# How do we deal with pipeline that sits at 90% and never closes?

Require an artifact to enter the late stage — a proposal link, a signed order form — so the stage cannot run ahead of the paper. Then report stage age and close-date slip count alongside the forecast, which makes the stalled deals visible without a policing exercise.

The behavioural cause is that late stages have no cost to enter and a real cost to leave. Adding an artifact gate changes the incentive without anyone having to argue about a specific deal. Pair it with a written definition of what triggers a deal moving backwards.

## Sources

- **Method** — [Quote to Cash playbook](https://www.leanscale.team/knowledge/playbooks/quote-to-cash-playbook/)
- **Method** — [GTM Lifecycle playbook](https://www.leanscale.team/knowledge/playbooks/gtm-lifecycle-playbook/)

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Cluster: Stages · https://www.leanscale.team/knowledge/answers/deal-stuck-in-negotiation/