The “Slipped Deal” Hound

What It Is

A real-time monitoring system that detects when opportunity close dates are pushed out, alerts managers immediately, tracks slip patterns, and flags chronic slippers for intervention.

Why It Matters

Pipeline doesn't disappear overnight—it slips first. A deal that moves from 'closing this month' to 'closing next quarter' is often a leading indicator of a lost deal. Catching slips early enables intervention while the deal is still saveable.

Who It's For

• Sales managers who need pipeline visibility
• RevOps teams tracking forecast integrity
• Sales reps who want coaching on stuck deals
• Leadership monitoring pipeline health

Required Tools

• Salesforce (with field history tracking)
• Slack/Teams for alerts
• n8n/Zapier (automation)
• GPT-4 (optional, for analysis)

Required Fields/Properties

• Close date (with history tracking enabled)
• Amount
• Stage
• Owner
• Last activity date

Definitions Required

• Significant slip threshold (e.g., >14 days)
• Alert routing rules by deal size
• Chronic slipper threshold (e.g., 3+ slips)
• Excluded scenarios (e.g., stage regression)

Slip Alert Slack Message

🐕 *Deal Slip Alert*

*Deal:* {{deal_name}}
*Amount:* ${{amount}}
*Owner:* {{owner}}
*Stage:* {{stage}}

*Slip Details:*
• Original close: {{old_date}}
• New close: {{new_date}}
• Days pushed: {{days_slipped}}
• Slip count: {{slip_number}} ({{risk_label}})

*Context:*
• Last activity: {{last_activity_date}} ({{days_since_activity}} days ago)
• Forecast category: {{forecast_category}}

*Suggested Questions:*
1. What changed to push the timeline?
2. What specific milestone is needed to close?
3. Is the budget still approved for {{new_quarter}}?

<{{deal_link}}|View Deal in Salesforce>

Weekly Slip Summary Report

| Metric | This Week | Last Week | Trend |
|--------|-----------|-----------|-------|
| Deals Slipped | X | X | ↑/↓ |
| Pipeline Slipped | $X | $X | ↑/↓ |
| Avg Days Pushed | X | X | ↑/↓ |
| Slip Rate | X% | X% | ↑/↓ |
| Chronic Slippers (3+) | X | X | ↑/↓ |

Chronic Slipper Intervention Checklist

**Deal Intervention Checklist (3+ Slips)**

□ Review all deal notes for pattern
□ Verify buyer engagement (meetings in last 30 days)
□ Confirm budget is still allocated
□ Identify the true blocker
□ Set concrete next step with date
□ Consider: Is this deal real?

**Decision Matrix:**
- Active buyer + clear blocker → Create action plan
- Active buyer + unclear blocker → Discovery meeting
- Inactive buyer → Send break-up email
- No response → Move to nurture or close lost

Test Cases Checklist

• Verify alert fires when close date pushed out >14 days
• Confirm no alert for close dates pulled in (earlier)
• Test routing logic for large deals vs. regular deals
• Validate slip count tracking across multiple changes
• Verify weekly summary math is accurate

Common Failure Modes

• Bulk update false positives: Admin moves all Q4 deals to Q1 for planning. Add filter for bulk changes (same user, same time, multiple opps).
• Stage regression confusion: Deal moved back to earlier stage with new close date. Exclude slips coinciding with stage regression.
• Alert fatigue: Too many minor slips overwhelm managers. Increase threshold or batch non-urgent slips into daily digest.

Troubleshooting Tips

• If alerts not firing, verify field history tracking is enabled and has data
• For duplicate alerts, add deduplication logic (one alert per deal per day)
• If slip rate seems too high, exclude small deals (<$10K) from metrics

KPIs to Track

• Slip Rate: <15% of deals slip per month
• Avg Days Slipped: <30 days average push
• Chronic Slipper Intervention Rate: 100% of 3+ slip deals reviewed
• Slipped → Won Rate: Track conversion of slipped deals

Suggested Dashboard Widgets

• Pipeline Slipped This Month: Dollar value of deals that pushed out
• Slip Rate Trend (12 weeks): Weekly slip rate over time
• Top Chronic Slippers: List of deals with most slips
• Slip → Outcome Analysis: Win rate of deals by number of slips