Pipeline Physics Glossary

A

Attention Dilution Effect: Win rate degradation when reps spread focus across too many low-quality opportunities. (Chapter 6)

B

Best Case (Forecast Category): Deals that could close this period if conditions align. Requires qualified opportunity, buyer intent, plausible timeline. (Chapter 7)

Bottleneck Diagnosis: Using conversion physics to identify which stage transition is underperforming. (Chapter 4)

Buyer Commitment Ladder: Progression from low-stakes (sharing information) to high-stakes (committing budget) buyer actions. (Chapter 3)

Buyer-Centric Stages: Stage definitions based on buyer actions. Measure actual commitment and correlate with close probability. (Chapter 3)

C

Commit (Forecast Category): Deals that will close this period. Requires verbal commitment, contract in process, no blockers, buyer-confirmed close date. (Chapter 7)

Commit Protocol: Evidence-based framework for forecast category assignment. (Chapter 7)

Conversion Cascade: Multiplicative progression of deals through stages. Overall win rate equals product of all stage conversion rates. (Chapter 4)

Conversion Physics: Mathematical patterns governing how deals progress through pipeline stages. (Chapter 4)

Coverage Paradox: Obsession with raw coverage incentivizes behavior that undermines revenue outcomes. (Chapter 6)

Credibility Tax: Organizational cost of repeated forecast misses. (Chapter 1)

D

Days-in-Stage Threshold: Time limit beyond which deal probability begins declining. Typically 1.5x to 2x average stage duration. (Chapter 5)

Decay Curve: Pattern where early stages have lower conversion rates than late stages. (Chapter 4)

Decision Audit: Framework documenting what must be true for a deal to close and what evidence exists. (Chapter 8)

Developing Stage: Non-pipeline holding area for opportunities that don't meet PAIN Threshold. (Chapter 2)

E

Exit Criteria Protocol: Methodology requiring each stage to have defined criteria based on buyer-verifiable actions. (Chapter 3)

F

Forecast Accuracy: Actual closed revenue divided by forecasted revenue. Target: 90-100%. (Chapter 7)

Forecast Integrity Index (FII): Diagnostic measuring pipeline's ability to support accurate forecasting. Score 0-6. (Chapter 1)

Forcing Function: Tactic for creating urgency through legitimate constraints. (Chapter 8)

G

Garbage Inflation Effect: Tendency for coverage pressure to inflate pipeline with unqualified deals. (Chapter 6)

Graceful Exit: Closing dead deals professionally while preserving relationships. (Chapter 8)

N

The 90-Day Rule: Deals older than 90 days have dramatically lower close rates. (Chapter 5)

P

PAIN Threshold: Qualification gate requiring Problem, Authority, Impact, and Need evidence. Minimum 6/8 for pipeline entry. (Chapter 2)

Pipeline Physics: The governing laws that determine pipeline behavior and forecast accuracy. (Introduction)

Pipeline Review Protocol: Structured approach to inspection including Three-Question Framework. (Chapter 9)

Predictability Threshold: Metrics that must hold for forecasting to remain reliable. (Chapter 10)

Q

QAC Ratio: Quality-Adjusted Coverage divided by quota. 1.2-1.5 indicates healthy pipeline. (Chapter 6)

Qualification Debt: Accumulated cost of unqualified opportunities in pipeline. (Chapter 2)

Quality-Adjusted Coverage (QAC): Pipeline coverage weighted by qualification, stage probability, and velocity. (Chapter 6)

R

Retroactive Demotion: Moving deals to earlier stages when they don't meet exit criteria. (Chapter 3)

Revenue System Architecture: Four layers supporting predictable revenue: Data, Process, Enablement, Governance. (Chapter 10)

S

Scaling Fracture: Systems that work at one scale break at larger scale. (Chapter 10)

Seller-Centric Stages: Stages based on seller activities. Measure effort, not progress. (Chapter 3)

Stall Signals: Observable behaviors that correlate with deal failure. (Chapter 8)

Stability Principle: Conversion rates cluster around stable baseline when qualification and stages are rigorous. (Chapter 4)

T

The Three Lies: Foundational assumptions that guarantee forecast failure: deals belong there, stages indicate probability, close dates are real. (Chapter 1)

The Three-Question Framework: What changed? What is the next buyer action? What is blocking? (Chapter 9)

Time Tax: Hidden cost of unqualified pipeline in rep hours. (Chapter 2)

U

Upside (Forecast Category): Deals that should close this period pending resolution of identified factors. (Chapter 7)

V

Velocity-Adjusted Forecasting: Methodology that modifies stage probability based on deal age. (Chapter 5)

Velocity Decay Rate: Rate at which probability decreases for each week over threshold. Typically 5-10%/week. (Chapter 5)

Z

Zombie Deals: Opportunities in pipeline far beyond reasonable close timelines. (Chapter 5)