For a Consulting firm at €2–5M revenue, this score is where most engagements land in the Diagnostic. The patterns are common; the fixes are well-mapped.
Parts of the engine work. The team can close some deals without you. But pipeline visibility is patchy, qualification is inconsistent, and quick wins sit in plain view. Three structural fixes typically move you a full tier.
Six dimensions, scored 0 to 100.
The shape on the left is your engine, today. Each axis is the percentage you scored across that dimension's two questions. Gaps collapse the polygon — they're where the original sales motion is still capping growth.
- Closing autonomy33%
- Pipeline coverage33%
- Forecast confidence50%
- Documentation50%
- Revenue ownership67%
- Growth motion67%
What each answer signals.
Every meaningful deal depends on the same one or two people being present for the close.
- Can your top three deals this quarter close without your usual closer (founder, partner, or top seller) in the room?Usual closer needs to be at the table to land them1/3
- When you take two weeks off, what happens to pipeline?Pretty much stalls1/3
Reactive selling. Each quarter is fought in the quarter, not built before it.
- What's your current pipeline-to-quota ratio for the remaining quarter?Around 1× or less1/3
- How many deals in your active pipeline have stalled more than 30 days?More than 25%1/3
Forecast is wishful thinking. Decisions get made on gut, then questioned at quarter-end.
- If you forecasted last month's revenue 30 days out, how close was the actual?Within 25%2/3
- Are CRM stages defined with written exit criteria?Stages exist by name only1/3
Process lives in heads. New hires take six months because there's nothing to onboard them to.
- If you hired a senior AE tomorrow, how much of the onboarding is documented?Some of it, mostly verbal2/3
- Where does your discovery question framework live?Different per rep1/3
Real GTM team. A founder can leave the room and revenue still happens.
- Who is accountable for hitting next quarter's revenue number?Co-founder + sales lead jointly2/3
- Does anyone meet with you weekly with their own pipeline view?Yes, one team member2/3
You know how to expand. The motion itself is a muscle.
- In the last 18 months, have you opened a new segment, region, or channel?Yes, in early-stage tests2/3
- If a new segment opportunity appeared tomorrow, how confidently could you act?We'd improvise but we know the moves2/3
Where to start, in order.
- 1Closing autonomy33% scored
Pipeline still runs through the same few people
Every meaningful deal depends on the same one or two people being present for the close.
First moveMap the close path on the last three six-figure deals, then assign two people other than the usual closer who can run it next time.
Areas of work- Map the structural dependencies on the last three closed deals (intros, pricing approvals, exec-level reassurance) and who really drove them.
- Document the close conversation — objections, pricing logic, mutual close plan — so a different person on the team can deliver it.
- Pair-shadow two team members on the next two closes, with the usual closer on mute by call three.
- 2Pipeline coverage33% scored
Coverage gap into the next two quarters
Reactive selling. Each quarter is fought in the quarter, not built before it.
First moveCalculate coverage ratio weekly (pipeline value ÷ remaining-quarter quota). Target 3–4×. Identify whether the input gap is volume, qualification, or velocity.
Areas of work- Calculate coverage ratio weekly; surface whether the gap is volume, qualification quality, or velocity.
- Audit existing pipeline; triage every deal stuck more than 30 days (re-engage, downgrade, or close-lost).
- Build a documented input plan: leads → qualified opportunities → late-stage deals, with weekly targets per stage.
- 3Forecast confidence50% scored
Forecast is wishful thinking
Forecast is wishful thinking. Decisions get made on gut, then questioned at quarter-end.
First moveDefine written exit criteria for each CRM stage. Every deal in “Qualified” must meet the same bar; rest is noise.
Areas of work- Write exit criteria per CRM stage — what facts must be true to move a deal from Qualified to Proposal.
- Install a Healthy / At Risk / Stuck rubric on every active deal, reviewed weekly without exceptions.
- Backtest the last 90 days of forecasts to find where inflation comes from (stage misclassification, champion-only signal, or pricing optimism).
Fixing the first item alone tends to move the overall score by a tier. The other items wait — they're often unblocked by the first fix anyway.
What I'd recommend.
Sprint
Build the missing engine, embedded with your team.
Setup → Operate → Optimize on your Top-3 punch list, embedded with your team. The structural fix when there are three real gaps to install at once.
In-House Hire
Bring the operator inside, with a defined ramp.
Right when the system is mature enough that a senior hire inherits something rather than building from scratch. A 30/60/90 plan + a real owner of the number.
Hold
Your moment isn't now — here's what to do until it is.
Sometimes the honest answer is: not yet. Either the system isn't ready for a hire, or the org isn't ready to absorb a fix. Better to wait than burn budget on a sequence that won't stick.
Want me to look at this with you?
I read every audit personally. Send the report through and I'll come back within 24 hours with a written read — not a calendar link from an assistant.