realistic given the stage and past behavior
- The stage matches what has actually happened
- There is a next step with a date and an owner
- The deal owner and any partners are correct
Stage integrity
- The deal meets the exit criteria for its current stage
- Time in stage is in line with similar deals you have closed
- No stages were skipped to make the numbers look better
Buyer coverage
- A champion is identified and engaged
- The economic buyer is known and has been met
- More than one stakeholder is involved
- The buyer’s own reason and timeline for deciding are written down
Activity
- There has been meaningful buyer activity recently, such as a meeting or reply, not just logged tasks
- Recent conversations match the CRM notes
- A mutual plan or agreed timeline exists for late-stage deals
Risk signals
| Signal | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Close date pushed more than once | Deals that keep slipping often slip again |
| Amount changed late | May signal scope or pricing trouble |
| Legal, security or procurement not started | Late-stage delays usually come from here |
| A competitor appears late | The buyer may be re-evaluating |
| No contact above the champion | The deal can stall if the champion leaves |
Data quality
- Required fields are complete
- Contacts have roles
- Notes explain the current situation in plain words
How to run the review
A 30-minute weekly review works well:
- Start with deals expected to close this period.
- Flag deals that fail two or more checks.
- For each flagged deal, agree an action: update the CRM, coach the rep, bring in help or remove it from the forecast.
- Record the decisions so the next review starts from them.
What to do with findings
Treat every failed check as one of three things: a data problem to fix, a coaching need or a real risk to the forecast. Keep them separate so reps do not feel inspection is only about blame.
Reduce the manual work
Most of this checklist can be run by software that reads CRM fields, calls and emails. The hard part is acting on it. An AI partner can inspect every deal, propose CRM updates with the source for each, and wait for approval before writing anything back. See pipeline inspection and auto deal updates.
Related: sales forecasting for RevOps and the deal brief template.
Frequently asked questions
How often should you inspect the pipeline?
Weekly is common, with a deeper review before each forecast call and at the start and end of the quarter.
What is the most useful single check?
A dated next step. A deal without a clear next step and date is usually stalled, whatever stage it shows.
Who should inspect the pipeline?
Frontline managers inspect their reps’ deals. RevOps provides the rules, the views and the cross-team checks.