Deal Review Scorecard

Use this scorecard during weekly pipeline reviews and forecast calls. Score each deal to determine its true health and identify which deals need intervention.

Deal Scoring Criteria

Score each deal across six dimensions on a 1-5 scale. Maximum total score is 30.

1. Champion Identified (1-5)

Score	Criteria
5	Champion confirmed, has authority, actively advocating internally, has introduced us to decision maker
4	Champion identified and engaged, supports our solution, but has not introduced decision maker
3	Contact is friendly and responsive but has not demonstrated internal advocacy
2	Primary contact is engaged but unclear if they have influence on the decision
1	No champion identified, communicating with a single contact who may not be involved in the decision

2. Decision Process Understood (1-5)

Score	Criteria
5	Full buying process mapped: decision criteria, timeline, evaluation steps, and approval chain documented
4	Decision criteria and timeline known, some gaps in approval chain understanding
3	General timeline shared by prospect, but decision criteria and process are vague
2	Prospect has expressed interest but has not shared any details about their evaluation process
1	No visibility into how or when a decision will be made

3. Budget and Authority (1-5)

Score	Criteria
5	Budget confirmed and allocated, economic buyer engaged, pricing discussed and accepted
4	Budget exists, economic buyer identified but not yet engaged directly
3	Prospect says budget is available but has not confirmed the amount or timeline for allocation
2	Budget is unclear, prospect has not discussed financial details
1	No budget discussion, prospect may not have purchasing authority

4. Compelling Event (1-5)

Score	Criteria
5	Hard deadline identified (contract expiration, board mandate, regulatory requirement) with consequences for missing it
4	Strong business driver with an internal timeline, but no external hard deadline
3	Prospect acknowledges the problem but has no specific timeline for solving it
2	Pain is acknowledged but described as “not urgent” or “something we’ll get to eventually”
1	No identified pain, timeline, or business driver

5. Competition (1-5)

Score	Criteria
5	We are the only solution being evaluated, or we are the clear front-runner with competitor eliminated
4	Competitor identified, but our champion prefers us and we have a clear technical advantage
3	Active competitive evaluation, outcome uncertain
2	Competitor has a stronger relationship or positioning advantage
1	Competitor is the incumbent with strong internal support, we are an outside challenger

6. Next Steps (1-5)

Score	Criteria
5	Next step is scheduled on both calendars with clear agenda and mutual commitment
4	Next step agreed verbally, scheduling in progress
3	We have proposed a next step but the prospect has not committed
2	No concrete next step discussed, relying on follow-up emails to re-engage
1	Prospect has gone dark, no response to last 2+ outreach attempts

Deal Scorecard Template

Deal Name	ACV	Stage	Champion (1-5)	Decision (1-5)	Budget (1-5)	Event (1-5)	Competition (1-5)	Next Steps (1-5)	Total (/30)	Verdict

Score Interpretation

Total Score	Verdict	Action
25-30	Strong commit	Include in forecast at high confidence. Focus on closing mechanics.
20-24	Likely	Include in best case forecast. Identify the 1-2 weakest areas and address them this week.
15-19	Possible	Upside only. Build a plan to improve champion access and decision process clarity within 2 weeks.
10-14	At risk	Do not forecast. If the deal cannot improve to 15+ within 2 weeks, deprioritize.
5-9	Unlikely	Remove from active pipeline. Either restart the sales process or move to nurture.

Review Process

• Weekly pipeline review: Score all deals in Stage 2 and beyond. Focus discussion on deals with scores below 20.
• Forecast call: Only include deals scoring 20+ in the commit or best case columns. Be disciplined about this.
• Deal strategy session: For deals scoring 15-19, hold a 15-minute strategy session to identify the specific actions that will improve the score.
• Monthly calibration: Compare deal scores against actual outcomes (won, lost, slipped). Adjust scoring criteria if scores are not predictive of outcomes.